Johnson, Robert L. - "The Gift of Forgiveness" (June 12, 1977)

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-	Duke University Chapel.	0:04
	Duke university Chapel service of worship.	0:10
	Second Sunday after Pentecost,	0:13
	June 12th, 1977, 11 o'clock.	0:14
	(soft hymn music)	0:30
-	Your word is near oh Lord, our God,	7:48
	your grace is near.	7:53
	Come to us then with mildness and power,	7:57
	do not let us be deaf to you,	8:04
	but make us open and receptive that we may worship you	8:07
	in spirit and in truth.	8:13
	Amen.	8:17
	(hymn music)	8:21
	We deceive ourselves, but not God	12:12
	when we say we have no need to make confession of our sins.	12:16
	With the assurance that we can be forgiven	12:23
	and be made whole, let us now make our corporate confession.	12:27
	We have not loved you with our whole heart	12:35
	and mind and strength,	12:38
	we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves,	12:41
	we have not forgiven others as we have been forgiven.	12:45
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	12:51
	We have been deaf to your call to serve as Christ served us,	12:54
	we have not been true to the mind of Christ,	13:01
	we have grieved your Holy Spirit.	13:05
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	13:09
	Our self indulgent appetites and ways,	13:22
	and our exploitation of other people.	13:28
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	13:32
	Our negligence in prayer and worship,	13:35
	and our failure to commend the faith that is in us.	13:38
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	13:44
	For all faults judgments, for uncharged thoughts	13:59
	toward our neighbors and for our prejudice	14:05
	and contempt toward those who differ from us.	14:09
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	14:13
	For our waste and pollution of your creation	14:16
	and our lack of concern for those who come after us.	14:21
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	14:26
	Restore us good Lord.	14:29
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	14:33
	And now let us make our personal confession.	14:38
	Amen.	14:59
	Remember and believe the words	15:01
	from the first letter of John.	15:04
	If we confess our sins, God is just,	15:07
	and may be trusted to forgive our sins and cleanse us	15:12
	from every wrong.	15:16
	Accept this forgiveness and give thanks for this hope,	15:19
	which is ours, amen.	15:24
	(hymn music)	15:30
	Hear the old Testament reading 2nd Samuel.	17:54
	When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah,	17:59
	her husband was dead,	18:03
	she made limitation for her husband.	18:04
	And when the mourning was over,	18:07
	David sent and brought her to his house.	18:09
	And she became his wife and bore him a son.	18:13
	But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.	18:18
	And the Lord sent Nathan to David.	18:23
	He came to him and said to him,	18:26
	"There were two men on a certain city,	18:29
	the one rich and the other poor.	18:32
	The rich man had very many flocks and herds,	18:35
	but the poor man had nothing, but one little ewe lamb,	18:39
	which he had brought.	18:43
	And he brought it up and it grew with him	18:45
	and with his children.	18:48
	It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup	18:51
	and lie in his bosom.	18:54
	And it was like a daughter to him.	18:57
	Now there came a traveler to the rich man.	19:00
	And he was unwilling to take one off his own flock or herd	19:03
	to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him.	19:08
	But he took the poor man's lamb	19:12
	and prepared it for the man who had come to him."	19:15
	Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man	19:19
	and said to Nathan, "As the Lord lives,	19:23
	the man who has done this deserves to die.	19:27
	And he shall restore the lamb fourfold	19:31
	because he did this thing and because he had no pity."	19:35
	Nathan said to David, "You are the man."	19:42
	"Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel,	19:48
	I anointed you king over Israel,	19:52
	and I delivered you out of the hands of Saul,	19:56
	and I gave you your master's house	19:59
	and your master's wives into your bosom,	20:03
	and I gave you the house of Israel and of Judah,	20:06
	and if this were too little,	20:09
	I would add to you as much more.	20:12
	Why have you despised the word of the Lord	20:15
	to do what is evil in his sight?	20:18
	You have smitten Uriah, the Hittite with the sword	20:22
	and have taken his wife to be your wife	20:26
	and have slain him with the sword of the Ammonites.	20:30
	Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house	20:34
	because you have despised me	20:39
	and have taken the wife of Uriah, the Hittite	20:42
	to be your wife."	20:46
	David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."	20:48
	And Nathan said to David,	20:55
	"The Lord also has put away your sin.	20:57
	You shall not die.	21:01
	Nevertheless, because by this deed,	21:04
	you have utterly scorned the Lord,	21:06
	the child that is born to you shall die."	21:09
	Then Nathan went to his house.	21:14
	Let us stand for the reading of the gospel lesson.	21:18
	Hear the reading from Luke.	21:28
	One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him.	21:31
	And he went into the Pharisee's house and sat at the table,	21:36
	And behold, a woman of the city who was a sinner,	21:41
	when she learned that he was sitting in the table	21:46
	in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask	21:48
	of anointment and standing behind him at his feet,	21:53
	weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears	21:57
	and wipe them with the hair of her head	22:02
	and kissed his feet and anointed them with the anointment.	22:06
	Now, when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it,	22:12
	he said to himself, if this man were a prophet,	22:16
	he would have known who and what sort of woman this is	22:21
	who is touching him for she is a sinner.	22:25
	And Jesus answering said to him,	22:30
	"Simon, I have something to say to you."	22:33
	And he answered, "What is it, teacher?"	22:37
	"A certain creditor had two debtors.	22:41
	One owed 500 denarii, the other 50.	22:44
	When they could not pay, he forgave them both.	22:50
	Now, which of them will love him more?"	22:54
	Simon answered, "The one I suppose to whom he forgave more."	22:59
	And he said to him, "You have judged rightly."	23:04
	Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon,	23:09
	"Do you see this woman?"	23:12
	"I entered your house, you gave me no water for my feet,	23:14
	but she has wet my feet with her tears	23:19
	and wiped them with her hair.	23:22
	You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in,	23:25
	she has not ceased to kiss my feet.	23:28
	You did not anoint my head with oil,	23:32
	but she has anointed my feet with ointment.	23:35
	Therefore I tell you, her sins which are many are forgiven	23:38
	for she loved much,	23:45
	but he who is forgiven little, loves little."	23:47
	And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."	23:53
	Then those who were at the table with him began to say	23:58
	among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"	24:02
	And he said to the woman,	24:08
	"Your faith has saved you, go in peace."	24:10
	Here ends the reading of the gospel lesson.	24:17
	(hymn music)	24:21
	Let us affirm what we believe.	25:06
	We believe in God who has created and is creating,	25:09
	who has come in the truly human Jesus	25:15
	to reconcile and make new,	25:18
	who works in us and others by the spirit,	25:22
	we trust God who calls us to be the church,	25:26
	to celebrate life and its fullness,	25:31
	to love and serve others,	25:34
	to seek justice and resist evil,	25:37
	to proclaim Jesus crucified and risen,	25:40
	our judge and our hope in life, in death,	25:44
	in life beyond death,	25:50
	God is with us, we are not alone, thanks be to God.	25:52
	The Lord be with you.	25:59
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	26:02
	Let us pray.	26:03
	Oh, holy God, we bow before you in all and adoration,	26:15
	we are overcome with a sense of our affinity to you	26:24
	when we consider your greatness, your majesty,	26:27
	your power and your utter mystery.	26:32
	We give thanks for your love	26:37
	which cares for us in spite our mistakes and our sin.	26:40
	We give thanks for the beauty of your creation,	26:46
	the glory of your world.	26:51
	We give thanks for your loving concern	26:55
	which is shown to us through our friends,	26:58
	our family, and through strangers,	27:03
