Gayle C. Felton - "Feeding the Hungry Crowd" (July 28, 1991)

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	(organ hymn music)	0:00
	(organ hymn music resumes)	0:26
-	Good morning and welcome to this service of worship	5:41
	in Duke University Chapel, we are particularly	5:44
	delighted to have those of you	5:47
	who are visitors who may be at summer conferences at Duke	5:49
	or passing through town,	5:53
	I'm delighted to be back in the chapel	5:55
	after two months' absence	5:56
	and today gives me an opportunity	5:58
	to welcome the newest member of the chapel staff.	6:00
	Our new assistant Dean of the Chapel	6:04
	and Director of Religious Life,	6:07
	the Reverend Debra Brazzel,	6:10
	Ms. Brazzel comes to us from	6:12
	a ministry in Dallas, Texas.	6:15
	She joined our staff at the beginning of the summer	6:18
	and has already endeared herself	6:22
	to many in our community,	6:24
	and we're delighted to have you with us	6:27
	here at Duke Chapel.	6:29
-	Thank you.	6:30
-	Debra.	6:30
-	It's been a pleasure to be here,	6:31
	and I want to extend my heartiest feelings	6:32
	of appreciation for the warm welcome	6:36
	that has been shown to myself and my husband.	6:39
	It's been a pleasure for us to be here,	6:42
	and we're looking forward to serving in Duke Chapel.	6:44
-	We also welcome	6:48
	as our guest preacher today,	6:50
	Dr. Gayle Felton,	6:51
	She's Assistant Professor of Christian Nurture	6:53
	at Duke Divinity School,	6:56
	she's had a distinguished career	6:58
	in undergraduate and in seminary education,	7:00
	gifted preacher, and we're delighted	7:04
	to have her bring the message to us today.	7:06
	Now let us stand for the greeting.	7:10
	Be glad in God and rejoice, oh righteous,	7:17
	shout for joy, all upright of heart.	7:19
Congregation	God has called us by name	7:23
	and poured out His blessing upon us.	7:25
-	God has multiplied our resources	7:29
	and blessed us with food for body and soul.	7:31
-	Rest--	7:35
	(indistinguishable audio)	7:36
-	God grants us power to comprehend	7:41
	love's breadth and length, its heights and depths.	7:43
	(congregation responds indistinctly)	7:47
	(organ music plays, "All Creatures of Our God and King")	7:55
	♪ All creatures of our God and King ♪	8:44
	♪ Lift up your voice and with us sing ♪	8:50
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	8:56
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	8:59
	♪ O brother sun with golden beam ♪	9:04
	♪ O sister moon with silver gleam ♪	9:10
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	9:16
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	9:18
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	9:22
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	9:25
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	9:28
	♪ O brother wind, air, clouds, and rain ♪	9:36
	♪ By which all creatures ye sustain ♪	9:43
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	9:49
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	9:52
	♪ Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice ♪	9:57
	♪ Ye lights of evening, find a voice ♪	10:03
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	10:09
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	10:12
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	10:15
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	10:18
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	10:21
	♪ O sister water, flowing clear ♪	10:30
	♪ Make music for thy Lord to hear ♪	10:36
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	10:42
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	10:45
	♪ O brother fire who lights the night ♪	10:50
	♪ Providing warmth, enhancing sight ♪	10:56
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	11:02
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	11:05
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	11:08
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	11:11
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	11:14
	♪ Dear mother earth, who day by day ♪	11:23
	♪ Unfoldest blessings on our way ♪	11:30
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	11:36
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	11:39
	♪ The flowers and fruits that in thee grow ♪	11:43
	♪ Let them God's glory also show ♪	11:50
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	11:56
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	11:59
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	12:02
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	12:06
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	12:09
	♪ All ye who are of tender heart ♪	12:27
	♪ Forgiving others, take your part ♪	12:34
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	12:40
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	12:43
	♪ Ye who long pain and sorrow bear ♪	12:48
	♪ Praise God and on him cast your care ♪	12:54
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	13:00
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	13:03
