James T. Cleland - "The Conversion of the Elder Brother" (January 26, 1964)

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	(upbeat music)	0:11
-	Thee to accept both the offering of our gifts,	0:31
	the offering of ourselves and to consecrate us	0:34
	to thy service and to thy glory,	0:38
	through Jesus Christ, amen.	0:41
	(gentle piano music)	0:45
-	Let us pray.	1:09
	Let the words of my mouth	1:12
	and the meditations of our hearts	1:16
	be acceptable in thy sight.	1:18
	Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer, amen.	1:22
	It is wise for the pitcher in the pulpit	1:39
	to be alert to the reactions of the catcher in the pew.	1:44
	For a sermon is not a sermon	1:52
	unless it is caught as well as pitched.	1:55
	The speaker and the listener	2:00
	together make up the homiletical battery.	2:02
	As today's sermon was being planned,	2:09
	I anticipated the possible reaction	2:11
	from some of you who listen	2:14
	another sermon on the prodigal son?	2:17
	We've already had three in the series.	2:23
	Isn't that par for the course?	2:27
	Do you know the Song of Solomon	2:32
	sometimes called the Song of Songs in the Old Testament?	2:36
	That little book of eight chapters.	2:40
	St. Bernard of Clairvaux preached 86 sermons on it,	2:45
	and he got barely beyond the second chapter.	2:52
	So grant me a fourth and last on the prodigal.	2:56
	But why do we need a fourth?	3:05
	We have looked at the younger son	3:08
	and the elder son and the father,	3:10
	doesn't that exhaust the parable,	3:14
	if not, the congregation?	3:17
	There is one reason for a further effort	3:22
	in the conjoint Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin	3:28
	the stories end with three hearty cheers.	3:35
	The meandering sheep was restored to the flock.	3:41
	The missing coin was found.	3:45
	And of course the younger son was reinstated at home.	3:49
	Only the elder boy remained on the outside,	3:57
	still lost.	4:04
	But he was angry and refused to go in.	4:07
	So far as we know, he never went in.	4:13
	He deliberately shut himself out.	4:18
	Now, do we leave the matter there	4:23
	on a note of defeat?	4:26
	To whom did Jesus speak these parables?	4:32
	The opening verses of the passage tell us	4:37
	how the tax collectors and sinners	4:41
	were all drawing near to hear him,	4:44
	and the Pharisees and scribes murmured saying,	4:48
	this man receives sinners	4:53
	and eats with them.	4:59
	So he told them this Parable of the Lost Sheep.	5:02
	Then he told them another.	5:09
	Then he added a third, a double one.	5:12
	These parables were addressed	5:18
	to men who were like the elder brother.	5:20
	The Pharisees, men who were legalistically devout,	5:25
	legalistically upright,	5:30
	legalistically righteous.	5:33
	They were therefor not enthusiastic about the gospel,	5:37
	which was saturated with the goodness,	5:42
	the grace, the love of God for sinners,	5:46
	who were not devout or upright or righteous,	5:51
	according to Pharisee extenders,	5:57
	Jesus in these parables was vindicating his good news	6:01
	in the presence of his critics.	6:06
	Did he succeed?	6:11
	No.	6:14
	And yes.	6:17
	One elder brother,	6:20
	a militant Pharisee,	6:23
	a contemporary of Jesus was converted.	6:27
	This parable is the forerunner of a miracle,	6:33
	a spiritual miracle.	6:38
	One elder brother came to understand	6:42
	a new meaning for salvation	6:47
	through the acceptance of God's grace.	6:50
	He was made aware of the unvarnished fact	6:55
	that one is right with God, if he just wants to be,	6:59
	because that is what God wants.	7:07
	This elder brother's name was Saul.	7:12
	We know him better as St. Paul.	7:17
	Paul was an enthusiastic Pharisee.	7:23
	He says so.	7:27
	Circumcised on the eighth day	7:29
	of the people of Israel,	7:32
	of the tribe of Benjamin.	7:35
	A Hebrew born of Hebrews.	7:37
	As to the law,	7:40
	a Pharisee as for righteousness under the law,	7:42
	blameless.	7:48
	Blameless.	7:52
	Doesn't that sound like the prodigals big brother?	7:53
	"Lo, these many years I have served you,	7:57
	"and I never disobeyed your command."	8:01
	Paul repeats this boast in another letter.	8:06
	"I advanced in Judaism	8:09
	"beyond many of my own age among my people.	8:11
	"So extremely zealous was I	8:16
	"for the traditions of my fathers."	8:19
	Now here's a Pharisee	8:22
	who is proud of his spiritual pedigree.	8:23
	Judaism was not merely a tradition which he accepted.	8:28
	It was a heritage into which he zealously	8:32
	and enthusiastically entered.	8:37
	And the best way he knew to express his loyalty to Judaism	8:40
	was to persecute the young Christian Church.	8:45
	And he did so furiously and effectively.	8:50
	And then Paul was converted,	8:56
	turned around, headed in another direction.	9:01
	We know the story of the Damascus road incident.	9:05
	We know how he came to link the crucifixion	9:10
	and the resurrection in his thinking.	9:13
	We know how in utter loyalty to the new commitment	9:17
	he suffered execution.	9:21
	But what did he find so exciting?	9:25
	So compelling?	9:30
	So satisfactory in Christianity?	9:31
	He laid hands on something very simple,	9:36
	but very devastating.	9:40
	He was jarred into a realization of the fact	9:43
	that it is not a nervous, hysterical,	9:49
	frantic observance of every jot	9:55
	and tittle of the law, which brings inner peace.	9:57
	This comes about when one excepts the fact	10:05
	that God loves him,	10:11
	cares for him,	10:15
	and wants him to be in a father-son relationship.	10:18
	Isn't that what the father	10:23
	tried to tell the elder boy in the parable?	10:24
	"Son, you are always with me,	10:27
