James H. Cone - The Church Struggling for the Liberation of the People (February 13, 1977)

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Narrator	Duke University Chapel, service of worship,	0:03
	sixth Sunday after Epiphany day, February 13th, 1977.	0:07
	(gentle organ music)	0:23
	(upbeat organ music)	5:34
	♪ Beautiful savior, ♪	8:01
	♪ Lord of the nations. ♪	8:09
	♪ Son of God and Son of Man. ♪	8:17
	♪ Glory and honor, ♪	8:31
	♪ Praise, adoration ♪	8:40
	♪ Now and forevermore be thine. ♪	8:47
	♪ Now and forevermore ♪	8:58
	♪ Now and forevermore ♪	9:06
	♪ Be thine. ♪	9:12
	(organ music)	9:25
	♪ All creatures of our God and king ♪	10:16
	♪ Lift up your voice and with us sing. ♪	10:21
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	10:28
	♪ Thou burning sun with golden beam, ♪	10:35
	♪ Thou silver moon with softer gleam, ♪	10:42
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	10:48
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	10:51
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	10:54
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	11:01
	♪ Thou rushing wind that art so strong, ♪	11:10
	♪ Ye clouds that sail in heaven along, ♪	11:16
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	11:22
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	11:25
	♪ Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice, ♪	11:30
	♪ Ye lights of evening, find a voice. ♪	11:36
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	11:42
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	11:46
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	11:49
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	11:56
	♪ Thou flowing water pure and clear, ♪	12:05
	♪ Make music for your Lord to hear. ♪	12:11
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	12:16
	♪ Thou fire so masterful and bright, ♪	12:24
	♪ That givest us both warmth and light. ♪	12:30
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	12:36
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	12:40
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	12:43
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	12:50
	♪ Thou fertile earth that day by day, ♪	12:58
	♪ Unfoldest blessings on your way, ♪	13:04
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	13:10
	♪ Alleluia ♪	13:13
	♪ The flowers and fruits that in thee grow, ♪	13:18
	♪ Let them God's glory also show. ♪	13:24
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	13:30
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	13:33
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia, ♪	13:36
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	13:43
	♪ And everyone of tender heart, ♪	13:51
	♪ Forgiving others, take your part ♪	13:57
	♪ Oh sing ye, Alleluia ♪	14:03
	♪ Ye who long pain and sorrow bear, ♪	14:12
	♪ Praise God and cast on God your care. ♪	14:18
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	14:24
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	14:27
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	14:30
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	14:37
	♪ And thou most kind and gentle Death ♪	14:46
	♪ Waiting to hush our latest breath ♪	14:52
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	14:58
	♪ Alleluia ♪	15:01
	♪ Thou leadest home the child of God ♪	15:06
	♪ And Christ our Lord the way hath trod ♪	15:12
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	15:18
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	15:21
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	15:25
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	15:32
	♪ All creatures your creator bless, ♪	15:40
	♪ And worship him in humbleness. ♪	15:46
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	15:52
	♪ Alleluia ♪	15:56
	♪ Praise, praise the father, praise the Son ♪	16:01
	♪ And praise the Spirit, Three in One. ♪	16:07
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	16:13
	♪ Oh praise him, ♪	16:17
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	16:20
	♪ Alleluia ♪	16:27
Presider	Dearly beloved, the scriptures move us	16:59
	to acknowledge and confess our sins	17:01
	before almighty God our heavenly father,	17:04
	with a humble, lowly, penitent, and obedient heart	17:07
	to the end that we may obtain forgiveness	17:11
	by his infinite goodness and mercy.	17:14
	Wherefore I pray and beseech you,	17:18
	as many as are here present,	17:21
	to accompany me with a pure heart and humble voice	17:24
	unto the throne of heavenly grace,	17:28
	let us pray together the prayer of confession.	17:31
	We confess...	17:35
	(congregation murmuring prayer)	17:38
	Let us continue in personal silent mediation and confession.	18:33