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	13:06
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	13:09
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	13:13
	♪ And thou, our sister, gentle death ♪	13:21
	♪ Waiting to hush our latest breath ♪	13:28
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	13:34
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	13:38
	♪ Thou leadest home the child of God ♪	13:42
	♪ And Christ our Lord the way has trod ♪	13:48
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	13:55
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	13:58
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	14:01
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	14:04
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	14:08
	♪ Let all things their Creator bless ♪	14:36
	♪ And worship Him in humbleness ♪	14:43
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	14:49
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	14:52
	♪ Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son ♪	14:57
	♪ And praise the Spirit, Three in One ♪	15:04
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	15:10
	♪ O praise ye! ♪	15:13
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	15:17
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	15:20
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	15:23
-	Let us pray.	15:40
	Great God, whose glory is beyond the reach	15:43
	of our imagination,	15:46
	And whose response to us	15:49
	is more generous than we can ask or think,	15:51
	deliver us from the limitations	15:55
	we impose on our own humanity.	15:57
	Your hand is heavy on us in our deceits.	16:01
	You call us from our hiding places	16:06
	to find forgiveness, refuge, and strength in you.	16:09
	You summon us from our self-interest	16:15
	to share what we have.	16:18
	That all your people may eat.	16:21
	Help us to hear you in this hour,	16:25
	that we may respond every day to your will.	16:28
	Amen.	16:31
	You may be seated.	16:33
-	Let us pray.	16:47
	(congregation reads along) Prepare our hearts, oh God,	16:49
	to accept your Word.	16:52
	Silence in us any voice but your own,	16:54
	that hearing, we may also obey your will.	16:58
	Through Jesus Christ our Lord,	17:02
	Amen.	17:05
	The first reading is taken from the second book of Samuel.	17:09
	But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.	17:13
	And the Lord sent Nathan to David.	17:16
	He came to him and said to him,	17:20
	there were two men in a certain city,	17:23
	the one rich, and the other poor.	17:26
	The rich man had very many flocks and herds.	17:30
	But the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb,	17:33
	which he had bought.	17:37
	He brought it up,	17:39
	and it grew up with him and with his children.	17:41
	It used to eat of his meager fare	17:44
	and drink from his cup	17:47
	and lie in his bosom	17:48
	and it was like a daughter to him.	17:50
	Now there came a traveler to the rich man,	17:54
	and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd	17:57
	to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him.	18:01
	But he took the poor man's lamb	18:05
	and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.	18:08
	Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man.	18:13
	He said to Nathan,	18:17
	as the Lord lives, the man who has done this	18:18
	deserves to die.	18:22
	He shall restore the lamb four-fold,	18:25
	because he did this thing	18:27
	and because he had no pity.	18:29
	Nathan said to David,	18:33
	you are the man.	18:34
	Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel.	18:37
	I anointed you King over Israel.	18:40
	And I rescued you from the hand of Saul.	18:43
	I gave you your master's house	18:46
	and your master's wives into your bosom,	18:49
	and gave you the house of Israel	18:51
	and of Judah.	18:53
	If that had been too little,	18:56
	I would have added as much more.	18:58
	Why have you despised the Word of the Lord	19:01
	to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord?	19:04
	You have struck down	19:07
	Uriah the Hittite with the sword.	19:10
	And has taken his wife to be your wife.	19:13
	And have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.	19:17
	Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house	19:21
	for you have despised me	19:26
	and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite	19:29
	to be your wife.	19:32
	Thus says the Lord.	19:35
	I will raise up trouble against you	19:36
	from within your own house	19:39
	and I will take your wives before your eyes	19:41
	and give them to your neighbor.	19:44
	And he shall lie with your wives	19:47
	in the sight of this very sun.	19:49
	For you did it secretly,	19:52
	but I will do this thing before all of Israel	19:54
	and before the sun.	19:57
	David said to Nathan,	20:00
	I have sinned against the Lord.	20:01
	Nathan said to David,	20:04
	now the Lord has put away your sin.	20:06
	You shall not die.	20:09
	Nevertheless, because by this deed	20:11
	you have utterly scorned the Lord,	20:14
