Thomas A. Langford - "The Slaughter of the Innocents" (December 2, 1979)

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-	Sunday Worship Service, December 2, 1979, Duke Chapel.	0:06
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	0:13
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	3:10
	(faint chattering)	4:53
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	5:01
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	7:00
	(congregation chattering)	9:34
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	9:42
	("Organ Sonata No.5 in C major, BWV 529 by Bach, Sebastian")	11:29
	(choir singing "Beautiful Savior")	13:30
	("O Little Town Of Bethlehem" by Phillips Brooks)	14:52
-	You may be seated.	19:14
	Let us humbly confess our sins unto almighty God.	19:28
	Oh God, Lord of us all help us	19:34
	to acknowledge our own weakness.	19:38
	Our minds are darkened and by ourselves we cannot find	19:41
	and know the truth.	19:46
	Our wills are weak and by ourselves we cannot	19:48
	resist temptation or bring to its completion	19:53
	that which we resolve to do.	19:58
	Our hearts are fickle and by ourselves we cannot give	20:01
	to you the loyalty which is your do.	20:06
	Our steps are faltering and by ourselves we cannot walk	20:11
	in your straight way.	20:16
	So this day we ask you to enlighten us, to strengthen us,	20:19
	to guide us that we may know you and love you	20:26
	and follow you all the days of our life through	20:31
	Jesus Christ our redeemer.	20:36
	Let us confess and silence I will personal	20:41
	sins against God and neighbor.	20:43
	And now believe these words of the psalmist.	21:10
	For as the heavens are high above the Earth so great	21:14
	as God's steadfast love toward those who fear God.	21:17
	As far as the East is from the West so far does	21:22
	God remove our transgressions from us.	21:26
	Through the love of our almighty God our sins are forgiven.	21:31
	Let us forgive one another.	21:36
	Let us forgive ourselves.	21:39
	Let us give thanks for God is good	21:44
	and God's love is everlasting.	21:48
All	Thanks be to God whose love creates us.	21:52
	Thanks be to God who's mercy redeems us.	21:56
	Thanks be to God who's grace sustains us.	22:01
	I extend a warm welcome to each one of you today.	22:11
	You who are present here and the chapel	22:15
	and those who listen to the service on the radio.	22:18
	We are very glad you have chosen to worship with us.	22:22
	On this Sunday we are celebrating the international	22:28
	year of the child and we want to thank the children	22:31
	from the Fayetteville Street School	22:36
	who are assisting the ushers today.	22:37
	We also welcome their families to the service.	22:41
	During this week a number of events have been planned by the	22:45
	Durham committee for the international year of the child.	22:49
	We would ask that you watch her daily paper	22:53
	for the schedule of workshops and other events.	22:56
	Many of you are familiar with the wood project	23:02
	of past years to provide fuel to persons	23:05
	who cannot afford the high prices of heat these days.	23:08
	Added to the wood project is another for this year.	23:12
	The coal project.	23:16
	Duke University is making available at	23:19
	a great greatly reduced rate coal that needs to be moved.	23:21
	The plan is to bag the coal and distribute it	23:26
	to those persons who need fuel for the winter	23:31
	and cannot buy it at the going rate.	23:33
	Bags have been donated.	23:36
	Picks and shovels have been donated.	23:38
	Trucks have been donated to move the bags of coal.	23:41
	What we need are people who will bag the coal.	23:45
	If you would like to help in this project,	23:50
	please be at the chapel on Saturday at 9 a.m. or at 1 p.m.	23:53
	Buses will take you from the chapel to the work site.	23:59
	The Pastoral Care Nurture Community Committee	24:05
	needs at least 25 families to adopt 50	24:09
	incoming January freshman for the spring semester.	24:13
	No specific time commitment is involved.	24:18
	Just a willingness to be available for support	24:21
	during the students initial adjustment at Duke.	24:24
