Rufus H. Stark, II - "Straightforward about Truth" Alumni Sunday (June 12, 1983)

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	(organ music)	0:03
	(footsteps)	5:12
	(organ music)	5:27
	(soloist singing in Latin)	5:42
	(church choir signing)	8:11
	(organ music)	9:25
	(church choir singing Hallelujah)	10:18
	Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our creator	16:58
	and Jesus Christ, our redeemer, in the faith.	17:03
	If we say we have no sin,	17:08
	we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.	17:10
	Let us then confess out sins before almighty god,	17:15
	and in the presence of onto another.	17:19
	Let us pray.	17:22
	(shuffling)	17:24
	Oh god, who creates us and calls us to live in freedom,	17:34
	we confess that often we tolerate those laws that neglect	17:39
	the needs of others.	17:44
	Our vision is narrow and short sighted, even as we claim	17:46
	special honors for ourselves, we deny them to others.	17:50
	By working against your holy purposes, we limit our growth	17:55
	and impede your truth.	18:00
	Forgive us, O' Lord.	18:02
	Send your spirit into our lives once more.	18:05
	Help us to know and recapture your hope for all people.	18:09
	Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen.	18:13
	Hear this good news.	18:43
	There is nothing, absolutely nothing,	18:45
	that can separate us from the providence of God,	18:48
	or the love of Christ, Jesus.	18:53
	In the name of Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven.	18:56
	Let us then give thanks, for god is good,	19:00
	and God's love is ever lasting.	19:04
	Thanks be to god, whose love creates us.	19:07
	Thanks be to god, whose mercy redeems us.	19:11
	Thanks be to god, whose grace leads us into the future.	19:15
	We welcome this beautiful Sunday morning,	19:21
	the third Sunday after Pentecost,	19:25
	and, also Alumni Reunion Sunday,	19:28
	here at Duke University Chapel.	19:31
	We're delighted that you have chosen to come	19:34
	and worship with us,	19:36
	especially those of you who are returning to Duke	19:38
	having been here in this academic community	19:41
	at other times and places in your lives.	19:44
	We want to lift up the reunion classes	19:49
	that have gathered this year	19:52
	to especially celebrate their connection to Duke University.	19:54
	The reunion classes of 1928, 33, 38, 43, 48, 53,	19:58
	58, 63, 68, 73, and always, the half-century club.	20:08
	We are delighted that you are here with us.	20:17
	Some of you would like to know that returning alumni	20:20
	are singing in the choir today.	20:23
	Some of them have sung in other years here	20:25
	at Duke in the chapel choir.	20:28
	I hope some have come just for the thrill and fun	20:31
	of it this Sunday.	20:34
	You are invited to an organ recital at 5 o'clock here	20:38
	in the chapel this afternoon.	20:42
	It will be given by Shane Dowdy.	20:45
	Himself, a fairly recent graduate of Duke University.	20:48
	The concert is for 5 o'clock.	20:52
	The public is cordially invited to attend.	20:55
	There is no charge.	20:58
	Many of you will want to have an update	21:02
	on the Reverend, Dr. Robert T. Young,	21:04
	Minister to Duke University and dean of Duke Chapel.	21:08
	As some of you are aware,	21:12
	Bob underwent bypass surgery Monday of last week.	21:14
	We are delighted to share that he is recuperating very well.	21:20
	The signs look good, and we rejoice in his good health	21:24
	and the prospects ahead for him.	21:29
	He is very grateful for your prayers,	21:32
	your continued support,	21:35
	and the many ways you have found to be in touch	21:37
	with him and his family in this time of need.	21:41
	We are very honored and privileged today	21:47
	to have for our guest preacher for Alumni Sunday	21:50
	the Reverend Rufus H. Stark II.	21:54
	Until annual conference met,	21:59
	Reverend stark was the senior minister	22:01
	of the first United Methodist Church	22:04
	in Morehead City, North Carolina.	22:06
	He has just been appointed the executive director	22:09
	of the Methodist home for children in Raleigh.	22:13
	Reverend Stark is a graduate of Duke University	22:17
	and also from the divinity school.	22:21
	Members of his family have graduated from Duke as well,	22:24
	as you will note in the bulletin	22:28
	He is closely tied to Duke;	22:31
	has loved this place for many years.	22:34
	we feel privileged to have Reverend Stark be our preacher	22:36
	for this special Sunday.	22:41
	He is a native of North Carolina;	22:43
	has had a long and distinguished career in parish ministry,	22:46
	and has also distinguished himself by participation	22:51