	the child that is born to you shall die.	20:17
	This is the Word of the Lord.	20:20
	(congregation responds)	20:23
-	The appointed Psalter for today is Psalm 32,	20:39
	found on page 766 in the hymnal.	20:42
	Please stand as we sing responsively.	20:45
	(organ music plays)	20:49
	♪ Blessed are the those ♪	20:55
	♪ Whose transgression is forgiven ♪	20:56
	♪ Whose sin is covered ♪	21:00
	♪ Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity ♪	21:04
	♪ And in whose spirit there is no deceit. ♪	21:09
	♪ When I did not declare my sin ♪	21:16
	♪ My body wasted away ♪	21:19
	♪ Through my groaning all day long ♪	21:22
	♪ For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me ♪	21:27
	♪ My strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. ♪	21:33
	♪ I acknowledge my sin to you ♪	21:40
	♪ And I did not hide my iniquity ♪	21:43
	♪ I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord ♪	21:49
	♪ Then thou didst forgive the guilt of my sin ♪	21:55
	♪ Therefore let those who are Godly offer prayer to you ♪	22:01
	♪ At a time of distress in the rush of great waters ♪	22:06
	♪ They shall not reach him. ♪	22:10
	♪ You are a hiding place for me ♪	22:14
	♪ You preserve me from trouble ♪	22:17
	♪ You encompass me with deliverance ♪	22:20
	♪ I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go ♪	22:25
	♪ I will counsel you with my eye upon you ♪	22:31
	♪ Do not be like an unruly horse or mule ♪	22:38
	♪ Without understanding ♪	22:42
	♪ Whose temper must be curbed with bit and bridle ♪	22:45
	♪ Many are the pangs of the wicked ♪	22:50
	♪ But steadfast love surrounds him who trusts in the Lord ♪	22:54
	♪ Be glad in the Lord ♪	23:01
	♪ And rejoice all righteous ♪	23:03
	♪ And shout for joy all you upright in heart ♪	23:06
	♪ O glory be to you, oh God ♪	23:13
	♪ And to Jesus Christ our Savior ♪	23:16
	♪ And to the Holy Spirit ♪	23:21
	♪ As it was since time began ♪	23:26
	♪ Is now and ever shall be ♪	23:29
	This reading is from Paul's letter to the Ephesians.	23:48
	For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father	23:52
	from whom every family in Heaven	23:56
	and on Earth takes its name.	23:58
	I pray that according to the riches of His Glory,	24:01
	He may grant that you may be strengthened	24:05
	in your inner being with power through His Spirit	24:07
	and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.	24:11
	As you are being rooted and grounded in love.	24:16
	I pray that you may have the power to comprehend	24:20
	with all the saints what is the breadth and length	24:23
	and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ	24:27
	that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled	24:31
	with all the fullness of God.	24:34
	Now to Him who by the power at work within us	24:37
	is able to accomplish abundantly	24:40
	far more than all we can ask or imagine.	24:43
	To him, the glory and the church,	24:47
	and in Christ Jesus to all generations	24:49
	forever and ever, Amen.	24:52
	This is the Word of the Lord.	24:56
Congregation	Thanks be to God.	24:58
	(organ choral hymn music-"Thou Wilt Keep Him")	25:01
	♪ Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace ♪	25:33
	♪ Whose mind is stayed on thee ♪	25:44
	♪ The darkness is no darkness with thee ♪	25:57
	♪ But the night is as clear as the day ♪	26:09
	♪ The darkness and the light to thee are both alike ♪	26:20
	♪ God is light and with him is no darkness at all ♪	26:55
	♪ Oh let my soul live, and it shall praise thee ♪	27:23
	♪ For thine is the kingdom, the power ♪	27:36
	♪ And the glory, for evermore ♪	27:44
-	The Gospel lesson this morning	29:17
	from the sixth chapter of John	29:19
	is the familiar story of Jesus feeding the multitude.	29:22
	Interestingly, this account	29:28
	is the only incident in the public ministry of Jesus	29:31
	where a miracle is told by all four of the Gospel writers.	29:36
	And indeed, in Matthew and in Mark,	29:43
	this miracle is told twice.	29:46
	So apparently it was in the minds	29:50
	of Jesus's earliest followers,	29:52
	a most significant occasion.	29:55
	Fraught with meaning far beyond physical hunger.	29:58
	I invite you to stand as I read	30:04
	our Gospel lesson.	30:07
	After this, Jesus went to the other side	30:14
	of the Sea of Galilee,	30:18
	which is also called the Sea of Tiberius.	30:20
	A large crowd kept following Him	30:24
	because they saw the signs that He was doing for the sick.	30:27
	Jesus went up the mountain	30:34
	and sat down there with His disciples.	30:36
	Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.	30:40
	When He looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him,	30:47
	Jesus said to Philip,	30:53
	Where are we to buy bread	30:56
	for these people to eat?	30:59
	This He said to test Philip	31:03
	for He Himself knew what he was going to do.	31:06
	Philip answered Him, six months wages would not be enough	31:11
	to buy bread, such for each of them to get a little.	31:15
	One of His disciples, Andrew,	31:21
	Simon Peter's brother,	31:24
	said to Him,	31:26