	If you're interested in participating in this program	24:29
	and are listening to the radio, you may call the chapel	24:32
	and leave your name and address and the number	24:38
	of students you would be willing to accept.	24:41
	For those of you here in the congregation,	24:45
	an insert is included in the bulletin for you	24:48
	to complete and leave in the box near the desk	24:50
	at the back of the chapel.	24:54
	Names and addresses of students will be sent	24:56
	to you before January.	24:59
	I would call your attention to the Nativity carvings	25:06
	in the transept to my left.	25:08
	These figures an original design work hard	25:11
	by Stan Kozynski of High Point North Carolina.	25:16
	The wood is White Oak to match the core of the chapel.	25:20
	The 14 statues given to the chapel	25:25
	by the C. Tom Latimer, Junior and Eleanor Sue Powell-Latimer	25:29
	and their children include Mary, Joseph, the Christ child,	25:34
	to Shepherds, five sheep, three wise men who are depicted as	25:39
	Mongolian, a Syrian and Hindu and a rather large angel.	25:44
	I invite you to view these carvings following the service.	25:51
	The Advent wreath is an old Christian custom	25:56
	originating with the Lutherans in Germany.	26:00
	The circle of evergreen reminds us	26:04
	of God's eternal never ending presence with us.	26:07
	Before candles one for each week and Advent reminds	26:11
	us of the coming Jesus Christ the light of the world	26:16
	which we receive anew this Advent season.	26:21
	The four candles are lavender in color	26:25
	symbolizing the penitence of the season.	26:28
	The fifth one, a white candle is the Christmas candle which	26:31
	symbolizes light and life coming to us in Jesus Christ.	26:35
	The first candle of the Advent wreath is lighted today.	26:40
	These candles were hand molded for	26:45
	the chapel by Mrs. Rufus Powell.	26:47
	Holy Communion will be served immediately following	26:51
	the service and the Memorial Chapel to my right.	26:56
	All of you wishing to partake of	26:59
	the Lord's Supper are welcome,	27:01
	and now we welcome to the pulpit today the	27:04
	Reverend Dr. Thomas A. Langford, Dean of the Divinity School	27:07
	here at Duke University.	27:11
	We welcome him back to this pulpit	27:14
	and look forward to the message he will bring us.	27:16
	Let us continue our worship of Almighty God.	27:19
	(choir singing "Sing to the Lord a New Song")	27:24
-	Let us pray.	31:56
	Oh thou eternal wisdom whom we partly know	31:59
	and partly do not know.	32:02
	Oh thou eternal justice when we partly acknowledge	32:06
	but never wholly obey.	32:10
	Oh thou eternal love whom we love a little	32:13
	but fear to love too much open	32:17
	our minds that we may understand.	32:21
	Work in our wills that we may obey.	32:24
	Kindle our hearts that we may love thee in the name	32:28
	of the word incarnate Jesus Christ Our Lord, amen.	32:32
	The gospel lesson for today is taken from the second chapter	32:39
	of Matthew verses 13 through 18.	32:42
	Please stand for the reading of the gospel.	32:46
	"After they had gone, an Angel of the Lord appeared	33:00
	"to Joseph in a dream and said to him rise up,	33:03
	"take the child and his mother and escape with them	33:08
	"to Egypt and stay there until I tell you.	33:11
	"For Herod is going to search for	33:16
	"the child to do away with him.	33:18
	"So Joseph arose from sleep and taking mother	33:21
	"and child by night, he went away with them to Egypt	33:26
	"and there he stayed until Herod's death.	33:31
	"This was to fulfill what the Lord had declared	33:35
	"through the prophet, I called my son out of Egypt.	33:38
	"When Herod saw how the astrologers had tricked him,	33:44
	"he fell into a passion and gave orders for the massacre	33:47
	"of all children in Bethlehem and it's neighborhood	33:51
	"of the age of two years or less corresponding with the time	33:56
	"he had ascertained from the astrologers.	34:00
	"So the word spoken through Jeremiah the prophet	34:05
	"were fulfilled.	34:08
	"A voice was heard in Ramah wailing in loud laments.	34:09
	"It was Rachel weeping for her children and refusing	34:16
	"all consolation because they were no more."	34:21