	in community and civic affairs	22:55
	in the various places he has served.	22:58
	Members of his family, his children,	23:01
	are here with him today,	23:04
	and his wife, Betty Lou.	23:06
	we are delighted to have them here with us.	23:08
	We know that you joined with us	23:11
	in anticipating the sermon of this morning.	23:13
	The sermon title is, "Straight Forward about Truth".	23:17
Older Woman	Let us pray.	23:32
	Oh Lord, our god, who by the entrance	23:35
	of your word gives light unto the sow.	23:38
	Pour down upon us the spirit of wisdom and understanding.	23:41
	That being taught by you in holy scripture,	23:46
	we may receive with faith,	23:49
	the words of eternal life and be made wise unto salvation.	23:51
	Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.	23:56
	The Old Testament lesson is from Second Samuel,	24:01
	the eleventh chapter, 26th verse,	24:05
	through the twelfth chapter, tenth verse. Verses 13 and 15.	24:08
	When Uriah's wife heard that her husband was dead,	24:15
	she made lamentation for her husband.	24:19
	When the mourning was over,	24:22
	David sent for brought her to his house,	24:24
	and she became his wife, and bore him a son.	24:27
	But, the thing that David had done had displeased the Lord.	24:31
	And, the Lord sent Nathan to David.	24:36
	He came to him and said to him:	24:38
	"There were two men in a certain city.	24:41
	The one rich, and the other poor.	24:43
	The rich man had very many flocks and herds.	24:45
	The poor man owned nothing but one little, ewe lamb	24:49
	which he had bought.	24:52
	He had brought it up and it grew up with his children.	24:54
	It used to eat from his morsel and drink from his cup.	24:58
	Lined his bosom and it was like a daughter unto him.	25:01
	Now their came a traveler to the rich man,	25:05
	and he was unwilling to take one his own flock or herd	25:07
	to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him.	25:11
	He took the poor man's lamb and prepared it	25:14
	for the man whom had come to him."	25:17
	David's anger was greatly kindled against the man.	25:20
	He said to Nathan, "As the Lord lives,	25:23
	the man who would do such a thing deserves to die!	25:25
	And, he shall restore the lamb four fold	25:28
	cause he did this thing, and because he had no pity"	25:31
	And, Nathan said to David, "You are that man!	25:35
	Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel.	25:40
	I anointed you king of Israel,	25:42
	and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul.	25:45
	I gave you your master's house and your masters wives	25:48
	into your bosom and gave you the house of Israel and Judah.	25:51
	If this were too little,	25:56
	I would add to you as much more.	25:57
	Why have you despised the word	26:00
	of the Lord and do this evil in his light?	26:02
	You have smitten Uriah the Hittite	26:05
	with a sword, and taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite	26:07
	to be your wife.	26:11
	David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."	26:13
	And, Nathan said to David, "The Lord, also,	26:17
	has put away your sin.	26:20
	You shall not die."	26:22
	Then Nathan went to his house,	26:24
	here ends the reading from the Old Testament.	26:27
	The epistle lesson is from Galatians,	26:32
	chapter 2 verses 11 through 21.	26:34
	When Cephas came to Antioch,	26:40
	I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.	26:42
	For before certain men came from James,	26:46
	he ate with the Gentiles.	26:49
	But when he came back,	26:50
	He separated himself fearing the circumcision party.	26:52
	And with him, the rest of the Jews acted insincerely,	26:57
	so that even Barnabas was carried away by their insincerity.	27:00
	When I saw that they were not straightforward	27:05
	about the truth of the gospel,	27:07
	I said to Cephas before them all,	27:09
	"If you, though a Jew, live like a gentile,	27:11
	and not like a jew, how can you compel the gentiles	27:15
	to live like Jews?"	27:18
	We ourselves who are Jew by birth and not gentile sinners,	27:22
	yet know that a man is not justified by works of the law,	27:25
	but through faith in Jesus Christ, in order to be justified	27:29
	by faith in Christ and not by works of the law,	27:33
	because by works of the law shall no one be justified.	27:37
	But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ,	27:40
	we ourselves were found to be sinners,	27:44
	is Christ then an agent of sin?	27:46
	Certainly not!	27:49
	But, if I build up again those things	27:51
	which I tore down, then I prove myself a transgressor.	27:53