	there is a boy here	31:28
	who has five barley loaves and two fish.	31:30
	But what are they	31:35
	among so many people?	31:36
	Jesus said, make the people sit down.	31:40
	Now there was a great deal of grass in the place,	31:44
	so they all sat down about five thousand in all.	31:48
	Then Jesus took the loaves,	31:53
	and when He had given thanks,	31:56
	He distributed them to those who receded,	31:59
	so also the fish,	32:03
	as much as they wanted.	32:05
	And when they were all satisfied,	32:09
	He told his disciples, gather up the fragments	32:12
	which are left over,	32:17
	so that nothing may be lost.	32:19
	So they gathered them up,	32:23
	and from the fragments of the five barley loaves	32:25
	left from those who had eaten,	32:28
	they filled 12 baskets.	32:31
	When the people saw the sign that He had done,	32:35
	they began to say,	32:38
	this is indeed the prophet	32:41
	who has come into the world.	32:43
	When Jesus realized that they were about	32:47
	to come and take Him by force	32:49
	to make Him king,	32:52
	He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself.	32:54
	This is the Word of the Lord.	32:59
	(congregation responds)	33:03
	Please be seated.	33:05
	It was late,	33:20
	late in the afternoon of a long, tiring day.	33:23
	Perhaps the heat	33:30
	had been as oppressive there	33:32
	as it has been here in Durham for the past few weeks.	33:35
	The crowd had walked for miles,	33:40
	pursuing Jesus around the side of the lake.	33:45
	They had been so fascinated	33:52
	by His healing of the sick	33:56
	and so captivated by the message that He proclaimed,	33:59
	that they had forgotten the time.	34:04
	Morning had melted into afternoon into twilight.	34:08
	And then gradually, as nightfall approached,	34:14
	children in the crowd began to whimper	34:20
	and men and women became aware for the first time in the day	34:25
	of their weariness	34:31
	and of their hunger.	34:34
	Jesus turned to Philip	34:39
	whose hometown was in that part of the country,	34:42
	and inquired of Philip as to how the need	34:46
	of these people for bread might be met.	34:50
	Jesus, you see,	34:56
	was concerned about feeding	34:59
	the hungry crowd.	35:03
	Philip was dismayed.	35:07
	Perhaps I think Philip was even a bit irritated.	35:11
	Jesus was not always practical-minded enough to suit Philip.	35:17
	And is there a touch of irritation	35:23
	in Philip's reply?	35:27
	Why, Lord, six months' wages	35:30
	would not be enough to purchase bread,	35:33
	even bread enough for this multitude	35:37
	to have a few mouthfuls apiece.	35:39
	There simply is nothing that we can do.	35:42
	But Philip,	35:49
	like ourselves, perhaps,	35:52
	Philip does not realize,	35:55
	he does not really, really realize	35:58
	to whom it is he is speaking.	36:02
	Jesus is intent	36:07
	upon feeding the hungry crowd.	36:11
	Jesus, indeed, has recognized the need of these people,	36:18
	even before they have become aware of it themselves.	36:24
	As the day is drawing to a close,	36:30
	we can imagine that the Lord is thinking	36:33
	about the hunger	36:36
	that will begin to gnaw at these people's stomachs	36:38
	as it begins to be clear to them	36:43
	that they have spent all day without eating.	36:45
	Jesus knows	36:50
	for what we are hungering.	36:52
	Even when we do not know it ourselves.	36:56
	Like these ancient Galileans,	37:03
	who had pursued Jesus around the sea,	37:08
	our hungers are often more	37:13
	than physical.	37:18
	As middle-class Americans,	37:22
	we very infrequently suffer	37:25
	the pain of real, physical hunger.	37:30
	And Jesus is concerned	37:35
	about meeting that physical need.	37:38
	But for us,	37:42
	in our privileged situation,	37:45
	perhaps it is more relevant to recognize	37:48
	that the hunger of these ancient people	37:52
	like ours	37:55
	was also deeply internal	37:58
	and spiritual.	38:01
	The bread and the fish that Jesus will give to them	38:05
	satisfied more than their appetite for food.	38:10
	It met the deeper cravings of their spirit,	38:15
	because it was distributed to them by Christ.	38:20
	The crowds of people that we know,	38:28
	the crowds of which we are part	38:33
	are also hungry,	38:38
	hungry for more than physical food.	38:42
	There is around us,	38:48
	and within us	38:51
	so much restlessness.	38:54
	So little sense of purpose,	38:59
	such a dearth of meaning.	39:04
	So much boredom.	39:08
	So little real joy.	39:12
	We seek to escape	39:18
	the pain of living,	39:20
	to deny the fear of dying.	39:24
	But within ourselves,	39:29
	we can succeed in neither.	39:32
	Writing more than a century ago,	39:38
	the American author Henry David Thoreau	39:43
	asserted his opinion	39:48
	that the majority of people,	39:50
	the majority,	39:54
	lead lives of quiet desperation.	39:57
	Just getting through,	40:04
	day by dragging day.	40:07
	With little meaning	40:11
	and little significance	40:14
	and no joy.	40:16
	Our desperation today	40:20
	may not always be so quiet	40:22
	as might have been typical in the 19th century.	40:25