	Here ends the reading of the lesson.	34:27
	All praise and glory be to God.	34:29
	(organ music)	34:32
	(congregation singing)	34:42
-	The first Sunday in Advent has been chosen	35:58
	for the observance	36:03
	the day of the year of the child.	36:06
	In sorrow	36:13
	I have chosen the account of Herod's slaughter	36:16
	of the innocents for our text.	36:19
	The horror of mothers crying over	36:27
	their children's quietness,	36:30
	the thrust of political power through defenseless homes,	36:34
	the blood-stained cobblestones,	36:41
	the imperial disregard for childhood's tenderness,	36:43
	these horrors are not a thing of the past,	36:50
	they're also present in our time.	36:55
	At this Advent	37:02
	let us with sensitivity	37:07
	hear the babies cry.	37:12
	Let us be responsive to that call	37:18
	for attention	37:23
	and care and love.	37:26
	The man who perpetuated the original deed was Herod.	37:32
	Herod the Great he called himself and people	37:39
	thought he was not misnamed.	37:44
	He was a type of and we admire and aspire to be.	37:48
	Let me tell you a bit about him.	37:54
	An Edomian and not a Jew by birth	37:59
	Herod followed his father	38:06
	to the rulership of a territory	38:09
	in the Near East in the year 44 BC,	38:11
	but he spent much of his time in Rome	38:20
	and learned to play the game	38:27
	of Roman political roulette.	38:30
	In sequence and this was a time of great turmoil,	38:36
	he supported Pompeii, then Julius Caesar,	38:42
	then Cassius, then Antony,	38:49
	then Augustus.	38:54
	These were remarkable shifts.	38:58
	Always ahead	39:02
	by one step of the death of an old friend,	39:05
	he made new alliances.	39:11
	From the smoke of every battle,	39:17
	he came out on the side of the victor.	39:21
	For this nimble-footedness	39:28
	he was eventually made king	39:31
	of a larger territory in Palestine.	39:35
	Roman by citizenship,	39:42
	he was Hellenistic in spirit.	39:45
	Herod is listed on the roll of the	39:51
	perpetual managers of the Olympic Games.	39:55
	He was also a great builder and constructed	40:01
	the Third Temple in Jerusalem.	40:06
	A temple of which even the Pharisees	40:10
	who were his enemies would say	40:13
	no one has seen anything beautiful	40:18
	until they have seen the Temple of Herod.	40:22
	He lowered taxes.	40:29
	He increased trade.	40:31
	He was benevolent to the poor.	40:34
	He added new territory.	40:37
	He was great, but with all of his greatness	40:40
	he was all so insecure	40:45
	and fearful and scheming.	40:49
	One commentator has said	40:54
	he lived in a perfect bedlam.	40:58
	There was constant tension among the women in his lives.	41:04
	Cleopatra of Egypt, his wife Mariamne,	41:08
	his mother-in-law Alexandra	41:14
	and his totally unscrupulous sister Salome.	41:18
	He finally killed his mother-in-law	41:23
	and he was suspicious of all of his children	41:28
	fearing that they wanted to take his throne.	41:32
	Of him, Caesar Augustus once said	41:36
	better it is to be Herod's pig than Herod's son	41:42
	for this man who was nonreligious	41:48
	had more scruples about his Jewish	41:53
	citizen's religious sensibility	41:58
	than about the welfare of his own children.	42:03
	It was this Herod, this magnificent,	42:08
	frightened outwardly renowned,	42:14
	inwardly riven man who heard	42:19
	the wise men say that a child was born	42:23
	who was destined to be the King of the Jews	42:28
	and he reacted in typical fashion	42:34
	asking where the birth might be.	42:38
	He ordered his soldiers to Bethlehem to kill	42:42
	all of the children	42:47
	two years of age and under.	42:49
	This is what came to be called	42:54
	the Slaughter of the Innocents.	42:57
	So Herod's soldiers murdered	43:04
	in the streets of Bethlehem	43:08
	and let us once again	43:12
	hear the children cry.	43:16
	There he was Herod,	43:22
	Herod the Great, friend of Caesar,	43:27
	ruler of a nation	43:32
	afraid of a child.	43:36
	How obvious a flaw in so grand a appearance.	43:42
	The exposed tendon was not in his heel	43:49
	but in his heart.	43:54
	W.H. Auden in his	43:59
	For the Time Being a Christmas Oratorial	44:04