	and especially through your church.	27:08
	Oh God, hear now our prayers of intercession.	27:13
	For those who have difficult decisions to make	27:18
	which affect the lives of other people,	27:21
	give to them wisdom and compassion.	27:25
	For those persons who are solely troubled	27:30
	and disturbed with burdens which seem too much	27:33
	for any human to bare,	27:37
	comfort and sustain them in their time of need.	27:40
	For those persons who are hungry, homeless, jobless,	27:49
	lonely, lost, bring to fruition the work of your people	27:56
	seeking to make all people whole.	28:03
	Hear our prayers for those who are working	28:08
	to bring about justice and order and righteousness	28:11
	in our country and in the whole world,	28:17
	give to them courage and truth and perseverance	28:21
	to see their work completed.	28:26
	Hear our prayers for all people who serve you,	28:32
	that we may be obedient to your will,	28:36
	that we may use our time, our energies, our creativity	28:40
	to further your kingdom.	28:48
	Hear our personal prayers for those who are sick.	28:52
	We pray for your support for all persons who work	28:58
	to care for and heal those who are sick	29:02
	in mind and body and spirit.	29:04
	And know God, we would be dishonest	29:08
	if we did not admit our personal needs.	29:11
	We pray that this will be a time for spiritual growth,	29:16
	a time when we will be renewed,	29:21
	and a time to dedicate ourselves again	29:25
	to the work of your son, our savior, Jesus the Christ	29:28
	who taught us to pray.	29:33
	Our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.	29:36
	Thy kingdom come,	29:42
	thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.	29:45
	Give us this day our daily bread	29:50
	and forgive us our trespasses	29:53
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	29:56
	Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,	30:00
	for thine is the kingdom and the power	30:06
	and the glory forever, amen.	30:09
	We welcome you who joined us today,	30:15
	especially those who joined us every Sunday	30:18
	to worship in this chapel.	30:22
	As you know, much work goes into preparing	30:26
	for our service of worship, we have one special request.	30:29
	Any of you who would be willing to help us	30:33
	usher on Sunday mornings,	30:36
	would you leave your name at the desk	30:38
	at the back of the chapel when the service is over,	30:41
	we need your help.	30:44
	It's our special privilege to borrow a fellow pastor	30:46
	from St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Bob Johnson,	30:51
	to preach to us today.	30:54
	We welcome him and open our hearts and our minds	30:56
	to hear the word that you bring to us today.	31:00
	Welcome.	31:04
-	In the name of God, amen.	31:16
	I'm not quite sure how or why the duke preaching fairy	31:23
	came up with me as your preacher for this service,	31:27
	but I'm glad that he or she did.	31:30
	It's a pleasure to be in this beautiful place,	31:33
	and it's fun to be worshiping God with you today.	31:36
	I discovered last week that preparing a sermon	31:42
	for people I don't know,	31:44
	is like composing a letter to whom it may concern,	31:47
	and I suspect that hearing a sermon	31:51
	by someone you don't know is like receiving a letter	31:53
	addressed to occupant.	31:57
	And we all know what happens to occupant letter.	31:59
	To me, a sermon is a personal event	32:04
	and the possibilities for excitement and for power	32:07
	are greater when the participants in that event	32:11
	know one another.	32:14
	So I have pretended to know you,	32:16
	who you are, where you're hurt,	32:19
	what's going on in your life.	32:22
	And if what I say is not what you need to hear,	32:25
	then you will know that in my imagination,	32:28
	I have confused you with somebody else.	32:30
	I am constrained today to talk about forgiveness.	32:34
	Constrained because the lectionary now shared	32:38
	by Methodists and Episcopalians and Presbyterians	32:41
	and Lutherans and Roman Catholics	32:45
	and United Church Christians	32:48
	and anybody else who wants to read it,	32:49
	that lectionary makes forgiveness the star attraction today.	32:51
	Isn't it interesting that of the two activities	32:58
	Jesus was most famous for,	33:01
	it was the forgiving that got him into trouble.	33:03
	The healing wasn't much of a problem.	33:07
	People seem to enjoy watching that.	33:09
	There was a little grumbling	33:13
	about Jesus healing after office hours	33:14
	and about some of the house calls he made,	33:16
	but for the most part,	33:19
	the healing was rather uncontroversial.	33:20
	But the forgiving, that was something else.	33:23
	Every time Jesus forgave a sinner,	33:27
	he had a fight on his hand.	33:29
	Apparently people then were like people now,	33:32
	they were very stingy with God's forgiveness,	33:35
	unless they themselves were the direct recipients.	33:39
	What I'm going to do is first,	33:44
	describe the value of God's forgiveness	33:47
	to people like you and me.	33:49
	And second, investigate why if forgiveness	33:51
	is such good stuff, more people don't want it.	33:54
	From the Old Testament lesson this morning,	33:59
	we have heard the story of God's forgiving King David	34:01
	for adultery and for murder.	34:05
	And from the New Testament,	34:09
	we heard the story of Jesus forgiving a sinful woman	34:10
	at a Pharisee's dinner party.	34:13
	We are not told specifically what her sin was,	34:16
	but it too is implied to be a rather notorious sin	34:20
	of the flesh.	34:23
	In both stories, the guilty person	34:26
	acknowledges responsibility for the sin,	34:27
	gives evidence of repentance,	34:31
	and is pronounced forgiven in the eyes of God.	34:33
	And it is God whose opinion matters.	34:38
	It's important for believers to remember that.	34:41
	David showed great insight when Nathan confronted him	34:45
	with his own wickedness,	34:48
	"I have sinned against the Lord." David says.	34:50
	One man is dead, David has taken the dead man's wife	34:54
	and the life of a newborn child is threatened.	34:58
	And still David says,	35:01
	"I have sinned against the Lord."	35:02
	You see the biblical position	35:06
	is that all sin is against the Lord.	35:07
	It injures people, but it's against the Lord.	35:11
	It hurts us, it hurts people around us,	35:14
	but it is against God.	35:17
	Adultery and murder were the evidences,	35:20
	the symptoms of David's sin.	35:24
	The real sin was in being untrue	35:27
	to the vocation God gave him, being careless and unfaithful	35:29
	with God's trust, deciding to resign from God's symphony	35:33
	and make his own kind of music.	35:39
	We know the name of that tune, don't we?	35:44
	We know every note of it by heart.	35:47
	God invites us to be the melody	35:50
	in his great harmonious symphony,	35:53
	and instead we whip out our comb and paper kazoos and say,	35:55
	no thanks, we make our own music and isn't it beautiful.	36:00
	Both David and the woman at the dinner party	36:06
	were willing to graduate from kazoo to symphony.	36:10
	They acknowledged their own responsibility.	36:16
	They regretted their error, they were pronounced forgiven.	36:19
	This process of acknowledgement,	36:24
	repentance and forgiveness has always been valued highly	36:25
	by spiritually sensitive people.	36:30
	Forgiveness from God for one wrong choice	36:33
	or for a whole life of wrong choices	36:37
	has always been a dream, a hope, a gift to be cherished.	36:40
	Old Jeremiah had this gift in mind when he predicted,	36:47
	"The days are coming," says the Lord,	36:50
	"when I will make a new covenant with my people,	36:52
	I will forgive their iniquity,	36:55
	I will remember their sin no more."	36:58
	That possibility, the forgiven unremembered sin	37:03
	is so important that it's an article of faith	37:08
	in the Apostles Creed,	37:10
	right there along with the communion of saints,	37:12
	the resurrection of the body and life everlasting,	37:14
	I believe in the forgiveness of sin,	37:17
	I believe in the possibility of a clean slate,	37:21
	a fresh start, a new direction.	37:24
	This possibility has been crucial	37:29
	in my own personal history.	37:30
	And I perceive it to be crucial to others too.	37:33
	No wonder Jesus said to a young man one time,	37:37
	"Son be of good cheer, your sins are forgiven."	37:39
	The chance for a new beginning is enough to cheer us up.	37:43
	One of the things Jesus did most frequently	37:49
	and most publicly was to forgive	37:51
	those whom everybody else had given up on.	37:54
	And that forgiveness almost always resulted	37:57