	But it is certainly	40:29
	no less profound.	40:31
	The southern writer, Flannery O'Connor,	40:38
	is one of my favorites.	40:42
	And in her strange and disturbing stories,	40:45
	she wrote symbolically about the deepest needs	40:50
	of human beings.	40:55
	In one of O'Connor's short novels,	40:58
	entitled, The Violent Bear it Away,	41:02
	she describes an old man	41:08
	who was a prophet.	41:11
	This old man lived out in the back woods,	41:14
	he refused to have anything to do with his family.	41:18
	He would come into town occasionally	41:23
	and march the streets proclaiming judgment	41:26
	and thundering condemnation	41:29
	upon the wickedness of the world.	41:31
	With the old man	41:36
	lived his great nephew,	41:39
	a 14 year old boy named Tarwater.	41:42
	Tarwater had more or less been kidnapped	41:49
	by the old man	41:54
	and taken away from the rest of the family	41:56
	out into the backwoods	42:00
	to be prepared for continuing the work of prophecy.	42:03
	For inheriting the mantle	42:08
	when the old prophet himself passed on.	42:11
	And sure enough,	42:16
	one morning, the old man sat down at the breakfast table,	42:19
	had a massive heart attack,	42:24
	and right in front of Tarwater's eyes, he died.	42:27
	The boy went to find his only other living relative,	42:35
	an uncle named Rayber	42:41
	who lived in town	42:45
	and was a schoolteacher there.	42:47
	Rayber was at first pleased to see his nephew.	42:52
	He was glad to have him come and live with him	42:57
	and took it upon himself to civilize the boy	43:00
	and to try to cleanse him	43:05
	of the contaminating influences	43:09
	of the mad prophet great uncle.	43:11
	But after only a few days,	43:15
	the problems between the two	43:18
	become painfully apparent.	43:21
	Tarwater had been raised in the backwoods.	43:27
	And his taste and habits were very, very different	43:33
	from those of Rayber.	43:38
	Rayber tried to buy the boy new clothes,	43:42
	he refused to wear them.	43:46
	He tried to entertain him,	43:49
	the boy wasn't interested.	43:52
	But their biggest problem,	43:56
	their biggest problem had to do with food.	43:59
	Rayber was accustomed to going out almost every night	44:04
	and eating at some restaurant of his choice,	44:09
	Chinese food one night, Italian food another night.	44:13
	Whatever was available in town.	44:17
	And when he took Tarwater with him	44:20
	to these various restaurants,	44:23
	Tarwater was absolutely appalled.	44:26
	And firmly refused to eat	44:30
	this strange stuff that his uncle insisted really was food.	44:34
	So the problems mount.	44:41
	And one night, Rayber is lying in bed,	44:44
	still awake in the midst of the night,	44:48
	thinking about the situation	44:51
	and what he should do.	44:53
	And he heard Tarwater get up	44:55
	and sneak out of the house	44:58
	very quietly.	45:01
	Rayber jumped up too	45:04
	and followed the boy through	45:06
	the darkened streets of the town,	45:08
	down into the shopping area,	45:11
	where he stayed far enough behind	45:16
	so he could neither be seen nor heard,	45:18
	and watched as Tarwater walked by	45:22
	the various lighted store windows.	45:25
	At last, the boy stopped	45:30
	before a particular store window,	45:33
	and looked into it intently	45:36
	and longingly.	45:40
	As Rayber observed him from the shadows.	45:43
	And O'Connor describes the scene like this.	45:48
	Tarwater's face was strangely lit	45:54
	from the window he was standing before.	45:58
	Rayber watched curiously	46:03
	for a few moments.	46:05
	It looked to him	46:08
	like the face of someone starving.	46:11
	Who sees a meal that he can't quite reach	46:16
	laid out in front of him.	46:21
	At last, something he wants!	46:25
	Rayber thought.	46:30
	And determined that tomorrow he would return	46:31
	and buy whatever it was.	46:35
	Tarwater reached out	46:40
	and touched the glass	46:43
	with his hand.	46:45
	And drew it back slowly.	46:47
	He hung there as if he could not take his eyes	46:52
	off of what it was he wanted.	46:56
	Rayber thought,	47:01
	a pet shop.	47:03
	I'll bet it's a pet shop.	47:05
	Maybe he wants a dog?	47:08
	A dog would make all the difference.	47:11
	Abruptly, the boy broke away	47:16
	and moved on down the street.	47:19
	Rayber stepped out of the entrance	47:23
	and made for the window that he had left.	47:25
	He stopped	47:31
	with a shock of disappointment.	47:33
	The place	47:38
	was only a bakery.	47:40
	And the window was empty.	47:44
	Empty except for one loaf of plain bread	47:49
	that had apparently been pushed aside and forgotten	47:55
	when the shelf was cleared for the night.	48:00
	He stared, puzzled, at the empty window for a second	48:07
	before he started after the boy again.	48:11
	Later on in the story,	48:19
	Flannery O'Connor illumens this incident.	48:23
	When she describes Tarwater	48:27
	as a boy with a bottom split out of his stomach	48:31
	so that nothing could heal or fill it	48:37
	but the bread of life.	48:43
	What other store windows	48:53
	before which we stand	48:58