	"and all that I have is yours."	10:33
	But the boy couldn't grasp it.	10:41
	Paul finally did.	10:44
	And he became the apostle of grace.	10:48
	Grace is the spontaneous unmerited favor	10:52
	with which God regards man.	10:58
	He also became the apostle of faith.	11:03
	Faith is the responsive man to God's grace,	11:08
	which results in commitment, obedience,	11:12
	and the peace in the heart,	11:19
	which reveals itself as poised.	11:20
	The capacity to maintain one's spiritual equilibrium.	11:25
	Paul discovered the happiness, which Jesus called blessed.	11:31
	He could never get over the wonder of it.	11:38
	Like what is the outcome of such a conversion.	11:43
	Such an acceptance that God loves man,	11:48
	even though man doesn't deserve it.	11:54
	Well, two things.	11:57
	First, Paul worked as hard as ever he did	11:59
	before he became a Christian, perhaps harder.	12:03
	He described his work	12:09
	in a semi embarrassed autobiographical passage,	12:11
	where he is in a slanging match	12:17
	with some legalistic Jewish Christians.	12:20
	He says, I wish I didn't have to argue like this,	12:24
	but this is the way they argue,	12:27
	so let me argue this way too.	12:29
	Let them want as they please.	12:33
	I'm equal to them.	12:36
	Mind, this isn't the role of a fool.	12:38
	Are they Hebrews?	12:42
	So am I.	12:45
	Israelites?	12:47
	So am I.	12:49
	Descended from Abraham?	12:52
	So am I.	12:55
	Ministers of Christ?	12:57
	Yes.	13:00
	Perhaps, but not so much as I am.	13:01
	I'm mad to talk like this.	13:06
	With all my labors, with all my lashes,	13:09
	with all my time in prison,	13:11
	a record longer far than theirs.	13:14
	I'd been often at the point of death.	13:18
	Five times have I had 40 lashes all but one from the Jews.	13:21
	Three times I have been beaten by the Romans.	13:26
	Once pelted with stones.	13:29
	Three times shipwrecked.	13:31
	Adrift at sea for a whole night and day.	13:33
	I've been often in my travels.	13:37
	I've been in danger from rivers and robbers,	13:39
	from Jews and Gentiles,	13:42
	through dangers of town and the desert,	13:44
	through dangerous on the see,	13:46
	through dangers among false brothers.	13:48
	Through many a sleepless nights,	13:51
	starving many a time.	13:54
	Cold and ill clad and all the rest of it.	13:56
	And then there is the pressing business of each day.	14:01
	The care of all the churches.	14:06
	One is saved to serve.	14:12
	Relaxation maybe a valid sign of faith.	14:16
	I think it is.	14:21
	But relaxation is not to be equated with loafing.	14:23
	And secondly, his hard work was penetrated with joy,	14:29
	almost with gusto.	14:34
	Here is what he wrote to his favorite church at Philippi.	14:36
	"Well then my brothers rejoice in the Lord,	14:40
	"I'm repeating this word, rejoice, in my letter,	14:45
	"but that never tires me,	14:50
	"and it's the same course for you."	14:52
	And so he penned his song of love in 1 Corinthians 13,	14:57
	and the whole chapter of bubbling gratitude	15:03
	to the junior varsity scene in Romans 16.	15:08
	This is the saga of an elder brother	15:15
	who became a son of the father.	15:19
	This is the miracle,	15:24
	which is a valid ending to the parable	15:26
	of the other lost boy.	15:30
	Moreover, this is the miracle	15:33
	which is repeated over and over again	15:36
	in the long history of the church.	15:39
	When a church becomes organized and institutionalized,	15:43
	it inevitably becomes legislator, executor and judge.	15:48
	This is understandable,	15:55
	but heresy arises	15:58
	when the emphasis is laid on good works,	16:02
	carefully spelled out as the root of salvation.	16:06
	The root of salvation.	16:12
	Rather than as the fruit,	16:15
	the fruit of salvation.	16:18
	Legalism may be the necessary consequence	16:21
	of corporate Christianity.	16:24
	Almost all denominations have judicial bodies	16:27
	and appropriate penalties for breaches of the rules.	16:30
	But one does not become a Christian	16:35
	by obedience to any theological or ecclesiastical code.	16:39
	One becomes a Christian	16:47
	by an acceptance of the graciousness of God.	16:50
	The laws may implement faith,	16:58
	but the laws are not a prerequisite to faith.	17:04
	Every now and again,	17:10
	someone tries to tell the church this.	17:11
	Occasionally they are younger brothers	17:15
	back from the far country	17:19
	and so overwhelmed by the father's love	17:21
	that they have to broadcast it.	17:25
	People like Augusta and Francis of Assisi and John Newton.	17:26
	But sometimes they are elder brothers.	17:35
	Martin Luther is such a one.	17:42
	He had his own words.	17:45
	"It is true I was a pious monk.	17:48
	"And so strict in the performance of my duties	17:52
	"that I can say,	17:56
	"if ever a monk reached heaven through Monkery,	17:57
	"I would surely have entered there.	18:01
	"All my friends will bear witness to this,	18:05
	"for if it had lasted any longer,	18:08
	"I should have tortured myself to death	18:10
	"with waking, praying, reading, and other work."	18:13
	Now this is the autobiographical misery	18:20
	of justification by works.	18:24
	The human effort to persuade God	18:27
	that one is worthy to be accepted as a son.	18:29
	And then Luther read the words	18:34
	of a converted elder brother, St. Paul.	18:37
	"The just shall live by faith."	18:42
	And that led Luther back to grace.	18:50
	And he became a converted elder brother	18:55
	and the reformation was on its way.	18:58
	John Wesley, spiritual pilgrimage is just similar.	19:01
	A hardworking and thoroughly worried priest	19:05
	of the Church of England.	19:10
	Then the olders get experience,	19:13
