Letty Russell - "The Impossible Reality" (March 31, 1974)

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	(choir singing)	0:05
-	Sometimes we get so caught up in our humanity and what	1:08
	that means that we forget that breath of life, that gift	1:12
	of yourself which you have given each of us.	1:17
	In our self centeredness we forget that you are	1:22
	our creator and sustainer.	1:27
	Forgive us, Lord, and bring to us a realization of what	1:30
	being created in your image means in our lives.	1:36
	Then give us the strength and the courage to live out	1:41
	that realization.	1:46
-	Lord, God, we bring our outdated and our outgrown ideas	1:49
	of who you are and how you are related to us.	1:56
	Forgive us for thinking and acting without reference	2:00
	to you most of the time, and for obscuring the liberating	2:04
	word from you in Christ Jesus much of the time.	2:09
	Stir up the gifts of your spirit in us so we can be your	2:13
	people bringing truly liberating words and actions	2:18
	and relationships to bear on our world.	2:23
-	All these prayers of penitence we lift to thee, oh God,	2:27
	asking that in thy love thou wouldst forgive us,	2:31
	for we know that it is thy faithfulness that saves us	2:35
	even when we are unfaithful.	2:38
	Grant us a renewed spirit that we might serve thee	2:41
	and those whom thou has given us to love,	2:46
	through Christ our Lord, amen.	2:49
	(organ music)	2:53
	(choir singing)	3:17
-	Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger	4:20
	and abounding in steadfast love.	4:24
	Jesus said the one who comes to me I will not cast out.	4:27
	Your sins are forgiven for Christ sake, amen.	4:33
	(organ music)	4:39
	(choir singing)	5:04
-	Hear the word of God as proclaimed by his prophet Isaiah	8:12
	from the 52nd chapter of the Book of Isaiah beginning with	8:16
	the 13th verse.	8:20
	Behold, my servant shall prosper.	8:23
	He shall be exulted and lifted up and shall be very high.	8:26
	As many were astonished at him, his appearance was	8:32
	so marred beyond human sacrifice and his form beyond	8:35
	that of the sons of men, so shall he startle many nations.	8:41
	Kings shall shut their mouths because of him, for that	8:46
	which has not been told them they shall see.	8:51
	And that which they have not heard, they shall understand.	8:55
-	Let us join together in the reading of the Gospel lesson	9:10
	by standing to hear the Word.	9:13
	The Gospel lesson comes to us from Mark the 10th chapter,	9:30
	the 35th to the 45th verses.	9:37
	Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee,	9:49
	came forward to him and said to him, "Teacher, we want	9:53
	you to do for us whatever we ask you to do."	10:01
	And he said to them, "What do you want me to do for you?"	10:07
	And they said to him, "Grant us to sit one at your	10:15
	right hand and one at your left in your glory."	10:20
	But Jesus said to them, "You do not know	10:27
	what you are asking.	10:33
	You are able to drink the cup that I drink or to be	10:37
	baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized."	10:46
	And they said to him, "You are.	10:54
	We are able."	10:56
	Then Jesus said to them, "The cup I drink you will drink.	11:00
	And with the baptism with which I am baptized,	11:09
	you will be baptized.	11:13
	But to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine	11:17
	to grant, but it is for those for whom	11:21
	it has been prepared."	11:25
	And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant	11:32
	at James and John.	11:37
	And Jesus called them to him and said to them, "You know	11:41
	that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles	11:49
	lord it over them and their great men	11:54
	exercise authority over them.	11:58
	But it shall not be so among you.	12:05
	For whoever would be greatest among you	12:11
	must be your servant, and whoever would be first among	12:16
	you must be slave of all.	12:23
	For the son of man also came not to be served, but to serve	12:30
	and to give his life a ransom for many."	12:41
	May God add blessing of the Holy Spirit to the reading	12:49
	of this word, amen.	12:54
	(organ music)	12:58
	♪ Glory be to the Father. ♪	13:07
	♪ And to the Son. ♪	13:09
	♪ And to the Holy Ghost. ♪	13:12
	♪ As it was in the beginning. ♪	13:17
	♪ Is now, and ever shall be. ♪	13:21
	♪ World without end. ♪	13:26
	♪ Amen, amen. ♪	13:29
-	Now would you join with me in affirming our faith?	13:40
	The Litany of Affirmation which is printed	13:45
	in your bulletins.	13:47