	For, I through the law, died to the law,	27:58
	that I might live to God.	28:00
	I have been crucified with Christ.	28:02
	It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.	28:04
	And, the life I now live in the flesh,	28:09
	I live by faith in the son of god,	28:11
	who loved me and gave himself from me.	28:14
	I do not nullify the grace of god, for if justification	28:17
	were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.	28:22
	Here ends the reading from the Epistle lesson.	28:26
	(orchestra playing)	28:48
	(Church choir singing)	28:58
	Will the congregation please stand	31:43
	for the reading of the gospel lesson.	31:46
	(shuffling)	31:49
	The gospel lesson is from Luke, chapter seven, verse 36	31:53
	through chapter eight verse three.	31:58
	One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him.	32:02
	And, he went into the pharoses house	32:05
	and took his place at the table.	32:07
	And, behold, a woman of the city who was a sinner.	32:09
	When she learned he was at the table in the Pharisees house,	32:12
	brought an alabaster flask of ointment.	32:15
	And, standing behind him at his feet, weeping,	32:18
	she began to wet his feet with her tears,	32:21
	and wiped them with the hair of her head,	32:23
	and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.	32:26
	And, when the Pharisee who had invited him, saw it,	32:30
	he said to himself,	32:32
	"If this man were a prophet,	32:33
	he would have known who and what sort of woman	32:35
	this is who is touching him.	32:37
	For she is a sinner."	32:39
	Jesus, answering ,said to him,	32:41
	"Simon, I have something to say to you."	32:43
	He answered, "What is it teacher?"	32:46
	"A certain creditor had two debtors.	32:49
	One owed five hundred dineri, and the other owed fifty.	32:51
	When they could not pay, he forgave them both.	32:55
	Now which of them will love him more?"	32:58
	Simon answered, "The one, I suppose,	33:00
	to whom he forgave more."	33:02
	He said to him, "You have judged rightly."	33:04
	Then turning towards the woman he said to Simon,	33:08
	"Do you see this woman?	33:10
	I entered your house, you gave me no water for my feet.	33:12
	She has wet my feet with her tears	33:16
	and wiped them with her hair.	33:18
	You gave me no kiss,	33:21
	but from the time I came in,	33:23
	she has no ceased to kiss my feet.	33:24
	You did not anoint my head with oil,	33:28
	but she has anointed my feet with ointment.	33:31
	Therefore, I tell you, her sins,	33:34
	which are many, are forgiven.	33:36
	For she loved much,	33:38
	but he who is forgiven little, loves little."	33:40
	And he said to her, " Your sins are forgiven."	33:43
	Then those who were at table with him began to say	33:47
	among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"	33:50
	He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you.	33:54
	Go in Peace".	33:57
	Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages,	33:59
	preaching and bringing the good news of the kingdom of god.	34:03
	The twelve were with him,	34:07
	and also some women who had been healed	34:09
	of evil spirits and infirmities.	34:12
	Mary, called Magdalen, from whom seven demons had gone out.	34:15
	And, Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward,	34:20
	and Susanna, and many others,	34:23
	who provided from them of their needs.	34:26
	So endeth the reading of the word.	34:30
	(organ music)	34:35
	(Church choir singing)	34:41
Reverend Stark	Let us join in pray as we pray	35:48
	for one another in preparation	35:51
	for the preaching of the word.	35:52
	Amen.	36:06
	I came early this morning, to stand in this place,	36:10
	keenly aware of the honor paid me to ask me	36:15
	to occupy this pulpit,	36:19
	and then I went downstairs to hang my robe	36:21
	in preparation for the service.	36:24
	There on the walls of the gathering place,	36:26
	the great portrait of Dean Clellan,	36:29
	Doctor Hickman, peering at me.	36:32
	And I stood in awe before them for a moment,	36:36
	and then I realized they were praying for me,	36:38
	and I felt better.	36:40
	Being straightforward about truth	36:43
	might seem rather heavy and demanding,	36:47
	a theme for this alumni weekend.	36:50
	Especially in view of the plight, of those of us like I am,	36:55
	who are 30 years out.	36:58
	When we greet one another,	37:01
	30 years older and proclaim to each other,	37:04
	"why you haven't changed a bit!"	37:06
	How to handle the truth on alumni weekend?	37:10
	That is the question.	37:16
	We all rather like the preacher who,	37:20
	of a large and prominent church, who died and went to heaven	37:22