	in a new player for the symphony and an old kazoo traded in.	38:00
	I think I can argue convincingly	38:07
	that the most important task the church of Jesus Christ has	38:08
	is to continue his ministry of God's forgiveness.	38:13
	It is only by being forgiven that we experience ourselves	38:18
	as valuable to God.	38:22
	And only when we know ourselves valuable,	38:25
	does it matter really how we live.	38:28
	So if forgiveness is such a great gift,	38:34
	why doesn't everybody want it?	38:37
	Why aren't people aligned up at our churches	38:40
	and synagogues to get in and get some?	38:43
	I can think of two reasons why God's forgiveness	38:48
	is not very high on the charts these days.	38:50
	First, we have been told so many times recently	38:54
	by so many well-mannered and well-meaning people	38:58
	that we don't really need to be forgiven	39:01
	that we may be beginning to believe it.	39:04
	What we really need we are told is to understand	39:07
	and accept ourselves as we really are.	39:10
	We need to have our behavior explained to us so thoroughly	39:14
	that we know precisely what motivates us	39:18
	to think and do what we think and do.	39:20
	And when we are completely understood	39:24
	by ourselves and by others,	39:27
	we don't need to be forgiven because we can see	39:28
	exactly why we are the way we are.	39:31
	And understanding why we are that way	39:34
	somehow excuses us for being that way.	39:36
	I've whistled that tune several times	39:42
	and I just cannot make it fit into the symphony.	39:45
	It doesn't go there.	39:48
	Without belittling or denying the least in the least,	39:51
	the value of self discovery	39:54
	and understanding and self acceptance,	39:56
	the fact still remains that understanding	39:59
	and explaining why I am a scoundrel	40:02
	does not change the fact.	40:06
	And furthermore, it does not remove	40:08
	my responsibility for being one.	40:10
	I can be a perfectly explained,	40:13
	completely understood scoundrel,	40:16
	but a scoundrel just the same.	40:20
	What I need is to have my scoundrel illness challenged,	40:24
	to acknowledge my responsibility for it,	40:28
	and to have it forgiven.	40:30
	Until it's forgiven, I cannot leave it.	40:32
	So if you really want to help me, don't excuse me,	40:36
	don't explain me away,	40:41
	take me seriously and hold me accountable.	40:44
	The second reason people don't throng our churches	40:51
	to get some of God's forgiveness	40:53
	is that they are not sure we will give it to them straight.	40:55
	They have had enough experience with churches	40:59
	to be afraid that what we give them	41:01
	won't be genuine forgiveness,	41:03
	but something else in a forgiveness box.	41:04
	And I've had enough experience with churches	41:08
	to know that their fear is justified.	41:11
	There is no cheaper shot than offering somebody forgiveness	41:14
	and then reading him a list of conditions.	41:20
	Maybe God's forgiveness is sometimes misunderstood	41:25
	and misrepresented in the church,	41:31
	and maybe even in the Bible.	41:34
	Forgiveness is supposed to be a good news,	41:38
	but sometimes it's not.	41:41
	Sometimes it comes across as a threat	41:43
	or a bribe or a suspended sentence.	41:46
	When a husband says to his wife or vice versa,	41:50
	okay, I'll forgive you this time,	41:53
	but one false move and I'm gonna nail you to the wall,	41:55
	somehow that doesn't come across as forgiveness.	42:00
	It's labeled forgiveness, it's in a forgiveness box,	42:04
	but it looks like a suspended sentence that can be revoked.	42:08
	The person is still guilty.	42:12
	He's still on trial.	42:14
	And it's very hard to live creatively and joyfully	42:17
	with an ax over your head,	42:22
	whether the ax is in the hand of a spouse	42:24
	or in the hand of God.	42:26
	Forgiveness that sounds like a threat is not very good news,	42:30
	but a lot of people think that's what the gospel is about.	42:35
	I mean, how can you possibly forgive a guilty person	42:39
	until he has suffered for his mistake?	42:43
	That goes against all of our instincts.	42:46
	And it's a good bet that God	42:49
	has the same instincts we have, right?	42:50
	It is good to forgive.	42:54
	It is right to forgive.	42:57
	It is divine to forgive, it's even fun to forgive	42:59
	after the guilty have suffered,	43:06
	after the debt is paid, after the worm has squirmed,	43:10
	then forgiving.	43:15
	If you go around forgiving people in the name of God	43:17
	before the penalties are paid,	43:20
	how are you going to keep up with the score?	43:22
	And what about points and batting averages	43:26
	and perfect attendance records?	43:29
	You've got to make the ledger balance,	43:30
	and that's in the Bible.	43:34
	Look again at that Old Testament story for this morning.	43:36
	David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord."	43:40
	And Nathan said to David, "The Lord has put away your sin.	43:45
	You will not die, but because of your sin,	43:50
	the child that is born to you will die."	43:56
	Now, that's not completely satisfactory,	44:04
	but for a meticulous moral bookkeeper, it's neat enough.	44:07
	One sin committed, one baby dead,	44:12
	the ledger balances, case closed,	44:16
	forgiveness now in order.	44:19
	That's pretty vicious forgiveness, isn't it?	44:24
	But it does have the appeal of and justice	44:28
	with all accounts settled,	44:33
	all debts liquidated, all penalties paid.	44:36
	If that's what God's forgiveness as light, you can keep it.	44:43
	I don't want it, you don't want it,	44:48
	the world doesn't want it, nobody wants.	44:50
	Anybody who reaches age 21	44:54
	and still thinks that God runs this world	44:57
	as a heavenly accountant with all good deeds and sins	44:59
	on one side of the ledger,	45:03
	perfectly balanced with rewards and penalties	45:05
	on the other side of the ledger,	45:07
	just hasn't been paying attention for 21 years.	45:09
	God is not that way.	45:13
	The world is not that way, life is not that way.	45:14
	There is no forgiveness in a system like that.	45:18
	Forgiveness does not exact revenge,	45:22
	it surrenders the desire for revenge.	45:26
	Forgiveness doesn't record debts, it cancels debts.	45:30
	Forgiveness doesn't audit accounts,	45:35
	it closes the book and throws it away.	45:38
	If you would know what God's forgiveness is like,	45:44
	I would send you not to that misguided commentator	45:48
	who helped put together the second book of Samuel,	45:51
	I would send you to the best source	45:55
	of God information I know.	45:58
	I would send you to Jesus of Nazareth.	46:01
	And I would point out to you his parting words	46:04
	to the sinful woman at that dinner party,	46:07
	"Your sins are forgiven, go in peace."	46:12
	Not go in dread, go in peace.	46:18
	Not go in fear, go in peace.	46:22
	Not even a, watch your step now lady.	46:26
	Not even a, remember you've already got two strikes	46:30
	against you.	46:33
	Just simply, your sins are forgiven,	46:36
	leave your kazoo here and go in peace.	46:40
	Friends, I don't know about you,	46:46
	but I'll take all of that I can get,	46:50
	I am forever in need of a closed ledger and a fresh start.	46:54
	That kind of forgiveness that sends me on my way in peace	47:00
	is good news to me.	47:06
	If we're looking to be coddled or explained or patronized	47:10
	or even excused, then God's forgiveness won't help much.	47:17
	But if we acknowledge that part of what's gumming up	47:23
	our lives is our own perverseness,	47:25
	and if we wish it to be otherwise and want a new beginning,	47:29
	then God's forgiveness is where we start.	47:33
	And don't be surprised if along the way,	47:37
	that symphony begins to sound more and more	47:40
	like our kind of music.	47:45
	Let us pray.	47:49
	Merciful God, for forgiving what we have been,	47:58
	for amending what we are,	48:04
	and for directing what we shall be,	48:07
	we give you thanks and praise through Jesus Christ,	48:11
	that masterful collector of old kazoos, amen.	48:14
	(hymn music)	48:25
-	Accept this offering from your people oh God,	58:03
	and save us from making these gifts	58:08
	a substitute for the gift of ourselves.	58:12
	We offer them to you as outward tokens	58:17
	of our inward commitment to you and your work.	58:21
	We pray in the spirit of Jesus, the Christ, amen.	58:26
	(hymn music)	58:34
	The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,	1:00:58
	and the love of God,	1:01:03
	and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit	1:01:06
	be with you this day and forever.	1:01:10
	Amen and amen.	1:01:15
	(hymn music)	1:01:26