	As a worshiping community, are we the church?	13:50
-	Yes, you are the church	13:55
	called to hear the word of God and respond in faith.	13:57
	We believe in one God maker and ruler of all things,	14:02
	infinite in wisdom, power and love, whose mercy is	14:06
	over all creation and whose will is ever directed	14:10
	to the good of all people.	14:14
	This God is our God and we affirm with joy the creative	14:16
	power which comes from this relationship.	14:20
	We believe in Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh,	14:24
	mediator of grace and hope, reconciler of our broken	14:28
	relationships.	14:34
-	This Lord is our Lord and we affirm with joy God's gift	14:36
	of abundant life in Christ.	14:41
-	We believe in the Holy Spirit, God present in our lives	14:44
	who convicts us of sin, assures us of God's love,	14:49
	and empowers us with gifts.	14:54
-	The Spirit is in us, and we affirm with joy God's	14:58
	active presence in our lives.	15:02
-	We believe that this faith should manifest itself	15:05
	in a love that serves.	15:09
	For Christ came into the world, not to be served,	15:12
	but to serve.	15:16
-	We affirm with joy that God compels us to go	15:19
	into the world as servants to the end that the	15:23
	kingdom of God may come upon the Earth.	15:27
-	The Lord be with you.	15:34
-	And with your spirit.	15:36
-	Let us pray.	15:38
-	Oh, God, in this holy season of Lent, in this	15:50
	time of spring when the flowers bud and bloom,	15:56
	the birds sing, the sun grows warm, the wind enlivens us,	16:00
	the rain refreshes us.	16:06
	When hearts seem tender, words sound kinder, feelings are	16:10
	warmer, and thoughts more lively, when Spring comes with	16:18
	all that this means to each of us and to those	16:24
	whom we love.	16:27
	We rejoice in life and we celebrate the new life	16:29
	you offer each of us.	16:35
	Oh, God, in this time of trouble, tension, and trauma,	16:40
	let us hear Jesus say to each of us,	16:46
	"Peace I leave with you.	16:49
	My peace I give unto you."	16:52
	In this time when we carry burdens, when life is heavy	16:57
	and the weight makes us weary, let us hear Jesus say,	17:01
	"Come unto me all who labor and who are heavy laden,	17:05
	and I give you rest."	17:09
	In this time when we are shackled in our doubts, imprisoned	17:13
	by uncertainty and insecurity, let us hear Jesus say,	17:19
	"You shall know the truth,	17:24
	and the truth shall make you free."	17:27
	In this time when many roads rise up before us, when	17:32
	choices are unclear and confusion surrounds us,	17:37
	let us hear Jesus say, "I am the way, the truth,	17:40
	and the life."	17:45
	In this time of indifference, selfishness, and unconcern	17:48
	for others, let us hear Jesus say, "I was hungry,	17:54
	thirsty, naked, sick, lonely, imprisoned, a stranger,	17:58
	and you cared for me.	18:07
	Enter in to the joy of Heaven."	18:10
	In this time of hardness of heart, insensitivity	18:15
	of spirit and callousness of feeling, let us hear Jesus	18:20
	say to each of us the first commandment is love God	18:26
	with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.	18:30
	The second is like it.	18:35
	Love your neighbor as yourself.	18:36
	Looking unto Jesus the Christ as the redeemer and the	18:41
	giver of life, give us the grace, oh God, to love	18:46
	ourselves, others, and you so that we might rejoice in	18:52
	life and celebrate the new life you offer each of us.	19:00
	In the name and through the power	19:09
	of Jesus Christ our Lord we pray.	19:12
	Hear us oh God as we pray the prayer which he has taught	19:16
	all of his disciples to pray.	19:18
-	Our Father, Who art in heaven	19:21
	Hallowed be Thy name.	19:25
	Thy kingdom come,	19:27
	Thy will be done,	19:29
	on Earth as it is in Heaven.	19:31
	Give us this day our daily bread,	19:34
	and forgive us our trespasses,	19:37
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	19:40
	And lead us not into temptation,	19:43
	but deliver us from evil.	19:46
	For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,	19:48
	forever, amen.	19:53
	We're pleased this morning to have with us a number	20:02
	of persons who are here at Duke University	20:07
	and Duke Divinity School this weekend participating	20:11
	in the inter seminary conference on women in ministry.	20:16
	So that those of you who worship here regularly might	20:24
	be aware of who some of these persons are, and also perhaps	20:27
	be impressed more than you have been before with the	20:33
	number of women who are in ministry, I'd like to have	20:37
