I miss Church music like this…………It preaches such love. Why don’t Churches have choirs anymore? Why? One of the saddest things I have seen in all my years as a preacher is when O went to preach at a Church ion Albuquerque that could seat 400? There was just 17 people, the congregation is dwindling, and at the front, probably 50 empty chairs where the choirs used to sit. They leave them empty I guess thinking they will have a choir again sometime. Made me so very sad. Yes, I am old, my all-time favorite is ‘Onward Christian Soldiers.’ I posted it below! Ha! Love it!
Churchleaders
George Frederic Handel (1685-1759) was living in London when he received an invitation from the Lord Lieutenant of Dublin in 1741 to write a new oratorio. The work was called Messiah. It was arranged in three parts: the Christmas story, the Easter story, and the spread of Christianity. What was unusual about this oratorio was its language. Breaking with tradition, Handel wrote every word of his oratorio, not in Italian, German, or Latin, but in English. Well, every word except for one word, which was left in its original language and not translated into English. For millennia this word has been used by people of all languages in the original Hebrew. It is the word, Hallelujah. People all over the world sing hallelujah.
The Hallelujah Chorus in Handel’s Messiah appears at the end of part two, at the resurrection of Christ. It was at this moment in an early performance that a tradition was born. The London premiere was held at the Covent Garden Theatre on March 23, 1743. More Here