-	Baccalaureate service for candidates for advanced degrees	0:04
	Duke University Chapel.	0:08
	May 17th,	0:10
	1977,	0:12
	3:00 PM.	0:14
	(soft instrumental music)	0:25
	(audience chattering)	14:20
	(soft instrumental music)	15:09
	(organ playing over singers)	15:13
	♪ Beautiful ♪	19:43
	♪ Savior ♪	19:47
	♪ Lord of the nations ♪	19:51
	♪ Son of God ♪	19:59
	♪ And Son of Man ♪	20:05
	♪ Glory and honor ♪	20:15
	♪ Praise, adoration ♪	20:23
	♪ Now and forevermore ♪	20:29
	♪ Be thine ♪	20:37
	♪ Now and forever ♪	20:43
	♪ Now and forevermore ♪	20:47
	♪ Be ♪	20:57
	♪ Thine ♪	20:59
	(soft orchestral music)	21:06
-	One of our distinguished faculty members once said	25:42
	to realize its true purpose,	25:47
	a university must worship as well as work.	25:49
	You who now graduate have worked long and hard.	25:55
	We now with joy and thanksgiving come together again	25:59
	and in this special service to worship.	26:04
	Having sung praise to God,	26:08
	let us now join together	26:11
	as we confess our sins.	26:12
	Let us pray.	26:15
-	Oh God, in whose mystery we abide	26:18
	and by whose mercy we are redeemed.	26:21
	We confess our sin against one another and against you,	26:24
	all our transgressions hidden and open	26:29
	the evil done and the goodness left undone.	26:33
	We have deceived ourselves about ourselves	26:37
	and worn masks and not trusted in love.	26:41
	We confess that we have been careful with things	26:45
	careless with persons, adept in taking,	26:49
	awkward in giving.	26:54
	In love with our fears and in fear of our loves.	26:56
	Forgive us for the times of our anger	27:01
	and the occasions of our stupidity.	27:04
	For the times of our cowardice	27:07
	and the places of our hesitation.	27:10
	For every time we did not love the goodness	27:13
	of persons, nor praise your glory.	27:15
	Forgive us, lift us up and heal us this day	27:20
	through Jesus Christ Our Lord.	27:25
	Amen.	27:27
-	Let us continue in prayer with our personal confession.	27:29
	All mighty God have mercy on us	27:53
	forgive us all our sins,	27:57
	strengthen us in all goodness	27:59
	and keep us always in his grace.	28:03
	Amen.	28:07
	(soft orchestral music)	28:22
-	Where there is no prophecy the people cast off restraint,	33:04
	but blessed is he who keeps the law.	33:09
	Agrippa said to Paul,	33:12
	"You have permission to speak for yourself."	33:14
	Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense.	33:18
	"At mid day oh king, I saw on the way a light from heaven	33:23
	brighter than the sun	33:28
	shining round me and those who journeyed with me.	33:29
	And when we had all fallen to the ground,	33:33
	I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language,	33:35
	Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?	33:39
	It hurts you to kick against the goads.	33:43
	And I said, who are you Lord?	33:47
	And the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,	33:50
	but rise and stand upon your feet	33:55
	for I have appeared to you for this purpose	33:58
	to appoint you, to serve and bear witness	34:01
	to the things and what you have seen me	34:04
	and to those things in which I will appear to you,	34:07
	delivering you from the people and from the Gentiles	34:10
	to whom I send you to open their eyes,	34:13
	that they may turn from darkness to light	34:18
	and from the power of Satan to God,	34:21
	that they may receive forgiveness of sins	34:24
	and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me."	34:27
	Wherefore O king of Agrippa,	34:32
	I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,	34:34
	but declared first to those at Damascus	34:38
	then at Jerusalem	34:40
	and throughout all the country of Judea	34:41
	and also to the Gentiles	34:44
	that they should repent and turn to God	34:46
	and perform deeds worthy of their repentance.	34:49
	(soft orchestral music)	34:56
	♪ Amen ♪	35:02
	♪ All praise to the Father ♪	35:06
	♪ And to the Son ♪	35:10
	♪ And to the Holy Ghost ♪	35:13
	(organ playing over singers)	35:16
	♪ Amen amen ♪	35:29
	♪ Amen ♪	35:33
	♪ Amen ♪	35:35
-	Let us affirm what we believe.	35:43
-	We believe in God who has created and is creating,	35:47
	who has come into truly human Jesus	35:51
	to reconcile and make new.	35:54
	We trust God who calls us to be the church	35:57
	to celebrate life and its fullness	36:02
	to love and serve others,	36:05
	to seek justice and resist evil,	36:08
	to proclaim Jesus crucified and risen	36:11
	our judge and our hope.	36:15
	In life, in death,	36:17
	in life beyond death, God is with us.	36:20
	We are not alone, thanks be to God.	36:24
	The Lord be with you.	36:29
-	And with your spirit.	36:31
-	Let us pray.	36:32
	And some, oh, God	36:44
	are called to be teachers	36:48
	and engineers, researchers,	36:52
	doctors, lawyers,	36:55
	ministers, analysts,	36:58
	businessman and women.	37:02
	Leaders and planners for society.	37:05
	Healers and carers,	37:09
	for the minds and bodies and souls of others.	37:11
	Women and men who seek to respond to life with their body,	37:16
	their mind, and their spirit.	37:21
	For all good gifts and graces	37:25
	that make us uniquely who we are,	37:29
	oh God, we give you thanks and praise.	37:34
	We give thanks for this special company	37:39
	of folk gathered here today.	37:42
	Graduates, family, friends, loved ones.	37:44
	Teachers and colleagues,	37:49
	help us God to see things as they really are	37:53
	to call things by their right names,	37:57
	to claim our own vocation as valid	38:00
	and to live our lives with integrity	38:04
	and with clarity of purpose.	38:06
	We pray now O, God, these words	38:11
	for those who are about to graduate,	38:13
	those who came searching for little, but found much.	38:17
	Those who came expecting great things	38:22
	and were not disappointed.	38:25
	Those who have gained a glimpse,	38:28
	just a glimpse of their true potential.	38:31
	Those who have found excitement	38:35
	and new ideas and new concepts,	38:37
	those who feel that indeed they have reached	38:41
	a major milestone.	38:43
	Another step, an important moment on their way.	38:44
	Those who came thinking that education	38:50
	has its end in itself.	38:52
	And who leave knowing that it's end	38:54
	is to be shared with others.	38:56
	Those who have begun to know both the frustration	39:00
	and the joy of serving others.	39:04
	Well God,	39:08
	as you realize who we have been	39:11
	accept us for who we are	39:14
	and make of us who we are yet to be.	39:17
	We commend ourselves now to you,	39:22