	and then the exuberance of the Methodist revival.	19:16
	But let me share with you a doer character.	19:21
	A Scots Presbyterian of last century, Thomas Chalmers.	19:25
	After a brilliant academic career,	19:32
	he was licensed to preach at the age of 19,	19:38
	after graduation from seminary.	19:41
	For eight years he scolded his people for their sins.	19:46
	Here is how his biographer writes of Chalmers	19:53
	preaching during this period.	19:56
	"Why did he persist in preaching	19:58
	to these decent, well meaning	20:00
	and law abiding Scottish farmers	20:02
	in a strain that implied they ought all to be in jail?	20:05
	Why Sabbath after Sabbath	20:10
	did he thunder at them concerning the wickedness of theft,	20:12
	of murder, and of adultery?	20:15
	After a hard weeks work in field and stable,	20:18
	barn and dairy,	20:21
	these sturdy Scotsman drove to the church	20:23
	at the sound of the Sabbath bell,	20:25
	only to find themselves wretched by the minister	20:28
	as though they had spent the week in open shame.	20:31
	Now and again, the brilliant and eloquent young preacher	20:36
	turned aside from this line of things	20:40
	to denounce the designs of Napoleon.	20:43
	But as (indistinct) farmers	20:48
	saw no way in which the arguments of their minister	20:50
	would likely to come under the notice of Napoleon,	20:53
	and turn him from his failed purpose of invading Britain.	20:57
	They would as much perplexed by these sermons	21:01
	as by the others.	21:04
	Eight years of that.	21:06
	And they still kept coming to church.	21:10
	That proves that in Presbyterianism	21:14
	discernment has taken the place of the doctrine of penance.	21:16
	(congregation laughing)	21:21
	And then Chalmers read	21:25
	what Paul said to a jailer in Philippi.	21:26
	"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ	21:31
	"and thou shall be saved."	21:35
	And he moved from do and live to believe and live,	21:37
	and change in the pulpit was dramatic.	21:45
	He thundered against the grass of crimes no more.	21:50
	He ignored Napoleon.	21:55
	Every Sunday he had something fresh to say	21:59
	about the love of God.	22:03
	And works followed.	22:07
	He established schools, he reorganized the parochial system.	22:09
	He wrote on poor relief	22:15
	and he spearheaded numerous civic reforms.	22:18
	He too was saved to serve,	22:25
	seeking to find and to rescue his prodigal younger brothers.	22:30
	The miracle didn't end with St. Paul,	22:36
	it's part of a continued and continuing story.	22:39
	Now, this gospel of the converted elder brother	22:46
	is for us too.	22:51
	It's a hard gospel for some of us to stomach.	22:55
	It runs so contrary	23:01
	to the way in which we have been brought up.	23:03
	We were drilled in the 10 commandments	23:07
	and Sabbath observance.	23:10
	We have been taught to be law-abiding and sober.	23:13
	We sometimes wonder where the church	23:19
	and the world would be without us.	23:21
	We feel God owes us something,	23:25
	blessedness in heaven, if not happiness on earth.	23:28
	We sometimes think that maybe the boy who stayed at home	23:33
	understood his younger brother better than the father did.	23:37
	Well, maybe he did	23:42
	from our point of view.	23:44
	But is our viewpoint that of Jesus?	23:46
	A Chinese artist once painted	23:50
	the story of the return of the prodigal.	23:53
	He pictured the father at the gate,	24:00
	standing, waiting for his son	24:03
	who could be seen approaching in the distance.	24:07
	A christian friend criticized the painting.	24:11
	"Oh no, you don't have it right.	24:15
	"The father shouldn't be standing, waiting.	24:18
	"He should be running to meet his son."	24:23
	The artist countered with the comment,	24:27
	"But no Chinese father could do that."	24:30
	The critic replied, "That's just the point.	24:36
	"No human father would.	24:39
	"But this is the astonishing story of a father	24:43
	"that tells us about God's amazing love.	24:47
	"He loves us like that."	24:51
	And be artist answered, "I see."	24:55
	And he painted another picture	25:00
	which showed the father running to meet his son.	25:02
	And in his hurry,	25:08
	the father had put on shoes that didn't match.	25:12
	The second painting caught what Jesus came to broadcast,	25:21
	the extravagant love of God.	25:26
	With shoes on which don't match,	25:30
	eager to welcome a failure,	25:35
	merely because he was his son.	25:38
	That's what Paul and Luther and Wesley	25:42
	and Chalmers finally discovered.	25:45
	I know we're living in an age	25:50
	when the gospel of grace	25:53
	is dramatically challenging, again,	25:58
	the sub Christian gospel of justification by works.	26:02
	When father Gustav (indistinct),	26:11
	the distinguished Jesuits scholar	26:14
	and preacher died this month,	26:17
	it was a Jewish rabbi	26:21
	who first called The Christian Century,	26:25
	a Protestant journal,	26:28
	to tell the editor the distressing news.	26:31
	Jesuit, rabbi, protestant.	26:37
	When St. Andrew's United Church in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan	26:43
	burned last December,	26:48
	it was a Jewish synagogue	26:51
	which offered its facilities	26:53
	to the homeless Protestant congregation	26:55
	of the cathedral of the prairie.	26:59
	And the first contribution to the rebuilding fund	27:02
	came from the Roman Catholic sisters	27:07
	and students at St. Louis college,	27:10
	a secondary school.	27:14
	And here are the words	27:16
	which accompanied that Roman Catholic check.	27:17
	"May we see St. Andrews rise again.	27:21
	"A witnessed to your congregation's faith in Christ."	27:26