	If we say we have no sin we lie and do not the truth.	19:00
	If we confess our sin, God is faithful and just	19:09
	and will forgive our sin and cleanse us from all iniquity.	19:15
	Jesus said, be of good cheer,	19:23
	thy sins are forgiven.	19:29
	Amen.	19:34
Lector	The scripture lesson for today comes	19:45
	from the Gospel according to Luke,	19:47
	the fourth chapter, verses 16 through 23.	19:49
	Would you please stand for the reading of the Gospel.	19:54
	"And he came to Nazareth where he had been brought up,	20:03
	"and he went to the synagogue as was his custom	20:06
	"on the Sabbath day.	20:09
	"And he stood up to read,	20:11
	"and there was given to him the book	20:12
	"of the prophet Isaiah.	20:14
	"He opened the book and found the place where it was written	20:16
	"'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,	20:19
	"'because he has anointed me to preach good news	20:22
	"'to the poor, he has sent me to proclaim release	20:25
	"'to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind.	20:29
	"'To set at liberty those who are oppressed,	20:32
	"'to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.'	20:36
	"And he closed the book and gave it back to the attendant,	20:39
	"and sat down and the eyes of all in the synagogue	20:43
	"were fixed upon him, and he began to say to them,	20:46
	"'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.'	20:50
	"And all spoke well of him and wondered	20:54
	"at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth,	20:56
	"and they said, 'Is this not Joseph's son?'	20:59
	"And he said to them, 'Doubtless you will quote	21:03
	"'to me this proverb.'	21:06
	"'Physician, heal yourself.	21:08
	"'What we have heard you did at Capernaum	21:10
	"'do here also in your own country.'"	21:12
	Thus ended the reading of his word.	21:15
	(organ music)	21:18
	(choir singing)	21:27
Presider	Let us affirm what we believe.	22:00
	We believe in God, who has created and is creating,	22:03
Congregation	Who has come in Jesus,	22:09
	to reconcile and make new.	22:12
	We trust in God.	22:15
	Who calls us to be Church.	22:17
	To celebrate life in its fullness.	22:20
	To love and serve others.	22:23
	To seek justice and resist evil.	22:26
	To proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen,	22:29
	our judge and our hope.	22:33
	In life, in death, in life beyond death.	22:35
	God is with us.	22:40
	We are not alone.	22:42
	Thanks be to God.	22:44
Presider	The Lord be with you.	22:46
Congregation	And with your spirit.	22:49
Presider	Let us pray.	22:50
	From everlasting to everlasting	23:03
	thou art God our heavenly father.	23:07
	Before the foundations of the world,	23:17
	before life itself,	23:26
	thou didst brood upon the face of the deep.	23:33
	Thou didst order a universe.	23:41
	Subsequently bring life in all of its forms into being.	23:46
	Even we ourselves,	24:00
	our existence,	24:07
	our very presence here in this place,	24:10
	all of these are evidences of the mysterious power,	24:15
	the creating power,	24:29
	which thou hast and doest exert in the world.	24:33
	As thou hast made us, oh God, and	24:44
	put us in this place at this time,	24:49
	we come to thee now	24:58
	thanking thee for the privilege which is ours.	25:01
	Thanking thee that	25:06
	we have been touched by thy Spirit and thy power.	25:13
	And that we have the privilege of becoming	25:22
	one with all those who are thy children.	25:27
	Help us, our father, not to misuse that privilege.	25:34
	But help us to labor	25:42
	day by day in our homes and our work,	25:45
	and in our play.	25:50
	Help us to be instruments for thy continuing creation,	25:54
	of a world and a society	26:05
	where people shall know that thou art God.	26:10
	That all persons are brothers and sisters.	26:16
	Because thou hast made us and sustained us oh God,	26:23
	we thank you for your abiding presence,	26:30
	and we beseech you now	26:35
	that you'll never leave us nor forsake us,	26:37
	for we are faced with all kinds of conditions in the world.	26:45
	Some of us are lonely, some of us have doubts.	26:54
	Some of us are discouraged almost to despair.	27:00
	Some of us feel mistreated.	27:07
	Many of thy people around the world are oppressed.	27:12
	Don't leave us alone, oh God.	27:18
	Some of us are sick,	27:24
	feeble in body and feeble in mind.	27:30
	Don't leave us alone, our father.	27:39
	Some of us are struggling.	27:44
	Struggling and striving every day.	27:48
	Trying to reach	27:57
	certain goals in life.	28:01
	Very often we stumble and sometimes we fall.	28:06
	Don't leave us alone, oh God.	28:14
	Nay, come thou and speak to us.	28:19
	Even while we pray in this place and	28:24
	forgive us of our sins and	28:29
	grant unto us the assurance of thy presence.	28:33
