Earnest A. Fitzgerald - "What the Angels Really Said" (December 14, 1975)
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| (slow somber organ music) | 0:03 | |
| (slow somber organ music fades) | 0:32 | |
| - | Although we are reminded every day at Duke University | 0:48 |
| of the vision and the generosity of James Buchanan Duke | 0:56 | |
| and other members of the Duke family, | 1:02 | |
| once a year, | 1:06 | |
| it's appropriate to celebrate that vision | 1:07 | |
| and that generosity | 1:12 | |
| and that wisdom | 1:15 | |
| in developing the kind of an institution | 1:16 | |
| that has carried an influence now for a half-century | 1:18 | |
| and looking forward to centuries more. | 1:23 | |
| I read from the Indenture: I have selected Duke University | 1:27 | |
| as one of the principal objects of this trust, | 1:30 | |
| because I recognize that education, next to religion, | 1:34 | |
| is the greatest civilizing influence. | 1:39 | |
| And he charges the officers, | 1:42 | |
| the trustees, | 1:44 | |
| all associated with the university | 1:45 | |
| to carry forward that concept that this is, indeed, | 1:48 | |
| an institution that brings a civilizing influence | 1:52 | |
| to society, | 1:56 | |
| and we dedicate ourselves to that constantly, | 1:58 | |
| and we re-dedicate ourselves on this Founders' Day | 2:01 | |
| to this concept and to these principles, | 2:05 | |
| linking religion and Christianity and the concepts | 2:08 | |
| with education and a great educational institution. | 2:13 | |
| (shoes clicking) | 2:19 | |
| - | Let those in this chapel | 2:23 |
| and all gathered in the nave of the chapel join as we pray. | 2:24 | |
| Let us pray. | 2:29 | |
| O Lord, our God, | 2:32 | |
| Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, | 2:34 | |
| we, Your children, pause to reflect and to remember | 2:37 | |
| with thanksgiving, | 2:40 | |
| with some regret, | 2:42 | |
| but with hope. | 2:44 | |
| With gratitude, | 2:46 | |
| we remember those whose ideas and gifts | 2:47 | |
| made this university possible. | 2:49 | |
| We're grateful for the Duke family, past and present, | 2:52 | |
| and for their decisions to invest in the mind | 2:56 | |
| as well as in matter, | 2:59 | |
| in the spirit as well as in the body, | 3:01 | |
| and thus make a place | 3:04 | |
| for honest pursuit of truth and knowledge. | 3:06 | |
| Without their vision, their concern, their gifts, | 3:10 | |
| this university would not be. | 3:14 | |
| In all its beauty, this magnificent chapel, | 3:18 | |
| the grandeur of buildings and grounds and gardens, | 3:22 | |
| the spacious forests and wandering trails, | 3:26 | |
| this university provides a challenge and an opportunity | 3:30 | |
| to those who seek to understand more clearly, | 3:33 | |
| to feel more sensitively, | 3:37 | |
| and to serve more helpfully. | 3:40 | |
| And so, God, | 3:43 | |
| we give thanks for those persons | 3:44 | |
| who have loved and served this place, | 3:46 | |
| for janitors and maids | 3:50 | |
| and gardeners and painters | 3:51 | |
| and students and presidents | 3:53 | |
| and secretaries and professors | 3:55 | |
| and writers and librarians | 3:58 | |
| and researchers and musicians. | 4:00 | |
| For those who have been and are | 4:03 | |
| the custodians of mind and body and spirit | 4:05 | |
| in this blessed place. | 4:09 | |
| Where we have failed to meet our true objectives | 4:12 | |
| or been unable to fulfill the visions | 4:16 | |
| of those who have gone before us, | 4:18 | |
| or have not prepared well for those who follow, | 4:21 | |
| merciful God, forgive us. | 4:24 | |
| With hope, we face the future, O God, | 4:28 | |
| standing on tiptoes and pressing forward, | 4:32 | |
| with fervent trust and genuine concern, | 4:34 | |
| we place the prep, the future of this university | 4:38 | |
| in Your Providence and in the hands of Your servants. | 4:42 | |
| May we seek that knowledge which frees us, | 4:46 | |
| may we be free to serve joyfully the needs of others, | 4:50 | |
| and in all this, may we and all who follow, | 4:54 | |
| commit ourselves to serve You, O God, | 4:59 | |
| and to love one another | 5:02 | |
| with heart, soul, mind, and strength, | 5:04 | |
| through Jesus Christ, the Master Teacher and our Redeemer. | 5:09 | |
| Amen. | 5:16 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 5:19 | |
| (shoes clicking on floor) | 5:25 | |
| (wind rushing) | 5:40 | |
| (wood clacking) | 6:16 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 6:26 | |
| (slow somber organ music) | 6:38 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | ||
| (slow dramatic organ music) | 6:58 | |
| (gentle uplifting organ music) | 7:31 | |
| (slow dramatic organ music) | 7:47 | |
| (bright uplifting organ music) | 7:57 | |
| (gentle uplifting organ music) | 8:16 | |
| (bright uplifting organ music) | 8:46 | |
| (congregation member sneezes) | 9:31 | |
| (bright uplifting organ music) | ||
| (gentle uplifting organ music) | 9:37 | |
| (shoes clicking on floor) | ||
| (dramatic somber organ music) | 10:00 | |
| (bright uplifting organ music) | 10:09 | |
| (gentle somber organ music) | 10:48 | |
| (organ music fades) | 11:09 | |
| (congregation speaking indistinctly) | 11:18 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 11:35 | |
| (wood clacking) | 11:45 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 11:58 | |
| (metal clinking) | 12:20 | |
| (congregation member blows nose) | 12:23 | |
| (wood clacking) | 12:43 | |
| (slow somber choir singing) | 12:53 | |
| (slow uplifting choir singing) | 13:02 | |
| (bright uplifting choir singing) | 13:55 | |
| (choir singing fades) | 14:10 | |
| (bright uplifting organ music) | 14:13 | |
| (bright uplifting brass and organ music) | 15:00 | |