	entranced?	49:01
	What would it take	49:06
	to heal and fill the split-out bottoms	49:08
	of our stomachs?	49:14
	The Christian answer	49:19
	has always been very simple.	49:22
	It still is.	49:27
	Life apart from God	49:29
	is ultimately unsatisfying.	49:34
	H.G. Wells, who was no Orthodox Christian,	49:41
	spoke himself about a God-shaped blank	49:47
	in the heart of every person	49:53
	an empty space at the very core of our being	49:56
	so intricately shaped	50:02
	that nothing can fill it	50:06
	but the presence of God.	50:09
	The great Christian Saint Augustine	50:14
	put it beautifully in his Confessions.	50:18
	Thou hast created us for thy self, Oh God.	50:22
	And our hearts are restless	50:28
	until they find their rest in thee.	50:31
	Our most profound hungers	50:38
	can be satisfied like those of the ancient Galileans	50:43
	by nothing except the food which God provides us	50:49
	through Jesus Christ.	50:54
	What we crave	50:58
	at the core of our being	51:00
	is a reconciled relationship with the God who loves us	51:04
	and wants to fulfill our needs	51:10
	with the abundance of divine grace.	51:13
	Many of you, I'm sure,	51:22
	are familiar with the series of books	51:24
	by C.S. Lewis,	51:28
	called The Narnia Chronicles.	51:30
	Ostensibly, they're written for children.	51:35
	In all of those books,	51:40
	Lewis has a character named Aslan	51:42
	who is a lion.	51:47
	And this lion is Lewis's symbol	51:50
	for Jesus Christ.	51:54
	In one of the books,	51:57
	entitled The Silver Chair,	51:59
	a little girl named Jill	52:03
	has suddenly been transported by supernatural forces	52:07
	to a strange and mysterious land.	52:13
	She is separated from all her friends,	52:19
	lost, confused, frightened.	52:23
	But Jill's most immediate problem	52:30
	is that she is intensely,	52:34
	desperately thirsty.	52:37
	She feels that if she does not get a drink of water	52:41
	she will simply die.	52:45
	And as Jill looks around her in bewilderment,	52:49
	she hears in the distance	52:54
	the sound of a running stream.	52:57
	And rushes of course	53:04
	in that direction	53:06
	to find the water	53:09
	which she so craves.	53:11
	And sure enough,	53:14
	as Jill comes into a clearing,	53:17
	she sees before her a beautiful, gurgling brook	53:19
	of fresh water,	53:23
	but just as Jill is about to dash	53:27
	to the bank of that stream	53:30
	and plunge her head in to satisfy her thirst,	53:32
	she sees, lying on the bank,	53:37
	between herself and the water	53:42
	a lion.	53:46
	Huge, majestic, powerful.	53:49
	And Jill is terrified.	53:55
	She stands there wanting the water so badly.	54:00
	Yearning but afraid to drink.	54:05
	And then the lion speaks.	54:10
	If you are thirsty,	54:16
	you may drink.	54:19
	Well, if Jill was frightened before,	54:23
	when the lion speaks she of course is petrified,	54:27
	cannot even force out an answer	54:31
	and in a moment, the lion speaks again,	54:35
	if you are thirsty, come and drink.	54:39
	Jill is in agony.	54:44
	Wanting and craving but fearing.	54:47
	Again the lion says, are you not thirsty?	54:54
	And finally Jill croaks out,	55:01
	I am dying of thirst.	55:04
	Then drink, said the lion.	55:10
	(stammers) Well, may I, could I,	55:15
	would you mind going away while I do?	55:17
	Jill says.	55:21
	The lion just growled.	55:24
	Turned his head.	55:27
	Well,	55:30
	will you promise not to do anything to me	55:33
	if I come, said Jill.	55:36
	I make no promises, said the lion.	55:41
	Do you eat little girls, Jill asked.	55:47
	I have swallowed up girls and boys,	55:53
	men and women,	55:57
	kings and emperors,	55:58
	cities and realms, replied the lion.	56:01
	I dare not come and drink, said Jill.	56:07
	Then you will die of thirst, answered the lion.	56:13
	Oh dear, said Jill.	56:20
	I suppose that I must go and find another stream.	56:23
	The lion replied,	56:31
	there is no other stream.	56:35
	There is no other stream.	56:44
	There is no other water	56:48
	to quench our deepest thirst.	56:51
	There is no other food	56:55
	to satisfy our most profound hunger.	56:58
	There is no other bread	57:03
	which can feed the hungry crowd	57:06
	except for Jesus Christ,	57:10
	the Bread of Life.	57:13
	Amen.	57:18
	(organ hymn music-"Come We That Love the Lord")	57:24
	♪ Come, we that love the Lord ♪	57:45
	♪ And let our joys be known ♪	57:50
	♪ Join in a song with sweet accord ♪	57:56
	♪ And thus surround the throne ♪	58:01
	♪ Let those refuse to sing ♪	58:08
	♪ Who never knew our God ♪	58:13
	♪ But children of the Heav'nly King ♪	58:19
	♪ May speak their joys abroad ♪	58:24
	♪ The hill of Zion yields ♪	58:31
	♪ A thousand sacred sweets ♪	58:37
	♪ Before we reach the heav'nly fields ♪	58:42
	♪ Or walk the golden streets ♪	58:47
	♪ Then let our songs abound ♪	59:03
	♪ And ev'ry tear be dry ♪	59:08
	♪ We're marching through Emmanuel's ground ♪	59:14
	♪ To fairer worlds on high ♪	59:20
Male Voice	The Lord be with you.	59:30
Congregation	And also with you.	59:31
-	Let us pray.	59:33
	Be seated.	59:34
	Gracious Lord	59:43