	Help us and bless us, our father.	28:39
	We pray not only for ourselves but	28:44
	for the conditions of men and women, boys and girls,	28:50
	around the world.	28:55
	That thou wouldst in,	29:03
	and through thy church,	29:07
	relieve all adverst situations and circumstances.	29:10
	Giving food to those who are hungry.	29:20
	Peace to those who are warring.	29:25
	Comfort to those who are mourning or in any kind of trouble.	29:30
	Oh God, bless them this morning.	29:39
	Hasten the day	29:44
	when trouble and sickness	29:47
	and sorrow and death shall be no more.	29:50
	Hasten that day, oh God, when	29:57
	thy kingdom shall come.	30:00
	And thy will be done.	30:05
	To the ends, to the far ends, of the earth.	30:09
	Thou knowest all about us.	30:20
	Thou knowest our need even before we ask or think.	30:23
	As thy prayers are offered both	30:30
	uttered and unuttered from this place	30:37
	and other places this day,	30:40
	we beseech thee oh God that thou wouldst	30:43
	hear and give answer.	30:47
	If prayer be in keeping with thy holy will.	30:50
	For we pray in the name	30:57
	of thy son Jesus Christ.	30:59
	Who taught us when we pray to say,	31:04
	Our Father, who art in heaven,	31:07
	hallowed by thy name.	31:11
	Thy kingdom come.	31:13
	They will be done	31:16
	on earth as in heaven.	31:18
	Give us this day our daily bread.	31:20
	And forgive us our trespasses.	31:24
Congregation	As we forgive those	31:27
	that trespass against us.	31:29
	And lead us not into temptation,	31:31
	but deliver us from evil.	31:33
	For thine is the kingdom,	31:36
	the power, and the glory, amen.	31:38
Presider	Amen.	31:44
	We want to greet and welcome	31:53
	all of you who have come to worship here	31:58
	in this place this Lord's day.	32:02
	We're glad that you've come and	32:06
	it is our hope and our prayer that	32:09
	you will feel something of the warmth of this fellowship	32:13
	and God's presence to bless you in a special way.	32:18
	So much so that you will want to be	32:23
	in this congregation and fellowship again.	32:26
	We would call your attention to all of the announcements	32:32
	that are listed in the bulletin.	32:37
	The first of which is a very brief descriptive	32:46
	biographical sketch, statement,	32:52
	regarding our preacher for the day.	32:56
	Much more could be said	33:01
	about the life and work	33:05
	of professor James H Cone.	33:09
	We invite you to read this statement.	33:16
	And be assured that you will learn more about him	33:24
	as he preaches to us today.	33:28
	Professor Cone, we are happy to have you at Duke	33:31
	and we hear you gladly now.	33:36
	Bless you.	33:39
Cone	The theme of our sermon topic this morning	33:55
	is the church struggling for the liberation of the people.	33:59
	What is the Christian church,	34:04
	and how is it related to the liberation	34:08
	of people in the world?	34:11
	The answer to this question is not easy	34:14
	for most Christian churches	34:17
	because they do not know what the	34:20
	Christian message really is.	34:22
	No one can preach what they do not know.	34:25
	Neither can the church be the church	34:30
	if the people of the church do not know	34:33
	what the church is.	34:37
	To be sure, we know something about Jesus Christ.	34:39
	And we have heard that God sent him	34:45
	into the world in order that we might be saved.	34:48
	Bu the question is, who is Jesus Christ	34:53
	and what exactly does salvation mean?	34:59
	On this question we often leave it	35:03
	to theologians and preachers	35:06
	to tell us what we ought to believe.	35:09
	But that is a mistake.	35:14
	Aside from the fact that God did not entrust	35:18
	his kingdom to theologians, but to a carpenter	35:21
	form Nazareth, theologians and preachers often	35:24
	forget the essential truth of the Christian gospel.	35:28
	They often let themselves get bogged down	35:34
	in professional and pastoral duties	35:38
	which often are only remotely related	35:42
	to the central message of the gospel.	35:45
	They often become busybodies.	35:49
	Good at reading books and preaching sermons,	35:52
	but many times not knowing what exactly	35:56
	it all has to do with life	35:59
	and God's will to set the captives free.	36:03
	If the church is to be the church,	36:07
	it cannot be left completely in the hands	36:11
	of theologians and preachers.	36:16
	Now in answering the question, what is the church,	36:19
	and how is it related to the liberation	36:24
	of people in the world,	36:27
	I think we must return to Jesus Christ	36:29
	as witnessed in the scripture, and as he is present	36:33
	in the lives of the weak and the helpless of this land.	36:38
	The central message of the scripture is God's will	36:43
	to set free the oppressed of the land.	36:48