| (dramatic uplifting brass and orchestral music) | 15:30 | |
| (bright uplifting brass, organ, and choir music) | 15:49 | |
| (dramatic uplifting orchestral, organ, and choir music) | 16:19 | |
| (gentle uplifting brass, organ, and choir music) | 16:38 | |
| (bright uplifting brass, organ, and choir music) | 17:09 | |
| (dramatic uplifting brass, organ, and choir music) | 17:27 | |
| (loud dramatic uplifting brass, organ, and choir music) | 17:58 | |
| (dramatic uplifting brass, organ, and choir music slows) | 18:17 | |
| (congregation members shuffling) | 18:26 | |
| The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, | 18:41 | |
| the love of God, | 18:44 | |
| and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you now. | 18:46 | |
| Jesus tells a story of a young man | 18:53 | |
| who took what belonged to him and went away from home. | 18:55 | |
| After a while, the young man said to himself, | 19:02 | |
| "I will arise and go to my father and say, unto him, | 19:07 | |
| 'Father, I have sinned against Heaven and before you. | 19:09 | |
| I am no more worthy to be called a child of yours.'" | 19:13 | |
| With just this same self-awareness and honesty, | 19:18 | |
| let us now confess our sins before God, | 19:25 | |
| and with one another. | 19:29 | |
| Let us pray. | 19:31 | |
| - | O Lord, Creator of all things and source of all truth, | 19:34 |
| we ask Your forgiveness for the sins of the mind, | 19:39 | |
| the pride of thinking that we are masters | 19:44 | |
| of all creation and history, | 19:46 | |
| our slackness or compulsion in our work in this university, | 19:49 | |
| our doubts about Your power to make all things new. | 19:54 | |
| We ask Your forgiveness for our lack of a sense of history, | 19:59 | |
| for thinking all the world begins and ends with us, | 20:04 | |
| for our too easy acceptance of our heritage, | 20:08 | |
| for those who will suffer | 20:13 | |
| because of our unconcern about the future. | 20:14 | |
| Help us as we worship You | 20:18 | |
| to come to a truer knowledge of ourselves, | 20:21 | |
| knowing that we cannot hide from You. | 20:24 | |
| God be merciful to us, for we are sinners. | 20:28 | |
| - | Jesus' story continues: And the father said, | 20:55 |
| "It is right that we should make merry and be glad, | 21:00 | |
| for this child of mine was dead and is alive again, | 21:04 | |
| was lost and is found." | 21:09 | |
| So my friends in Christ, | 21:14 | |
| the writer of 1 John says to us, | 21:16 | |
| "Your sins are forgiven for Christ's sake." | 21:18 | |
| Amen. | 21:26 | |
| (slow somber organ music) | 21:32 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 21:43 | |
| (slow somber organ music) | ||
| (slow uplifting organ music) | 21:54 | |
| (organ music fades) | 22:08 | |
| (dramatic lively choir and organ music) | 22:13 | |
| (dramatic choir and brass music) | 23:06 | |
| (bright uplifting choir and organ music) | 23:20 | |
| (dramatic uplifting choir, brass, and organ music) | 24:01 | |
| (dramatic lively choir, brass, and organ music) | 24:21 | |
| (lively uplifting choir and organ music) | 24:29 | |
| (dramatic lively choir, brass, and organ music) | 25:13 | |
| (dramatic choir, brass, and organ music fades) | 26:33 | |
| (congregation members shuffling) | 26:37 | |
| - | "And in that region, | 26:46 |
| there were shepherds out in the field | 26:48 | |
| keeping watch over their flock by night, | 26:50 | |
| and an angel of the Lord appeared to them, | 26:54 | |
| and the glory of the Lord shone around them, | 26:56 | |
| and they were filled with fear, | 27:00 | |
| and the angel said to them, 'Be not afraid, for behold, | 27:02 | |
| I bring you good news of a great joy, | 27:06 | |
| which will come to all the people, | 27:09 | |
| for to you is born this day in the city of David, | 27:12 | |
| a savior, who is Christ the Lord. | 27:15 | |
| And this will be a sign for you: | 27:18 | |
| you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes | 27:21 | |
| and lying in a manger.' | 27:24 | |
| And suddenly there was with the angel | 27:26 | |
| a multitude of the heavenly host, | 27:28 | |
| praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, | 27:30 | |
| and on Earth, peace among men, with whom He is pleased.'" | 27:35 | |
| (somber organ music) | 27:44 | |
| (somber organ and choir music) | 27:53 | |
| (uplifting organ and choir music) | 28:06 | |
| (uplifting organ and choir music fades) | 28:26 | |
| - | Would you join with me in our affirmation of faith? | 28:29 |
| (congregation member coughs) | 28:34 | |
| - | We are not alone, | 28:35 |
| we live in God's world. | 28:37 | |
| We believe in God: who has created and is creating, | 28:40 | |
| who has come in the truly human Jesus | 28:45 | |
| to reconcile and make new, | 28:48 | |
| who works in us and others by the Spirit. | 28:51 | |
| We trust God, | 28:55 | |
| who calls us to be the Church, | 28:57 | |
| to celebrate life in its fullness, | 29:00 | |
| to love and serve others, | 29:03 | |
| to seek justice and resist evil, | 29:06 | |
| to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, | 29:09 | |
| our judge and our hope. | 29:13 | |
| In life, in death, | 29:16 | |
| in the life beyond death, | 29:18 | |
| God is with us. | 29:21 | |
| We are not alone. | 29:23 | |
| Thanks be to God. | 29:25 | |
| - | The Lord be with you. | 29:29 |
| (the congregation prays indistinctly) | 29:31 | |
| Let us pray. | 29:33 | |
| (congregation members shuffling) | 29:34 | |
| O God, most gracious and most loving, | 29:45 | |
| we thank you for this holy season of Advent and Christmas, | 29:50 | |
| for this holy day and this very moment, | 29:56 | |
| for this university and this chapel, | 30:00 | |
| for this service and this experience, | 30:04 | |