	knowing that your love can care for us.	39:25
	Your mercy bless us and your grace sustain us.	39:28
	Hear us as we pray in your holy name	39:35
	and for your love's sake.	39:40
	And hear us as we pray together.	39:43
-	Our Father who art in heaven,	39:46
	hallowed be thy name,	39:50
	thy kingdom come,	39:52
	thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.	39:54
	Give us this day our daily bread.	39:59
	Forgive us our trespasses	40:02
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	40:05
	Lead us not into temptation,	40:09
	but deliver us from evil,	40:11
	for thine is the kingdom,	40:14
	power and the glory forever, amen.	40:16
-	In the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.	40:32
	Amen.	40:36
	I ought to tell you	40:38
	that when I received the president's invitation	40:42
	to give this sermon,	40:45
	the first thing that popped into my mind	40:48
	was that with all the Smiths on this campus,	40:50
	surely he's made a mistake.	40:53
	And I remembered an afternoon much like this	40:57
	when it had unexpectedly rained	40:59
	and I was stranded in O'Hare Airport, in Chicago	41:01
	waiting for one of those Eastern flights	41:05
	that never seems to be on time	41:07
	and went into the shoe shop	41:11
	to watch a golf tournament in progress.	41:12
	And as I sat there, the manager of the shoe shop,	41:16
	finally, sidled up to me,	41:20
	leaned over and whispered in my ear.	41:23
	"You're Arnold Palmer, aren't you?"	41:26
	(audience laughing)	41:28
	And I said, no, I'm not, I wish I were.	41:31
	And a few minutes later,	41:35
	he came back and leaned over again and said,	41:36
	"Aren't you really Arnold Palmer?"	41:40
	And about that time, the golf tournament was in progress	41:43
	being done live and Palmer was walking down the fairway.	41:46
	And I said, look, there's Arnold Palmer on the television.	41:48
	He said, "I know, very clever.	41:53
	This was taped earlier, and it's a broadcast now."	41:56
	He followed me when the tournament was out,	42:01
	finished into the major part of the terminal.	42:04
	And he said, "I don't want to annoy you too much,	42:08
	but would you mind showing me some identification?"	42:11
	(audience laughing)	42:14
	So, I pulled out my wallet	42:16
	and showed him a driver's license.	42:17
	He said, "You know, that's very clever.	42:20
	I think if I were famous,	42:22
	I'd have dual identity cards as well."	42:23
	(audience laughing)	42:25
	And then he produced a dollar bill and he said,	42:28
	"Would you sign this?"	42:30
	And I said, what's your name?	42:32
	He said, "Charlie."	42:34
	I pulled out my pen and wrote	42:36
	Charlie, good luck always, Arnold Palmer.	42:38
	(audience laughing)	42:41
	And that's how I answered the president's invitation.	42:46
	I said, I'll do it.	42:49
	But I guess that with a few notable exceptions,	42:52
	this is very likely the first time that most of us	42:55
	here have participated	42:58
	in a baccalaureate service of this sort.	43:00
	I've wondered as the weeks have gone by since	43:02
	the invitation was issued to me to preach this sermon,	43:05
	what we really are intended to be about here.	43:08
	22 years ago, I sat where you're sitting,	43:12
	but I've never been on this side of the pulpit before,	43:16
	but as best I can recall the damn memory	43:21
	of that distant day in 1955,	43:23
	when I was sitting where you are,	43:25
	I think that I came along with the rest of my classmates	43:29
	out of a grudging sense of obligation,	43:32
	mixed generously with curiosity and not a little diffidence.	43:35
	Because after what had seemed a terribly long time	43:40
	in classrooms and carols,	43:44
	listening to lectures and writing papers	43:46
	and taking exams and worrying about a job for next year.	43:49
	I think that I had been so completely inundated	43:53
	and so thoroughly saturated	43:57
	by the immediate requirements for graduation	43:59
	that others had imposed upon me	44:02
	that by the time of commencement weekend,	44:05
	I had largely lost enthusiasm for those dreams	44:09
	and aspirations that initially	44:13
	had set my feet toward this goal.	44:15
	So I don't know.	44:20
	And of course have no way of knowing why you are here	44:21
	or what sorts of expectations	44:27
	you've brought to this service.	44:29
	But as I have reflected upon what I ought to say	44:32
	or what you'd wanna hear,	44:36
	or even what might be appropriate just now.	44:39
	I've come back again and again, to a single thought,	44:42
	the purpose of a university education	44:48
	is not to indoctrinate,	44:50
	but to lead people through disciplined inquiry	44:54
	and a search for truth.	44:56
	In part, that means that those of us	45:00
	who've been your teachers should have acquainted you	45:02
	with how alternative interpretations of data are possible	45:04
	and assisted you to be coherent and congruent	45:09
	in the interpretations you've chosen to make.	45:12
	And above all,	45:16
	perhaps we should have required you to make those choices	45:17
	with intelligence and discrimination	45:21
	and integrity and purpose.	45:23
	Those are not all,	45:27
	but they are some of the goals of a graduate education.	45:28
	I wanna tell you what you already know,	45:33
	and that is that you must do better than we've taught you.	45:35
	So initially I just wanna remind you	45:40
	of what you should already know	45:42
	that you probably embarked upon the studies for the degree,	45:44
	which bring you to this weekend with a certain vision,	45:47
	a dream, a prospect for who you wanted to be,	45:53
	what you wanted to become,	46:00
	a vision that may very well have been chastened	46:03
	and despoiled of its innocence in the meantime,	46:06
	but I hope that you still have it.	46:09
	Or if not the vision with which you began	46:13
	then another and better one	46:16
	by which you can leave this place	46:19
	to live a useful and happy life.	46:21
	By now, at least you ought to have	46:26
	a pretty good notion of who you are	46:28
	and what you can do	46:31
	and where you wanna make your mark.	46:33
	Couple of months ago,	46:36
	I had come home from Dallas with a genuine cowboy hat	46:37
	for our four year old son and like any child with a new toy	46:42
	he was initially obsessed with that hat.	46:46
	He wore it constantly	46:49
	and he pretended to be a real cowboy himself.	46:50
	But a few days later,	46:54
	he came to me wearing his Robin the Boy Wonder outfit.	46:55
	And he stood directly in front of me,	47:00
	looked me straight in the eye.	47:02
	And asked, "Who am I?"	47:04
