422 24 26018 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1e6d9a7fc0f69464b8ada2ad9f7a8014.mp3 25e45222517a2e09c9828616cd0e3d9c https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/bef8019aaa16c21b20e0fa9ae13842c2.pdf 8a5532ad355c69e88dec92a91b342aa4 PDF Text Text It Is an Easter World! Text: I Corinthians 15: 20 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan Eastertide III, April 13, 1986 Transcription of the spoken sermon It is an Easter world! I stress the positive affirmation. That is the meaning of the text. Paul had been dealing with an idea that would have denied the reality of the resurrection of Jesus. He showed the consequences of denying the resurrection and then he made the bold, simple claim of the text: But the Truth is, Christ was raised to life… That is the center of the Gospel, the basis of all we claim in our Christian faith. We believe it is true; Jesus is the living Lord and because he is the living Lord, we are bold to say, It is an Easter world! It is an Easter world despite all appearances and we must be quite candid about that. Our affirmation of faith is made in the face of a mountain of data that seems to contradict it. There is trouble in our world. We teeter on the edge of armed intervention in Libya. We tremble with every news report wondering where terrorists will strike next. And we carry a good deal of personal baggage with us – personal pain, broken relationships, vocational anxiety, and disappointments. Some of our neighbors succumb to the weight of it: Then we have the tragedy of a soul poisoned with cynicism and bitterness. Some, deeply wounded, wall themselves in, making themselves invulnerable to being hurt again, and, at the same time, invulnerable to love and grace – the walking dead. But this is the First Day of the Week; this is the celebration of the resurrection. This is the day that the Lord has made. We are here to rejoice and be glad because beneath the appearance is a deeper reality. Christ has been raised to life! It is an Easter World after all! © Grand Valley State University   �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 2   We are going to listen to St. Paul as he lifts up the reality of the resurrection of Jesus. We will reverse his manner of treatment but in so doing we will discover the positive ramifications of the resurrection of Jesus. For his statement, "If Christ be not risen...," after which he spells out what the consequence would be, we will substitute the positive affirmation, "Because Christ is risen ..." The Corinthian congregation failed to understand or refused to believe that there was yet a future consummation coming, an aspect of which would be the resurrection of the dead. They did believe Jesus arose and they believed they were already alive in him, but they denied that there was still more to come. They considered that they were already "resurrected" – spiritually they had been made alive – and that was true. But for them, the rest of history did not matter and the final summing up of all things – the new creation – had no reality. They "spiritualized" the truth of resurrection. In typical Greek fashion they understood salvation as deliverance from the body, from entanglement in the material world. They had no conception of the new heaven and earth and the "spiritual body," the resurrection body of which Paul speaks in the chapter. That is the problem Paul addresses. He does so by saying that to deny our future resurrection is to deny the resurrection of Christ. Obviously, Paul argues thus because he sees the vital linkage between Christ's resurrection and our resurrection. Thus he argues backward. To deny our resurrection is really to deny Christ's resurrection. But such denial is limiting. He began the chapter with the broad witness to the resurrection of Jesus. And then in our text he moves to the offensive with the straightforward declaration, But the truth is, Christ was raised to life – the first fruits of the harvest of the dead. I will say no more about the Corinthian problem with resurrection. Rather, I want simply to set forth what Paul says would be the consequence if Christ were not raised, or, stated positively, I want to set forth what is, in fact, the case because Christ is risen. First of all, Paul claims, if Christ be not risen, the Gospel is null and void and so is your faith. Later he writes, "... your faith has nothing in it." If we reverse Paul's treatment from the negative: If Christ was not raised... to: Now is Christ risen, © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 3   then we can state positively, the Gospel is true; your faith grips the truth, reality. This is of supreme importance. We want to know the truth; we do not want to live under delusion. We say sometimes "the Truth hurts." Sometimes we do block ourselves off from the Truth; we fear the Truth or we stubbornly refuse to recognize the Truth. Yet, most of us, most of the time, really want to know the Truth. Freud claimed religion was an illusion. He and Karl Marx and Ludwig Feuerbach and Friedrich Nietzsche created the foundation of modern atheism. There may not be large numbers of atheists in the world, but there is much practical atheism – people living without any essential reference to God or acknowledgement of Him. The foundations of the Christian Gospel have been penetratingly examined in the past two