| for this family of Yours on Earth and this people, | 30:09 | |
| each person, | 30:12 | |
| gathered here in these moments to worship You. | 30:14 | |
| We thank You, Lord, that You lead us by Your spirit, | 30:19 | |
| that You protect us from others and from ourselves, | 30:24 | |
| that You spare us the full consequences | 30:29 | |
| of our stupidity, our fear, and our hate. | 30:32 | |
| We thank You for peace, where it exists, | 30:37 | |
| for love, where it is felt, | 30:41 | |
| and for hope, where it is sure. | 30:45 | |
| We, O God, who are blessed with riches of body and spirit | 30:49 | |
| thank You for life | 30:53 | |
| and all that life means to us, individually and together. | 30:56 | |
| O God, | 31:02 | |
| ever-caring, | 31:04 | |
| ever-sustaining, | 31:06 | |
| ever-seeking presence, | 31:08 | |
| we reach out now in thought and concern for others, | 31:10 | |
| men, women, boys, girls, who are in special need. | 31:15 | |
| Some are present in this place, O God, | 31:20 | |
| well-dressed, well-nourished, and well-educated, | 31:23 | |
| but lonely, hurting, struggling, confused, and longing. | 31:26 | |
| Some are naked, hungry, and sick, | 31:32 | |
| bodies twisted and broken from disease | 31:35 | |
| and starvation and neglect. | 31:37 | |
| O God, teach us one by one | 31:40 | |
| how to feed the hungry, | 31:44 | |
| to clothe the naked, | 31:46 | |
| to visit the sick, | 31:48 | |
| to go to those who are in prison, | 31:49 | |
| to bind up the brokenhearted, | 31:51 | |
| and to set free the oppressed, | 31:53 | |
| for this we know is Your will for each of us. | 31:55 | |
| O God, may we become so sensitized | 32:00 | |
| to the needs of Your children here and everywhere. | 32:02 | |
| We will offer them the bread for life | 32:06 | |
| in food | 32:09 | |
| and share with them the bread of life | 32:11 | |
| in Christ. | 32:14 | |
| And now, good Lord, | 32:18 | |
| teach us to serve You with loyal and steadfast hearts | 32:20 | |
| to give and not to count the cost, | 32:26 | |
| to fight and not even to care when we're wounded, | 32:29 | |
| to work and not to ask for rest, | 32:33 | |
| to serve and not to ask for any reward, O God, | 32:36 | |
| except the reward of knowing | 32:40 | |
| that we have loved You | 32:43 | |
| and have loved one another | 32:45 | |
| and thereby have been obedient to You. | 32:47 | |
| Hear us in this holy season when Christ comes again, | 32:52 | |
| hear us on this special day in the life of this university | 32:57 | |
| as we offer ourselves, | 33:01 | |
| our minds, bodies, and spirits | 33:03 | |
| to be renewed by Your loving spirit. | 33:06 | |
| Hear us as we come in the name of Christ, | 33:09 | |
| who teaches us to pray, saying, | 33:12 | |
| - | "Our Father who art in Heaven, | 33:15 |
| hallowed be thy name. | 33:19 | |
| Thy kingdom come, | 33:21 | |
| thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. | 33:23 | |
| Give us this day, our daily bread | 33:28 | |
| and forgive us our trespasses, | 33:31 | |
| as we forgive those who trespass against us, | 33:34 | |
| and lead us not into temptation. | 33:38 | |
| Deliver us from evil. | 33:41 | |
| Thine's a kingdom of power and glory, forever." | 33:43 | |
| - | Amen. | 33:50 |
| This is a very special service of worship, | 33:54 | |
| where, as you will notice from the lighted candles | 33:59 | |
| on the Advent wreath, | 34:01 | |
| this is the Third Sunday in the holy season of Advent, | 34:03 | |
| when we anticipate and celebrate | 34:07 | |
| the glorious coming of Jesus the Christ | 34:10 | |
| to bring peace on Earth | 34:14 | |
| and to bring love to us all. | 34:17 | |
| It's also a special day in the life of this university, | 34:20 | |
| when we celebrate the 51st anniversary | 34:23 | |
| of the founding of Duke University. | 34:27 | |
| And so we welcome you to this worship service, | 34:30 | |
| whether this is the first time, | 34:34 | |
| or whether this is one of many times for you to be here, | 34:36 | |
| we pray that it will be a holy and a very special time | 34:38 | |
| when God's spirit will renew your spirit | 34:42 | |
| in a very special way. | 34:45 | |
| This afternoon at five o'clock, | 34:48 | |
| we will have a special service of Christmas carols | 34:51 | |
| and Christmas readings, | 34:53 | |
| the readings being done by Ms. Barbara Walker, | 34:55 | |
| Dr. Stuart Henry, and Dr. Reynolds Price. | 34:58 | |
| It promises to be a rich | 35:01 | |
| and very, very enjoyable time together. | 35:02 | |
| We invite you to come and sing and worship with us | 35:06 | |
| at that time. | 35:09 | |
| I say this to those who are listening by radio | 35:12 | |
| and to those who are gathered here, | 35:15 | |
| there are some 200 or so children in the Edgemont Community | 35:18 | |
| who need our help. | 35:22 | |
| You can find some of their needs | 35:25 | |
| described in the bulletin this morning. | 35:26 | |
| If you have gifts which you would like to buy, | 35:29 | |
| money which you would like to donate, | 35:32 | |
| or clothing or toys which you would like to make available, | 35:34 | |
| we invite you to bring them to the chapel, | 35:37 | |
| and we will see that they are made available to the children | 35:41 | |
| and the young people in Edgemont Community. | 35:44 | |
| It is our privilege this morning | 35:49 | |
| to welcome back to Duke University | 35:50 | |
| Dr. Ernest Fitzgerald, | 35:54 | |
| a distinguished alumnus of this university, | 35:57 | |
| its Divinity School, | 36:01 | |
| an outstanding preacher, | 36:05 | |
| a committed churchman and leader, | 36:08 | |
| not only in the United Methodist Church, | 36:10 | |
| but throughout the Church, | 36:12 | |
| a personal friend, | 36:15 | |