	or was in the process of entering heaven,	37:28
	he was surprised to find a long line.	37:31
	Was even more surprised to find that he had	37:35
	to take his place in that line.	37:37
	He became more anxious when he got to the gate	37:41
	and the attendant asked him his name.	37:43
	"What have you done," the attendant said.	37:48
	"Well," he said,	37:51
	"I was pastor of the largest church of my connection.	37:52
	We had an annual budget of $500,000,	37:55
	and we received 400 souls a year	38:00
	into the fellowship of the church."	38:02
	"Well, that's eight points. What else have you done?"	38:05
	Somewhat taken aback, he said,	38:09
	"I've written countless and published countless papers	38:10
	and five volumes, one in hardback, bear my name."	38:13
	"Two points," the attendant said.	38:17
	The preacher was getting a bit uneasy and said,	38:20
	"How many points do you have to have?"	38:22
	He said, "100."	38:25
	The preacher said, "100! Goodness,	38:27
	only by the grace of god will you get in here."	38:30
	"Well, that's worth 90 points, come on in," he said.	38:31
	(laughs)	38:34
	(parishioners laughing)
	But for the Grace of God, none of us would be here.	38:41
	That's the truth.	38:49
	But, here we are,	38:52
	and how glad we are to see each other's face.	38:53
	The strong ties of this place call us here and call us back	38:58
	and we come gladly.	39:01
	You'll permit me a personal word.	39:05
	This is a special time for our family.	39:09
	My mother, Sarah Desheil, finished here in 1923,	39:13
	and is here today for the 60th anniversary celebration	39:18
	of her class.	39:21
	Betty Lou and I finished in 53,	39:24
	30 years later, and we're here today.	39:26
	I had a son finish in the interim.	39:31
	My oldest son, Tom.	39:34
	Then Paul just finished this year,	39:36
	60 years after his grandmother.	39:39
	And the thing that occurred to me as I thought	39:43
	about this involvement of Duke in our lives,	39:45
	was that this is not atypical.	39:50
	That many of you can say the same.	39:52
	That many of our families have several members of the family	39:55
	who have been a part of this great school.	39:58
	It is that we are truly grateful that I can speak	40:03
	on behalf of your, certainly on behalf of us,	40:05
	to give thanks to God for the greatness of this place,	40:09
	for it's heritage, and for it's benefit in our lives.	40:12
	That's being straightforward in the truth.	40:18
	The thesis of my sermon this morning is that	40:23
	being straightforward about truth is that quality	40:25
	that is essential to greatness.	40:28
	Now, that sounds like a rather academic,	40:32
	self evident statement, and it is.	40:35
	Being straightforward about the truth	40:38
	is an essential quality	40:40
	that makes any university great.	40:41
	The liberal arts tradition and education recognizes	40:45
	that the university is, on one hand,	40:49
	a depository for known perceptions of truth.	40:51
	Gathered for generations and recorded in libraries	40:56
	and books and on microfilm and computer chips.	40:58
	Carefully organized by those of us who teach and who seek	41:02
	to lead each generation,	41:05
	to discover and accept anew the truth already revealed.	41:08
	On the other hand, a liberal arts university is a place	41:13
	where teacher and student alike feel free to search	41:17
	for truth (short pause) which is ever being discovered.	41:21
	To ask any question and to pursue the search	41:27
	for truth wherever that search may lead.	41:31
	This whole process depends on integrity,	41:36
	being straight forward about truth.	41:39
	It is an academic matter, obviously so.	41:43
	So obvious that one might wonder why the necessity	41:47
	to discuss such a matter on a special occasion such as this.	41:49
	I do so because being straightforward about truth,	41:55
	although it is academic, is never merely academic.	41:59
	Being straightforwards about truth is always relational.	42:04
	Now we worked together with books	42:12
	and papers and lectures	42:16
	and notes and exams and theses written and filed away	42:18
	and all of that is a part of the process	42:21
	of being straightforward about truth.	42:23
	But it is always more than that.	42:28
	It is how one handles the truth	42:31
	that determines the quality of human relationships.	42:35
	The lectionary text for today got me	42:40
	into this matter, you understand.	42:42
	I don't know that anybody would choose	42:45
	those three heavy texts for alumni Sunday,	42:47
	but following the lectionary gets you	42:49
	into quite a struggle sometimes.	42:51
