Getting a New Handel On an Old Story

Back in April, I posted the following piece about new discoveries surrounding Handel's "Messiah." Given that 'tis the season for the tradition of the oratorio now -- and also the season for reruns (especially with the Writers Guild strike...), it seems like a fine time to repeat it. But the main reason is that in the interim I came across some new, related information which augments the story in quite an interesting way. It's all updated the end. For those who've read this before, feel to jump to the new conclusion. Or read it again as if a holiday classic. Sort of like a very early, 18th century version of "The Grinch."

But have a glass of nog, as well. Fa la la...


You Can't Handel the Truth

Over the passage of years, we lose track of the conditions that existed when artworks were created. When those years become centuries, the history vanishes, and all that remains is the work itself.

That is, until someone researches that history, and puts the piece in its original context.

And that brings up Handel's "Messiah."

By any standard, it's a brilliant piece of music, which has understandably lasted 250 years. Even to those who don't share its religious underpinning, the music is enthralling, and part of the celebration of the Christmas season.

Oops.

Now comes this detailed, deeply-researched article in the New York Times by Michael Marissen.

"So 'Messiah' lovers may be surprised to learn that the work was meant not for Christmas but for Lent, and that the 'Hallelujah' chorus was designed not to honor the birth or resurrection of Jesus but to celebrate the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in A.D. 70. For most Christians in Handel's day, this horrible event was construed as divine retribution on Judaism for its failure to accept Jesus as God's promised Messiah."

Oops.

Mr. Marissen does an impressive, scholarly and even-handed job uncovering the history of Handel's "Messiah." If anyone is interested in that history, do read the article. At the very least, read it before stating an opinion on it...

To be clear, this is not about political correctness. This is about correctness.

The truth, we are told, shall set us free. Either we go out of our way to learn the truth in our lives -- and embrace it -- or we bury our heads in the sand and listen to the sounds of gravel.

People will still listen to Handel's "Messiah" for centuries to come, whatever the reality behind it. The music is glorious. The words? Well, be honest, it's a fair bet that most people don't know exactly what's being sung about anyway -- it's 2-1/2 hours, for goodness sake. Most fans wouldn't listen to American Idol for that long. People tend to tune out Handel's "Messiah" about six minutes in and let the music wash over them. When the "Hallelujah Chorus" is about to begin, they get nudged and sit up straight. And even at that, the only words most people know are "Hallelujah" and that it will "reign forever and ever." (Some people probably think it's about Noah's Ark.)

So, in some ways, the libretto of Handel's "Messiah" is not of critical importance 250 years after the fact. And that might be the biggest joke on Charles Jennings, who wrote the text and apparently saw the work as a way to confront what he believed was "a serious menace" in the world By having his friend Handel set his pointed tracts to music, Jennings felt that would help get his point across more subtly to the public. The result, of course, was that the spectacular music swamped over the words, and over time they took on a completely different meaning.

This is known as the Law of Unintended Consequences. Or also, be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.

Somewhere up in heaven, or more likely down in hell, Charles Jennings has been pounding his head against a wall for the last couple hundred Christmases, screaming, "No, no, no! Don't you people get it?!! It's supposed to be about celebrating the destruction of heathen nations, not the embracing love of mankind. You people are so lame!"

And it gets worse, because starting the day after Christmas -- until the next Christmas when Handel's "Messiah" starts playing again -- Jennings berates himself all year, wondering if he screwed up his work and didn't make it clear. Like maybe he used too many metaphors, or commas. Or perhaps in Scene 6, when he wrote, "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron," he should have explained who "them" was or described a different bludgeon.

No doubt there will be some people aghast by the revelations (no matter how valid) about the writing of Handel's "Messiah." I also have no doubt that almost all those who are aghast have never sat through the 2-1/2 hour work. Nor that most of those ever paid attention to what the precise words actually were. But they will be aghast anyway.

On the other hand, most people who have sat and sat through a 2-1/2 hour performance of Handel's "Messiah" likely welcome having an excuse now not to have to do so again.

Mr. Marissen concludes his study with a thought on the subject.

"While still a timely, living masterpiece that may continue to bring spiritual and aesthetic sustenance to many music lovers, Christian or otherwise, 'Messiah' also appears to be very much a work of its own era. Listeners might do well to ponder exactly what it means when, in keeping with tradition, they stand during the 'Hallelujah' chorus."