	Well it's the game that we sometimes play.	47:08
	And so I guessed several wrong answers.	47:11
	You're a cowboy.	47:14
	You're Batman.	47:16
	You're the cookie monster.	47:17
	Finally I said, your Robin the Boy Wonder.	47:20
	He said, "That's right, you've finally got it."	47:24
	(audience laughing)	47:27
	But I thought were a cowboy, I said.	47:28
	"I was."	47:31
	He said, but not now.	47:32
	Then do you just change your identity from this	47:35
	to that to somebody else?	47:39
	"Yes."	47:41
	He said.	47:42
	Then how do you know who you are?	47:43
	I asked.	47:45
	At that point, my son looking just a little annoyed	47:47
	pointed to the letter R on his Robin outfit.	47:51
	(audience laughing)	47:55
	"You see this."	47:57
	He said, "When you see this, I'm Robin."	47:59
	(audience laughing)	48:04
	But you can be so many different people,	48:06
	I said, how can I ever be sure?	48:09
	"Just look close."	48:13
	He said.	48:15
	(audience laughing)	48:17
	That admonition like much of the wisdom	48:19
	from children and others,	48:21
	not of course privileged to enjoy the sophistication	48:23
	and maturity we have achieved	48:26
	is I think right on target this afternoon.	48:28
	You've just completed requirements	48:33
	for an advanced degree from this university.	48:35
	And while, I may not be the first to congratulate you	48:37
	nor the first to welcome you into that process	48:41
	of continual education, which you embark upon this weekend.	48:43
	I may be the first and perhaps the only one	48:48
	to acknowledge quite candidly,	48:51
	that now we don't have to impress each other anymore,	48:52
	you and I, that's finished.	48:56
	So we can talk to each other out of some more profound	48:59
	and serious intention than to score points.	49:03
	But what isn't finished, what is only begun	49:07
	is that life of professional service	49:11
	for which your advanced degree, presumably equips you.	49:14
	Whoever named this occasion had it right	49:18
	far from being an ending, it's a genuine beginning.	49:21
	It's a commencement.	49:25
	And with it, you have earned the right	49:28
	to invest yourself in the most serious game	49:31
	that any of us play.	49:34
	The title I gave to this sermon may seem a bit frivolous	49:37
	to those of you who correctly made an association with poker	49:39
	may even seem unbecoming	49:44
	that I should've made that association myself.	49:46
	But when I was asked for a title,	49:49
	I thought that in some subtle and interesting ways	49:52
	an advanced degree commencement	49:56
	is sort of like jacks or better to open.	49:59
	(audience laughing)	50:04
	It's the minimal strength required to play the hand,	50:05
	this weekend, you have that hand dealt to you.	50:11
	That is you've got openers	50:15
	and the rest of your life	50:18
	will turn on how wisely or foolishly you play out the hand.	50:19
	Similarly, I chose the Old and New Testament lessons	50:26
	for this sermon	50:29
	because they both speak of the need for visions	50:30
	of how important it is for people to have rich	50:35
	and rhapsodic imaginations.	50:38
	And I also chose them because I hope that you burn	50:42
	with a great and creative vision that in some important way,	50:45
	this university has kindled in you.	50:50
	If you haven't yet lived long enough to verify it	50:54
	by your own experience,	50:56
	you should know history well enough to appreciate	50:58
	the wisdom of Solomon,	51:00
	where there is no vision, the people perish.	51:03
	And if you haven't yet been caught up in the ecstatic	51:08
	and transforming power of an insight, a discernment,	51:11
	or even a peak into recondite truth and mystery,	51:16
	you've surely known others who have.	51:20
	And in the face of that experience	51:24
	there are only two choices.	51:26
	You can acknowledge the vision and be obedient to it	51:27
	as in Paul did on that Damascus road,	51:31
	or you can reject it and disavow it,	51:34
	but at great peril to yourself and the rest of us.	51:38
	And in some, that's all I wanna say to you this afternoon,	51:42
	now that this strife is over and this victory won,	51:47
	now that it's all over, but the shouting,	51:52
	just take a close look	51:55
	at who you are	51:58
	at what you've become, at what you are equipped to do	52:01
	at how your own imaginative vision is at work	52:06
	to shape your own life	52:10
	and that of your brothers and sisters.	52:13
	Now, if you do that,	52:18
	that may be an exercise and introspection	52:20
	that most appropriately occurs in a religious context.	52:23
	And maybe that is one of the reasons	52:28
	that Duke continues to include a service of worship	52:30
	in this weekend celebration.	52:33
	Whatever else is going on here	52:37
	and whatever our private satisfactions	52:40
	with having achieved this level of academic distinction	52:43
	and whatever fond hopes or niggling fears	52:48
	for finding a job next year in a time of economic distress.	52:51
	This university by both tradition and intention	52:56
	has an interest in this service and preserves it	53:00
	I reckon in order to commit its labor	53:04
	and entrust its graduates to the care and service of God.	53:08
	That's why we are here.	53:15
	And whatever you might privately believe about God	53:17
	or why we are here	53:21
	or what all this pomp and ceremony means.	53:24
	I think that this is what brings us together	53:29
	to say thanks for what has been	53:32
	to celebrate what has come to be	53:37
	and faithfully to commit to God's care	53:40
	and keeping what is to become.	53:43
	So I hope therefore in the genuine	53:47
	and altogether appropriate joy of this commencement weekend,	53:49
	that you will nourish and sustain and imagining of yourself	53:52
	and our common destiny, that can light the path	53:57
	to a hopeful and helpful future,	54:02
	a future full of justice	54:07
	and freedom	54:09
	and health	54:11
	and learning and all those other noble goals	54:13
	for which you've been trained	54:17
	and this brings me to the final observation.	54:21
	graduate and professional education takes place within	54:27
	and at its best,	54:31
	I think self-consciously acknowledges	54:32
	a pair of paradoxical commitments.	54:34
	On the one hand,	54:38
	we are committed to disinterestedness,	54:39
	to objectivity	54:43
	to truth, wherever we find it.	54:45
	And despite the threat it may pose	54:48
	to established and comfortable ways	54:51
	of perceiving ourselves and our world.	54:53
	On the other hand, we engage in this quest,	54:58
	we mount this enterprise in order to be involved	55:01