centuries and there is a great mass of agnosticism. The Church has been on the defensive and not always with the calm confidence in the Truth which is the most persuasive witness. We must always want to know the Truth. We must not duck the issues; we must look at the data, search the evidence and deal with integrity as we bear witness to our faith. What is our claim? Paul sets it out clearly: If Christ is not risen, the Gospel is false, our faith grasps an illusion. What, then, is the positive side? What do we believe to be true if we believe Christ is risen? We believe that God, the Creator and sustainer of the world, is the living God Whose power raises the dead. We believe He is the Sovereign Lord of the world and that beyond the machinations of governments and all forms of organization and human planning, scheming and conspiring, there is at work in history's unraveling a purpose, a purpose of love, a purpose that is moving all things toward re-creation. Christ is risen. He is a sign in the midst of history that God will redeem history. He is a sign in our world that life is stronger than death, that when the power of darkness utilizing the forms and structures of human government and religions have done their best – rather, their worst! – God is still God. His power is not limited, His love is all-embracing, His grace abounding. The Gospel is not null and void. The Gospel is good news pointing to an event, an act of God by which He "signed" the world for final Redemption. Christ is risen; the Gospel is true; our faith grasps reality. © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 4   History looks anything but redeemed, does it not? The American Fleet clusters in the Mediterranean. Terrorists plot to destroy, to maim and to kill. Wherever we look, violence and war threaten to burst forth. What do we conclude? What are the options? No God, no meaning, just human potential - both for evil and for good, and an endless nightmare? That is one possible conclusion. Then, one might despair and give up. Or, one might seek to maintain the upper hand and through power and cleverness avoid disaster but never find peace. Or do we acknowledge the continuing obstinacy of the old world, the continuing state of the world unredeemed with all the hell that that entails, but refuse to see the present state of things as the final state? Do we live by another vision and in the community of faith form an alternative community? And do we look for signs of resurrection in the old world? I happened to catch the NBC interview with Corazon Aquino this week. I was deeply impressed with the sincerity and simplicity of her faith. She was asked about the danger to her life. She responded that she was aware of it, but also that she believed God would enable her to fulfill her mission. And if my mission is fulfilled, she said, then it is all right. Well, what about her husband who returned to the Philippines to engage in a mission, but was gunned down? That did not refute her faith; rather it confirmed her faith. Her husband's death accomplished what it is unlikely his life could have accomplished. He sacrificed his life for the Philippine people and a remarkable, relatively peaceful revolution ensued. Corry Aquino lives in an exceedingly dangerous, corrupt, violent world, but rather than being paralyzed by it, she is set free by faith in God to live and lead with a measure of freedom and peace. When asked if she had a model she admired, she responded that Mother Teresa was a great inspiration to her. And we are bombarded daily with the world's bad news, but we must not forget that Mother Teresa is bringing love and life and healing to the poor and dying in this world. At the Maui Conference I met a psychiatrist named Jerry Jampolsky. This week we received a letter from him saying he was ready to take fifty children to Russia where he is involved in a national TV special on children titled, "A Child Shall Lead Them." He has forty centers around the world for terminally ill children where love and gentleness effect some amazing healings. On what basis does one move from possible paralysis of fear, despair, even cynicism and bitterness to loving service, meaningful involvement in the healing of the wounds of persons and society? © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 5   Are we not freed for loving service on the basis of the truth that this is not all there is? There is more coming and the "more" will be "the more of God." Do we not seek peace, pray for shalom, bring healing because we believe that we are the instruments of the living God Who is bringing in His Kingdom, creating newness? If Christ be not risen, says Paul, then we are operating on an illusion. Then dead is dead. Then history is a tale told by an idiot. Then life ends with a whimper. Then weariness and despair will finally prevail. But Christ is risen - therefore, Paul concludes the great discourse, "Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord inasmuch as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." There is a second consequence of the resurrection. Again, Paul states the negative: …if Christ was not raised,… you are still in your old state of sin. The positive affirmation we derive from that claim is that because Christ is risen our sin has been removed. This brings us back to the mystery of the Cross. It is perhaps best