And while singing along, they might want to add a "Hallelujah" for the truth, as well.


UPDATE

While reading Volume 9 of Will and Ariel Durant's majestic Story of Civilization, entitled "The Age of Voltaire," I came upon their extensive discussion of Handel. After the passage on "The Messiah," the Durants continue on with the composer's life and eventually reach five years later, April of 1747, when Handel had hit hard times. Not only had he written a string of failures and needed to close his theater, but he went into a sort of retirement, and rumor passed that he may even gone insane, though perhaps it might have been mental exhaustion. (The Earl of Shaftesbury remarked, "Poor Handel looks a little better. I hope he will recover completely, though his mind has been entirely deranged.") However there was yet more to Handel -- and to the story relating somewhat to the controversy today about "The Messiah." The Durants write --

"...Handel, now 60 years old, responded with all his powers to an invitation from the Prince of Wales to commemorate the victory of the Prince's younger brother, the Duke of Cumberland, over the Stuart forces at Culloden. Handel took as a symbolic subject Judas Maccabaeus' triumph (166-161 B.C.) over the Hellenizing schemes of Antiochus IV. The new oratorio was so well received (April 1, 1747) that it bore five repetitions in its first season. The Jews of London, grateful to see one of their national heroes so nobly celebrated, helped to swell the attendance, enabling Handel to present the oratorio forty times before his death. Grateful for this new support, he took most of his oratorio subjects henceforth from Jewish legend or history: Alexander Balus, Joshua, Susanna, Solomon, Jephtha. By contrast, Theodora, a Christian theme, drew so small an audience that Handel ruefully remarked, "There was room enough to dance."

No doubt, Charles Jennings, author of the text for "The Messiah," is spinning even faster and deeper in his grave. But quality does win out over time. And so does transcending decency. And that, perhaps, in part, and in the end, may well be what we're left with.

Hallelujah, indeed.

Read more holiday-themed posts from HuffPost bloggers.

Comments

[OutsideLookingIn]

I can listen and enjoy Wagner without succumbing to any sense of inferiority to Germanic peoples and I can listen to and enjoy Messiah confident that the story it relates is no more factual than Mimi's story in La Boheme.

[WilliePilgrim]

Fascinating history. Thanks for that. It reminds me of an article I read a few months ago in which the Psalms were thought to have been the result of a cultural awareness campaign to promote the legitimacy of the ruling house at the time: propaganda, in short.
But just as most people who enjoy the Messiah have very little awarenes of its history in light of the generally recognized institutionalized anti-semitism of the past, I suppose the polemicists and historians will argue, but the lesson seems to be increased awareness of the human capacity to appreciate art that occasionally transcends the dull stupidity of just about everyones' common misunderstandings on just about everything there is.

[larry278]

A bit off thread: A critic based in the old, former USSR said while praising the composer that the Messiah would be remembered & performed long after Christianity had been forgotten. There is a bit of irony in that since the USSR folded in 1991. It's probable that even if Mr Putin becomes a Czar like ruler of the CIS, aka Russia, he won't ban religion.

[gyaeger123]

Did anyone stop to think that Mr. Jennings did not write a single word for the libretto of Messiah; every word is a quotation from holy scripture. He may have chosen the passages, with what personal intent I cannot judge. I only know that they tell of the prophecy, birth, life, suffering, death, resurrection and triumphal coming again of Messiah. By the way the Hebrew word for "nations" in the libretto from Psalm 2 verse 1 is "goyim" which means anyone not part of Israel (a Gentile). So quoting that as support for the 70 AD destruction of the temple is not logical from a linguistic standpoint. Also, at that point in history, Christianity was considered a sect of Judaism, called "the Way" or in Hebrew "ha Derek".
I just discovered a recording of Messiah by Leonard Bernstein and the Westminster Choir done over 40 years ago. I found the vinyl 2 record set in a secondhand store, put it on my old turntable and digitized it, taking out clicks. Despite the old technology the interpretation of the piece is magnificent! I have subsequently ordered the CD version which is still available on amazon.com. I have sung in particpation Messiah"s 3 times and in the chorus when performed twice. 200 years from now, Messiah will continue to be performed and people will stand at the Hallelujah chorus. In doing so they are not honoring Jennings, nor Handel, but as the word Hallelujah in Hebrew means, they are praising God almighty and the love He has shown us.
May the Peace of Messiah be with you all.