	And when Pope Paul VI spoke in Bethlehem recently.	27:34
	He said, "We salute with great reverence and affection,	27:39
	"the illustrious and venerated heads	27:46
	"of other churches here present."	27:50
	Now this acknowledgement by a pope	27:56
	that non-Roman churches are churches	28:00
	is an unprecedented event.	28:06
	The gospel of grace is doing things	28:11
	too and with some whom we thought of	28:14
	as unregenerate, though upright elder brothers.	28:17
	Now don't imagine that all elder brothers	28:23
	are becoming St. Pauls.	28:26
	Some members of the Curia and some Orthodox Jews,	28:30
	and some venerable Presbyterians are intransigent.	28:37
	The more so because of their spiritual	28:43
	and ecclesiastical pedigrees.	28:45
	But what about us?	28:48
	What kind of Christians are we?	28:51
	Elder brothers before conversion?	28:55
	Upright.	29:00
	Oh yeah.	29:02
	But so often without joy	29:04
	are elder brothers after conversion?	29:10
	Upright because of joy.	29:15
	God wants free sons and daughters	29:20
	spontaneous in their goodness	29:24
	at home in their father's house.	29:27
	Glad that they have inherited from him	29:31
	what Saint Paul happily and gratefully called	29:34
	the ministry of reconciliation.	29:38
	And he gets them.	29:46
	For the miracle of the conversion of the elder brother	29:50
	is constantly being repeated.	29:57
	Yesterday in church here	30:03
	was the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul.	30:05
	And so far our prayer after the sermon	30:13
	preceding the benediction,	30:15
	let us use the collect for that day.	30:17
	Let us pray.	30:21
	Oh God, who through the preaching	30:27
	of the blessed of apostle thee Paul	30:29
	has caused the light of the gospel	30:31
	to shine throughout the world.	30:33
	Grant we beseech thee	30:36
	that we having his wonderful conversion and remembrance	30:37
	may show forth our thankfulness unto thee for the same,	30:42
	by following the holy doctrine,	30:47
	which he taught through Jesus Christ, our Lord.	30:50
	And may the blessing of the Lord	30:55
	come upon you abundantly,	30:57
	may it keep you strong and tranquil	31:00
	in the truth of his promises,	31:04
	through Jesus Christ, our Lord.	31:07
	(gentle music)	31:18
	(bell ringing)	31:58
-	The questioning of jurors this morning	32:12
	in the trial of teams for President James	32:14
	pump on jury tampering charge.	32:16
	Wilson said we must proceed,	32:19
	in two full days we have not selected a single juror.	32:20
	He ordered the attorneys for both sides	32:24
	submit their questions for prospective jurors	32:26
	to him in writing.	32:28
	The defense objected to the judges move	32:30
	and asked for a recess.	32:32
	But Wilson overruled it,	32:33
	and order the selection of the jury	32:35
	to continue without delay.	32:36
	At the rate we are now going	32:38
	he said it will take three weeks just to choose the jury.	32:39
	That's the news, (indistinct) Robinson reporting.	32:42
-	What do women notice first about a mans appearance?	32:45
	Some answers are on Fashion Notes,	32:49
	today on this CBS Radio nine alert station.	32:50
	WDNC, WDNC FM, Durham, North Carolina.	32:54
	10 minutes past 10 o'clock.	32:58
-	Good morning, Gladys.	33:00
	(gentle music)	33:02
	(indistinct)	33:09
	Johnny Packer and the Orchestra.	33:12
	Legacy (indistinct) was celebrating	33:15
	my 30th anniversary with CBS	33:17
	and what a ball we've been having.	33:19
	It's been a very good morning all this week for me.	33:21
	As you might've heard.	33:25
	And I hope that you heard that show yesterday	33:26
	because I wasn't quite sure	33:28
	whether it was Godfrey Show or the Jackie Gleason Show,	33:30
	but it came off beautifully.	33:34
	We had a few of our good friends from Hollywood with us	33:35
	and Mr. Richard Nixon was here	33:38
	and made news when Jackie Gleason in his shy way,	33:41
	he asked him if he was gonna be a candidate.	33:44
	And Mr. Nixon said, "Well, my hat's in the ring."	33:48
	And so this is our week to make news,	33:51
	and we're gonna do it again today with a terrific cast.	33:53
	Here in New York city, lovely sweet Mary Healy	33:57
	and her handsome husband, Peter Lind Hayes.	34:01
-	Here, here.	34:04
-	Who very kindly came over here	34:05
	from another network.	34:06
-	That'll be nameless.	34:08
	(laughing)	34:10
-	Oh, not at all, not at all,	34:10
	everybody has to start someplace.	34:12
	(laughing)	34:14
	(indistinct)	34:17
	There he is, Peter Lind Hayes.	34:21
	On Mary's left, is my idea of friend and associate patron,	34:23
	without whom this just isn't any fun anymore.	34:27
-	(indistinct), before we go any further	34:30
	I like to explain to my wife,	34:31
	if I come home to Hollywood, a little bleary eyed	34:33
	and with, you know, kind of a hangover look,	34:37
	it's because I sat next to Jackie Gleason yesterday.	34:43
	(laughing)	34:46
-	(indistinct) Hailey, huh.	34:48
-	I have found out now that Dean Martin is a social drinker.	34:49
	(laughing)	34:54
-	Okay, and over on Peter Lind Hayes' right	34:58
	is the one and only, Jack Carter.	35:01
	Just flew from Florida.	35:03
-	I just flew up here for the good weather on New York.	35:05
-	Oh come on, don't be (indistinct).	35:08
	(indistinct)	35:10
-	But I came up here because I heard you can't hold a job.	35:13
-	30 years, that's ridiculous.	35:15
	(indistinct)	35:18
	(laughing)	35:22
-	30 years!	35:23
-	Rufus Jarman is sitting next to you, Jack.	35:29
	I don't think you've met him up till now.	35:32
	Have you?	35:34
-	Well, we shook about a minute ago.	35:35
-	Well, Rufus Jarman is from Las Casas Tennessee.	35:37
	This casas, Las Casas (indistinct)	35:41