	who taught us to pray daily for bread,	59:46
	stir up in us those hungers	59:51
	which only you can fulfill.	59:54
	Teach us to hunger	59:58
	and to thirst for those things	1:00:00
	which truly satisfy.	1:00:03
	Lord,	1:00:06
	hear our prayer.	1:00:08
	Your Word read and proclaimed has reminded us	1:00:11
	that we came here this morning,	1:00:15
	even though we had not the courage to admit it,	1:00:18
	because we are hungry.	1:00:21
	There are places in our lives,	1:00:25
	deep, vacant, empty spaces,	1:00:27
	that cry out for fulfillment.	1:00:30
	Unanswered questions, unassuaged guilt.	1:00:34
	Unrelieved pain.	1:00:37
	Gnawing hungers.	1:00:39
	That cannot be resolved through	1:00:42
	conventional means of this world.	1:00:44
	And so we have come apart to this place.	1:00:48
	Confident that you have never given us	1:00:52
	stone when we ask for bread.	1:00:54
	Feed us again.	1:00:59
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:01:02
	Our occasional hunger	1:01:06
	often no more than occasional discomfort	1:01:09
	between breakfast and lunch,	1:01:12
	reminds us of brothers and sisters	1:01:16
	around the world who are always,	1:01:19
	every hour of the day,	1:01:21
	every day of life, hungry.	1:01:24
	Feed them, loving God.	1:01:28
	And make us your assistants.	1:01:34
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:01:38
	For the suffering peoples of Yugoslavia,	1:01:41
	in their time of trial,	1:01:44
	Prince of Peace,	1:01:47
	we pray for just and lasting peace,	1:01:49
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:01:52
	For those ravaged by natural disaster in the Philippines,	1:01:57
	oh master of wind and storm, we pray for their comfort	1:02:01
	and our sense of responsibility to help.	1:02:07
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:02:10
	For the Kurdish people,	1:02:14
	the people of Iraq,	1:02:17
	United Nations forces attempting to enforce peace there,	1:02:20
	ruler of all nations,	1:02:25
	we pray for their families and children.	1:02:28
	We acknowledge our part in their suffering.	1:02:31
	And our responsibility for their future.	1:02:34
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:02:38
	And for any who have come to this place of worship this day	1:02:43
	seeking nourishment, sustenance, or aid,	1:02:47
	including those who worship with us in Duke Hospital.	1:02:52
	Oh giver of bread,	1:02:56
	oh feeder of the hungry multitudes,	1:02:59
	we pray for those in need	1:03:03
	in body or soul.	1:03:05
	And we pray for help	1:03:10
	in fulfilling our vocation	1:03:12
	to help you minister	1:03:15
	to the hungry crowd.	1:03:17
	Lord, hear our prayer.	1:03:21
	As people have been so gifted,	1:03:26
	in so many ways by a loving God,	1:03:30
	let us now offer ourselves	1:03:33
	and our gifts	1:03:36
	to the God who has given so much to us.	1:03:37
	(organ hymn music- "Brother James's Air")	1:03:44
	♪ The Lord's my Shepherd, I'll not want ♪	1:04:24
	♪ He makes me down to lie ♪	1:04:30
	♪ In pastures green He leadeth me ♪	1:04:36
	♪ The quiet waters by ♪	1:04:42
	♪ He leadeth me, He leadeth me ♪	1:04:48
	♪ The quiet waters by ♪	1:04:55
	♪ My soul He doth restore again ♪	1:05:03
	♪ And me to walk doth make ♪	1:05:10
	♪ Within the paths of righteousness ♪	1:05:17
	♪ Ee'n for His own Name's sake ♪	1:05:23
	♪ Within the paths of righteousness ♪	1:05:30
	♪ Ee'n for His own Name's sake ♪	1:05:36
	♪ Yea, though I pass through shadows death ♪	1:05:45
	♪ Yet will I fear no ill ♪	1:05:52
	♪ For Thou art with me and Thy rod ♪	1:05:59
	♪ And staff me comfort still ♪	1:06:05
	♪ Thy rod and staff they comfort still ♪	1:06:12
	♪ They comfort still ♪	1:06:19
	♪ My table Thou hast furnish'd ♪	1:06:28
	♪ In presence of my foes ♪	1:06:34
	♪ My head with oil thou dost anoint ♪	1:06:41
	♪ And my cup overflows ♪	1:06:48
	♪ My head thou dost with oil anoint ♪	1:06:54
	♪ And my cup overflows ♪	1:07:02
	♪ Goodness and mercy all my days ♪	1:07:11
	♪ Will surely follow me ♪	1:07:18
	♪ And in my Father's heart alway ♪	1:07:24
	♪ My dwelling place shall be ♪	1:07:31
	♪ And in my Father's heart alway ♪	1:07:39
	♪ My dwelling place shall be ♪	1:07:45
	(organ hymn music-"All Creatures of Our God and King")	1:08:00
	♪ Let all things their Creator bless ♪	1:08:54
	♪ And worship Him in humbleness ♪	1:09:01
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:07
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:11
	♪ Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son ♪	1:09:16
	♪ And praise the Spirit, Three in One ♪	1:09:22
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:28
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:32
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:35
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:38
	♪ Alleluia! ♪	1:09:42
-	Let us pray.	1:09:55
	We thank you, God, for this	1:09:57
	moment in worship and in life.	1:09:59
	When we have something to give	1:10:02
	that others need.	1:10:05
	Take our bread,	1:10:07
	our witness,	1:10:10
	our lives to benefit all your human family.	1:10:11