	explores the inner feelings of Herod.	44:09
	He depicts him as a frustrated man	44:14
	rationalizing his actions.	44:16
	He is appalled at what the wise men have said.	44:20
	They thought that a king even a God have been born.	44:27
	Why, says Herod,	44:35
	this is a disease that can ruin the empire.	44:37
	Reason will be lost.	44:43
	Materialism overcome idealism.	44:46
	Pity will take the place of justice.	44:48
	This cannot happen.	44:51
	Civilization must be saved in self-justification	44:52
	he cries in Auden's words,	44:57
	I've worked like a slave.	45:02
	Ask anyone.	45:06
	I read all official dispatches	45:08
	without skipping.	45:13
	I've taken elocution lessons.	45:16
	I've hardly ever taken bribes.	45:21
	I've tried to be good.	45:25
	I'm a liberal.	45:28
	I want everyone to be happy and with such self-pity	45:31
	and desire for the common good, he ordered the soldiers	45:36
	to massacre the babies	45:42
	and time passes	45:48
	and everything remains the same.	45:51
	Look at our proud world.	45:57
	We who thought that we could put a man on the moon that we	46:01
	can solve all of our problems,	46:04
	look at our proud nation.	46:09
	We who thought that more cars and more games	46:12
	and more money would bring a better life.	46:16
	We are Herod.	46:22
	Builders of sacred places,	46:26
	athletic patrons,	46:31
	Savvy politicians, tax conscious	46:34
	and slaughterers of the innocent.	46:41
	It's obvious isn't it?	46:48
	Look at Cambodia if you're able.	46:53
	Time Magazine reports the story this way.	46:59
	Mrs. Curtis stopped first in a patch blue	47:04
	and white plastic tent	47:07
	full of small children who are lined up sitting	47:10
	on straw mats and three neat rows.	47:15
	They were unaccompanied minors.	47:21
	The official euphemism for orphaned	47:24
	and they were eerily silent showing	47:30
	neither tears nor smiles.	47:35
	The first lady bent over and whispered to a girl about six,	47:40
	but the child stared back uncomprehending.	47:46
	When she left the tent waving,	47:53
	only one child responded	47:57
	with the traditional Indonesian wai greeting	47:59
	which involves holding the hands together	48:05
	in a praying position under the chin.	48:07
	I find that I can't really look at the TV	48:14
	or the magazine or newspaper pictures.	48:18
	The horror is too great and it continues,	48:23
	and who is to blame?	48:30
	Their neighbors?	48:32
	Even their own people?	48:35
	We are horrified, but remember	48:38
	we have slaughtered our share of children	48:43
	in that part of the world.	48:46
	Look around the Earth.	48:50
	The black babies of South Africa who	48:54
	are systematically deprived, the children of the near East	48:55
	who were caught in refugee camps and pitched battles,	49:00
	the Indian children of Brazil,	49:05
	the babies of the barrios of Mexico City.	49:09
	We look around us and turn away and cry until	49:14
	our strength is spent	49:18
	for there all around us	49:22
	is a Slaughter of Innocence.	49:25
	Let us hear these babies cry.	49:32
	Then with slow reluctant move we turn to our own nation	49:39
	and now I speak more uncomfortable words for here	49:44
	again is Herod the Great, monarch of the world,	49:49
	magnificent in raiment, generous in gesture	49:54
	and slaughterer of innocents.	50:02
	And I shall be direct.	50:07
	Not in order to assign personal guilt.	50:10
	Only God can judge such guilt	50:14
	and God is just in judging,	50:17
	but we are guilty both individually and corporately	50:22
	and God's judgment is upon us.	50:28
	If God were not also merciful, there will be no hope.	50:32
	So I begin the recounting by saying that all of us cast	50:41
	ourselves on God's mercy.	50:45
	Are there hungry children in our nation?	50:51
	Well I'm pleased to report some good news.	50:55
	Since 1967 when the fact of hunger can to our national	51:00
	consciousness, there have been improvements.	51:04
	Food stamps have grown from 288 million	51:08
	to six billion dollars.	51:12
	The number of people participating has increased	51:15
	from 2.8 million to 16 million.	51:18
	Free or reduced-price lunches for poor children	51:23
	have grown from 42 million to 1.2 billion dollars.	51:27