[wshanks]

Thanks for writing this. Just saw Handel's Messiah yesterday afternoon, and even as a non-Christian, I enjoyed it tremendously. I read the words as the entire piece was sung, and did think the lyrics were very interesting from a historical standpoint.

Merry Christmas!

[NYC07]

A good read and an absolute must for any church group doing Handel's Messiah should be:

Ellen Harris. Handel as Orpheus: Voice and Desire in the Chamber Cantatas. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England: Harvard University Press, 2001. xi, 430p. Illus., port., bibliog., index ISBN 0-674-00617-8.

It gives great insight into the man.

[StephenSmoliar]

As they say, you cannot throw a cat in this room without striking an irony. The greatest of those ironies may well be the popularity of MESSIAH among Jewish music lovers. When I was growing up, there were no recordings of Bach choral music in our household, probably because the texts were too Christian for Jewish hearing. MESSIAH was embraced, however, because almost all of its libretto came from the Old Testament. Never mind that the texts were the strident voices of the Prophets warning the Children of Israel of the vengeful nature of their Lord and the coming of the Messiah as part of that plan of vengeance. Here was music that did not use offensive words like "Jesus" and "Christ." That was good enough for my family and probably most of the Jewish community!

There is a lesser, journalistic, irony. The NEW YORK TIMES hyperlink points to the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, which had reprinted Marissen's article. Very rarely do I see something in the CHRONICLE first!

Then there is a bit of irony behind the averagejoe comment. This work is far from "little more than high school term papers." I have no idea if the TIMES gave Marissen's credentials. The CHRONICLE usually provides this information but failed to do so in this case. So, just to set the records straight, Michael Marissen is Daniel Underhill Professor of Music at Swarthmore College. From reading his credentials on the Music Faculty Web site, I discovered that this article was a "digest" of a more extended monograph, HANDEL'S MESSIAH AND CHRISTIAN TRIUMPHALISM. Since is was on the scale of some of the talks I used to hear at musicology conference, I suspect that the TIMES version began in that form and was subsequently edited for "public consumption." Like it or not, averagejoe, Elisberg got it right: This IS about correctness (and may very well have had something to do with getting tenure)!

[MTGradwell]

I don't get it. It isn't April 1st ... so, why? Messiah is "meant not for Christmas"? Maybe not, but the whole of part 1 is all about coming of the Messiah, and its foreshadowing in the Old Testament. For Christians, that's an advent message; and part 2 is mainly about Easter, and part 3 is about the resurrection, and the final triumph of life over death. The whole is meant to tell the whole story of the Messiah, hence the name.

I'ts meant "to celebrate the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in A.D. 70"? That's ludicrous. Maybe it's hard to listen through the whole thing and take in all the words - the same is true of any opera - but that's why we have librettos. Take a look at
http://gfhandel.org/messiahlibretto.htm

It's surprisingly short. You can read it in a couple of minutes. Try to find anything which hints even vaguely at celebration of the destruction of the Jewish temple.

So what evidence does Mr. Marissen put forward for his hypothesis?

The libretto reads "Why do the nations so furiously rage together". "Nations" instead of the "heathen" to be found in the KJV. "Nations" potentially includes the Jews, whereas "heathen" supposedly does not. Therefore, it's all about the Jews, QED. But the vast majority of translations say "nations". See http://bible.cc/psalms/2-1.htm

Couldn't it just possibly be that the librettist thought "nations" was a more appropriate word, and a better translation of the original Hebrew? If we use "heathen" then we exonerate ourselves, and defeat the whole object. We aren't heathens, are we? We don't furiously rage and imagine vain things, do we?

In the update we read that Jews flocked to Handel's performances. Would they have done that if they thought that his greatest oratorio had anti-semitic overtones?

[avergejoe]

Nice Try, anyway.

All this revisionist history surrounding Christian traditions, from writers 2000-200 yrs after the fact, without subsequent supportive independent investigations are little more than high school term papers - particularly in the NYT, whose recent failings regarding truth and fact and objectivity are well known.

Second, why is it that only Christian history gets revised? e.g. Most scholars in ancient ME history know the old testament is a warmed over collection of Mesopotamian folk tales seasoned with stories of jews attacking their neighbors (not much has changed), yet where are the msm scholarly papers?

There is a double standard, here.