Judy Linton, the sole survivor of a murderous attack on the family of former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Lin I-hsiung (
The album, You Are My Most Beloved, depicts her love for her family and how the Christian Gospels healed her traumatized heart after surviving the attack which took the lives of her twin sisters and her grandmother on the night of Feb. 28, 1980.
The murders are believed to have been instigated by the then-ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
The attacks took place shortly after Lin had been arrested for participating in a human-rights rally that KMT thugs turned into a riot, which came to be known as the Kaoshiung Incident.
The murders remain unsolved but are widely believed to have been punishment for Lin's lack of cooperation with the martial law regime.
"Some of you may know of what happened to me when I was only eight years old. On Feb. 28, 1980, a murderer broke into my home. I was stabbed several times and left to die. My younger sisters were killed. My grandmother died while calling out my name. It was a time of grieving and I know that people around the world grieved with us," Linton, 32, said at a press conference yesterday held to mark the release of her album.
Linton, whose Chinese name is Lin Huan-chun (林奐均), was sent to the US in 1981 where she received a musical education and later became a pianist and gospel singer. She entered Indiana University in 1990 and later earned a masters degree in teaching English as a second language from Columbia University's Teacher's College in 1995.
She spoke yesterday of the process in which she found her heart gradually healing through her religion.
"In was there [the US] that I began attending church. Sometime in high school, God began to work on my bitter heart ? God has healed me and enabled me to forgive the murderer. He has given me true meaning in life and a hope for the future. I sing about God because I wish for everyone to know how wonderful he is," she said.
"Now when people mention the word `victim,' I no longer feel they are talking about me. I've been given so much love ..." she said.
Lin, who attended the press conference with his wife, Fang Su-min (
"I am very proud of my daughter and what she has achieved in her life. All these years, as she grew up, she never worried me as she got love from the people around her. I hope she could do better and better as she spreads the warmth of love to people," Lin said.
Now married to Joel Linton, an American Presbyterian missionary, Judy Linton is the mother of two children and is seven-months pregnant with her third child.
She lives in Taipei with her family and conducts ministering work.
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