	After I reflected upon them,	42:55
	I was glad they were designated for today.	42:57
	In 2nd Samuel, that great story of David and Nathan	43:02
	in the Old Testament.	43:06
	Nathan confronts David,	43:09
	because David has not been straightforward about truth.	43:12
	You know the story.	43:18
	The great sin of David, he lusted after the wife	43:20
	of one of his soldiers.	43:23
	He arranged that the soldier Uriah was	43:25
	to go to the battlefront.	43:28
	The other troops were to fall away and he fell	43:30
	to the enemy in battle.	43:33
	After the mourning period, David takes Bathsheba	43:36
	for his own wife.	43:39
	Nathan confront David, telling him the parable	43:41
	about the two men, one rich and one poor.	43:44
	The rich man had many flocks,	43:47
	and the poor man had but one ewe lamb,	43:50
	which he loved dearly.	43:53
	The rich man had a bunch of folks coming	43:55
	for the alumni weekend, I suppose.	43:58
	He took the poor man's ewe lamb and slaughtered	44:00
	it for the feast.	44:03
	David said, "Mercy, that's terrible, that man should die!"	44:06
	David pointed his long boney finger right in the face	44:08
	of David and said, "Thou are the man."	44:11
	David had not been straightforward	44:16
	about the truth that Uriah, Bathsheba were human beings.	44:19
	Fully God's children in the sight of God,	44:25
	and he had used and exploited other people.	44:27
	In the life of Jesus, in the gospel lesson,	44:34
	The day we find Jesus being invited into the home	44:37
	of a prominent Pharisees, one Simon.	44:40
	Had him in for dinner.	44:46
	Evidently, Simon was doing this rather begrudgingly.	44:47
	After all, he was a high class Pharisee in the city,	44:51
	and this man was a peasant carpenter from the country.	44:54
	Simon sort of tolerated him, but that's about all.	45:02
	None of the amenities of the occasion.	45:06
	He didn't wash his feet, he didn't offer to anoint him,	45:08
	as was the custom of the times.	45:10
	But, as they dined that evening, there came into the room	45:12
	a woman of the streets, a prostitute.	45:15
	Used and abused by the men of that town,	45:18
	and she came in, having somewhere along the road met Jesus.	45:20
	She felt accepted by him in a way	45:25
	that no one else had treated her.	45:27
	She felt a whole person.	45:29
	She came hesitantly to his feet and began	45:31
	to weep over his feet,	45:34
	as her feelings were so evident.	45:37
	Grasping a vial of perfume,	45:40
	she broke it and anointed his feet,	45:43
	and wiped away the residue with her hair.	45:45
	Simon was scandalized!	45:48
	Jesus, do you not know what kind of woman that is?	45:50
	Jesus brought judgment to Simon that day.	45:55
	Simon, came to your house you didn't was my feet,	45:57
	you never welcomed me with an anointing,	46:01
	and yet this poor woman, and we all know her sins are great,	46:05
	has come and given me the love I need,	46:09
	the affirmation that I need.	46:11
	Behold, her sins are forgiven.	46:14
	You, Simon, you sin	46:19
	because you're not straightforward about truth.	46:21
	You do not recognize the worth	46:26
	that is an aid in every person	46:30
	Then there was the problem of Simon peter.	46:36
	This is later on, you understand,	46:40
	in the days of the early church over in Antioch.	46:42
	Peter and Paul in the thrusting movement of the church	46:47
	had been witnessing to the gentile world.	46:50
	Which was the real breakthrough of the gospel,	46:53
	that the good news of God was for all people.	46:55
	Paul and Peter were moving into all directions,	46:58
	witnessing to the outside of the gentile world.	47:01
	Some of the guys back in Jerusalem were not that liberal.	47:06
	They say, "we got to hold back there.	47:10
	This things moving too fast. Let's get back to the old ways.	47:11
	We've got to be more selective about who we deal with."	47:14
	They got to Peter, and in a meeting there in Antioch,	47:20
	Peter reversed himself and he refused to eat	47:25
	with the gentile Christians.	47:28
	Paul says, "I confronted him to his face.	47:31
	That's the only way to handle subversion, is up front.	47:34
	Face to face."	47:38
	He says, writing to us in the Galatian letter,	47:42
	"I reprimanded Peter because he was not	47:47
	being straightforward with the truth.	47:49
	Peter had come to know the great vision of God's love	47:52
	for every person, affirming the worth of every person.	47:55
	Having known it, he denied it.	47:59
	Turned his back upon it."	48:01
	Paul brought judgment upon Peter.	48:04
	Judgment that was, of course, instructive	48:07
	to the great apostle of the church.	48:10

