(chimes) (melancholy music) (solemn orchestral music) (dramatic organ music) (solemn organ music) 

- Good morning. We welcome you here for this worldwide communion Sunday, particularly our visitors. Our preacher for the day is Bishop John Dudley Galtrey Kirkham, a bishop from England who is visiting in the United States as guest of North Carolina Episcopalians. His presence with us today reminds us of the worldwide dimension of the church and we welcome him to our pulpit and also as our celebrant at the table today. Our lector is the president of Duke University, Terry Sanford. At the offering today, a basket of food will be brought forward and placed before the table as a reminder that roughly a third of all the offerings that we receive at Duke Chapel go to the alleviation of hunger around the world, and we call this to your attention as we offer ourselves and our gifts to God during the offering. This is the Lord's table. All are invited to the table as a sign of our Christian unity. Now let us prepare ourselves for the worship of God. ♪ Blessed be the God ♪ ♪ And Father of our Lord Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ Which according to His abundant mercy ♪ ♪ Has begotten us again ♪ ♪ Unto a lovely hope ♪ ♪ By the resurrection of Jesus Christ ♪ ♪ From the dead. ♪ (organ music) ♪ For the beauty of the Earth ♪ ♪ For the glory of the skies ♪ ♪ For the love which from our birth ♪ ♪ Over and around us lies ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For the beauty of each hour ♪ ♪ Of the day and of the night ♪ ♪ Hill and vale and tree and flower ♪ ♪ Sun and moon and stars of light ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For the joy of ear and eye ♪ ♪ For the heart and mind's delight ♪ ♪ For the mystic harmony ♪ ♪ Linking sense to sound and sight ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to Thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For the joy of human love ♪ ♪ Brother, sister, parent, child ♪ ♪ Friends on earth and friends above ♪ ♪ For all gentle thoughts and mild ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to Thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For thy church, that evermore ♪ ♪ Lifteth holy hands above ♪ ♪ Offering up on every shore ♪ ♪ Her pure sacrifice of love ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪ ♪ This, our hymn of grateful praise ♪ ♪ For thyself, best gift divine ♪ ♪ To the world so freely given ♪ ♪ For that great, great love of thine ♪ ♪ Peace on earth, and joy in heaven ♪ ♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪ ♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪ 

- Grace and peace to you from the blessed Lord, our God and our Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. Let us confess our sins. Eternal and ever merciful God, we confess that often we have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done Your will. We have broken Your law. We have rebelled against Your love. We have not loved our neighbors. We have not heard the cry of the needy. Forgive us, we pray, free us for joyful obedience through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. Hear the good news. Christ died for us while we were yet sinners. That is God's own proof of his love toward us. In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven. 

- In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven, amen. (pious organ music) (organ music drowns out chorus) 

- Let us pray. Open our hearts and minds, O God, by the power of your holy spirit so that as the word is read and proclaimed, we might hear with joy what You say to us this day, amen. The first lesson is taken from Isaiah. "The spirit of the Lord God is upon me "because the Lord has anointed me "to bring good tidings to the afflicted. "He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, "to proclaim liberty to the captives "and the opening of the prison to those who are bound, "to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor "and the day of vengeance of our God, "to comfort all who mourn, "to grant to those who mourn in Zion, "to give them a garland instead of ashes, "the oil of gladness instead of mourning, "the mantle of praise instead of faint spirit." Here ends the reading of the first lesson. Second lesson is taken from Ephesians. "But now in Christ Jesus, "you who once were far off "have been brought near to the blood of Christ, "for he is our peace who has made us both one "and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility "by abolishing in his flesh "the law of commandments and ordinances "that he might create in himself one new man "in place of the two, so making peace, "and might reconcile us both to God "in one body through the cross, "thereby bringing hostility to an end. "And he came and preached peace to you who were far off "and peace to those who were near, "for through him, we both have access, "in one spirit, to the Father, "so then you are no longer strangers and sojourners "but you are fellow citizens with the saints "and members of the household of God "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, "Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone "in whom the whole structure is "joined together in groves in a holy temple "in the Lord in whom you also are built into yet "for a dwelling place of God and the spirit." Here ends the reading of the second lesson. The gospel is taken from John. "Now before the feast of the Passover, "when Jesus knew that his hour had come "to depart out of this world to the Father, "having loved his own who were in the world. "He loved them to the end. "And during supper when the devil "had already put it into the heart of "Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, "Jesus, knowing that the Father had "given all things unto his hands "and that He had come from God and was going to God, "rose from supper, laid aside His garments, "and girded Himself with a towel. "Then He poured water into a basin "and began to wash the disciples' feet "and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. "He came to Simon Peter, and Peter said to Him, "'Lord, do you wash my feet?' "And Jesus answered Him, "'What I am doing, you do not know now, "but afterward, you will understand.' "And Peter said to Him, 'You shall never wash my feet.' "And Jesus answered him, 'If I do not wash you, "'you have no part in Me.' "And Simon Peter said, 'Lord, not my feet only, "'but also my hands and my head.' "Jesus said to him, 'He who has bathed does "'not need to wash except his feet, "'but he is clean all over. "'You are clean, but not every one of you.'" For He knew who was to betray Him. That's why He said, "You are not all clean." "When He had washed their feet "and taken His garments and resumed His place, "he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? "You call me teacher and lord, "and you are right, for so I am. "If I, then, your lord and teacher, "had washed your feet, "you also ought to wash one another's feet, "for I have given you an example "that you also should do as I have done to you. "Truly, truly, I say to you, "a servant is not greater than his master, "nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. "If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them." This ends the reading of the gospel, amen. 