Isaac	In the general direction from here	0:03
	from as Florida is but that's the	0:06
	only similarity.	0:08
Rufus	Tennessee.	0:09
Isaac	Tennessee, that's right.	0:11
	And next to Rufus sits Johnny Nash	0:12
	who came all the way over here	0:15
	just to do this for us today.	0:17
	Where are you playing these days Johnny?	0:18
Johnny	Nowhere right now I just got back	0:20
	in town from a record promotion tour.	0:22
Isaac	Oh, what's the record you're working on?	0:25
Johnny	Well, I'm leaving.	0:28
	(audience laughs)	0:29
Isaac	Steve Lawrence I just overheard.	0:33
	And next to, next to Johnny, what did Steve say?	0:35
	Wait a minute Steve, it's not your turn yet.	0:37
-	(indistinct)	0:39
Participant	He said, where have You been,	0:40
	and he said nowhere	0:42
	(crowd laughs)	0:43
	and Steve Lawrence said he's looking nowhere.	0:44
	(crowd laughs)	0:46
Isaac	And next to Johnny Nash is	0:47
	Richard Hayes. And Arthur, the way things	0:49
	have been going I hope you have a nice weekend.	0:51
Arthur	Thank you so much	0:53
Isaac	Billy Dupree next to him. Now look,	0:55
	down in Philadelphia in the city of	0:57
	brotherly love sits	0:59
	Steve Lawrence and Abe Burrows	1:01
Woman	Oh Abe Burrows! I love that	1:03
	Abe Burrows.	1:05
Abe	Hello Isaac.	1:06
Isaac	Hi brother.	1:08
Participant	Your lover, you got the wrong	1:09
	girl on the phone.	1:10
	(crowd laughing)	1:11
Ave	Who's there.	1:13
Steve	Hi Steve in Philadelphia.	1:14
	Happy anniversary.	1:15
Arthur	Thank you Steve!	1:16
Isaac	Happy Anniversary Arthur.	1:17
	Tell us Dave about where goes Sam. Oh,	1:18
	what's the name of it?	1:20
Dave	What do you mean where goes Sam?	1:21
	(indistinct)	1:24
-	It's what makes Sammy run.	1:26
-	Oh, that's it.	1:28
-	Yeah. Steve is starring and he's wonderful.	1:29
	I'm directing it. I don't know	1:30
	if I'm so wonderful, but he's great.	1:31
-	I'll attest to that Abe. He's	1:33
	marvelous. Tell me remember Abe is marvelous.	1:34
	He's directing our show.	1:36
	(crowd laughs)	1:37
	(indistinct)	1:38
-	Sammy Davis is already there.	1:40
-	I've been there already twice.	1:41
-	Listen, ask him the question	1:44
	he wanted to ask him before.	1:44
Woman	Who Abe?	1:47
-	Yeah	1:48
Woman	When, when does your play open	1:49
	or what makes Sammy run open Abe?	1:49
Abe	It opens on the 15th	1:52
	of February at the 54th street theater in New York.	1:54
	And you all coming.	1:57
	Everybody's invited	1:59
Woman	You know, we're coming.	2:00
-	You can just wear our tickets	2:01
	(indistinct)	2:04
	(crowd laughs)	2:06
	(indistinct)	2:09
	(indistinct)	2:11
	(crowd laughs)	2:13
	(indistinct)	2:16
-	Arthur what you did there was quite Bettie.	2:17
	(crowd laughs)	2:20
-	We got Lady Glad Bettie out in California.	2:22
	(indistinct)	2:24
-	Out there in KX. You hear that voice	2:26
	whispering in there. That's Pat Boone.	2:27
	And Pat, who's that lovely girl with you?	2:31
-	You got a singer besides me?	2:33
	(crowd laughs)	2:35
-	Yeah. I heard you needed a young singer	2:36
	on the show today. You've only got five.	2:37
-	No, we've got Abigail Nidira who's	2:40
	another young singer on the dispatch side.	2:42
	And one of the loveliest ladies I've ever known.	2:45
	How are you Abby?	2:47
Abby	Hello darling, how are you?	2:48
-	I'm just fine.	2:51
-	Is that dear Abby right?	2:52
	I've been writing to her for years.	2:53
	I thought as a man I've been writing dear A.B.	2:56
	(crowd laughs)	2:59
Abby	Thank you.	3:02
	Abe, Abe Burrows I'll send you all your	3:04
	A.B. letters.	3:08
	(crowd laughs)	3:09
	(indistinct)	3:11
	(indistinct)	3:14
-	I think you're right though. She does sound	3:15
	like a man.	3:17
	(indistinct)	3:18
Abby	That's supposed to be sexy.	3:19
-	I don't know what.	3:20
	(indistinct)	3:21
	(crowd laughs)	3:24
-	You don't even have to try to do that honey.	3:28
	Tell me are those two good looking kids of yours?	3:29
Abby	Oh, they're wonderful, thank you.	3:32
	And by the way, my daughter sends her love.	3:33
-	Oh! Oh! Take a bundle of it back to you.	3:38
	And that's a good looking boy too.	3:41
Abby	Thank you and he sends his regards	3:43
	that's what is should be.	3:45