	This theme first of all is found in the Old Testament.	36:52
	Historically God's will to liberate the weak began	36:56
	with the Exodus of Israelite slaves from Egypt.	37:01
	The scripture says that God heard their groaning	37:06
	and remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.	37:10
	It says that God saw the plight of Israel,	37:16
	took heed of it, God therefore took Israel's history	37:20
	into his own hands and did for Israel what she	37:26
	could not do for herself.	37:31
	With outstretched arms and with a mighty act	37:34
	of judgment, God delivered Israel from Egypt,	37:38
	and across the Red Sea.	37:42
	And when Israel saw the great power which	37:45
	the Lord had put forth against Egypt,	37:48
	they put their faith in God,	37:51
	responding with a song to the Lord.	37:54
	I will sing to the Lord because he has risen in triumph.	37:57
	The horse and his rider he has hurled into the sea.	38:02
	The Lord is my strength and my song.	38:07
	He has become my salvation.	38:11
	In the exodus event, God is revealed	38:15
	by means of divine acts on behalf	38:19
	of a weak and defenseless people.	38:23
	Now if the church of today is to be the people	38:26
	of this God of Israel, it too must become	38:31
	a church that is identified with the weak	38:35
	and the helpless of this land.	38:38
	Indeed it can be said that only those	38:41
	who are weak can really know who this	38:44
	exodus God is all about.	38:48
	Thus Pharaoh in Egypt could not heed God's	38:51
	will to liberate the Egyptian slaves	38:55
	because it was against his political interest.	38:59
	The same is true in our own time.	39:04
	In America, where black people have become enslaved	39:08
	and oppressed, they are adopted the exodus story	39:12
	as their own story.	39:17
	While white slave masters taught them that God	39:19
	willed black slavery and oppression,	39:22
	black people's view of God was radically different.	39:25
	They believed that God willed their freedom	39:30
	and not their slavery.	39:32
	And as evidence they pointed to the exodus story.	39:34
	Listen to the words of this freedom song	39:38
	in the 19th century.	39:41
	When Israel was in Egypt's land.	39:43
	Let my people go.	39:45
	Oppressed so hard they could not stand.	39:48
	Let my people go.	39:52
	Go down Moses way down in Egypt's land.	39:54
	Tell old Pharaoh to let my people go.	39:58
	The same theme of liberation is found	40:03
	in another slave song.	40:05
	Oh Mary don't you weep, don't you moan.	40:07
	Oh Mary don't you weep, don't you moan.	40:10
	Pharaoh's army got drowned, oh Mary don't you weep.	40:14
	There are other slave songs about Daniel	40:19
	in the lion's den.	40:23
	And the Hebrew children in the fiery furnace.	40:25
	Like slaves also sang about Joshua	40:28
	and the battle of Jericho,	40:31
	and Jonah in the belly of the whale.	40:33
	But in all cases the theme is on God's will	40:36
	to set free the weak and the helpless of the land.	40:40
	And black people reason that if God could	40:44
	save the Israelites from Pharaoh's army,	40:48
	Daniel from the lion's den, and the Hebrew children	40:51
	from the fiery furnace, then that same God	40:54
	can deliver black people from slavery and oppression.	40:58
	With this faith in the God of the exodus,	41:02
	the liberator of the weak and the helpless,	41:06
	black people revolutionized the Christian faith in America.	41:09
	The black church, in contrast to the white church,	41:13
	became an agent of liberation by proclaiming	41:18
	God's will to set the captives free.	41:21
	The gospel as God's will to liberate the weak,	41:24
	is not only found in the Old Testament,	41:29
	but also found in the New Testament.	41:31
	Jesus was born like the poor in Bethlehem	41:35
	because there was no room for him in the inn.	41:40
	He was baptized with the poor and lived	41:43
	among the weak and the helpless.	41:47
	If he had been born in a king's court,	41:49
	and had lived as an advisor to the emperor of Rome,	41:53
	then we would have a different Jesus	41:58
	than the one portrayed in the New Testament.	42:01
	Jesus' identity with the poor	42:05
	explains why he describes his ministry	42:09
	as good news for the poor and not the rich.	42:14
	Thus in the fourth chapter of Luke he says,	42:18
	the spirit of the Lord is upon me	42:21
	because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.	42:25
	He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives,	42:30
	and recovering of sight to the blind.	42:34
	And set at liberty those who are oppressed,	42:38
	and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.	42:42
	But Jesus not only proclaimed the liberation	42:47
	of the poor with words, he died on the cross	42:50