	in the social and economic and political process.	55:05
	We seek truth in order to be passionately engaged	55:10
	in its impact upon our common life.	55:14
	That paradox of the interplay between disinterestedness	55:19
	and involvement, in subtle ways	55:25
	is the burden of graduate professionals.	55:28
	It's also the reason that just any old vision won't do,	55:33
	that our vision must be of a particular sort,	55:40
	disciplined, faithful, obedient to truth,	55:44
	beauty, goodness.	55:50
	And if it's to be worthy of our commitment	55:53
	and serviceable to our neighbor,	55:58
	it must be self-consciously and warmly embraced.	56:01
	Three years ago, almost to this day,	56:09
	I visited the site	56:13
	of the former Nazi concentration camp at Dachau.	56:14
	It was a spectacularly beautiful Saturday afternoon.	56:20
	The sun was brilliant and lovely breezes	56:25
	swept over the Lago, Stresa, which was lined with poplars,	56:29
	which the prisoners themselves had planted.	56:34
	We entered the compound through a Carmelite convent,	56:38
	which is just outside the wall.	56:42
	At the end of the compound,	56:45
	where now three memorial chapels,	56:47
	Protestant,	56:50
	Roman Catholic and Jewish	56:51
	have been erected	56:54
	to the memory of the inmates in that camp.	56:55
	The Roman Catholic and Jewish memorials	57:01
	are not regularly staffed	57:03
	and they're used only on special occasion.	57:05
	But the Protestant chapel	57:09
	called the Church of Reconciliation	57:11
	has a resident chaplain,	57:13
	Pastor Christian Rager,	57:17
	who himself was an inmate at Dachau.	57:20
	At the time we talked, Pastor Rager was 70 years old,	57:25
	but more alert and active	57:28
	than some I've known	57:29
	who were half his age.	57:33
	And he provided me one of those landmark experiences	57:36
	in my life by talking with me	57:40
	for three hours that afternoon.	57:41
	I learned that 200,000 men and women	57:46
	pass through Dachau as prisoners.	57:49
	That's about 10,000 times	57:55
	this chapel	57:59
	filled	58:01
	to standing room only capacity.	58:02
	I learned that about 30,000 men	58:08
	and women died in that camp alone.	58:10
	I calculate that's about 15 times	58:14
	the number of people that would fill this chapel	58:19
	to standing room only capacity.	58:23
	After we talked for a while, Pastor Rager sent me off	58:27
	to the crematorium	58:29
	with a guide who himself had been an inmate	58:32
	and also a victim of the medical experiments	58:36
	which were conducted at Dachau.	58:38
	It was a grizzly tour.	58:41
	And inside the crematorium,	58:44
	I could swear that I smell burnt flesh.	58:47
	So I went outside for fresh air thinking that my imagination	58:53
	might be inducing that sensation,	58:56
	but even after going in and out four times,	58:59
	I could still smell it.	59:02
	So when I returned to Pastor Rager,	59:04
	I asked him whether it was possible 30 years after the fact	59:06
	that my mind had tricked my olfactory senses.	59:11
	No, he said,	59:16
	it's a genuine sensation	59:18
	because the bricks are porous	59:21
	and they've thoroughly absorbed the odor.	59:24
	As I was getting ready to leave,	59:29
	we were talking about how such a monstrous thing	59:30
	as national socialism could have happened,	59:34
	how the evil vision of Adolf Hitler	59:39
	could have achieved such eminence.	59:43
	How otherwise good and decent people like you and me	59:46
	could be seduced by a lust for power,	59:51
	which resulted in a horror of such proportion	59:54
	as this world hadn't seen.	59:56
	And Pastor Rager explained this to me,	1:00:01
	peering over his thick,	1:00:04
	horn-rimmed,	1:00:07
	obviously National Health Service issued glasses.	1:00:08
	"Hitler could not have risen to power."	1:00:13
	He said,	1:00:15
	"Apart from the indifference	1:00:17
	and the carelessness of the German people,	1:00:20
	they permitted it."	1:00:25
	Pastor Rager said	1:00:27
	because Hitler filled the vacuum created	1:00:28
	by the absence of vision."	1:00:34
	The pertinence of that assessment,	1:00:40
	particularly in the context of this sermon	1:00:41
	bears upon that paradox which I mentioned just a minute ago.	1:00:44
	The German people in the twenties and thirties	1:00:50
	had committed themselves to one aspect	1:00:52
	of this paradox, disinterestedness,	1:00:55
	but they apparently had neglected or rejected	1:01:01
	the other equally important feature, involvement.	1:01:04
	If it were in my power to do it,	1:01:11
	I'd want you to understand that this is a temptation.	1:01:15
	This is a seduction to which people like us	1:01:19
	are particularly susceptible.	1:01:23
	the power and status,	1:01:27
	which our training and position vests in us	1:01:29
	easily turns into preoccupations with objectivity	1:01:32
	this passionate observation and analysis.	1:01:36
	And insularity from any self-conscious regard	1:01:40
	or accountability for the humane dimensions of our work.	1:01:44
	That's why I covered for you a vision,	1:01:51
	a prospect for the indispensability	1:01:54
	of passionate engagement in our common life.	1:01:57
	At the end of the conversation with Pastor Rager,	1:02:03
	he leaned toward me	1:02:08
	and in a voice	1:02:11
	barely larger than a whisper.	1:02:13
	He said, "You know, Professor Schmidt,	1:02:17
	there is no vision	1:02:21
	there is no risk.	1:02:24
	And there is no risk, there is no witness.	1:02:28
	And there is no witness,	1:02:34
	there is no hope."	1:02:38
	When I left Dachau that day,	1:02:43
	I was very deeply moved by what I had seen and heard.	1:02:46
	And I vowed then	1:02:52
	never to take lightly my obligation as a teacher,	1:02:54
	nor in so far as I could control it	1:02:59
	to allow my students to treat their education frivolously,	1:03:02
	because I knew emphatically	1:03:08
	that what goes on here makes a difference.	1:03:10
	So when we exited through	1:03:17
	the same Carmelite Convent of the Precious Blood,	1:03:19
	it's called,	1:03:23
	I bought this cross.	1:03:27
	It is blood red, enamel on bronze	1:03:31
	to help me remember	1:03:37
	that where there is no vision,	1:03:41
	there is no risk	1:03:45
	and where there is no risk, there is no witness.	1:03:48
	And where there is no witness,	1:03:54
	there is no hope.	1:03:57
	Today,	1:04:01
	you people have been dealt openers	1:04:04
	and the rest of us around the table are calling your hand.	1:04:09
	Now under God's gracious mercy and protection	1:04:17
	we commit you.	1:04:20
	The Lord bless you and keep you,	1:04:23