	each of those persons, the men and the women who are	20:44
	participating in this conference wherever you are	20:48
	in the congregation this morning to stand	20:50
	for just a moment, please.	20:53
	Thank you.	21:01
	It is also our privileged to have, as our guest preacher	21:04
	in the Duke Chapel today Dr. Letty Russell, who also is here	21:08
	as a participant and as the keynotes speaker for the	21:17
	Inter seminary Conference on Women in Ministry.	21:21
	Dr. Russell graduated from Wellesley College, Harvard	21:27
	Divinity School, and Union Theological Seminary,	21:34
	served for a number of years in the parish and worked	21:40
	for 17 years, I think she informed me just a few minutes	21:45
	ago, in the East Harlem Protestant Parish, one of the most	21:49
	significant ministries in the life of the church	21:53
	in this century.	21:56
	She now is a professor of religious studies	21:58
	at Manhattan College in New York, also teaching	22:03
	at Yale Divinity School and New York Theological Seminary.	22:06
	We welcome Dr. Letty Russell to Duke University	22:12
	to Duke Chapel, to this service of worship.	22:17
	And we hear the word of God which you bring to us.	22:21
-	Let us pray.	22:42
	May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our	22:54
	hearts be acceptable in God's sight.	22:59
	In the name of the creator, liberator, and reconciler, amen.	23:05
	In my undergraduate days at Wellesley College,	23:22
	I used to process down the aisle	23:28
	with the choir daily and on Sunday.	23:32
	Not quite such a long aisle, and I usually was wearing	23:36
	blue jeans under my robe, but nevertheless	23:41
	as I processed down the aisle	23:45
	I came to the chancel and I looked up	23:48
	and there in the chancel written across the wall	23:53
	were the words	23:58
	Non Ministrari sed Ministrare.	24:00
	Each time I looked at those words walking down the aisle,	24:07
	no matter how sleepy or	24:13
	bleary eyed or distracted,	24:16
	I believed,	24:21
	believed that this lifestyle of Jesus, not	24:26
	to be ministered unto but to minister,	24:29
	had something to do	24:35
	with my own lifestyle,	24:38
	and in fact with why I was at college.	24:43
	Today the words not to be served but to serve,	24:52
	although in modern English,	24:58
	are still with us.	25:02
	But, for all of us, I think,	25:07
	they've become harder to believe.	25:12
	They have become more of a problem than a possibility	25:18
	in our lives.	25:23
	They are a problem for Christians because the very	25:29
	word service has become so debased in our culture that	25:33
	most people think of it,	25:38
	at best, as a sort of bandaid	25:41
	approach to helping others.	25:45
	And at worst, they view it as a cop out	25:49
	from working for a just society.	25:54
	Service is a problem for women, blacks,	26:02
	and other third world groups	26:07
	because service is identified with	26:12
	subordination, powerlessness,	26:15
	oppression.	26:19
	It is a problem for ministers and laity	26:24
	because we have created a class	26:29
	of professional ministers who serve	26:33
	in structures which deprive the whole people of God	26:37
	of their own responsible servant hood in ministry.	26:42
	Yet, here are the words.	26:52
	They don't go away.	26:55
	Jesus called them to him and said,	26:58
	"You know that those that	27:02
	are supposed to rule over the gentiles lorded over them	27:03
	and their great men exercised authority over them,	27:09
	but it shall not be so among you.	27:14
	But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,	27:20
	and whoever would be first among you	27:24
	must be slave of all for the son of man	27:26
	also came not to be served but to serve	27:30
	and to give his life a ransom for many."	27:35
	I guess I could add that the words are also a problem	27:40
	for bishops, district superintendents	27:43
	and a few other people.	27:45
	And here are the words, and not only the words,	27:50
	but the lifestyle of Jesus of Nazareth which we think so	27:53
	deeply on during the period of Lent as we talk about	27:56
	following him to the cross.	28:00
	The lifestyle of one who came to serve and to give his life	28:07
	as a ransom for the world.	28:12
	This impossible idea of service	28:16
	is in fact the only possibility	28:21
	for those who want to follow Jesus.	28:27
	This seemingly impossible role of service	28:36
	is possible for us all	28:41
	because it is not just a command,	28:49
	a law of God.	28:53
	Rather, it is a gift of God,	29:00