-	You see, deviating from the truth,	0:06
	being subversive of the truth	0:11
	is not an academic matter.	0:13
	It always affects human relationships.	0:17
	Always, human history is littered with the wreckage	0:21
	of being devious with the truth.	0:26
	The english slave trade that spread	0:28
	to the New England colonies in the 18th and 19th centuries	0:31
	subverted the principle of the worth	0:35
	of every individual and treated human beings	0:38
	as cattle, property to be bought and sold,	0:40
	and we yet struggle with the legacy	0:44
	of this subversion.	0:47
	Adolf Hitler built national pride of his nation	0:51
	out of a refusal to be straightforward about truth,	0:56
	teaching that only persons of Aryan stock had worth.	0:59
	All others should either be enslaved or terminated.	1:03
	And the lie of Hitler brought on the Holocaust,	1:07
	and the terrors of World War II.	1:11
	The judgment of God is upon us	1:16
	when we are not straightforward with truth.	1:17
	It is more than academic.	1:20
	It is relational.	1:23
	Now the greatness of this school	1:27
	that we call alma mater is her love of truth.	1:29
	Being straightforward about truth.	1:35
	I've enjoyed reading a little	1:40
	of the history of Duke University.	1:41
	I want to illustrate this reality	1:46
	by an event that happened in the history of Trinity College.	1:50
	And Trinity College, we all know,	1:56
	is the forerunner of Duke University.	1:57
	I refer to an incident that happened in 1903	2:02
	while John Carlisle Kilgo was the president of Trinity.	2:05
	If you go over on East Campus,	2:10
	you will find a dormitory named Bassett Dorm.	2:11
	And that dormitory is named	2:15
	after Dr. John Spencer Bassett, professor of history.	2:17
	In my studies, I've drawn upon	2:22
	our former bishop, Paul Neth Garber's biography	2:24
	of Dr. Kilgo, president of Trinity College,	2:27
	1894-1910.	2:31
	And in addition, Earl Porter's Trinity in Duke	2:34
	from 1892-1924, and Professor Hershey Spence's	2:38
	book, I Remember.	2:45
	Hershey Spence's book, I Remember,	2:46
	that many of you familiar with this copy.	2:48
	Dr. Bassett, in addition to his professorial duties	2:53
	was editor of the South Atlantic Quarterly,	2:57
	a scholarly journal.	2:59
	In the October 1903 issue of the quarterly,	3:02
	Dr. Bassett wrote an editorial entitled,	3:05
	Stirring Up Fires of Racial Antipathy.	3:08
	Earl Porter states in his book	3:13
	that it was a closely reasoned, coldly stated view	3:14
	of the total negro problem.	3:18
	The article holds its own with any analysis	3:21
	made today, and was far in advance	3:24
	of the thinking of that day.	3:27
	Consequently, it was highly controversial.	3:28
	Listen to what Dr. Porter says about this article.	3:31
	Bassett began by noting that in the past five years,	3:34
	there have been north and south increasing opposition	3:38
	to the negro, why?	3:41
	For three reasons.	3:43
	Inherent race antipathy, as old as the arrival	3:45
	of the negro in America.	3:48
	Second, the progress of the race in recent years.	3:50
	The progress of the negro race in recent years,	3:53
	and finally third, the fact that the negro problem	3:56
	is and has been for a long time a political matter.	4:00
	Well Bassett went on in this article	4:05
	to assert that the democratic party	4:08
	had selected the negro issue	4:09
	as the central controversy around which to get votes.	4:12
	You can understand why he was getting controversial.	4:16
	A reading of area daily papers of that time	4:20
	shows Bassett to have been on target.	4:23
	Racism was the accepted policy,	4:26
	and was exploited in almost every political utterance.	4:29
	That's what the people wanted to hear,	4:33
	and that's what the politicians gave.	4:35
	Josephus Daniels, editor of the Raleigh News and Observer,	4:38
	responded to Bassett's article with vehemence.	4:41
	He had a long standing feud with Trinity College,	4:45
	and President Kilgo, anyway.	4:47
	And Bassett's article added fuel to the fire.	4:50
	Bassett was roundly condemned by Daniels	4:54
	for teachings counter to the accepted opinion	4:57
	of the majority of the people of North Carolina.	5:02
	His attack was picked up and echoed	5:06
	by most papers of the state, both secular and church.	5:08
	With the exception of the two Durham dailies,	5:12
	who while not agreeing with Professor Bassett's opinion,	5:17
	they were careful to state that,	5:21
	did support his right to have an opinion.	5:23
	Dr. Bassett was accused of being a destroyer of the south,	5:27
	of being out of touch with the proper attitude,	5:33
	of using his position to undermine true Christian education,	5:36
	and of providing an incentive	5:41
	for the ultimate violation of white southern womanhood.	5:42