| and so, on your behalf, may I say, | 36:17 | |
| Ernest, welcome, | 36:20 | |
| and we hear you gladly as on this Founders' Day | 36:22 | |
| and this Third Sunday of Advent, | 36:25 | |
| you bring God's word to us. | 36:26 | |
| - | Let me say a word of genuine appreciation to you | 36:39 |
| for the invitation to share in this significant service | 36:42 | |
| in this lovely place. | 36:46 | |
| I have the strong temptation to remain silent, | 36:50 | |
| letting each of us spend these moments | 36:54 | |
| in the beauty of this hour. | 36:58 | |
| Perhaps I can take just a few moments | 37:02 | |
| to direct your thoughts | 37:05 | |
| by reminding you of a text | 37:09 | |
| in the lesson which was just read, | 37:11 | |
| "And the angel said, 'Glory to God in the highest, | 37:18 | |
| and on Earth, peace, goodwill to men.'" | 37:23 | |
| In a magazine that comes to me regularly, | 37:33 | |
| I found an article recently, | 37:36 | |
| which I hope you do not read. | 37:39 | |
| The article was entitled, | 37:44 | |
| "Information You Can Live Without," | 37:46 | |
| and never have I seen a more aptly chosen title. | 37:51 | |
| There were six pages of facts you would never need to know. | 37:58 | |
| Accountants have discovered, for instance, | 38:05 | |
| that it cost as much to write with a ballpoint pen | 38:08 | |
| as it does to drive a car for the same distance. | 38:14 | |
| Imagine how delighted I was with that information. | 38:19 | |
| We can now include in our budget | 38:23 | |
| the cost of writing at 12 cents a mile. | 38:27 | |
| (congregation members laugh) | 38:30 | |
| There was another note in that article | 38:33 | |
| which I found not interesting. | 38:37 | |
| The golf ball which Alan Shepard carried to the moon | 38:41 | |
| cost the American taxpayer 400, or rather, 40,000 dollars. | 38:45 | |
| I suppose statisticians came up with that figure | 38:53 | |
| after calculating the weight of the golf ball | 38:56 | |
| against the total cost of the mission. | 39:00 | |
| And if that's true, | 39:05 | |
| then Mr. Shepard's golf game | 39:06 | |
| must have been the most expensive on record, | 39:08 | |
| but who cares about cost? | 39:12 | |
| To the addicted golfer, cost is secondary, | 39:16 | |
| and, I am told, so is everything else. | 39:19 | |
| (congregation members laugh) | 39:22 | |
| There was, however, one provocative thought in that article. | 39:26 | |
| I think it was gleaned from a book by Norman Cousins. | 39:30 | |
| He said that in the last 5,600 years, | 39:38 | |
| there have been only 292 years | 39:41 | |
| of general peace in the world. | 39:45 | |
| During that period of time, | 39:50 | |
| 14,513 wars of major or lesser importance have been fought. | 39:52 | |
| Now, I don't know whether these figures are accurate, | 40:04 | |
| but even if approximate, | 40:07 | |
| they suggest a dilemma | 40:10 | |
| when examined in the light of the biblical witness. | 40:12 | |
| The angels who announced the birth of our Lord | 40:19 | |
| said, "Peace on Earth, goodwill to men." | 40:22 | |
| Impressive fact, however, | 40:29 | |
| is that the world has known precious little peace | 40:30 | |
| in all of these centuries, | 40:35 | |
| and thoughtful people are likely to wonder | 40:38 | |
| why this difference between promise and reality. | 40:41 | |
| I sometimes wonder if the problem | 40:49 | |
| is if the lack of peace is not more the result | 40:52 | |
| of our unwillingness to receive it | 40:56 | |
| than God's willingness for us to have it. | 40:59 | |
| Divine gifts are given on our acceptance of them. | 41:05 | |
| It was a wise person, indeed, | 41:12 | |
| who said that it does little good to pray for sunshine | 41:14 | |
| if you insist on living in the cellar. | 41:19 | |
| Perhaps our problem with peace | 41:24 | |
| is a misunderstanding of the meaning of the word | 41:26 | |
| and our unwillingness to meet the conditions | 41:30 | |
| necessary to have it. | 41:33 | |
| I think the word peace | 41:37 | |
| has come to mean a variety of things in our time, | 41:38 | |
| and I wonder if you would take just a moment | 41:43 | |
| to consider some of them. | 41:46 | |
| For one thing, there is the peace of suppression. | 41:50 | |
| Now, the attractive and interesting thing about the Bible | 41:57 | |
| is its reflection of human experience. | 42:00 | |
| No matter what our circumstance, | 42:03 | |
| someone has been down these roads before. | 42:05 | |
| In the Old Testament, | 42:12 | |
| there is a story of a king named Ahab. | 42:13 | |
| One day he was debating a national policy. | 42:17 | |
| Unfortunately, in his cabinet of the advisors, | 42:21 | |
| there was no one of contrary opinion. | 42:25 | |
| No matter what the issue, | 42:30 | |
| they always gave him a unanimous vote. | 42:31 | |
| But one of Ahab's colleagues said to him, | 42:36 | |
| "Ahab, is there not an honest man in your kingdom?", | 42:39 | |
| to which Ahab replied, "Yes, there is one. | 42:42 | |
| His name is Micaiah, but I hate him, | 42:45 | |
| because he never prophesied anything good about my plans." | 42:48 | |
| The colleague insisted and Micaiah was called. | 42:56 | |
| He was pressed for an honest answer. | 42:59 | |
| His prediction was ominous. | 43:02 | |
| "Ahab," he said, "I see a kingdom without a king." | 43:04 | |
| The prophet's prophecy of doom turned out to be accurate. | 43:13 | |
| Ahab ignored him and locked him in the nearest jail, | 43:19 | |
| went off about his plans, | 43:23 | |
| but his plans led to disaster. | 43:26 | |
| I wonder if this isn't a commentary | 43:31 | |
| on the common pursuit of our times. | 43:33 | |
| We attempt to build the structures of peace | 43:36 | |
| on the uncertain foundations of turmoil. | 43:39 | |
