'Sing Hallelujah to the Lord' marks Hong Kong anti-extradition protests, 'anthem' of demonstration

Christian Post ^ | 06/20/2019 | Brandon Showalter

[SeekAndFind]

As record numbers demonstrate in the streets of Hong Kong to protest a proposed extradition law and the mainland Chinese government, a Christian song penned in 1974 has become an "unofficial anthem."

Christian groups in the autonomous territory in southeastern China of approximately 7.4 million people — a former British colony — have been singing "Sing Hallelujah To The Lord" by Linda Stassen-Benjamin while protesting and marching in the streets. The song, which is catchy and simple in melody, is popular around the world and has been translated into many languages.

The demonstrators have also been protesting against police brutality. The authorities apparently have a distaste for the Christian song, as evidenced by one sign a protester carried, which reads: "Stop Using Baton Or We Sing Hallelujah To The Lord." Numerous clips of protesters singing the hymn have been posted to Twitter and other social media.

Approximately 2 million protesters have taken to the streets to express their opposition over a proposed law that would send suspected criminals to be extradited to mainland China to be prosecuted and to demand that China-backed Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam resign.

Reports indicate that although further action on the contested extradition law has been suspended though not completely scrapped, the protesters, many of whom are young, are continuing to push back. Demonstrators fear the Chinese government will employ the proposed law to target and effectively silence their critics.

In addition to the Christian hymn, the protesters have being singing "Do you hear the people sing" from the musical "Les Miserables."

The presence of Christians and others singing "on the front lines of the protests were helpful in making the demonstrations look more like an outdoor worship service rather than the 'organized riots' the government said it had to crack down on to bring back law and order," Shanghaiist noted Sunday, calling the 1974 song the "unofficial anthem" of the uprising.

Meanwhile, China has been censoring the Hong Kong protest demonstrations on the mainland. When an internet user there keys “Hong Kong” into Baidu, China's largest search engine, no news of the protests turns up.

Government censors have also scrubbed Les Miserable's popular anthem, “Do you Hear The People Sing,” from online music streaming services.

Among the Christian leaders within Hong Kong's Christian community speaking out against the extradition bill is Chinese Catholic Cardinal Joseph Zen, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong who has been a vocal critic of China for decades, has asked Catholics to pray for the situation, has spoken at anti-extradition rallies, and convened a Mass to pray for Hong Kong.

The Catholic diocese has issued an official statement urging the Hong Kong government to slow down with regard to the law's passage.

Chu Yiu-ming, pastor of Chai Wan Baptist Church in Hong Kong is among the Protestant clergy seen at the protests singing the famous hymn. The Baptist leader was also a leader in 2017 push demanding universal voting rights in Chief Executive elections.

The Chinese government has been cracking down on religious expression in recent months and years, intensifying its efforts to rid the mainland of Christian symbols by removing crosses from churches and replacing them with Chinese flags and by demolishing "unregistered" churches and mosques.

The Hong Kong protests have occurred mere days after the 30-year anniversary of the Tiannamen Square massacre, known as the '89 Democracy Movement, that the Chinese government brutally repressed.

[momincombatboots]

Nice post. Putting it on my spotify.. in English and Cantonese or maybe mandarin.

[punknpuss]

This is a beautiful song and so simple. I love it.

[SeekAndFind]

Version of the song made popular in Hongkong:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-yYRUyLRvQ

[CondoleezzaProtege]

“Where the Spirit of the LORD is, there is freedom...”

[piasa]

Youtube nuked it

[SeekAndFind]

The link still exists but the video
Is gone.

[af_vet_1981]

Youtube nuked it

Was the video generating money for someone ?

“Sing Hallelujah to the Lord”, although beautiful in its simplicity, is a somewhat unusual praise song. Can you picture its composer, perhaps wearing a tie-dyed shirt, raggedy shorts and sandals, and maybe a flower in her hair? Not exactly what most of us today would recommend for your Sunday morning garb, huh? And, in keeping with the unconventional flow, her musical invention was different. Consider a proper hallelujah…most song-writers probably would begin with a bright and upbeat major key to aptly, and musically express praise to God, correct? Not Stassen. She wrote this song in a minor key (C minor). Why? Was she trying to fail?! The combination of Stassen’s musical chords and the words she chose tell us that perhaps she began to compose by drawing on how she felt viscerally about God, and what mood she wanted to convey. As we sing, we can sense that she was moved by the awesome, haunting sense of what God had accomplished for her, and wanted to express that feeling through the music structure, in a minor key. Did you notice that the minor key matches what we sing about Jesus rising from the dead in verse two (an awesome, overwhelming event), and that other things we sing about our king in the song -- his reign in the church and over earth, and his sure return to claim us -- should make us sense the majesty, and the greatness of our Lord, with deep reverence. It makes me re-evaluate the significance of this song’s message to my spirit. I used to think it’s just a simple tune that I could hum in a carefree way, but now I think it’s something I need to contemplate and dwell upon, and so carry myself to respect and honor Him in all that I do. …kind of an unexpected lesson from a freak.

Information on Linda Stassen in the story was gathered from the “The Complete Book of Hymns: Inspiring Stories about 600 Hymns and Praise Songs”, by William J. and Ardythe Petersen, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Information on the “Jesus People Movement” was gathered from the following Wikipedia site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_movement.


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Unknown said...
I have lost contact with Linda :-( Last I heard she was no longer living in California. Here's what I DO know: You do NOT need permission to do a different arrangement of a song just to perform it onstage. You DO need permission if a song will be published, recorded, (video or audio) FOR PROFIT. If the recording (or sheet music) will be for sale or if a video recording will be broadcast on TV, then you MUST get permission from the composer and whoever holds the Publishing. Last I knew, Linda's sister and brother in law were handling Linda's business regarding her songs. I remember seeing an address in Erin, Tennessee for "New Song Publishing" (which is owned by Linda). That's where her sister lives. She & her husband handle all the paperwork, permissions, royalties, etc. for New Song. If it's just a live performance, even video taped, but not going to be SOLD or create profit, then you don't need permission. Hope that helps :-) April 10, 2014 at 3:28 PMUnknown said... I have lost contact with Linda :-( Last I heard she was no longer living in California. Here's what I DO know: You do NOT need permission to do a different arrangement of a song just to perform it onstage. You DO need permission if a song will be published, recorded, (video or audio) FOR PROFIT. If the recording (or sheet music) will be for sale or if a video recording will be broadcast on TV, then you MUST get permission from the composer and whoever holds the Publishing. Last I knew, Linda's sister and brother in law were handling Linda's business regarding her songs. I remember seeing an address in Erin, Tennessee for "New Song Publishing" (which is owned by Linda). That's where her sister lives. She & her husband handle all the paperwork, permissions, royalties, etc. for New Song. If it's just a live performance, even video taped, but not going to be SOLD or create profit, then you don't need permission. Hope that helps :-)

April 10, 2014 at 3:28 PM