	Childcare and summer food service for children	51:35
	provide food now for three million children a day	51:37
	as opposed to 140,000 children in 1968.	51:41
	Supplemental feeding for women, infant	51:47
	and children has grown rapidly from 14 million dollars	51:50
	to 550 million dollars	51:56
	serving some six times as many persons today.	52:01
	These are remarkable statistics	52:04
	and of them we can be proud,	52:07
	but there are in North Carolina	52:10
	1,245,397 persons	52:12
	who qualify for food stamps	52:18
	and only 37% of those people participate.	52:21
	In other states it's as low as 20%.	52:26
	There are still people especially children	52:30
	who are hungry in our nation and the deprivation continues,	52:32
	but what of broken homes?	52:41
	A first grade teacher in a school in Durham	52:45
	said recently that for the last three years more	52:50
	than 50% of the children in her class are from broken homes.	52:54
	Another first grade teacher from a town close	53:01
	by reported that she had had the same percentage	53:04
	in her class	53:06
	and they both spoke of the nervous anxiety	53:09
	of the last hour of every school day	53:13
	when these first graders became anxious	53:18
	about who will come and what would happen.	53:22
	Some marriages are perhaps best not continued.	53:30
	Some divorces make life possible	53:38
	but in our effort to understand one set of relationship,	53:43
	let us not forget others and let us pretend	53:47
	that much damage is not done.	53:51
	With all we do add to the bruising of children	53:55
	there are so many, many migrant children	53:59
	inner city children, and neglected children	54:02
	in our nation that there continues a slaughter	54:05
	of the innocents	54:10
	and let us hear those babies cry.	54:13
	Continue to look.	54:22
	Our sensate culture which deals in child pornography,	54:25
	our brutal culture	54:31
	where child abuse is common,	54:34
	our child neglect while both parents pursue	54:39
	their chief vocations.	54:42
	Two weeks ago Dr. Peter English of the Duke Medical Faculty	54:46
	gave a report of unwanted children.	54:51
	This was one of his illustrations.	54:53
	A young mother and her mid-twenties recently visited	54:57
	the Pediatric Outpatient Clinic at	55:00
	the Duke University Medical Center	55:02
	with her children ages five and eight.	55:06
	She had an unusual request.	55:11
	Her life had changed she said and she thought her offspring	55:14
	would be better off in an orphanage.	55:19
	In fact she plan to drop them off	55:23
	at one later that week and she wanted doctors	55:25
	to give them a physical examination.	55:29
	Dr. English call child abandonment and age-old problem	55:35
	that remains with us in this community.	55:40
	There are others.	55:44
	More subtle and acceptable forms.	55:46
	The denying of childhood as parents	55:51
	fulfill their own ego needs in events that	55:53
	can range all the way from Little League ball	55:56
	to dance classes	55:59
	and indeed in numerous other ways	56:02
	we continue the Slaughter	56:06
	of the Innocents,	56:10
	and there's abortion.	56:14
	As with divorce, there may be situations	56:17
	which require such a solution, but it is not	56:19
	to be done as though there is no cost.	56:23
	For it can be and at times it is	56:28
	a Slaughter of the Innocents.	56:31
	The list is appallingly long.	56:37
	A culture may well be judged in terms of how	56:40
	it treats its children.	56:44
	If so, we not only stand under judgment,	56:48
	we are found wanting.	56:53
	Let us on this day at least	56:58
	hear the babies cry.	57:03
	But this is Advent and we remember that first Christmas.	57:10
	A child was born.	57:16
	The massacre was not total.	57:19
	In the night a couple of escaped with a baby.	57:22
	Listen to that baby's cry.	57:28
	In the dark night, there is a cry of hope.	57:31
	It is a sign of God's providence.	57:36
	God gives us more newborn and we hear the cry	57:39
	for affection and care.	57:45
	We are given special responsibility for the innocent,	57:48
	the weak, the vulnerable, the little people,	57:52
	those unable to care for themselves.	57:58