	the Lord, make His face to shine upon you	1:04:27
	and be gracious unto you.	1:04:29
	The Lord lift up his countenance upon you	1:04:33
	and give you peace	1:04:36
	both now and evermore.	1:04:38
	Amen.	1:04:41
-	Let us join together now	1:04:58
	in this responsive prayer	1:05:01
	of Thanksgiving and Commitment, let us pray.	1:05:04
	Oh God, we rejoice that we have learned together	1:05:11
	and have worshiped together.	1:05:14
	Now we bring before you the symbols	1:05:17
	and reality of our lives.	1:05:19
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:05:23
	We give thanks for the universe.	1:05:39
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:05:42
	For the earth.	1:05:44
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:05:45
	For communities and neighborhoods.	1:05:49
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:05:51
	For the revolutions, which shake our world.	1:05:55
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:05:59
	For the power of our learning.	1:06:02
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:05
	Or their perplexities, which confront us.	1:06:07
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:11
	For our heritage.	1:06:14
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:16
	For the visions of this university's students,	1:06:19
	staff and faculty.	1:06:22
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:25
	We are given the eyes of the spirit.	1:06:28
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:32
	The promise is to each of us,	1:06:36
	we may see, we may receive, we may love.	1:06:39
	(congregants response indistinct)	1:06:44
	Amen and amen.	1:07:02
	(soft instrumental music)	1:07:15
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:07:46
	♪ Is thy dwelling place ♪	1:07:49
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:07:56
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:08:01
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:08:04
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:08:06
	♪ Thy dwelling place ♪	1:08:14
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:08:20
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:08:25
	♪ Oh Lord ♪	1:08:28
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:08:31
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:08:35
	♪ Is thy dwelling place ♪	1:08:42
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:08:49
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:08:52
	♪ How lovely is ♪	1:09:01
	♪ Thy dwelling place ♪	1:09:08
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:09:14
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:09:18
	♪ For my soul ♪	1:09:27
	♪ It longeth ♪	1:09:32
	♪ Yea, fainteth ♪	1:09:34
	♪ It longeth ♪	1:09:37
	♪ Yeah, fainteth ♪	1:09:39
	♪ It longeth ♪	1:09:41
	♪ It fainteth ♪	1:09:48
	♪ For the courts ♪	1:09:53
	♪ Of the Lord ♪	1:10:00
	♪ My soul and body ♪	1:10:09
	♪ Crieth out ♪	1:10:14
	♪ Yea, for the living God ♪	1:10:19
	♪ My soul and body ♪	1:10:28
	♪ Crieth out ♪	1:10:32
	♪ Yea, for the living God ♪	1:10:37
	♪ Yeah, for the living God ♪	1:10:40
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:11:03
	♪ Is thy dwelling place ♪	1:11:06
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:11:13
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:11:18
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:11:20
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:11:23
	♪ Thy dwelling place ♪	1:11:30
	♪ Oh Lord ♪	1:11:36
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:11:41
	♪ O Lord ♪	1:11:43
	♪ Of Hosts ♪	1:11:46
	♪ Blest are they ♪	1:11:52
	♪ O blest ♪	1:12:02
	♪ Are ♪	1:12:05
	♪ They ♪	1:12:07
	♪ That dwell ♪	1:12:10
	♪ That dwell ♪	1:12:13
	♪ Within thy house ♪	1:12:15
	♪ They praise ♪	1:12:19
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	1:12:21
	♪ They praise ♪	1:12:24
	♪ They praise ♪	1:12:27
	♪ They praise, they praise ♪	1:12:28
	♪ They praise, they praise ♪	1:12:30
	♪ They praise, they praise ♪	1:12:33
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	1:12:38
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	1:12:41
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	1:12:44
	♪ Praise, praise, praise ♪	1:12:51
	♪ Praise ♪	1:12:56
	♪ Praise ♪	1:12:57
	♪ Praise ♪	1:12:59
	♪ Praise ♪	1:13:01
	♪ Praise ♪	1:13:02
	♪ Praise ♪	1:13:03
	♪ Praise ♪	1:13:05
	♪ Praise his name ♪	1:13:07
	♪ Praise his name ♪	1:13:08
	♪ Praise his name ♪	1:13:12
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:13:22
	♪ Is thy ♪	1:13:26
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:13:28
	♪ How lovely is ♪	1:13:32
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:13:37
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:13:42
	♪ How lovely ♪	1:13:48
	♪ Is thy dwelling ♪	1:13:53
	♪ Is the ♪	1:14:00
	♪ Dwelling ♪	1:14:06
	♪ Place ♪	1:14:13
	(organ playing over singers)	1:14:51
-	And now in conclusion, my friends	1:18:50
	fill your minds with things	1:18:54
	that are good and deserve praise,	1:18:57
	those things, which are pure, true,	1:19:02
	just, right, lovely	1:19:06
	and honorable.	1:19:09
	Put into practice the good you have learned	1:19:12
	and the God who loves us and cares for us	1:19:17
	and gives us peace will be with you	1:19:21
	this day	1:19:25
	and forever.	1:19:27
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:32
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:36
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:39
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:43
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:49
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:56
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:06
	(upbeat orchestral music)	1:20:22

Item Info

Title:

Johnson, Robert L. - "The Gift of Forgiveness" (June 12, 1977)

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r45m66792

Date:

June 12, 1977

Speaker:

Johnson, Robert L.

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-0902
ref7007_k9d
uachapelsermaud
duke:628061
dcrau002848
ark:/87924/r45m66792
bfdc2270-4cf8-4e6a-bba2-fad562c88a9e

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

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Duke University Chapel recordings

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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.

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Johnson, Robert L. - "The Gift of Forgiveness" (June 12, 1977)

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Duke University Archives