simply to bow there wondering at what is revealed – the suffering of Jesus for the sin of the world, the love of God demonstrated in that sacrificial death, the total obedience of Jesus to the Father’s will, enduring the hostility of humankind and entering the darkness of forsakenness. Paul says God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself. Peter wrote, He bore our sins in his body on the Tree. Paul wrote, God made him to be sin for us who knew no sin… I do not pretend to understand the crucifixion, but I do see how the fate of Jesus is a parable of what happens once again in our history. Certainly it is more than that and the life and ministry of Jesus stands by itself. Yet the suffering of the righteous, the triumph of evil and wrong is rejected in every generation. There, in a once-for-all event, we see One-for-all enduring the suffering of the world’s sin, the world represented in Israel. In that sense, we were there when they crucified our Lord. If we can see that much, then we are prepared to hear the amazing news of Easter, the good news that God made His move after "it was finished." History crucified him. Nature's verdict was, he is dead. © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 6   God's action reversed the flow of history and nature. God raised him up. God gave him life from the dead. Now in the light of that dramatic reversal, the Good News is that Sin was put away. The Gospel is that now God accepts us in Christ; we are received through Jesus Christ our Lord. His life is our life, His obedience is our obedience, His righteousness our righteousness. Thus the Apostolic mission is one of reconciliation We are ambassadors of Christ – be reconciled to God. There is no longer a barrier of alienation; now we can simply come home. Again, I do not pretend to understand the mystery of Good and Evil, or what great cosmic transformation was effected through the crucifixion of Jesus. But I do believe the truth of the Gospel invitation - Come; come to the Father through Jesus, the Son. There was an ontological shift in Reality through the Cross and Resurrection. The Good News of the Gospel proclaims that it is ontologically impossible to stand as a sinner before God. Do you hear that? Does that make sense? That has not been much understood in the Church. We have kept sin very much alive and most of us crawl around with a pretty good load of guilt on our back. We have been conditioned in the Church to keep our sin ever before us and to guard against the pride of self-righteousness. Well and good. I think the peacock is a magnificent bird but I am put off by its human imitator. A consciousness of sin is a healthy possession, which keeps us mindful of our vulnerability to temptation and our frequent failure to live in love with God and our neighbor. What we have not made clear, however, what has not really filtered down to the inner recesses of our consciousness is that all our sin and all our guilt has already been removed, taken away, put out of the mind and consciousness of God. We have not reckoned with the ontological shift in reality effected by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Thus we never really find the freedom to break loose from our past. We never get unshackled from our failure. We are too introspective, too introverted, too selfpreoccupied. We take ourselves too seriously. There are Christian churches that place so much stress on inward experience, groaning under sin and unworthiness, despairing over proneness to sin that they never get their eyes off © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 7   their own soul's navel to be able to look to God Who has a smile on His face saying, "Why don’t you just come here and let me love you?" Too much fascination with our own sinfulness and unworthiness is not a virtue, but a vice; it is not to be deeply spiritual, but unwholesomely self-centered and it becomes a strange form of human pride. Further, it is a denigration of the Gospel and an affront to the mercy of God as though no power on earth or in heaven could possibly forgive my sins! Hear the Gospel: It is ontologically impossible to stand before God as a sinner. He has removed sin and guilt from the world, from His presence, from existence. I am sure that raises all kinds of questions. There was a very acute thinker who was a member of this congregation who used to argue with me that there was no place for the Prayer of Confession in Christian worship. All that was possible, he maintained, is a prayer of thanksgiving that our sin has been handled. He had a point. I carefully phrase the Prayer of Confession that it not become a wallowing in how awful we are, but a consciousness of our failure in the presence of the greater reality of God's grace. Robert Schuller does not use the Prayer of Confession because he believes it reinforces the sin-guilt-negative self-image. He has a point. For the traditional Church and deeply conditioned Christian people, that reinforcement may keep us from grasping the radical message of God's grace – Sin is gone! If Christ be not raised - you are still in your old state of sin, but now is Christ risen; you are free of your sin. Forgiveness, freedom, is an amazing reality. Forgiveness - you are forgiven; does that sink in? Does that not make you want to dance and shout and sing? Say it three times, emphasizing a