- In the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, amen. It is a great joy and privilege as well as a deeply moving experience for me to come here to share in this lovely worship with you, and I would like to thank the choir for their wonderful singing. And for me, it is a memory which I shall take back to England with me. I am bishop of a bishopric which goes back to 705 A.D. In the great abbey church of Sherborne in Dorset, Sir Walter Raleigh worshiped when he lived in the castle there. Now in England, when a visiting preacher amongst the pulpit steps, three questions probably come into the mind of the congregation. What will he say, will it be good, and how long will he take to say it? (laughter) I give three answers to those questions. What will I say? Wait and see. Will it be good? Probably not because I'm a very ordinary person and not a very clever one. How long will I take to say it? Well, I'm told I don't have more than 15 minutes. But I put a question to you, and it is the second question which comes in the Bible, in the book of Genesis, chapter three. Where are you? Where are you? Adam and Eve were having a lovely time in the garden of Eden when, thanks to Eve, they landed up in trouble. And the voice of God came to them. Where are you? And I put that question, "Where are you," because God, I believe, is saying it to the world, to his church, and to us. First of all, I want to look at this world of ours which is our inheritance and with which we are entrusted during our time here on Earth, and I want to point, first of all, to one or two things about the age in which we live. It goes without saying, I think, that we are standing on ground which seems to be shaking under our feet. No longer are we able to feel or say that our civilization and our world is secure. There is such potential for good within it, but there is also unknown possibilities for evil and destruction. The poet T. S. Eliot wrote, "It seems as though something has happened "which has never happened before "though we know not just why or when or how or where. "Men have left God, they say, "not for other gods but for no god. "And this has never happened before." Although it is hard to generalize about this world, and there's always a danger in that, it seems to me that there are certain things which are true about our life today. I'm just going to mention, first of all, one or two of them. Many people live lives which are based on the false assumption that there are no absolute standards of right and wrong and that everyone can do what is right in their own eyes. Now you've only to look at the world about us and at the history of nations to see the devastating effects of such a belief upon the life of a country or upon its culture. Then there are many who hold the false belief, and this is certainly true of the country and the part of the world from which I come, that man is intrinsically good and will always behave reasonably well, bearing the needs of others in mind. But this, of course, again is a false belief. It doesn't take into account the true nature of man. Saint Paul expressed something basic to human nature when he wrote, "The good that I would, I cannot. "The evil that I would not, that I do." And surely this is true of the experience of all of us. Then there is too the false belief that material prosperity and comfort will produce happiness and security. But again, this goes against the evidence of history when men and nations seem to be in greater danger in times of economic security and prosperity than at other times. The words of the psalmist come to my mind. "He gave them their hearts desire "and sent leanness withall into their souls." Now all that I've said so far seems rather serious, but I use it just to point to some of the things which I believe has brought our world, or our Western world, to this critical time in its history and at such breathtaking speed. It may be that we feel like those African porters who had traveled at such speed through the jungle that they'd put down their loads and they refused to go on. When asked why they would not proceed, they said, "We have traveled so far so quickly "that we are waiting for our souls to catch up with us." Our gospel is one of realistic hope and as Christians, we should always have joy and hope within us. God is hidden in this world. He hid Himself in Mary. He hid Himself in the boy at Nazareth, in the man of Galilee, and in the dying Christ on the cross. And so He is hidden in us in His risen life. We are Christ-bearers, and Christ goes on being crucified in what we do with His world and with our own lives. Many years ago, I worked at a great church in London, England, St. Martin-In-The-Fields. One day, I went down into the dark crypt on a Saturday afternoon, and as I tried to find the light switch, I tripped over a body in the dark. After I had recovered from the shock and found the switch and put on the light, there, lying at my feet, was the body of a man who was dying and barely conscious. Of course, when I was able to make him speak, I asked him why he was there and who he was. He told me that he was an alcoholic and a diabetic out of prison the week before, and for that past week, he had lived off methylated spirits, aftershave lotion, and anything else that he could get hold of. I said, "Why have you come into the crypt of