When Handel Heard Heaven

In the late summer of 1741, George Frideric Handel locked himself in his London apartment on Brook Street for twenty-four days. He barely ate. His servant found meals untouched outside the door. The German-born composer was setting scripture to music in what would become Messiah — and something was happening to him that went beyond ordinary inspiration. When his assistant entered the room after Handel completed the "Hallelujah Chorus," he found the composer weeping.…