different word each time: I am forgiven! I am forgiven! I am forgiven! Believe it; live in the freedom of that gracious forgiveness. Trust the ontological shift in Reality. Live in the Ontology of Grace. There is a third consequence of Jesus’ resurrection. If Christ be not risen, © Grand Valley State University �It Is an Easter World! Richard A. Rhem Page 8   it follows also that those who have died within Christ's fellowship are ultimately lost. The positive statement of Paul's argument is that Christ being risen, those who die move through death to fullness of life. Here we have to do with the matter of Christian hope and the comfort of those who bury loved ones. Jesus said, Because I live, you too shall live… Again, he said, I am the resurrection and the life. If a person has faith in me, even though he die, he shall come to life; and no one who is alive and has faith shall ever died. John 11: 25-26 Paul counseled concerned believers in Thessalonians about the death of loved ones. He wrote with great sensitivity: I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, that you sorrow not as those who have no hope... That is the critical point. Death separates. Death creates loss. Death leaves us with deep grief when one long and dearly loved is taken away. Sorrow is only natural. But it is not sorrow without hope. Hope enables us to transcend the loss in the conviction that those we love have moved into life in a greater dimension than we can conceive of and, furthermore, that we will one day be reunited with all those we love in the brightness of God's Eternal Presence. Death is a conquered foe! That is the verdict in light of Jesus' resurrection. Hope is grounded in Jesus' resurrection. That hope fastens on a future in which death, the grave, disease, pain and tears will be no more. Again this is a consequence of the Ontological Shift in Reality. Paul says if we have hope in Christ for this life only we are of all people most to be pitied. Hope in this life is critical, but it is not enough. We need a hope anchored beyond history in the Eternal God. Only then are we free to engage in history's struggle with good courage and sure confidence, only then can we relax and revel in the reality of forgiveness, only then can we bury our dead in the confidence that those we love have fallen asleep in Jesus. Christ is risen! This is an Easter world! Thanks be to God Who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Alleluia! Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Eastertide III Scripture Text I Corinthians 15:20 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19860413 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1986-04-13 Title A name given to the resource It is an Easter World Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on April 13, 1986 entitled "It is an Easter World", on the occasion of Eastertide III, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: I Corinthians 15:20. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Community of Faith Eastertide Eschatology Forgiveness Freedom Hope Resurrection Shalom Sin https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f67b969880b158fde955ec077c47d23a.mp3 bd6dae6f3768d5ae5e5d322b320af9e6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Palm Sunday Series The Seven Last Words of Christ Scripture Text John 19:30 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19940327 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1994-03-27 Title A name given to the resource It Is Finished Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on March 27, 1994 entitled "It Is Finished", as part of the series "The Seven Last Words of Christ", on the occasion of Palm Sunday, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: John 19:30. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e33da20f5ba6ab9ee95ccaaae15cc5ad.pdf 0204376c4afe5cefdc3ff1e3aa02c94e PDF Text Text It’s So Simple, Once You See It Ephesians 3; Matthew 2 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan Season of Epiphany, January 11, 1998 Transcription of the spoken sermon, published in a collection of sermons, Re-Imagining The Faith by Richard A. Rhem (2004) The season is Epiphany, the season of manifestation, Jesus manifest to the nations. The symbol is the star which led the Magi to the Christ child, where they worshiped and offered gifts. The heart of the season’s truth is that the God of Israel is God alone, Creator of the cosmos whose embrace is as wide as the whole world; that what was embodied in Jesus, and came to expression in his life, was the moment when the particular revelation of God to Israel broke out to enlighten all humankind. That such should occur was clearly a theme in Israel’s prophetic tradition. Indeed, the calling of Abraham and Sarah was a particular call with a universal purpose–that all nations would be blessed within the Covenant of Grace intended for all peoples. The movement to the universal that occurred in Jesus was Paul’s great insight–given to him, he claimed, by revelation from the resurrected Christ. I cannot take you to the story of his “conversion” as he tells it in the first chapter of Galatians or as Luke records it three times in the Book of Acts, but clearly the consequences of his heavenly vision were his tireless efforts to bring the good news that happened in Jesus to the ancient world. Let me