	a gracious gift which makes it possible.	29:05
	Just think of it.	29:13
	This God of the Hebrew Christian tradition	29:16
	is like no other gods.	29:21
	God is the one who chooses to serve,	29:27
	not just to be worshiped and adored.	29:32
	Other gods have been revealed	29:38
	so that women and men could serve them,	29:43
	but this God, the God of the suffering	29:48
	servant, the God of Jesus Christ	29:52
	begins from the other end,	29:57
	begins with us, with us.	29:59
	God comes to the people to liberate them,	30:06
	to serve them,	30:11
	so that they may celebrate their freedom by sharing	30:14
	it with others.	30:18
	In God's service	30:24
	we see what Karl Barth calls	30:27
	The Humanity of God.	30:31
	God is first of all not a king	30:38
	sitting on a pyramid of the world	30:43
	creating other pyramids of domination	30:47
	and subjugation in hierarchies of church	30:50
	and society.	30:55
	Rather the humanity of God is seen	30:59
	in that God chooses	31:03
	to be related to human beings	31:07
	through service.	31:13
	No wonder our passage from Isaiah 52	31:21
	says the servant of Yahweh will	31:26
	startle the nations.	31:30
	His appearance was so marred	31:35
	beyond human semblance.	31:38
	His form beyond that of the sons of men.	31:41
	So shall he startle the nations.	31:46
	Kings will shut up,	31:52
	will shut their mouths because of him.	31:55
	The servant cannot even be recognized	32:02
	because suffering service is not even expected	32:08
	of a messianic figure by those	32:13
	in high places.	32:17
	Service then is God's gift because it is God who serves.	32:26
	Service is also God's gift because Jesus not only	32:35
	calls his disciples to serve,	32:40
	but also provides the power and the possibility	32:44
	of carrying out this service.	32:49
	In Jesus Christ	32:54
	we have the representation of new humanity,	32:57
	the beginning of a new type of human being	33:02
	whose life is lived for others.	33:07
	Jesus came to be Emmanuel, God with us.	33:12
	To be with all people, the women	33:19
	as well as the men,	33:24
	the ignorant as well as the learning,	33:27
	the outcasts as well as the religiously acceptable,	33:34
	the oppressed as well as the oppressors.	33:41
	And it is Jesus who helps us to see the humanity of God	33:48
	so that we, too, can become representatives	33:53
	of new humanity.	33:56
	Here we see what it means to be truly	33:59
	and newly human.	34:03
	This is the image of God,	34:09
	the freedom to serve others.	34:17
	This is the image into which humanity is created	34:24
	and redeemed, to be together	34:30
	with others.	34:34
	The whole story of the New Testament revolves around	34:38
	this one theme,	34:42
	diokonia, service.	34:45
	At last, someone has come,	34:50
	not to be served but to serve.	34:55
	Everything that was done by this son of God including	35:00
	humiliation, self emptying, cross, death,	35:03
	is summarized in one final communique,	35:10
	service.	35:19
	This communique is offered as a gift and a promise.	35:23
	The disciples of Jesus are called to be servants	35:28
	to risk their lives in being liberated for others.	35:33
	God's intention for us now	35:46
	is just such	35:50
	an impossible possibility.	35:53
	Through service, God's and ours,	36:00
	we are liberated to be full human beings,	36:05
	persons.	36:11
	First we are liberated for ministry, diokonia.	36:15
	We are set free from hierarchical structures	36:20
	which place ministry in the hands of a few	36:26
	to begin carrying out the work of the people.	36:29
	Traditionally, diokonia has taken three forms	36:36
	in the Christian tradition, curative diakonia,	36:40
	preventative diakonia, and proscriptive.	36:45
	Curative diakonia is one which we are very familiar with.	36:50
	It is the healing and the helping of victims in the society.	36:54
	Preventative diakonia is attempting to curtail the	36:59
	developments of social ills	37:03
	which victimize human life,	37:06
	and prospective diakonia is attempting	37:11
	to open up the situation for free realization	37:15
	and actualization of human life.	37:19
	Although in the past	37:25
	the church, and especially women,	37:29
	have specialized in individual curative	37:34
	or bandaid tasks,	37:38
	recently people have become aware that it is necessary	37:42
	to work together on preventative programs	37:46
	for health and social welfare,	37:50
	and the church is also slowly becoming involved	37:55
	in prospective programs in which the society itself	37:59
	is so changed that people can take part	38:05