| If somehow we can eliminate the uncomfortable, | 43:43 | |
| if we can suppress the violence, | 43:47 | |
| if we can ignore the deprived people of the Earth, | 43:50 | |
| somehow we can achieve a measure of tranquility. | 43:55 | |
| But why is it we don't remember that when water boils, | 44:01 | |
| it produces steam, | 44:05 | |
| and when steam is under sufficient pressure, it escapes? | 44:07 | |
| Peace, the result of suppression, is only temporary, | 44:13 | |
| and, at best, is only on the surface. | 44:18 | |
| Somewhere, if permanent peace ever comes, | 44:21 | |
| someone has to put out the fire. | 44:24 | |
| I saw it again the other day, | 44:28 | |
| that old story of the little lady | 44:30 | |
| who was steeped in orthodoxy. | 44:32 | |
| One day, for the first time, | 44:36 | |
| she heard about the theory of evolution, | 44:37 | |
| and she prayed fervently, "God, grant that it isn't true, | 44:40 | |
| but if it is, let few people hear about it." | 44:45 | |
| This I suggest to be a marvelous solution | 44:52 | |
| to many thorny, thorny problems, | 44:56 | |
| if it would only work. | 44:59 | |
| Unfortunately, or fortunately, truth is effervescent. | 45:03 | |
| It cannot be contained, | 45:08 | |
| nor will it be silenced or stifled by threat. | 45:10 | |
| Could it be that we spend most of our time | 45:17 | |
| trying to silence the voice of guilt in our lives, | 45:20 | |
| rather than looking at the causes of that guilt? | 45:25 | |
| Could it be the reason we are disturbed | 45:29 | |
| is because there is good reason to be disturbed? | 45:32 | |
| Could it be that our course, | 45:38 | |
| our pursuit for a national peace, | 45:41 | |
| for world peace takes us down the course | 45:44 | |
| of the suppression of the deprived peoples of the Earth? | 45:48 | |
| And if this be our course, | 45:52 | |
| then the insistent voice of Micaiah witnesses against us. | 45:54 | |
| Somewhere, if there is ever permanent peace, | 46:01 | |
| someone has to put out the fire. | 46:03 | |
| There is a second kind of peace attempted in our world. | 46:10 | |
| It is called the peace of neutrality. | 46:13 | |
| By common consent, | 46:19 | |
| the most tragic person in the New Testament | 46:20 | |
| is a Roman judge standing outside his courtroom, | 46:23 | |
| washing his hands in front of a partisan band | 46:27 | |
| of rabble-rousers. | 46:31 | |
| You can understand what Pilate was after | 46:35 | |
| that day in Jerusalem. | 46:38 | |
| A man was about to be lynched. | 46:42 | |
| The charge was civil insurrection. | 46:44 | |
| Pilate had exercised his judicial powers, | 46:48 | |
| had found the man to be blameless. | 46:51 | |
| And you can almost hear him muttering to himself | 46:55 | |
| as he washes his hands, | 46:58 | |
| "The blood of Jesus will not be on me. | 47:01 | |
| I will wash my hands of the whole affair. | 47:06 | |
| I will be neutral in the death of Jesus." | 47:10 | |
| Peace by neutrality, | 47:14 | |
| a measure of it can be had that way. | 47:16 | |
| You can simply stand aside | 47:18 | |
| and let those who will slug it out. | 47:21 | |
| You can win peace at the expense of personal responsibility. | 47:25 | |
| Lee Tuttle tells the silly story of a couple of mountain men | 47:32 | |
| who were engaged in assisting nature | 47:37 | |
| in the conversion of their corn crop to its liquid assets. | 47:41 | |
| One pitch dark night, | 47:49 | |
| the government agents stumbled upon their still, | 47:52 | |
| and one of the agents, | 47:57 | |
| one of the mountain men reporting later said, | 47:58 | |
| "We took off down an old logging road, | 48:03 | |
| and we were running along at top speed, | 48:08 | |
| and all of a sudden, | 48:11 | |
| I recollected that there was a barbed wire fence coming up, | 48:12 | |
| but I couldn't remember where it was, | 48:16 | |
| so I just dropped back a pace or two | 48:19 | |
| and let my buddy find it." | 48:21 | |
| This, I think, is a parable | 48:26 | |
| on the way life can be lived. | 48:27 | |
| You can stand aside, you can drop back a pace or two, | 48:30 | |
| or you can hang loose, as we say it in our times. | 48:35 | |
| The evasion of personal responsibility | 48:39 | |
| to find peace by neutrality. | 48:42 | |
| The only trouble with neutrality | 48:46 | |
| is that it usually ends in becoming a side, | 48:48 | |
| and it is usually the wrong side, at that. | 48:51 | |
| Pilate's plan for peace | 48:54 | |
| left him the most troubled man in history, | 48:56 | |
| and what we have learned from him | 48:59 | |
| has been sustained by all of human experience. | 49:01 | |
| Disease needs treatment, | 49:07 | |
| and to ignore that only contributes to the problem. | 49:09 | |
| It was John Stuart Mill, I think, | 49:13 | |
| who said that a person who has nothing to think about | 49:15 | |
| more important than his own personal safety | 49:19 | |
| is a miserable man. | 49:22 | |
| Joe Louis, in a less sophisticated way, | 49:24 | |
| put it in this fashion: | 49:28 | |
| "In this life, you can run, | 49:31 | |
| but you cannot hide." | 49:34 | |
| And that's true, isn't it? | 49:36 | |
| Why is it that we have succumb | 49:39 | |
| to the temptation of believing | 49:40 | |
| that the way to get along in this world | 49:42 | |
| is to go alone? | 49:45 | |
| We drug ourselves against every unpleasant circumstance. | 49:49 | |
| We become insensitive to pain. | 49:53 | |
| And yet we're not a very happy people. | 49:58 | |
| Peace by neutrality leaves us with anxious hearts. | 50:02 | |
| Few people have found peace by the road of indifference, | 50:11 | |
| or by the way of neutrality. | 50:17 | |
| Finally, there is the peace of right. | 50:23 | |
| The other day in a book, I found an intriguing paragraph: | 50:28 | |