this church?" He said to me, with great sadness but hope in his voice, "Somehow I believe that God has a place in it all." And God is hidden in this world. He has a place in it all. There is something, I believe, within each human being which makes him look beyond himself to someone both within and outside himself. It is that hope of a God who has a place in it all where lies our hope for the future. Because of it, God is saying to His world, "Where are you?" In "Where are you?", God is saying to his church. The church, as we know, is in this world to worship, to witness, to serve, and to suffer. We continue that work of Jesus Christ as a kind of extension of the incarnation. It is here to give people a vision of a way of life within this world which is positive, inspiring, enriching, and unselfish. It should be a place where men and women are able to find themselves as God intended them to be, renewed, restored, forgiven, and accepted. The church is also here to serve the world, as we know, as Christ served it. Some years ago, when I was taking a party of people to the Holy Land, every morning in the early hours, I used to go out onto the mount of olives to have a time of peace and quiet. One morning, as I sat under an olive tree, a shepherd came over the brow of the hill with a flock of sheep, and he found a nice, comfortable place on an old stone wall on which he lay down and went to sleep. All the sleep grazed around him happily. Then suddenly, over the top of the hill, came a little lamb, bleating, with notes of panic in its voice because it was lost. As it came nearer and nearer to the flock, the tone of its voice changed because it thought it had found the flock to which it belonged. But the sheep just went on grazing. When the lamb drew near enough to recognize them, it realized suddenly that it wasn't its own flock, and it ran off into the distance, still searching, still bleating, still lost. Sometimes the church can be like that flock of sheep, more concerned about the preservation of its own life than about helping the suffering Christ in the lost and poor of the world. What will happen, I often ask myself, to the poor of the world, God's poor, if we do not lower our standards of living and our material expectations? What will happen to God's world if nations do not stop the arms race and if we do not accept all men and women as our brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of race, color, or creed? Of course, we are not in this world as Christians or the church to tell the world how to run its affairs. We're here to be the conscience of society, to point to those principles on which society should be based and to remind that society when it is not based upon them. We should have the courage to speak out prophetically, for loving our neighbor as Christ told us to do means being desperately concerned about every part of human life, political, social, and spiritual. "I sought my God. "My God I did not see. "I sought my soul. "My soul eluded me. "I sought my brother, and I found all three." If we as a church and as churches throughout the world do not concern ourselves about the suffering world, and if we do not seek and serve our Lord unselfishly and unitedly in worship and in the poor of the world, the angel may stand at the doors of our churches as he stood at the tomb on the first Easter day, and he may be saying, "He is risen. "He is not here. "You cannot seek the living among the dead." Where are you, God is saying to us? Of course, only we know where we are in our own lives, but what I would say is that we need to have a vision, always, for ourselves. A vision that must be an unselfish vision. Our destiny, in this world, is holiness, which means being like Jesus. Holiness revealed itself in Jesus as self-giving love. That's how His glory was revealed. To that, He consecrated Himself. It was for this that He died, and it is through this that He brings us hope and forgiveness. One day, a small boy went into a sculptor's workshop and he saw there a large block of marble and the sculptor standing at one side, chipping at it. He went away thinking, "What a waste of time, "just chipping away at a large block of stone." Three weeks later, he came back, and in place of that large block of stone stood a fierce and very beautiful lion. Excitedly, he ran up to the sculptor and said, "Sir, tell me how did you know "there was a lion hidden in that block of stone?" The art of sculpture is the art of seeing. The art of living is the art of seeing. The art of being a Christian is the art of seeing. God looks and God sees and God waits for us to respond. There is something in this world for each one of us to do which only we can do, and someone which only we can be. As we keep close to this wonderful, loving God who created us, who has shown us what He is like in Jesus Christ and who is present with us through His holy spirit, and as we keep close to Him through prayer and worship, we start to see this world and other people through the eyes of Christ and we become sensitively aware of what he wants us to do and of what he wants us to be. Our journey through this world is a journey of becoming and what we are is God's gift to us and of what we one day become is our gift to God. In that lovely passage we heard in the gospel, there great truths are revealed for us, for the world ...