	in shaping their own destiny and that the evils	38:08
	such as war, poverty, racism, and sexism	38:13
	are attacked at their root so	38:18
	that a new image of humanity can flow.	38:21
	If we think about it,	38:29
	this last kind of diakonia, prospective,	38:32
	is what we want for our own life.	38:39
	We do not want to be helped after we've been crushed.	38:45
	We would much rather have justice that leads to the	38:51
	elimination of the destructive social structures that	38:55
	might and do crush people.	38:59
	This is why women	39:04
	want not only to have a say	39:08
	in the way that they prepare themselves to take their place	39:10
	of service in the church and society,	39:15
	but also to change the society	39:21
	and the church itself	39:24
	so that their place may become	39:29
	one of full humanity and partnership.	39:32
	They prefer to have a say in shaping their future	39:38
	rather than having to retreat into what is called the	39:44
	feminine mystique	39:48
	only to have to begin again about age 40	39:51
	trying to find out what their lives are all about.	39:55
	They are pushing for prospective diakonia.	40:02
	In being liberated for ministry, we are drawn into	40:10
	the struggle of liberation for all peoples,	40:13
	men and women, black and white,	40:17
	rich and poor, seek to move together	40:20
	toward new ways of life in which	40:24
	those who have been oppressed	40:26
	are free to form their own agenda	40:30
	and to participate in shaping their own future,	40:35
	deciding whom and how	40:41
	they want to serve.	40:46
	We are not only liberated for ministry, but secondly	40:54
	we are liberated for others because we are called to be	40:57
	God's helpers and co servants	41:02
	with the God who serves.	41:07
	This, after all, is the image of woman in Genesis Two.	41:12
	She is created by God as Ezer,	41:20
	a divine helper	41:25
	for a man who needs to live and work in community.	41:30
	Just like the image of the Ebed Yahweh, servant of God	41:37
	in Isaiah 52.	41:42
	The woman and also man	41:45
	is seen as a human being who has	41:49
	been given the privilege of living for others	41:52
	as God's representative.	41:56
	This service in no way implies subordination.	42:04
	Nor does it imply domination of any human being	42:08
	over another.	42:12
	The alternative to subordination	42:16
	is not domination.	42:23
	The authentic alternative is service.	42:29
	There is no true ministry which is not freely given	42:37
	in the same way that God's ministry is freely given to us.	42:43
	Social and church structures in which domination is used	42:49
	to make others serve are a denial of freedom.	42:54
	Just as subordination	43:00
	is a denial of true human dignity.	43:03
	As long as forms of slavery and oppression exist	43:13
	in our society as seen in our own communities and lives,	43:18
	and in such recent television documentaries as	43:24
	The Autobiography of Jane Pittman, The Migrants,	43:27
	the story We the Women,	43:34
	the rest of us sensing these	43:39
	forms of oppression cannot be free,	43:42
	for liberation is a universal,	43:49
	and not just an individual commodity.	43:55
	We are liberated not only for service and for others,	44:04
	but also for God	44:10
	because we experience the love and	44:14
	service of God in our own lives.	44:16
	When confronted by the authorities,	44:22
	Acts tells us that the apostle Peter	44:28
	stood up there in front of everybody	44:34
	and boldly proclaimed,	44:37
	"We must obey God	44:41
	rather than men."	44:44
	For the Gospel claims our allegiance to the one who serves	44:52
	beyond any human ideology,	44:57
	beyond any church	45:02
	or social structure.	45:04
	Such a demand is not easy.	45:10
	It often makes us very unreliable in a cause,	45:15
	unable to assert that,	45:21
	in fact, any particular program, any	45:23
	particular organization is of ultimate significance.	45:28
	Because Christians seek to live according to the new way	45:35
	of being a human they often find themselves as marginal	45:39
	and misfit people	45:45
	in the games of dominance and exploitation that people play.	45:48
	In fact, as Christians,	45:55
	if we are not somewhat feeling that we are misfits,	45:58
	then we need to have another look	46:04
	at how and where we're serving.	46:07
	Perhaps the women who are the most misfits	46:15
	are those who belong to the Roman Catholic,	46:21
	the Eastern Orthodox, and the Episcopal Churches.	46:23
	The vote at Louisville last Fall,	46:28
	against the ordination of those 26 deacons	46:33