explain here that the reason the word conversion is in quotation marks is to indicate that the popular view and easy assumption that Paul “converted” from Judaism to Christianity is unfounded. Like Jesus, Paul was born a Jew and died a Jew. The God of Israel is the only God Paul ever knew or worshiped. What happened to Paul was not conversion from one world religion to another. Actually, Christianity as we know it did not exist in Paul’s time, although a strong case can be made for the claim that Paul was the founder of Christianity. But, out of his profound encounter with the risen Christ in the vision on the Damascus road, Paul was unintentionally drawing out the implications of Israel’s faith. Paul’s moment of revelation was not a rejection of Judaism. Rather, he was coming to terms with its most far-reaching implications: Yahweh was not a tribal deity. Yahweh was God alone, Creator of the Cosmos, the One who enlivened all things living. Out of his revelatory experience, Paul–without consulting the © Grand Valley State University   �So Simple Once You See It Richard A. Rhem Page 2   disciples in Jerusalem–went alone to Arabia for three years, trying to make sense of his faith tradition and his encounter with the Risen One. In a fascinating study, the English writer A. N. Wilson sets the context for Paul’s visionary experience. Wilson says that Paul was part of the Temple police on his way to Damascus to arrest the followers of Jesus. Was Paul already part of the Temple police when Jesus was arrested? Was he even involved? Certainly Paul knew the horror of crucifixion, and certainly he was party to the violence of religious persecution. And, while on another mission of such violence, he sees a light–a blinding light. He hears a voice which raises the haunting question, “Why are you persecuting me?” Wilson paints a picture of the world of Judaism in Paul’s day, telling us that the Temple was magnificent, one of Herod’s great building projects. People from the ancient world came to view its splendor. Yet, Herod was an Arab, purportedly a convert to Judaism, but not a native Israelite, and the financing came from Roman imperial funds. Wilson writes: There it was–a splendid Temple set on the Holy Mountain with spacious courts and colonnaded areas. Yet, the inner sanctum, the Holy of Holies, could not be entered by any non-Jew. Here was the conflict, the contradiction: Israel was to be a beacon, a light to the nations, yet marked off its inner sanctuary as exclusive territory. And the followers of the Way were, like Paul, Jews. Now the conflict was not only between the insider Jew and the outsider Gentile, but within the Jewish community itself–exclusion, persecution, violence. And he, Saul, is a part of it, on his way to perpetrate more violence when he sees a blinding light and hears a voice: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Wilson uses creative imagination in setting the context for Paul’s vision, but not without good biblical data. The consequence of that encounter was not that Paul became a Christian. It was, however, a transforming moment when he became convinced that Jesus was the Christ–that is, the Messiah–and that, in Jesus, God was making evident what was always true: that God embraced Jew and Gentile and the purpose of God’s revelation to the Jews was to bring the light of God’s love and grace to all. That was Paul’s realization consequent upon the revelation. That is expressed nowhere so succinctly as in the Letter to the Ephesians. What does Paul understand his mission to be? “To make everyone see what is the plan of the secret hidden for ages in God who created all things.” © Grand Valley State University �So Simple Once You See It Richard A. Rhem Page 3   To make everyone see. The word in the Greek is photizo. From it comes our word photo; a photo is the exposure of a film to light. Paul’s mission is to proclaim “the light–becoming of the secret.” And the secret? Verse 6: “that is, the Gentiles (the nations, in Greek the ethnai, from which we get ethnic) have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” The word mysterion can be translated as mystery or secret. Paul says it was a secret hidden in God throughout the ages, but now made manifest. Now, Paul claims, the secret is out. The secret revealed is that the outsider has been included together with the insider in God’s love and Messiah’s realm. For Paul, this was not simply a piece of intellectual information, it was a life-transforming truth and a transforming religious insight. Now Paul sees something bigger than peace among rival Jewish factors. Suddenly, or gradually perhaps, the lights come on for Paul. Not only is the intramural conflict within Judaism wrong, so is the Jewish exclusion of the Gentile wrong, at least now that light has dawned in Jesus. Now God has revealed in Jesus what was always in God’s heart - love for all humankind. Jesus brought peace. Jesus broke down the wall that separates. Jesus did away with the hostility. Now Jew and Gentile were made one new humanity. Now the community of Jew and Gentile would result in worship offered to God by Jew and Gentile alike, bringing peace to the world. Understand: here Paul moves out alone. Now he does battle on two fronts. Against him is the Jewish establishment, which had employed him, and the Jewish followers of Jesus who were not at all ready to open