	This man also sustained an unrelenting attack	5:48
	on his personal character.	5:51
	I wish you would read the copies of the paper	5:53
	and the journals in those days.	5:55
	It is quite revealing of the heritage of our area.	5:56
	The attack spread from Dr. Bassett to President Kilgo	6:02
	and Trinity College.	6:05
	The public was warned against sending young men to Trinity.	6:07
	But the main force was on Bassett.	6:12
	It came from all quarters, led by the press.	6:15
	Many pastors and congregations,	6:18
	business people, the judiciary of the state	6:20
	and even governor Charles B. Aycock, of blessed memory	6:23
	slipped on this one.	6:27
	And called for the resignation	6:30
	and the cincture of Dr. Bassett.	6:32
	I am pleased to report to you this morning	6:35
	that neither Methodist conference	6:37
	took action against Dr. Bassett, bless their hearts.	6:39
	The pressure became so intense	6:44
	that Dr. Bassett offered to resign	6:47
	if the trustees decided to request him to do so.	6:49
	The trustee meeting was called to hear the matter out.	6:54
	The student body, the faculty,	6:57
	and President Kilco saw the issue	6:58
	as one of academic freedom, properly so,	7:01
	and were unanimous in their support	7:04
	of Dr. Bassett's right to express himself.	7:06
	President Kilgo's speech at that meeting	7:10
	is a classic statement of academic freedom,	7:12
	and I recommend it to you.	7:15
	You will find it in Garber's book on Kilgo.	7:16
	The trustees, after a long meeting,	7:21
	voted 18 to 7 to support Dr. Bassett.	7:23
	Well, historians see the impact of this event	7:32
	as far reaching for Trinity and higher education	7:37
	in the south, and indeed in the nation.	7:40
	The issue was picked up by the press	7:42
	throughout the nation, and even in Europe.	7:44
	Little Trinity college became known all over the world	7:46
	because it had taken a stand for being	7:50
	straightforward about truth.	7:52
	And Trinity College's willingness to stand	7:55
	the test strengthened the school immeasurably	7:57
	and brought national acclaim.	7:59
	And it was this event that is one	8:01
	of the pivotal, if not the pivotal event,	8:03
	that led to the interest of JB Duke,	8:05
	and the endowment of that college	8:09
	to become Duke University.	8:11
	The influence of that stand enhanced the cause	8:18
	of academic freedom in both church and secular institutions	8:23
	in the south, and throughout the nation	8:27
	as one of the great, great examples	8:29
	of the importance of free Christian higher education.	8:32
	And as an example of what it means	8:38
	to be straightforward about truth.	8:40
	And so here we are in 1983.	8:46
	Alumni, faculty, administration, friends.	8:52
	And we honor a great university	8:57
	of which we are a part.	8:59
	Made great because she is ever straightforward	9:02
	about truth, and would not our call for these days	9:07
	to keep it so, for us to keep it so.	9:12
	Is that not our task, and mission?	9:15
	That we never let special interests,	9:19
	preferences as to who is the most important	9:23
	cloud our vision,	9:26
	but that we ever remain an open, honest people.	9:28
	Encouraging people everywhere to take their place	9:33
	in the sun, to stand up straight and tall,	9:36
	to ever be straightforward about truth,	9:41
	and is that not our call as individuals today?	9:46
	Is that not the mission of each of us?	9:50
	Wherever we stand.	9:53
	I know that's my mission, as I go to a children's home.	9:56
	To minister, to see the worth	9:59
	of every child, no matter what.	10:02
	No matter where from, no matter what the circumstance.	10:04
	Is that not the mission that each of us has today	10:09
	to respect the rights, the freedom,	10:12
	the value of every person,	10:15
	to be straightforward about the truth of God?	10:17
	Is not that the word the world needs to hear	10:19
	under the hanging, slender thread	10:22
	of nuclear annihilation?	10:24
	That we must have the courage to affirm the worth	10:27
	of every person, wherever they live,	10:31
	whatever be their presence?	10:35
	That we all become and continue to be	10:40
	straightforward about truth,	10:45
	amen.	10:49
	(gentle organ music)	10:56
	(choir and organ together)	11:50
-	As the people of God, let us affirm what we believe.	13:48
	We believe in God, who has created and is creating,	13:53
	who has come in the truly human Jesus	13:58
	to reconcile and make new.	14:01
	Who works in us and others by the spirit.	14:04
	We trust God, who calls us to be the church.	14:08
	To celebrate life and its fullness,	14:12
	to love and serve others,	14:15
	to seek justice and resist evil.	14:18
	To proclaim Jesus crucified and risen,	14:21
	our judge and our hope, in life, in death,	14:25