	like the poor in order that they might know	42:54
	that God wills their freedom and not their poverty.	42:58
	The crucifixion of Jesus is God the holy one	43:02
	of Israel taken the pains and the suffering	43:07
	of victims of oppression up on the divine self	43:10
	so that the oppressed of the land might know that they have	43:15
	a humanity that is not determined by their oppression.	43:20
	Now while the white church in America	43:25
	has often overlooked this liberation theme	43:28
	in the passion and in the death of Jesus,	43:32
	poor enslaved blacks heard Jesus' message	43:35
	of freedom with joy and with gladness.	43:40
	In Jesus' death, black slaves saw themselves,	43:44
	and on the cross they saw Jesus.	43:50
	And when they saw Jesus' pain and suffering on the cross,	43:54
	they unleashed their imagination,	44:00
	describing what they felt and what they saw.	44:04
	Listen to this spiritual.	44:08
	Oh they whipped him up the hill,	44:10
	up the hill, up the hill, up the hill.	44:12
	Oh they whipped him up the hill	44:15
	and he never said a mumblin' word.	44:17
	Oh they whipped him up the hill	44:20
	and he never said a mumblin' word.	44:22
	He just hung down his head and he cried.	44:25
	This 19th century slave song	44:30
	describes the pain of a crown of thorn	44:33
	that was placed on Jesus' head.	44:37
	The agony that he experienced when	44:40
	they nailed him to the cross.	44:42
	Then they pierced him in the side.	44:45
	Well the blood came twinklin' down, twinklin' down.	44:48
	Well the blood came twinklin' down	44:53
	and he never said a mumblin' word.	44:56
	Well the blood came twinklin' down	44:59
	and he never said a mumblin' word.	45:02
	He just hung down his head, and he died.	45:05
	For black slaves, the death of Jesus meant	45:10
	that he died up on the cross for them.	45:13
	His death was a symbol of their suffering	45:16
	in an oppressive society.	45:19
	Because black people believed that Jesus	45:22
	had died for them, they saw in their sufferin'	45:27
	Jesus' own suffering.	45:33
	Because black people had suffered and been abused	45:35
	they understood the agony of Jesus' pain	45:40
	and agony on the crucifixion.	45:44
	They knew what it felt like to be mistreated	45:47
	and condemned unjustly as a criminal.	45:51
	Thus they identified with Jesus.	45:55
	That's why they sang, they nailed my Jesus down,	45:58
	they put him on a crown of thorns.	46:03
	Oh see my Jesus hanging high.	46:05
	He looks so pale and he bled so free.	46:09
	Oh don't you think it was a shame.	46:13
	He hung three hours in dreadful pain.	46:16
	The identification of black people with Jesus	46:21
	was so complete that they transcended time and space and	46:25
	found themselves as witnesses to Jesus' sufferin'.	46:31
	That's why they sang, were you there	46:36
	when they crucified my Lord.	46:39
	Were you there when they crucified my Lord.	46:42
	Oh sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.	46:46
	Were you there when they crucified my Lord.	46:53
	This is a rhetorical question.	46:57
	With the answer being self-evident.	47:00
	Black slaves were there at the crucifixion.	47:04
	Jesus' pain became their pain,	47:07
	his sufferin' their sufferin'.	47:10
	But black people concluded that if they were	47:12
	at Jesus' crucifixion, if they were sufferin'	47:17
	with him, then Jesus was also with them	47:22
	in slavery suffering with them.	47:26
	Here then is a theological significance of Jesus' blackness.	47:30
	His blackness represents his identification	47:36
	with black victims throughout the world.	47:40
	It is Jesus taking upon himself	47:44
	the condition of an oppressed humanity,	47:47
	and becoming one with their humiliation.	47:51
	He becomes a black slave in America,	47:55
	a Korean in Japan, and an untouchable in India.	47:58
	Wherever people are experiencing unjust suffering,	48:03
	Jesus is there with them suffering with them.	48:08
	He takes on their identity,	48:14
	and experiences what they experience.	48:17
	This is what the crucifixion means.	48:21
	But Jesus does not simply have an identification	48:25
	of sympathy with the victims throughout the world,	48:30
	he grants the victims the power of liberation.	48:33
	Here then is the meaning of the resurrection.	48:39
	The resurrection is the good news	48:42
	that the slaves have been set free.	48:45
	If the cross means that Jesus is with the victims	48:48
	of injustice in their suffering, then the resurrection	48:53
	means that the victims share in Jesus' victory over evil.	48:57
	Jesus' victory becomes their victory.	49:02
	The oppressed can now know what Apostle Paul knew	49:06
	that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy	49:11
	to be compared with the glory that will be revealed to us.	49:16