-	That's the still slips.	3:46
-	That's exactly the way that they're two	3:47
	normal children and I'm happy.	3:49
Abby	Yes indeed.	3:51
	(indistinct)	3:53
	(crowd laughs)	3:56
	(indistinct)	3:59
	(crowd laughs)	4:01
	(indistinct)	4:04
	(crowd laughs)	4:07
-	Do you know, we're glad to have you directing	4:10
	and producing these wonderful things.	4:13
	But we sure do miss entertaining p***y yards	4:15
	on the air.	4:18
-	We come down Philadelphia, we 're	4:18
	constantly entertaining.	4:20
-	No, I get on once in a while out there,	4:22
	you know me, I get on those panels.	4:23
	Everybody, I'm always working, sitting down.	4:25
	If you see me sitting down, I'm working and you know	4:27
	everybody says to me, I look taller in person.	4:30
	I told them I got a short set.	4:32
-	Well, I'll hold it a minute, will you?	4:36
	we'll have a very short set.	4:38
	If I don't sell this Ovaltine.	4:39
	You see how I slide into this commercial.	4:40
	Isn't that cute, yeah that's clever.	4:42
	Ovaltine!	4:44
	This is the stuff that I've been on	4:45
	for breakfast now for the last month or so.	4:47
	And you know, it works! You have a cup	4:48
	of tea first when you get up or I do.	4:51
	I love my tea, maybe you like coffee; go ahead!	4:53
	Have your coffee. And then the next cup	4:55
	make it Ovaltine made with skim milk.	4:58
	And, and you will have received	5:00
	on board 27 important vitamins minerals and food elements.	5:02
	And you may find as I have that	5:06
	that's all the breakfast you need for the day	5:09
	and around noon time, you begin to feel hungry again.	5:12
	And this is a good way	5:15
	for you to diet without a doctor's prescription.	5:17
	You know?	5:20
	And that's what most of us do because here	5:21
	we do get the vitamins, minerals and food elements	5:23
	that we need.	5:26
	And we'll get it, if a doctor prescribed the diet	5:28
	for us properly, why don't you try it?	5:30
	I bet you it's been a long time since you	5:33
	drank Ovaltine and you will be delighted with it.	5:34
	It comes in two flavors.	5:38
	Remember natural and chocolate Ovaltine for you.	5:39
	Now, before we get too far into it yesterday	5:44
	never got a chance to get on the air.	5:46
	I want you guys to listen to my boy, Billy Dupree, come	5:48
	on now.	5:51
	I want you to sing this blues thing for him.	5:52
	Now. All, all of you listen to this.	5:54
	Cause yesterday sat here during the whole show	5:56
	and never had a note.	5:58
	Let me see what we do with them.	6:00
	(music begins)	6:04
	♪ Them that's got ♪	6:17
	♪ Shall get ♪	6:19
	♪ Them that's not shall lose. ♪	6:22
	♪ So the Bible said ♪	6:26
	♪ And it still is news ♪	6:30
	♪ Mama may have ♪	6:34
	♪ Papa may have ♪	6:36
	♪ But god bless the child that's got his own ♪	6:39
	♪ That's got his own ♪	6:46
	♪ Yes, the strong gets more ♪	6:51
	♪ While the weak ones fade ♪	6:55
	♪ Empty pockets don't ♪	6:59
	♪ ever make the grade ♪	7:03
	♪ Mama may have ♪	7:07
	♪ Papa may have ♪	7:10
	♪ But God bless the child that's got his own ♪	7:13
	♪ That's got his own ♪	7:20
	♪ Money ♪	7:27
	♪ you've got lots of friends ♪	7:30
	♪ Crowding round ♪	7:34
	♪ Your door ♪	7:39
	♪ But when you're gone ♪	7:42
	♪ And spending ends ♪	7:44
	♪ They don't come no more ♪	7:49
	♪ Rich relations give ♪	7:55
	♪ Crust of bread and such ♪	7:59
	♪ You can help yourself ♪	8:03
	♪ But don't take to much ♪	8:06
	♪ Mama may have ♪	8:10
	♪ And Papa May have ♪	8:14
	♪ But God bless the child that's got his own ♪	8:17
	♪ That's got his own ♪	8:23
	♪ (instrumental music begins) ♪	8:28
	♪ (instrument music ends) ♪	8:56
	♪ Crust of bread and such ♪	9:02
	♪ You can help yourself ♪	9:06
	♪ But don't take to much ♪	9:09
	♪ Mama may have ♪	9:14
	♪ Papa may have ♪	9:17
	♪ But God bless the child that's got his own ♪	9:20
	♪ That's got his ♪	9:31
	♪ Own ♪	9:34
	(music ends)	9:43
	(audience clapping)	9:47
-	Billy Diupres and Martin house baked beans	9:52
	is our sponsor.	9:55
	Note as needed it's Martin house Salisbury,	9:56
	steak and mushroom gravy same.	9:59
-	Martin? That's Arthur's middle name is it?	10:01
-	That's right, sweetie.	10:03
-	I remembered.	10:04