| "If someone said that there is no particular virtue | 50:33 | |
| in wanting peace, | 50:37 | |
| everyone wants it." | 50:39 | |
| Hitler wanted it, promised the Nazis a thousand years of it, | 50:41 | |
| Teddy Roosevelt wanted it, provided it, | 50:45 | |
| didn't interfere with the fighting. | 50:47 | |
| All of us want peace. | 50:52 | |
| It is easier to want it | 50:53 | |
| than it is to root out those things in our lives | 50:56 | |
| and in our hearts | 51:01 | |
| and in our world that disrupt peace. | 51:02 | |
| Long ago on that rocky windswept hillside, | 51:08 | |
| the angels came to announce the birth of the Lord. | 51:11 | |
| The common translation of their hallelujah chorus | 51:15 | |
| was, "Peace on Earth, goodwill to men," | 51:19 | |
| but that translation has always troubled me, | 51:24 | |
| because it was a promise | 51:27 | |
| without requiring any responsibility. | 51:29 | |
| It was a gift which incurred no obligations. | 51:33 | |
| The other day, I found a better translation, | 51:36 | |
| at least one which seems to fit | 51:39 | |
| more nearly into the context of the New Testament. | 51:41 | |
| Someone has said that what the angels really sang that night | 51:47 | |
| was, "Peace on Earth to men of God's will." | 51:51 | |
| And that may not be faithful to the original tongues, | 51:58 | |
| but it is akin to what Jesus said | 52:03 | |
| when He declared that in the Father's will, | 52:07 | |
| there is perfect peace. | 52:10 | |
| Is there any other way? | 52:13 | |
| In our pursuit of global peace, | 52:16 | |
| can it ever come as long as there is injustice, | 52:18 | |
| as long as people are deprived? | 52:23 | |
| If every nation of the Earth were to dismantle its bombers, | 52:30 | |
| strip its soldiers of their uniforms, | 52:34 | |
| convert their tanks into tractors, | 52:38 | |
| and send all of their weapons on a thermonuclear rocket | 52:41 | |
| to the moon, | 52:47 | |
| the problem would still remain, | 52:48 | |
| and it would not be long before men, | 52:51 | |
| before tractors were used as weapons, | 52:55 | |
| and farmers became soldiers. | 52:58 | |
| Peace without God's will, | 53:02 | |
| peace without justice, | 53:05 | |
| peace without compassion, | 53:08 | |
| peace without a reconciliation. | 53:12 | |
| Can peace ever come | 53:16 | |
| until it comes in accordance with God's will? | 53:20 | |
| And there is even a more pressing question, | 53:28 | |
| perhaps more to the point: | 53:30 | |
| is it ever possible for us as individuals | 53:33 | |
| to find peace on the outside until there is peace within? | 53:35 | |
| Through the years, I have collected a few woodworking tools. | 53:43 | |
| Now and then I go down into the basement of our parsonage | 53:46 | |
| to work with them, | 53:50 | |
| and occasionally, I stumble onto a lesson of life. | 53:51 | |
| Take a piece of wood and put it to a sander | 53:59 | |
| and pretty soon you will discover that the wood has grain, | 54:03 | |
| the way in which nature has pitched its fibers. | 54:07 | |
| And if you work with that grain, | 54:11 | |
| you can get a smooth piece of wood. | 54:13 | |
| You work against it, | 54:16 | |
| and smoothness never comes. | 54:17 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 54:20 | |
| And isn't this a principle that prevails | 54:22 | |
| all the way through Creation? | 54:24 | |
| Peace comes when life is lived in harmony | 54:28 | |
| with the Creator's intent. | 54:31 | |
| You live against it, | 54:34 | |
| and peace never comes. | 54:36 | |
| Perhaps this is the reason, dear friends, | 54:40 | |
| that so many institutions of learning have their roots | 54:42 | |
| in man's need for understanding | 54:48 | |
| of the great theological and ethical truths | 54:51 | |
| which have been proclaimed on this planet. | 54:57 | |
| You see, this man Jesus is important to us. | 55:00 | |
| Long ago, He walked the dusty trails of a far away corner | 55:06 | |
| of the Earth, | 55:10 | |
| and He laid down a carefully conceived plan of life, | 55:13 | |
| and that plan has been tried | 55:18 | |
| in the fires of human experience, | 55:21 | |
| and the common verdict of history | 55:25 | |
| is that this is the way God intended life to be lived. | 55:28 | |
| No one yet has managed | 55:36 | |
| to match life completely with that plan, | 55:37 | |
| but those who turn their faces in that direction | 55:42 | |
| and who climb the high and the rocky peaks | 55:47 | |
| whisper back to the rest of us, | 55:50 | |
| "This is the way to peace. | 55:53 | |
| It is through God's will." | 55:56 | |
| This, I think, is what the angels really said, | 56:00 | |
| and there is no other way | 56:05 | |
| to find peace, | 56:08 | |
| in this world, | 56:11 | |
| or the worlds to come. | 56:13 | |
| In the name of the Father and of the Son | 56:19 | |
| and of the Holy Spirit, | 56:21 | |
| amen. | 56:24 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 56:29 | |
| - | As we pray responsively, | 56:42 |
| let us offer to God this litany of commemoration. | 56:46 | |
| (congregation member coughs) | 56:51 | |
| Almighty and eternal God | 56:54 | |
| in whom our parents trusted, | 56:57 | |
| we, their children, on this day of remembrance | 56:59 | |
| offer unto You our litany of commemoration. | 57:04 | |
| - | Hear us, we beseech You, O Lord. | 57:08 |
| - | For the men and women of this state, | 57:11 |
| Methodists and Quakers, | 57:14 | |
| farmers and merchants, | 57:16 | |
| teachers and administrators, | 57:17 | |
| who believed in education and made their belief prevail: | 57:20 | |
| - | We give You thanks and praise. | 57:25 |
| - | For the embodiment of their dreams, | 57:28 |
| private school, academy, college, university, | 57:30 | |