	This affirmation in Romans 8:18 is not a pious acceptance	49:20
	of earthly injustice, but rather is a revolutionary	49:27
	cry against it.	49:32
	Because of Jesus' victory over suffering we can now fight	49:34
	for the freedom that has been given in his resurrection.	49:38
	Failure to fight is a denial of the resurrection.	49:44
	This is what black slaves had in mind when they sang,	49:49
	weep no more, Martha, weep no more, Mary,	49:53
	Jesus rise from the dead happy mornin'.	49:58
	Now, if the contemporary church in our society or	50:02
	in any society for that matter is to be the church	50:07
	of this Jesus Christ, it must proclaim the liberation	50:10
	of the oppressed of the land.	50:16
	The church must not only proclaim liberation,	50:19
	it also must be an agent of liberation.	50:25
	This and nothing else, is what the gospel is all about.	50:29
	Because I believe in the God of the exodus and	50:35
	of the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus,	50:39
	I have spoken of the God of black liberation in America.	50:43
	I know of no other way to speak	50:48
	and remain faithful to the biblical claim	50:50
	that God came in Christ to set the captives free.	50:54
	To know who this God is, and what he demands	50:59
	of us in our context, we must go where the weak	51:03
	and the helpless people are and become identified	51:09
	with them in their struggle.	51:13
	Then and only then can we be the church	51:16
	that is the agent of liberation	51:21
	for the oppressed of the land.	51:23
	Now when the church takes seriously the location	51:25
	of its ministry in the context of the liberation of victims,	51:31
	it will then reevaluate its priorities.	51:37
	What would the church look like today	51:42
	if its identity were no longer defined by the rich	51:46
	but by the poor and the wretched of this land?	51:51
	One thing for sure, it would not look like most	51:56
	of the denominational churches in Europe and America.	52:00
	These churches are not the church of God and	52:05
	of Jesus Christ but rather the churches of the rulers	52:08
	who provide the moral and the religious justification	52:12
	for those in power.	52:15
	And if the meaning of religion is limited	52:18
	to the cultural definitions of those who rule,	52:22
	then Karl Marx was right,	52:26
	religion is the opium of the people.	52:28
	But I contend that the meaning of religion	52:32
	and thus of the church of Jesus Christ is not identified	52:35
	by those who rule, but rather by the cultural	52:39
	and the religious history of those who are victims.	52:43
	Whenever the victims of injustice accept	52:48
	the responsibility to define their own history,	52:52
	in their struggle for freedom, the manifestation	52:56
	of the church has been revealed.	53:00
	The church is not where pious people gather,	53:03
	but rather where victims are being liberated.	53:08
	It is the place where the victims encounter	53:11
	another definition of their humanity.	53:14
	And thus realize that they were not created	53:18
	for poverty and humiliation, but rather,	53:21
	for the liberation from injustice and oppression.	53:26
	This and nothing else, is what the church	53:31
	of Jesus Christ is about. Amen.	53:35
Presider	Let us pray.	53:48
	(organ music)	53:50
	(choir singing hymn)	54:12
	(quiet organ music)	56:12
	(choir singing hymn)	57:17
	(joyful organ music)	1:03:06
	♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow ♪	1:03:31
	♪ Praise him all creatures here below. ♪	1:03:36
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	1:03:42
	♪ Praise him above, ye heavenly host ♪	1:03:50
	♪ Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪	1:03:56
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	1:04:01
	♪ Alleluia, Alleluia ♪	1:04:08
	♪ Alleluia. ♪	1:04:14
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:04:23
Presider	Accept these offerings thy people make	1:04:36
	unto thee, oh Lord, and grant that the work	1:04:38
	to which they are devoted may prosper under thy guidance.	1:04:42
	And to the glory of thy holy name,	1:04:47
	through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	1:04:49
	(powerful organ music)	1:04:55
	(choir singing hymn)	1:05:33
	Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding	1:09:06
	keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love	1:09:10
	of God and of his son Jesus Christ our Lord.	1:09:12
	And may the blessings of God almighty Father,	1:09:15
	Son and Holy Spirit, be with you and remain with you always.	1:09:17
	♪ Amen, Amen ♪	1:09:23
	♪ Amen, Amen ♪	1:09:32
	♪ Amen, Amen ♪	1:09:44
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:09:52
	♪ Amen. ♪	1:10:05
	(powerful organ music)	1:10:27