	The cry of the Christ child must mingle with the cry	58:03
	of all of God's children.	58:07
	The breath of hope must mix with the breath of pain.	58:09
	Listen to that baby's cry,	58:14
	not slaughter,	58:20
	but the salvation of the innocents is our task.	58:23
	Children, our children, the world's children	58:30
	have been given to us to protect	58:36
	and nurture and love.	58:39
	For a new child has been born,	58:44
	a new voice joins the others,	58:48
	a new life can issue forth.	58:51
	The Christ child's voice mingles with the voice of all	58:55
	children and today	58:59
	let us hear those babies cry.	59:04
	Amen.	59:13
	("Away in a Manger")	59:25
-	Let us affirm what we believe.	1:02:07
All	We believe in God who has created and is creating.	1:02:11
	Who has come in the truly human Jesus	1:02:17
	to reconcile and make new.	1:02:20
	Who works in us and others by the spirit.	1:02:24
	We trust God who calls us to be the church to celebrate	1:02:28
	life and its fullness, to love and to serve others,	1:02:34
	to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim	1:02:39
	Jesus crucified and risen, our judge and our hope in life,	1:02:44
	in death, in life beyond death God is with us.	1:02:52
	We are not alone.	1:02:58
	Thanks be to God.	1:03:00
-	You may be seated.	1:03:04
	The Lord be with you.	1:03:16
	(congregation responds)	1:03:18
	Let us pray.	1:03:19
	Lord of the Advent, holy invader, times comforter,	1:03:28
	oh Blessed Trinity.	1:03:36
	In thee all that ever was and is	1:03:39
	and shall be is made for shining.	1:03:42
	So do we praise thee.	1:03:47
	Word of light to our darkness,	1:03:51
	word of peace to our warfare,	1:03:54
	word of love to our fear	1:03:59
	and so do we bow before thee with thankful hearts.	1:04:02
	We thank thee oh God our grace for life	1:04:07
	and light and all things good.	1:04:10
	We thank you for work and for play	1:04:14
	and for the opportunity to do both.	1:04:20
	We thank you for all the good provision	1:04:23
	of your providence by which	1:04:25
	we are nourished from day to day.	1:04:27
	We think the for every pure and lovely joy with which you	1:04:30
	have enriched our lives.	1:04:35
	Eternal God we thank thee for those whom we love	1:04:38
	and who make this world meaningful to us.	1:04:42
	For the one who is closest to us as close as our own body,	1:04:45
	our husband, our wife, our children, our parents,	1:04:51
	all those who have been given and entrusted to us.	1:04:58
	Oh God you are not indifferent to our joy and suffering.	1:05:05
	Your deepest care is for our lives and our blessedness.	1:05:09
	Our peace is your peace.	1:05:14
	We thank you that you are so vulnerable in all your people.	1:05:17
	Oh God our parents, oh holy one who cares for all your	1:05:23
	children hear our prayers this day for those	1:05:28
	in the world with special needs.	1:05:31
	We pray for those held hostage in Iran.	1:05:35
	Be with them in their uncertainty and fear	1:05:39
	and be with their families in their waiting	1:05:43
	and they're hoping and God our only hope,	1:05:47
	our help in times of trouble,	1:05:51
	be with us all in these troubled times.	1:05:54
	Help us to admit our past wrongdoing and present guilt.	1:05:57
	Be with both sides in the struggle.	1:06:04
	Do not let the threats multiply	1:06:06
	or power be used without compassion.	1:06:08
	May your word rule our words so that	1:06:12
	claims may be settled peacefully.	1:06:17
	Hold back impulsive persons,	1:06:21
	less desire for vengeance overwhelm	1:06:23
	our common welfare and oh Lord we pray	1:06:26
	this day for the hungry.	1:06:30
	Those are world away and those in our own cities	1:06:33
	and rural slums who's suffering accuses us	1:06:36
	and denies the provision you have made	1:06:40
	for us all in this ample world.	1:06:45
	Constrain us in our use of the world's goods we pray	1:06:47
	and give us new wheels and new ways to reach out	1:06:51
	toward those who need us.	1:06:55
	Oh God hear our prayer this day for the sick and dying.	1:06:59
	Be with them in their suffering and bring them to new life.	1:07:03
	Merciful God by your power people are healed.	1:07:10
