… "And the government shall be upon his shoulders"
As I was getting up this morning, the local classical station was playing Handel's Messiah and that familiar phrase above is oft repeated, as I am sure you are well aware. It has always struck me as quite strange. I am hoping some of our musicological members can help me understand the meaning and intent of Handel giving that phrase such a prominent place in the work. Certainly, it seems to run counter to Christ's own teaching that we should "render under Caesar, the things that are Caesar's, and to God, the things that are God's".
I am aware that our modern American notion of separation of church and state was not the case in the Europe of Handel's time. Also that the medieval church had maneuvered itself into the rather convenient arrangement with earthly Kings that their right to rule proceeded from God. Which was known as the divine right of kings. This fortuitous arrangement put the church officials in the position of validating earthly power as the manifestation of God's will. But all of that still doesn't quite square with the mantra, "and the government shall be upon his shoulders".
From everything I have ever learned Christ did not give a fig for earthly power. Is this as big a contradiction as it appears? Is Handel's Messiah a propaganda piece?
By coincidence, the December 25th edition of the New York Times had a wonderful article on Charles Jennens who provided the text for Handel's Messiah. The article titled "Two Men Wrote The Messiah. You Know One Of Them." is linked here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/25/opinion/handel-messiah-holiday-hope.html?smid=em-share
|
Thank you, @bruce19. I do hope that others take a chance to read this. One more outstanding presentation is the 2014 film docu-drama "Handel's Messiah" with Jane Seymour narrating. Available on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/9JuSAqLBjAM?si=GF9vsxFjISVl4wVW The performances, costumes, period settings, narration, and historical information are fascinating and excellent. Handel's complex relationship with Charles Jennens is shown as is his relationship with key musicians and singers. The confluence of multiple and seemingly disparate events that all cohered to make the first performance of The Messiah possible might well give one pause. |
Apologies for this late contribution. I am just catching up on reading the NYT Book Review list of the Best Books of 2024. Among them is this: "Every Valley": The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's "Messiah" by Charles King. Echoing other accounts, the story of how the" Messiah" came to be is by itself quite incredible. This is a brief review of what appears to be an entertaining and highly worthwhile book providing a more detailed look at that great tale. |