-	Thank you and I wish owned some	10:06
	of this here stock, this Morton House food.	10:07
	(indistinct)	10:11
	You can get Morton House roast beef	10:14
	and gravy or the beans or whatever else they put up.	10:16
	Whenever you see the label Morton house buy	10:19
	it is the best.	10:23
	All right Abby tell us now what goes on	10:24
	with you and Pat Boone out there in K.N.N.	10:26
Abby	Well	10:29
-	You'll be reading about it.	10:30
Abby	Pat, don't say that you got nine	10:32
	children I have six.	10:34
-	How many did you you say I have?	10:36
Abby	You have nine children?	10:37
-	I got four at just one time	10:39
	but you haven't looked this afternoon.	10:42
-	How is Shirley?	10:45
-	She's just fine.	10:46
-	Tell me Steve speaking of wives,	10:48
	where's that gorgeous gal of yours?	10:49
-	She literally just showed up here and	10:51
	my children are here, just two of them.	10:53
-	How many family you got?	10:54
-	Well, at last count, I got two boys.	10:58
-	Oh, what?	11:00
-	Hey Tammy, work out something.	11:01
	Steve that's what do you got?	11:04
-	That's. What do you got, four girls, huh?	11:06
-	Yeah.	11:08
-	Just for one, we can make an exchange.	11:09
-	All right. Arthur, I have this will	11:10
	mean nothing to your audience,	11:12
	but to start of an inside impression	11:13
	that I've been working on, you know, I'm very	11:15
	grateful for you,	11:16
	he practically raised our children for us.	11:17
	I worked for Arthur for four and a half years and I'd just	11:19
	like to challenge him and see if he can tell me	11:22
	who I'm doing. Are you ready?	11:24
	Arthur, Peter called and wants to know if	11:27
	it'd be all right for him to work with	11:29
	Ron and Blue for two weeks?	11:31
-	That's Mr. James Schumer.	11:33
	(indistinct)	11:35
	(crowd laughs)	11:38
	(indistinct)	11:40
	(indistinct)	11:42
	(indistinct)	11:45
	(indistinct)	11:47
-	I've been with him long as you've been with BBS.	11:50
-	You were in touch with him though?	11:53
-	Yeah he is. Lou Irwin's my age and	11:55
	if he hadn't	11:58
	taken them pictures around	11:59
	and gone around all the TV stations	12:00
	and all the TV networks and executives	12:04
	I wouldn't be in radio today.	12:06
	(crowd laughs)	12:09
	(indistinct)	12:13
	(crowd laughs)	12:15
-	Richard hay!	12:19
	Who's your agent?	12:21
Richard	I have no agent.	12:22
	(indistinct)	12:25
	I hadn't been a contractor.	12:27
	And they never even took pictures.	12:32
	They would bend them back.	12:34
-	You know if they cared about agents they'd	12:38
	(indistinct)	12:41
	and they get 10s of 10's of what we make	12:42
	and you get in a bracket like you, I might	12:45
	(Participant coughs)	12:46
	after all years and the government takes	12:47
	90 percent.	12:49
-	I understand that.	12:50
-	I'll admit it.	12:53
	(indistinct)	12:55
	So then you figure out, you gotta cut somewhere.	12:57
	So what do you do of government?	13:01
	(Indistinct)	13:04
	(indistinct)	13:07
	(laughter)	13:10
	(group chattering)	13:12
	(laughter)	13:15
	(group chattering)	13:18
Woman	No, I don't have an agent.	13:21
	I've never had an agent.	13:23
-	What do you think Peter is?	13:25
Woman	Huh?	13:26
-	What do you think Peter does?	13:27
-	That isn't Mary that's Abby.	13:28
-	Oh, Abby.	13:30
-	All right Abby, what do you think Peter does?	13:31
	(music begins)	13:35
	(music playing)	13:36
	(group chatting)	13:44
	(music playing)	13:51
	(Instrumental music playing)	13:55
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:04
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:13
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:21
	(music playing)	14:31
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:36
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:45
	(group chatting)	14:50
	(Instrumental music playing)	14:54
	(music ends)	14:58
	(group chatting)	15:00
-	We all heard his orchestra chorus	15:03
	Al of course on the trumpet and I can't	15:06
	get started a great old song that we like best	15:09
	of all buy a Funny Felix.	15:12
	Twenty three and a half past twelve	15:14
	stay tuned for the 12:30 dimension feature	15:15
	and Theresa Brewer right now.	15:18