	Give strength to doctors, nurses, and	1:07:14
	technicians who staff hospitals and homes for the sick.	1:07:17
	Make them brave to battle our last enemy	1:07:22
	trusting your power to overcome death and pain and crying.	1:07:25
	May they be thankful for every sign of help you give	1:07:31
	and humble before the mystery of mending grace.	1:07:34
	Oh God, fountain of all truth and all knowledge,	1:07:40
	as the end of this academic semester draws near,	1:07:44
	we pray for those teachers and learners among us.	1:07:48
	Help them to be both dedicated and compassionate	1:07:53
	in their endeavors and keep them	1:07:57
	ever mindful of your grace.	1:08:00
	Your grace which enables every good work	1:08:04
	and accomplishment and is able	1:08:08
	to transform every weakness and failure.	1:08:11
	Oh Lord on this special day we pray for our children	1:08:17
	and our children's children for all	1:08:21
	who will be born after us.	1:08:23
	We pray that we will not give them stones	1:08:25
	instead of bread and that we will not leave them poor	1:08:27
	but instead leave them freedom and peace,	1:08:32
	and oh God we pray for all people of all ages	1:08:37
	for all who young and old belong to each other	1:08:41
	and go through life together.	1:08:44
	We pray that we may are for and respect each other.	1:08:46
	That we may not be divided but may with one mind	1:08:50
	and by your grace try to achieve holiness and wholeness.	1:08:55
	Finally oh Lord, we remember that today begins	1:09:03
	the season of Advent.	1:09:04
	Once again we approach the birthday of your Clarion child,	1:09:07
	your suffering servant, your messenger Christ.	1:09:11
	Once again we make a place for him however	1:09:16
	cluttered it may be with the pieces of our broken dreams,	1:09:19
	with unfinished resolves and fragments of love.	1:09:23
	Once again the bed we lay for him as as poor as any manger,	1:09:28
	but oh God we pray he will come among us nonetheless.	1:09:32
	That his goodness will take hold in our hearts,	1:09:37
	his grace and fact our wills and his glory once	1:09:41
	more capture our imaginations.	1:09:45
	Hear our prayers oh God eternal.	1:09:49
	For they are offered in the name of Jesus Christ.	1:09:52
	The one who comes to us as a child and a servant	1:09:55
	in the one who taught us to pray saying,	1:10:00
	our Father who art in heaven,	1:10:03
	hallowed be thy name	1:10:07
	thy kingdom come	1:10:09
	thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven	1:10:11
	give us this day our daily bread	1:10:16
	and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive	1:10:19
	those who trespass against us	1:10:23
	and lead us not into temptation	1:10:26
	but deliver us from evil	1:10:30
	for thine is the kingdom and the power	1:10:32
	and the glory forever, amen.	1:10:34
	(organ music)	1:10:43
	(choir singing)	1:12:20
	(choir singing)	1:14:08
	("All Creatures of Our God and King")	1:17:15
-	Oh God, before the gifts you have given us	1:18:36
	our gifts pale into insignificance.	1:18:40
	We are almost ashamed to bring these gifts because	1:18:43
	they cost us so little and yet we know that just as you	1:18:47
	accept us that we be unworthy, you also accept our gifts.	1:18:51
	Increase our vision and enlarge our compassion that we	1:18:56
	might embrace all the world's needs as those which demand	1:19:00
	a response from us so that in this world	1:19:05
	there shall be celebration, amen.	1:19:08
	Let us pray together a litany for children.	1:19:24
	Eternal God, you who love us as both father	1:19:30
	and mother we pray today for all the children of this world.	1:19:34
	(congregation responds)	1:19:40
	By our love we are blessed with children through	1:19:43
	the miracle of birth as members of the human family	1:19:46
	we rejoice in all children everywhere.	1:19:49
	Never let us neglect children, but help us	1:19:53
	to surround them all with faith so that	1:19:55
	they may know that they are your children.	1:19:58
	(congregation responds)	1:20:02
	For all children, for all among us who	1:20:04
	are defenseless and small.	1:20:07
	(congregation responds)	1:20:09
	For all young people for all of your among us	1:20:12