| founded in hope, | 57:35 | |
| continued with perseverance, | 57:37 | |
| growing in outreach, | 57:39 | |
| established in assurance: | 57:41 | |
| - | We give You thanks and praise. | 57:45 |
| - | For educators whose vision was matched by their courage, | 57:47 |
| whose patience was tempered by their indignation, | 57:51 | |
| whose idealism was moderated by their awareness of sin: | 57:55 | |
| - | We give You thanks and praise. | 58:00 |
| - | For the Duke family, father, sons, and their wives, | 58:02 |
| grandchildren, and continuing generations, | 58:07 | |
| who, with wonder and surprise, | 58:11 | |
| bewilderment and tenacity, | 58:13 | |
| laid a good foundation, | 58:16 | |
| built a worthy school, | 58:18 | |
| and provided for exciting growth beyond their kin | 58:20 | |
| in years unseen: | 58:23 | |
| - | We give You thanks and praise. | 58:26 |
| - | For the continuance of good ideas, | 58:29 |
| the union of truth and reverence, | 58:32 | |
| the freedom of responsible academic thought | 58:34 | |
| and the right of public concern, | 58:37 | |
| the joint care of the body and the spirit, | 58:40 | |
| the linking of science and humanities, | 58:43 | |
| the realization that the old order changes: | 58:46 | |
| - | We give You thanks and praise. | 58:50 |
| - | For the future of our university, | 58:54 |
| established to Your glory | 58:57 | |
| and for the relief of the human condition, | 58:59 | |
| for the consecration of the discontent of the young, | 59:03 | |
| for wisdom and the conservatism of the middle-aged, | 59:06 | |
| for resiliency and the obstinacy of the old, | 59:10 | |
| for understanding, cooperation, and a sense of humor | 59:14 | |
| within our community: | 59:19 | |
| - | We give this, our prayer. | 59:22 |
| - | And to You, we shall ascribe, as is most due, | 59:25 |
| all praise and glory, | 59:29 | |
| world without end. | 59:31 | |
| Amen. | 59:34 | |
| (mellow organ music) | 59:37 | |
| (slow uplifting organ music) | 59:47 | |
| (uplifting organ and choir music) | 1:00:15 | |
| (uplifting organ and choir music fades) | 1:00:21 |
| (gentle piano music) | 0:03 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 0:21 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 0:29 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 0:44 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 1:02 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 1:09 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 1:48 | |
| (soft piano music) | 2:03 | |
| (soft piano music) | 2:21 | |
| - | And David proclaimed Solomon the son of Bathsheba | 2:29 |
| king over Israel and over Judah. | 2:34 | |
| (soft piano music) | 2:38 | |
| And Nathan the priest said, | 2:51 | |
| "Before all Israel and before Jehovah, | 2:54 | |
| we anoint as king Solomon the son of David." | 2:59 | |
| (soft piano music) | 3:05 | |
| And the people shouted, "God save King Solomon." | 3:14 | |
| (bright piano music) | 3:19 | |
| (soft piano music) | 3:27 | |
| And while Nathan crowned Solomon, | 3:42 | |
| David went up and looked upon the temple for the last time. | 3:46 | |
| (soft piano music) | 3:50 | |
| And David said, | 3:54 | |
| "The spirit of God is within me. | 3:58 | |
| One cometh after me | 4:03 | |
| to lead my people in the fear of the Lord. | 4:05 | |
| (soft piano music) | 4:08 | |
| O how good it was to live. | 4:11 | |
| I thank thee God thou who gives me life." | 4:14 | |
| (soft piano music) | 4:19 | |
| (soft piano music) | 4:27 | |
| (woman singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 4:42 | |
| (woman singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 4:57 | |
| (woman singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 5:12 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 5:29 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 5:42 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 5:56 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 6:10 | |
| (woman singing faintly) | ||
| (soft piano music) | 6:31 | |
| (woman singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 6:40 | |
| (choir singing faintly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 6:52 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 7:09 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 7:22 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 7:34 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 7:51 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 8:09 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 8:26 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 8:39 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 8:43 | |
| (bright piano music) | 8:54 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (gentle piano music) | 9:15 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 9:38 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 9:51 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 9:54 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 9:58 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 10:10 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 10:14 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 10:17 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 10:20 | |
| ♪ Hallelujah ♪ | 10:23 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 10:32 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| - | O God, as we give and dedicate these gifts, | 10:44 |
| we give and dedicate ourselves to search for truth, | 10:48 | |
| that truth which liberates the mind | 10:53 | |
| and frees the spirit; | 10:55 | |
| to seek the way, that way of justice | 10:57 | |
| and charity for one and for all; | 11:01 | |
| to find the life, | 11:04 | |