	waiting for full confirmation of their personhood	46:38
	and of their calling by the Holy Spirit	46:43
	was extremely painful to them.	46:48
	To be voted a non person is no fun.	46:53
	But all of us, everyone of us here,	47:06
	are part of their problem,	47:12
	and those of us who are concerned with	47:19
	the way certain people are defined as less human	47:23
	are called to challenge these	47:29
	and our own hierarchies which perpetuate	47:33
	dehumanization and injustice in whatever form.	47:38
	We must obey God	47:46
	rather than men or women.	47:49
	In the last few years,	48:04
	many women have been discovering	48:07
	that they really are misfits and marginal to the	48:12
	male dominated society in which they live.	48:17
	Some are seeking new ways to go on being misfits for the	48:22
	sake of the society.	48:27
	They are working in community with others on the boundaries	48:31
	of institutions where they can try to created new structures	48:34
	and new lifestyles for human living.	48:39
	My own experience	48:45
	is that I've always been a misfit.	48:49
	Before I thought I was a misfit because I was just odd.	48:58
	But now I'm glad to find	49:07
	other women and men	49:11
	who feel as I do,	49:15
	those who are seeking not just to be part of things	49:19
	as they are,	49:24
	but to serve the process of change toward	49:27
	God's intended future.	49:30
	Not to be served,	49:46
	but to serve.	49:51
	These words so impossibly possible	49:54
	as a gift of God	50:00
	are an instant communique	50:02
	of who we are	50:07
	and where we are going	50:10
	as followers of Christ and as representatives	50:12
	of an emerging new humanity in which there is neither	50:15
	Jew nor Greek.	50:20
	There is neither slave nor free.	50:22
	There is neither male nor female.	50:24
	Long ago,	50:31
	as I glibly and naively read those words	50:35
	circling the chancel of my college chapel,	50:38
	not to be ministered unto,	50:44
	but to minister in those days,	50:47
	I didn't know how tough service would be.	50:56
	I just assumed that was what I was supposed to do.	51:03
	I didn't know just how much that promise of Jesus meant.	51:09
	As the text in Mark said,	51:18
	"I tried to share his baptism	51:22
	and his temptations	51:26
	and sure enough I often ended up with	51:30
	the wrong answers and worse defeats."	51:32
	And I have to confess to you this morning	51:40
	that I still don't know how much that promise means.	51:45
	But I do know that in spite of all the devaluation	51:53
	and misuse and betrayal of the word service in churches	51:58
	and society,	52:03
	these words of Jesus continue	52:05
	to lead us toward a life of freedom.	52:11
	These words are about a revolution	52:15
	in which everyone wins,	52:21
	in which everyone finds a way of	52:28
	service and partnership	52:31
	on the road to human freedom,	52:35
	amen.	52:41
	May God add the blessing	52:43
	of the Holy Spirit to this reading	52:46
	and speaking of the word, amen.	52:49
	(background announcement)	53:04
-	Response to the word.	53:07
	Oh, Lord our God, we come before you at this time with	53:12
	grateful hearts for the word which has been proclaimed in	53:17
	our hearing on this day.	53:20
	We praise you for the liberation of all people and the	53:24
	equality of all men which has been accomplished already	53:27
	in you, and we ask that you would fit us for our role of	53:32
	servant hood in accomplishing Thy purposes on Earth.	53:36
-	Oh God, help us to become, to become what you intend	53:49
	for us to become, to do what you intend us to do.	53:54
	Help us to set your purpose at the forefront of our minds.	54:00
	Help us to sense your presence.	54:05
	We ask you to be with us.	54:09
	We are yours.	54:12
	We are not our own.	54:14
	We give thanks in the name of Jesus Christ who was your	54:17
	humble servant until death on the cross, amen.	54:20
-	God, you alone are whole.	54:32
	We need your help in becoming whole persons.	54:38
	Help us to see each other not just in female, male roles,	54:45
	but as persons, your children.	54:55
	Direct our lives so that we may become not conformed	55:01
	to our culture, but one in Jesus Christ and heirs	55:08
	to his kingdom and promise of service.	55:20
-	Oh God, it is so very hard for us to even want to serve,	55:33
	to be a servant means we have to take risks and make	55:40
	commitments we don't want to take or make.	55:46
	Yet Christ has risked all for us in his life	55:50
	and on the cross he declared that your love would indeed	55:55