	who are confused or disillusioned.	1:20:15
	(congregation responds)	1:20:18
	For those to whom children are born	1:20:21
	and those who accept as their own children	1:20:24
	who have been born to others.	1:20:27
	(congregation responds)	1:20:29
	For those in our society who have direct personal contact	1:20:32
	with our young, the social worker, the teacher,	1:20:36
	the librarian, the guidance counselor, the policeman,	1:20:40
	the judge, the doctor.	1:20:44
	(congregation responds)	1:20:47
	For children here in this land and those in distant places	1:20:50
	who are hungry, mistreated, abused, neglected,	1:20:53
	not giving the chance for a happy childhood.	1:20:58
	(congregation responds)	1:21:02
	For those children who through death	1:21:04
	or separation know brokenness in their homes.	1:21:07
	(congregation responds)	1:21:11
	For those children who have been orphaned or abandoned.	1:21:14
	(congregation responds)	1:21:18
	For those young people in trouble	1:21:21
	in our society whom we label delinquent.	1:21:23
	(congregation responds)	1:21:27
	Oh God guard the laughter of children.	1:21:30
	Bring them safely through the storms which	1:21:33
	can engulf childhood.	1:21:35
	Do not let us be so preoccupied with our purposes	1:21:38
	that we fail to hear their voices or fail to pay attention	1:21:41
	to their special vision of the truth,	1:21:46
	but keep us with them ready to listen	1:21:49
	and to love even as in Jesus Christ you have	1:21:52
	loved us your grown-up seeking children.	1:21:57
	(congregation responds)	1:22:03
	(organ music)	1:22:05
	(choir singing)	1:22:28
-	Go forth into the world in peace.	1:25:22
	Be of good courage.	1:25:25
	Hold fast to that which is good.	1:25:27
	Render no one evil for evil.	1:25:30
	Strengthen the fainthearted.	1:25:34
	Support the weak.	1:25:36
	Help the afflicted.	1:25:39
	Honor all persons.	1:25:41
	Love and serve the Lord rejoicing all ways	1:25:43
	in the power of the Holy Spirit.	1:25:47
	In the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ the love of God	1:25:50
	and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all	1:25:55
	both now and forevermore.	1:25:59
	(choir singing amen)	1:26:04
	(organ music)	1:27:09
	(faint chattering)	1:33:00
	(banging)	1:33:38
	(faint chattering)
	(banging)	1:35:25
	(faint chattering)
	(banging)	1:36:03
	(faint chattering)
	(faint chattering)	1:37:06

Item Info

Title:

Thomas A. Langford - "The Slaughter of the Innocents" (December 2, 1979)

Description:

On the first Sunday of Advent, we are to remember the cry of the innocent children that Herod slaughtered. These children also cry out in our midst as we individvually and collectively participate in the Slaughter of the Innocents. Yet, Advent is also the story of another child who cried that night, the Christ child. His cry mixes hope into the pain and calls us to our ministry to save and not slaughter the innocents. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Sermon start time: (Part 1) 35:58. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 59:15.
Key quotation: “Not slaughter, but the salvation of the innocents is our task.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r44q7r47g

Date:

December 2, 1979

Speaker:

Langford, Thomas A.

Biblical Book:

Matthew

Chapter and Verse:

Matthew 2:13-18

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-1056
ref7324_3de
uachapelsermaud
duke:321283
dcrau001935
ark:/87924/r44q7r47g
0eade6a6-0dca-49b3-a7b7-417ce683adca

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Related Resources:

See below

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:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the Creative Commons license indicated here. For more information see https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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Thomas A. Langford - "The Slaughter of the Innocents" (December 2, 1979)

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1. Thomas A. Langford - "The Slaughter of the Innocents" (December 2, 1979)

Duke University Archives

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