| the life which enriches and sustains. | 11:06 | |
| Into Christ who is the way, the truth | 11:10 | |
| and the life for us all, | 11:14 | |
| we give praise and honor, world without end. | 11:16 | |
| Amen. | 11:21 | |
| - | On this Founders' Day, | 12:03 |
| we not only celebrate the founding of Duke University | 12:05 | |
| and pay tribute to those who had a part in it, | 12:11 | |
| especially Mr. Duke, | 12:15 | |
| but today we recognize as a university | 12:18 | |
| one of our special friends | 12:22 | |
| who has meant much to the people of this region | 12:25 | |
| and to Duke University by conferring an honorary degree | 12:29 | |
| on Mr. Alfred Johnston Fletcher. | 12:33 | |
| As the sponsor for the trustees, Mary Semans, | 12:37 | |
| and the sponsor for the faculty, Professor Frank Tiro, | 12:43 | |
| I will ask them to escort Mr. Fletcher to the front. | 12:47 | |
| So to help Mary up there, Mr. Fletcher. | 13:04 | |
| - | Mr. President, it is my distinct pleasure | 13:13 |
| to present Alfred Johnston Fletcher | 13:16 | |
| as a candidate for the honorary degree, | 13:19 | |
| Doctor of Humane Letters. | 13:21 | |
| His nomination has been approved | 13:24 | |
| by the academic council of the University faculties | 13:26 | |
| and by the board of trustees of Duke University. | 13:29 | |
| Mr. A.J. Fletcher. | 13:33 | |
| - | It is with special pleasure that Duke University | 13:37 |
| greets a distinguished North Carolina citizen. | 13:41 | |
| Young and vigorous man of 88 years | 13:45 | |
| and acknowledges this long and productive life of service | 13:50 | |
| in the advancement of culture and education | 13:54 | |
| in the musical arts. | 13:57 | |
| Alfred Johnston Fletcher, | 13:59 | |
| we are honored by your presence here in our chapel today. | 14:02 | |
| And we are in your debt | 14:06 | |
| for having founded the Grassroots Opera Company, | 14:08 | |
| the National Opera Company | 14:11 | |
| so that millions of North Carolina children | 14:13 | |
| might receive the magic of operatic masterpieces | 14:16 | |
| and live performance. | 14:19 | |
| Your special interest in music for children | 14:21 | |
| has led you to other creative contributions. | 14:25 | |
| And a pre-collegiate string school now flourishes | 14:28 | |
| because of your generosity. | 14:31 | |
| The careers of hundreds of musically-gifted young people | 14:35 | |
| throughout the state | 14:38 | |
| have been encouraged by your inspiration | 14:40 | |
| and your dedication. | 14:42 | |
| We see trumps of your labor in the professional arena | 14:44 | |
| where many of your former charges | 14:47 | |
| have attained significant achievements. | 14:50 | |
| You did these things, not for yourself, | 14:53 | |
| but for your love of the art of music | 14:57 | |
| and your appreciation of the cultural needs | 15:00 | |
| of a civilized society. | 15:04 | |
| By the authority vested in me, | 15:06 | |
| I confer upon you the Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters. | 15:08 | |
| And I admit you to its rights, its privileges, | 15:12 | |
| and its obligations. | 15:16 | |
| (soft piano music) | 15:54 | |
| (soft piano music) | 16:09 | |
| (soft piano music) | 16:19 | |
| (soft piano music) | 16:28 | |
| (soft piano music) | 16:40 | |
| (bright piano music) | 16:46 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 17:07 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 17:26 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 17:47 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 18:07 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 18:28 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 18:48 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 19:10 | |
| (choir singing brightly) | ||
| (bright piano music) | 19:32 | |
| - | The grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, | 20:11 |
| the love of God, | 20:16 | |
| the communion and fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you | 20:19 | |
| and with those whom you love now and forever. | 20:24 | |
| ♪ Amen ♪ | 20:32 | |
| ♪ Amen ♪ | 20:39 | |
| ♪ Amen ♪ | 20:41 | |
| ♪ Amen ♪ | 20:43 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 20:55 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 21:15 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 21:31 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 21:43 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 21:54 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 22:10 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 22:26 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 22:41 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 22:58 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 23:15 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 23:31 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 23:49 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 24:06 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 24:21 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 24:39 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 24:45 | |
| (soft piano music) | 25:05 | |
| (soft piano music) | 25:19 | |
| (soft piano music) | 25:36 | |
| (soft piano music) | 25:51 | |
| (soft piano music) | 26:12 | |
| (soft piano music) | 26:31 | |
| (soft piano music) | 26:48 | |
| (soft piano music) | 27:07 | |
| (soft piano music) | 27:22 | |
| (soft piano music) | 27:39 | |
| (soft piano music) | 27:57 | |
| (soft piano music) | 28:15 | |
| (soft piano music) | 28:31 | |
| (soft piano music) | 28:49 | |
| (soft piano music) | 29:07 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 29:20 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 29:35 | |
| (gentle piano music) | 29:52 | |
| (audience clapping) | 30:07 |