	Feed us, and use us	1:10:17
	to feed the hungry crowd.	1:10:20
	May your glory be known among us	1:10:23
	and in all the world.	1:10:27
	Amen.	1:10:29
	And now let us pray together	1:10:31
	with confidence of the children of God.	1:10:33
	Our Father, who art in heaven,	1:10:36
	hallowed be Thy Name.	1:10:39
	Thy kingdom come,	1:10:42
	Thy will be done,	1:10:44
	on Earth as it is in Heaven.	1:10:45
	Give us this day, our daily bread,	1:10:48
	and forgive us our trespasses,	1:10:51
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	1:10:54
	Lead us not into temptation,	1:10:58
	but deliver us from evil.	1:11:00
	For Thine is the Kingdom,	1:11:03
	and the Power, and the Glory forever.	1:11:05
	Amen.	1:11:08
	As we go forth to meditate on the story	1:11:10
	of the loaves and the fishes,	1:11:13
	let us not dwell on how much Jesus	1:11:15
	was able to do with so little,	1:11:18
	neither let us dwell on how little we do with so much.	1:11:20
	Instead, let us go with the desire	1:11:25
	to put ourselves as Jesus did,	1:11:28
	wholly at God's bidding.	1:11:31
	Now may our God make you to increase	1:11:34
	in love one another	1:11:37
	and to all people.	1:11:38
	And establish your hearts unblamable in holiness.	1:11:40
	In the name of Jesus Christ.	1:11:44
	♪ Amen ♪	1:11:51
	♪ Amen ♪	1:11:56
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:00
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:04
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:25
	(organ hymn music-"For the Beauty of the Earth")	1:12:35
	♪ For the beauty of the Earth ♪	1:13:07
	♪ For the glory of the skies ♪	1:13:12
	♪ For the love which from our birth ♪	1:13:18
	♪ Over and around us lies ♪	1:13:23
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:13:28
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:13:33
	♪ For the beauty of each hour ♪	1:13:41
	♪ Of the day and of the night ♪	1:13:46
	♪ Hill and vale, and tree and flower ♪	1:13:51
	♪ Sun and moon, and stars of light ♪	1:13:56
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:14:01
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:14:07
	♪ For the joy of ear and eye ♪	1:14:14
	♪ for the heart and mind's delight ♪	1:14:20
	♪ For the mystic harmony ♪	1:14:25
	♪ Linking sense to sound and sight ♪	1:14:30
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:14:35
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:14:40
	♪ For the joy of human love ♪	1:14:48
	♪ Brother, sister, parent, child ♪	1:14:53
	♪ Friends on earth and friends above ♪	1:14:59
	♪ For all gentle thoughts and mild ♪	1:15:04
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:15:09
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:15:15
	♪ For thy church, that evermore ♪	1:15:23
	♪ Lifteth holy hands above ♪	1:15:28
	♪ Offering up on every shore ♪	1:15:33
	♪ Her pure sacrifice of love ♪	1:15:38
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:15:43
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:15:49
	♪ For thyself, best Gift Divine ♪	1:15:57
	♪ To the world so freely given ♪	1:16:02
	♪ For that great, great love of thine ♪	1:16:07
	♪ Peace on Earth, and joy in Heaven ♪	1:16:13
	♪ Lord of all, to thee we raise ♪	1:16:18
	♪ This our hymn of grateful praise ♪	1:16:24
	(organ hymn music continues)	1:16:36

Item Info

Title:

Gayle C. Felton - "Feeding the Hungry Crowd" (July 28, 1991)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 33:20. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 57:20.
Jesus wasn’t practical, but he knows for what we are hungering. What would it take to heal us? The Christian answer has always been simple: life with God. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: “The crowds of which we are part are all so hungry. Hungry for more than physical food. There is around us and within us so much restlessness, so little sense of purpose, such a dearth of meaning, so much boredom, so little real joy.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4wd3qg87

Date:

July 28, 1991

Speaker:

Felton, Gayle C.

Liturgical Calendar:

Ordinary Time

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0242
ref8973_dad
uachapelsermaud
duke:321485
dcrmv001232
ark:/87924/r4wd3qg87
e4471894-aa32-4b9c-9d28-8746fcaaad17

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

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

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Limited Re-Use

Educational Use Permitted

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This material is made available for educational and non-commercial use. This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the license indicated here. Copyright in this material has not been transferred to Duke University. For other reuses of this material beyond those permitted by fair use or otherwise allowed under the Copyright Act, please see our page on copyright and citations https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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