Item Info

Title:

James H. Cone - The Church Struggling for the Liberation of the People (February 13, 1977)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 33:55. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 53:40.
Cone articulates the central task of the Church of Jesus Christ to proclaim and struggle for the liberation of the oppressed. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: "Here then is the theological significance of Jesus' Blackness. His Blackness represents his identification with Black victims througout the world. It is Jesus taking upon himself the condition of an oppressed humanity and becoming one with that humiliation. He becomes a Black slave in America, a Corean in Japan, and an untouchable in India. Wherever people are experiencing unjust suffering, Jesus is there with them, suffering with them. He takes on their identity and experiences what they experience. This is what the crucifixion means. But Jesus does not simply have an identification of sympthy with the victims throughout the world. He grants the victims the power of liberation. Here then is the meaning of the resurrection. The resurrection is the good news that the slaves have been set free. If the cross means that Jesus is with the victims of injustice in their suffering, then the resurrection means that the victims share in Jesus' victory over evil. Jesus' victory becomes their victory." (starts 47:30)

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4t727x2n

Date:

February 13, 1977

Speaker:

Cone, James H.

Liturgical Calendar:

Ordinary Time

Biblical Book:

Luke

Chapter and Verse:

Luke 4:16-23

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-0878
ref6956_t4d
uachapelsermaud
duke:320409
dcrau001820
ark:/87924/r4t727x2n
74266fb1-56cf-47c6-81ad-cb95a85b7415

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Duke Chapel Recordings

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Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Language:

English

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North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

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

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James H. Cone - The Church Struggling for the Liberation of the People (February 13, 1977)

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