	in life beyond death, God is with us,	14:30
	we are not alone, thanks be to God.	14:34
	The Lord be with you.	14:38
	Let us pray.	14:41
	Oh eternal God, before whose face the generations	14:56
	rise and pass away, age after age of the living	15:01
	seek you and find that of your faithfulness,	15:06
	there is no end.	15:09
	For you are the inspirer of every true prayer,	15:12
	the giver of all wisdom, the source of all truth,	15:16
	the beginning of all human freedom,	15:21
	and the end of all human responsibility.	15:24
	Look, oh God, this day, upon this community of learning.	15:28
	Let it ever remain faithful to you.	15:32
	To the truth as we come to know it in you,	15:36
	and in your son, Jesus Christ.	15:39
	Keep us ever from surrendering truth	15:42
	or giving over freedom to those who in fear or faithlessness	15:46
	tell us that we must fight evil with evil,	15:51
	or falsehood with lies.	15:55
	Let this, your university, be a light of truth	15:58
	in a world of darkness.	16:02
	A witness to freedom in a world	16:05
	where many are still enslaved to idols and ideologies.	16:07
	And a place where all people shall come to know	16:12
	the good, and to know you,	16:16
	the wellspring of all good.	16:19
	Oh God, we pray for Duke's graduates.	16:22
	Those present, those who have gone before,	16:25
	and those who are yet to come.	16:29
	That in the midst of uncertainty,	16:32
	they may boldly stand for something.	16:34
	In the midst of aimlessness, they may have a goal.	16:38
	And in the midst of false prophets,	16:42
	they may look to your kingdom in Christ	16:45
	as the hope of the world.	16:48
	And that in the midst of careless ease,	16:50
	they may mount up with wings as eagles,	16:53
	may run and not be weary, may walk and not faint.	16:57
	Hear our prayer, oh Lord.	17:02
	As in praise and Thanksgiving for all	17:05
	that we now have and hold.	17:07
	We pray in the name of Christ our Lord,	17:10
	who taught us to pray, saying,	17:14
	our father who art in heaven,	17:16
	hallowed be thy name.	17:20
	Thy kingdom come, thy will be done	17:22
	on Earth as it is in heaven.	17:25
	Give us this day our daily bread.	17:27
	And forgive us our trespasses,	17:30
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	17:32
	And lead us not into temptation,	17:36
	but deliver us from evil.	17:38
	For thine is the kingdom, and the power,	17:40
	and the glory forever, amen.	17:44
	(light organ music)	17:50
	(Choir and orchestra together)	20:17
-	Almighty God, the source of all our comfort and joy,	25:44
	receive us and these our gifts	25:49
	as we dedicate them and ourselves anew unto you.	25:52
	Consecrate for us the resolves of this hour,	25:56
	and lead us in your faithful service	25:59
	through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	26:02
	(organ music)	26:08
	(organ and choir together)	27:10
-	And now the peace of God, which passes all understanding.	30:27
	Keep your hearts and mind in the knowledge	30:33
	and love of God, and of his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.	30:36
	And the blessings of God almighty, creator,	30:42
	redeemer, and sustainer, be among you,	30:46
	and remain with you now and forever.	30:51
	(choir singing)	31:00
	(cheerful organ music)	31:37
	(crowd applauds)	37:14

Item Info

Title:

Rufus H. Stark, II - "Straightforward about Truth" Alumni Sunday (June 12, 1983)

Description:

It is our call as Christians to always be straightforward about the truth, for it is how one handles the truth that determines the dimensions of our relationship to one another and to the earth. The great ills of society, such as slavery and the holocaust, are results of perversions of the truth. Thus, we must aspire to always be truthful. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Sermon start time: (Part 1) 36:10. Sermon end time: (Part 2) 10:51.
Key quotation: “Being straightforward about the truth is always relational…It is how one handles the truth that determines the quality of human relationships.”

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https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4n29pm7s

Date:

June 12, 1983

Speaker:

Stark, Rufus H., II

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Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 CS-0155
ref7833_i5a
uachapelsermaud
duke:320494
dcrau001146
ark:/87924/r4n29pm7s
9d6d9162-2266-4e27-b1c9-bce2cb65c128

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The Duke University Chapel Recordings were transferred to the Duke University Archives beginning in 1970.

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Rufus H. Stark, II - "Straightforward about Truth" Alumni Sunday (June 12, 1983)

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