	overcome all of our pain and our hurt and our sufferings	56:01
	and the awareness that the Resurrection was accomplished	56:07
	and is a possibility of liberation for us.	56:12
	Help us to accept and affirm your love for us	56:16
	and for all people to the end that we might be willing	56:22
	to learn to love because you first loved us.	56:26
	In the name of Jesus Christ, our servant lord	56:32
	and savior, amen.	56:36
-	Oh Lord, we lift these prayers and all of the silent	56:39
	prayers of our hearts unto thee and claim thy promise	56:42
	which was given to us in the scripture that whatsoever	56:46
	we ask in thy name shall be done.	56:48
	We ask all of these things in thy name.	56:52
	In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, amen.	56:55
	(organ music)	57:02
	♪ O sacred Head, now wounded. ♪	57:53
	♪ With grief and shame weighed down. ♪	58:01
	♪ Now scornfully surrounded. ♪	58:10
	♪ With thorns, thine only crown. ♪	58:18
	♪ How pale thou art with anguish. ♪	58:27
	♪ With sore abuse and scorn. ♪	58:36
	♪ How does that visage languish. ♪	58:45
	♪ Which once was bright as morn. ♪	58:54
	♪ What thou, my Lord, has suffered. ♪	59:04
	♪ Was all for sinners' gain. ♪	59:13
	♪ Mine, mine was the transgression. ♪	59:21
	♪ But thine the deadly pain. ♪	59:29
	♪ Lo, here I fall, my Savior. ♪	59:38
	♪ 'Tis I deserve thy place. ♪	59:46
	♪ Look on me with thy favor. ♪	59:55
	♪ Vouchsafe to me thy grace. ♪	1:00:04
	♪ What language shall I borrow. ♪	1:00:14
	♪ To thank thee, dearest friend. ♪	1:00:22
	♪ For this thy dying sorrow. ♪	1:00:31
	♪ Thy pity without end? ♪	1:00:40
	♪ O make me thine forever. ♪	1:00:48
	♪ And should I fainting be. ♪	1:00:57
	♪ Lord, let me never, never. ♪	1:01:06
	♪ Outlive my love for thee. ♪	1:01:15
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:01:28
-	Be seated, please.	1:01:37
	Let us join together in the prayer of unison.	1:01:43
	We offer these small gifts, oh Lord, as a pledge	1:01:50
	of our commitment to your work and your church.	1:01:55
	Accept them as you accept us, partial and not whole,	1:01:59
	as promise and not yet fulfillment, amen.	1:02:04
	(organ music)	1:02:31
	(choir singing)	1:02:38
	(organ music)	1:07:10
	♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow. ♪	1:07:52
	♪ Praise Him, all creatures here below. ♪	1:08:00
	♪ Praise Him above the Heavenly host. ♪	1:08:07
	♪ Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. ♪	1:08:16
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:08:27
	(organ music)	1:08:41
	(choir singing)	1:09:12
-	And now, may the God who chose to become a servant	1:11:37
	in Jesus Christ abide in your hearts and minds and give	1:11:40
	you the strength and courage to find your own servant hood	1:11:46
	and to live following the example of Jesus Christ,	1:11:50
	our Lord, amen.	1:11:54
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:12:04
	(bells ringing)	1:13:25
	(organ music)	1:13:35

Item Info

Title:

Letty Russell - "The Impossible Reality" (March 31, 1974)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 23:21. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 52:54.
The seemingly impossibe of service becomes possible not just because it is a command of God but because it is also God's gift and it is God who also serves us and provides for us a model of how we are to serve. The impossible possibility of service is what leads us towards a life of freedom in which everyone wins (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: But I do know that in spite of all the devaluation and misuse and betrayal of the word “service” in churches and society, these words of Jesus continue to lead us toward a life of freedom. These words are about a revolution in which everyone wins, in which everyone finds a way of service and partnership on the road to human freedom.

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4xk8545m

Date:

March 31, 1974

Speaker:

Russell, Letty M.

Liturgical Calendar:

Lent

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-0698
ref6598_7rq
uachapelsermaud
duke:320418
dcrau001804
ark:/87924/r4xk8545m
9caff9d7-c80a-4253-b9af-cae61c5db16a

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English

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United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

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

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Letty Russell - "The Impossible Reality" (March 31, 1974)

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