	(music beings)	15:20
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	15:23
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	15:26
	♪ If you loved me half as much as I love you ♪	15:31
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	15:36
	♪ You wouldn't worry me ♪	15:39
	♪ half as much as you do ♪	15:43
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	15:46
	♪You're nice to me ♪	15:48
	♪ when there's no one else around ♪	15:52
	♪ You only build me up ♪	15:58
	♪ to let me down ♪	16:03
	♪ If you missed me half as much as ♪	16:09
	♪ I miss you ♪	16:13
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	16:16
	♪ You wouldn't stay away half as much as ♪	16:18
	♪ you do ♪	16:24
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	16:25
	♪ I know that I ♪	16:27
	♪ would never be this blue ♪	16:31
	♪ If you only loved me ♪	16:36
	♪ half as much as I love you ♪	16:41
	♪ If you love me half as much as I love you ♪	16:47
	♪ You wouldn't worry me half as much as you do ♪	16:58
	♪ I know that I would never be this blue ♪	17:09
	♪ If you only loved me half as much as ♪	17:15
	♪ I love you ♪	17:20
	♪ Half as much half as much ♪	17:24
	♪ If you only loved me half as much as I ♪	17:27
	♪ love ♪	17:33
	♪ You ♪	17:35
	(music ends)	17:43
	(radio jingle)	17:46
	(radio jingle)	17:48
	(radio jingle)	17:50
	(radio jingle)	17:53
	(radio advertisement)	17:55
-	Household Finance!	17:56
	Ever notice how the stores will give you service	17:57
	and satisfaction are the ones you go back to.	18:00
	It's the same when you borrow money.	18:02
	And that's why household finance has grown to be	18:04
	the oldest and largest company of its kind	18:07
	in American because HFC believes in giving	18:10
	service and satisfaction.	18:13
	So when you need cash	18:15
	just remember, you borrow with confidence from	18:16
	H.F.C.	18:21
	(radio jingle)	18:23
	(radio jingle)	18:25
	(radio jingle)	18:27
	(radio jingle)	18:30
-	That's Household Finance!	18:32
-	At Household Finance you can borrow up to $600,	18:35
	take up to 24 months to repay.	18:38
	Visit the H.F.C. office located	18:41
	in the Wellins Village Shopping Center.	18:44
-	Twenty seven minutes after twelve noon	18:46
	56 degrees in Durham and right now	18:49
	the McGuire Sisters.	18:51
	(music begins)	18:52
	♪ Sweetie Pie and my honey bees ♪	18:55
	♪ Once you see my sweetie pie ♪	19:01
	♪ Sweet sweet sweetie pie ♪	19:05
	♪ I'll be in love with honey bees ♪	19:06
	(group chattering)	19:10
	♪ Want you be my sweetie pie ♪	19:13
	♪ Sweet sweet sweetie pie ♪	19:15
	♪ Ill be in love with honey bees ♪	19:17
	(group chattering)	19:19
	(group chattering)	19:22
	(group chattering)	19:25
	(group chattering)	19:28
	(group chattering)	19:31
	(group chattering)	19:33
	(group chattering)	19:36
	(group chattering)	19:39
	(end of audio)	19:41

Item Info

Title:

James T. Cleland - "The Conversion of the Elder Brother" (January 26, 1964)

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4g44nr9c

Date:

January 26, 1964

Speaker:

Cleland, James T. (James Tough), 1903-1974

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-0253
ref5711_mja
uachapelsermaud
duke:628233
dcrau002257
ark:/87924/r4g44nr9c
01951b4a-8838-42a8-b862-c101a1795be2

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings

Related Resources:

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Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

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

Rights:

No Re-Use

In Copyright

Rights Note:

This material is made available for research, scholarship, and private study. Copyright in this material has not been transferred to Duke University. For reuses of this material beyond those permitted by fair use or otherwise allowed under the Copyright Act, please see our page on copyright and citations: https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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James T. Cleland - "The Conversion of the Elder Brother" (January 26, 1964)

Transcript

Item Info

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Duke University Archives