One Tough Assignment

 MEMORANDUM

DT: December, 2006
TO: Christiana von Believer, Special Forces
FR: Department of Defense
RE: New Assignment

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to compile a lucid, tightly woven report concerning Jesus, called Messiah. The exposé must include “all the principle truths of the salvation and the kingdom of God.”[1] It must “consider the whole of human experience - hope and fulfillment, suffering and death, resurrection and redemption.”[2]

You may cite the Bible only, and the ratio of Old Testament to New Testament texts must be roughly 2:1 in favor of the Old Testament. You may use no more than 50 citations total.

After you complete the work, a famous composer will set it to music. Once we begin to leak it to the public, we predict that millions of English speaking people will hear this report over the next hundreds of years.

It is due at the Pentagon by January 31, 2007, and will be declassified and publicized in April, 2007.

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And by the way, Christiana, no pressure.

Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Unless this officer has a good grasp of the Old Testament, the mission is extremely difficult to complete. Many Bible-reading folk may be able to come up with solid New Testament insights to Jesus’ life and purpose. Old Testament texts are a bit more sketchy in our minds.

Thank goodness, an English chap by the name of Charles Jennen did rise to the challenge back in 1742 or so, and wrote what became the libretto for George Frederick Handel’s famous “Messiah.” From the Old Testament, Jennen brought together scriptures from Isaiah, Haggai, Malachi, Zechariah, Psalms, Lamentations, and Job. His New Testament selections were from Matthew, Luke, John, Hebrews, Romans, 1 Corinthians, and Revelation.

During Jennen’s life, the Age of Enlightenment was in full swing, and so-called enlightened scholars began to treat the Bible as if it were merely another piece of classic literature or interesting phenomena awaiting scientific scrutiny. They scorned the idea of Jesus’ divinity. Jennen compiled these scriptures as a defense for the belief the Jesus was truly the Christ sent to bring the kingdom of heaven to the earth and salvation for all peoples.[3]

The brains of the Enlightenment may have not been impressed with Jennen's work, but enough of the rest of folk were. That is one reason why people still take the time to hear or sing a performance of “Messiah” during the Christmas and Easter seasons. The core message of the Good Book, even the oft ignored Old Testament, accompanied by great music, does not cease to stir the human heart.

[1] The Staff or associates of Christian History Institute.
[2] Program notes of Henley Denmead, Hartford Chorale.
[3] Christian History Institute.