Performed by a multitude of renowned choirs and orchestras each year, including those at Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU), Handel’s Messiah is an Advent season classic. This year, the IWU Chorale and Orchestra’s performance was marked by an intentional focus on cultivating divine imagination for both the performer and listener.
Messiah is a three-part oratorio portraying the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Written by composer George Frideric Handel in just 24 days, Messiah marries scripture with artistic expression.
“Handel very plainly sets prophecies from Isaiah alongside other minor prophet texts, two gospels, Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth, and John’s words from Revelation,” said Davy Chinn, IWU Chorale director. “By singing and playing this music, our students have Scripture imprinted upon their minds, and I believe, therefore, their souls.”
With more than 50 original sections and a full performance length of over two hours, compositions of this magnitude typically take years to complete. Therefore, the rapid creation of Messiah has long fueled the belief that Handel wrote in a fervor of divine inspiration.
“Handel himself was quoted saying that he had seen the throne of God in heaven as he composed the Hallelujah chorus. For audiences today, the same is true: it’s not hard to imagine the heavens open and the throne of God while listening to this performance,” said Gert Kumi, IWU professor and orchestra director.
The recent performance on IWU’s Marion campus served as a lived expression of this divine capacity, showcasing IWU’s Common Learning Theme, which seeks to cultivate the Christian imagination through intentionally crafted experiences across disciplines.
For student conductor and Chorale tenor section leader Chase Dowdy, Messiah became an invitation to imagine the longing of God’s people awaiting Christ’s first coming.
“As a performer, I noticed a shift in my imagination regarding Christ,” said Dowdy. “Ultimately, I found myself longing for the final coming of Jesus Christ, a connection between Christians today and God’s people awaiting Christ’s birth.”
Similarly, Chorale senior Elayna Parandi Horgen noted the concert provided her with a tangible way to express her own wonder at Christ’s redemptive work.
“Performing Handel’s Messiah allowed me to step into the deep drama and beauty of Christ’s story. As the chorus sang, I found myself reflecting on truths and giving voice to my own wonder and belief through the music.”
Leading up to the concert, IWU welcomed internationally acclaimed author Charles King, professor of international affairs and government at Georgetown University, to campus to discuss his book Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel’s Messiah. Exploring the real lives and spiritual hunger of the people for whom Handel wrote, Every Valley reinforces the power Messiah holds to speak across centuries.
King met with Chorale students and later with faculty from the Music and Art departments and members of the Common Learning Theme steering committee, offering rich historical and spiritual context for Handel’s masterpiece.
“Providing students with the opportunity to engage national thought leaders like Charles King is a reflection of IWU’s commitment to developing them in character, scholarship, and leadership,” said IWU Vice President of Academic Affairs David Davies, Ph.D. “His visit exemplified the Christian imagination as we explore how creativity in every academic discipline can reflect the Creator.”
IWU’s presentation of Messiah invites the IWU community to proclaim the wonder of things past and things to come, looking back at the fulfilled promise of Christ’s birth and forward to the day when the body of Christ will join together in eternal praise to our Messiah.