the doors to the Gentiles. Paul’s revelation made him a visionary. There was no rejection of Judaism. Paul remained a Jew, but was rejected by his native faith. And he was contradicted even by those who before him believed Jesus was the Messiah, for he saw something more radical in Jesus than did James or Peter. Paul saw in the revelation of God in Jesus Christ a Divine grace that embraced the whole human family. Following the destruction of the Temple at Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 C.E., only Rabbinic Judaism, the Pharisaic Party, survived and formed the basis for ongoing Jewish faith and life. Gradually the parochial Jewish Jesus movement died out. Because Paul had brought the good news of the God of Israel revealed in Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, there emerged the Christian Church through which we are included. © Grand Valley State University �So Simple Once You See It Richard A. Rhem Page 4   Paul’s mission, he writes, was to make everyone see the “light- becoming” of the secret that there is one God and one human family loved by God and thus, one family called to peace, to community. He was consumed by the passion of his insight. Listen to his prayer: I bow my knees before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. ... That you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. ... That you may comprehend with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. And Paul is not through; such ecstasy of imagination brings him to doxology: …to the praise of the God who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine–to God be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus. One cannot read those words, I think, without being caught up in the surprising wonder of the vision that animated the apostle. He has no words sufficient to articulate the fiery passion that would burst his mind and heart. Remember who he is: a Temple policeman, committed to violence in the name of the religious institution, who in a moment of blinding insight and years of subsequent reflection sees the big picture. Paul sees the absurdity of claiming the God of Israel to be God alone, Creator of cosmos, and then acting as though that God was a tribal deity, mean-spirited, petty and narrowly limited in the offer of love and grace. Suddenly for Paul, the light goes on, the truth dawns in him; he sees! And his life from that realization was passionately poured out in the proclaiming of God’s grace in Jesus Christ for the whole human family. On the threshold of the Third Millennium, look at our world: still marked by exclusionary claims of competing religions and religious institutions; still bathed in violence fueled by religion; still crippled by divisions kept alive by petty meanness and narrowness. Look at the church in general, to say nothing of the perilous situation of competing religions. The church is divided and threatened, marked more by insecurity and threat than by confident joy; by shutting out rather than drawing in; by creating fear rather than giving confidence; by judgment rather than grace; by shrill claims rather than calming assurance. Thank God we’ve discovered something together here. We do not have easy answers, but we are discovering the real questions. We have not arrived, but we are a people on the way. We are not morally beyond reproach, but we know the © Grand Valley State University �So Simple Once You See It Richard A. Rhem Page 5   grace of forgiveness. We do not love fully or perfectly, but we have tasted the humanizing quality of loving the other. We have not the full spectrum of the human family represented here, but we are learning the enrichment of embracing the stranger. We have been marked for a quarter century by a theology of grace that is expressive of God’s love in action, inviting, embracing, healing. We have been open to all and have excluded none that sought community here. That theology of grace has worked on us, changing us, making us sensitive to a growing number of those traditionally outside our community. Jewish-Christian dialogue has opened us to the enrichment and beauty of the Jewish community. Sensitivity to the claims of women has opened us to an awareness of how injustice has marked us in the matter of gender. Breakthroughs in the understanding of sexual orientation have enabled us to stand against the exclusion and condemnation of persons of homosexual orientation. And we have only just begun. But begun we have, by God’s grace. Paul’s whole being throbbed with passion that could hardly find expression once he saw it. “The secret is out,” he said. No more are there outsiders and insiders; the whole human family takes its name from the one God who loves all and excludes none. And I pray you will begin to comprehend, to be strengthened in your inner being, rooted and grounded in love. “My whole life,” writes the apostle, “is a mission to make everyone see, to bring to light the secret now made manifest.” Ah, dear people, don’t you see it? God give us Epiphany eyes to see, to see! It’s so simple, once you see it! Reference: A. N. Wilson. Paul: The Mind of the Apostle. W. W. Norton & Co., 1998. © Grand Valley State University � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/cc6c4a7e799735eb4072ab8224c9db12.mp3 7610b57b6833c3e9d1c4352bfae9fbc2 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Epiphany I Scripture Text Ephesians 3, Matthew 2 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI References A.N. Wilson. Paul: The Mind of the Apostle, 1998. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19980111 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1998-01-11 Title A name given to the resource It is So Simple, Once You See It Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on January 11, 1998 entitled "It is So Simple, Once You See It", on the occasion of Epiphany I, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Ephesians 3, Matthew 2. Inclusive Grace Theology of Grace Transformation https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/257b8732a3de2925d4b2fb817bc89b6e.jpg 1804440ede27f209fb8bfde0541a74a7 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource GVSU Concert & Event Posters Subject The topic of the resource Posters Events Michigan Universities & colleges--Michigan Description An account of the resource Division of Student Services provides programs, services, and environments that enhance the personal, social, and intellectual growth of undergraduate and graduate students at the University. Events including concerts were managed by the office of Student Life. Posters for music, speakers, poetry readings and other campuswide events are included. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Division of Student Services Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/106">Student Services concerts, events, and posters files, (GV028-06)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-07-17 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV028-06 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1963 – 1981 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV028-06_Taj Title A name given to the resource It's a Beautiful Day, Taj Mahal, Genya Ravan, April 30, 1972 Subject The topic of the resource Grand Valley State University Grand Valley State College Michigan Allendale (Mich.) Universities & colleges--Michigan Events Posters Description An account of the resource It's a Beautiful Day, Taj Mahal, and Genya Ravan, benefit concert for the Grand Rapids Free Schools, in the GVSC Fieldhouse, April 30, 1972 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1972 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/106">Student Services concerts, events, and posters files, (GV028-06)</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/4a107a18add49469fa889d93f0b09e9c.pdf da105f13faa7299291aeaab9eb8fe17a PDF Text Text It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Text: Isaiah 40:27; Luke 15:28, 31 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan August 25, 1996 Transcription of the spoken sermon The parable of the Prodigal Son, as I indicated last week, is misnamed. It is really a story of a father with two sons, and it's not really about the two sons so much as about the father. It is about the incredible, amazing love of the father who is, in the story Jesus told, a symbol for God. This story is about the love of God, and it was told, initially, because there were those of the religious leadership that were grumbling because Jesus was receiving all kinds of people without condition, sitting at table with them, breaking bread with them. He told this story in order to respond to that criticism and that condemnation of his ministry. Last week we focused on the younger son who was a rebel who sought his freedom, or better, his autonomy. And we noted that Jesus just might have been saying it is necessary to separate and to move out in the natural, normal maturation process. But, it's a very perilous move and it can lead to selfdestructive behavior, decadence and despair. But, he told not only of that younger son who left home; he told, also, of the elder brother who stayed home. And just as the younger son in his move from home cut himself off from that whole spiritual legacy that was his and became homeless, so Jesus says in this story, the elder brother living all of his days at home righteously, responsibly, faithfully, seriously, nonetheless was just as homeless as his younger brother. For Jesus was saying that it is possible to be homeless by leaving or by staying, but failing to delight and to bask in the love of God that is the mark of the house of God. The younger son broke the father's heart because he left. The elder brother just as surely broke the father's heart because he stayed without joy. And so, for a bit this morning, having focused on the younger son last week, let's linger with that elder brother a bit because, as I said last week, probably Jesus was not talking about two kinds of persons so much as the two persons that live within us. Is there not the rebel in us whose recklessness can lead to decadence, as well as the diligent, elder brother whose serious obedience is given grudgingly, without joy? Don't we know moments in our lives when we are the one and the other? So, for a time, think with me about that elder brother. © Grand Valley State University   �It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Richard A. Rhem Page 2   The story is a sad story. It's a sad story because it's always a pity to pout at a party, and there was a party going on. There was a celebration. The elder brother coming in from the field hears the sound of singing and dancing and he calls a servant to say, "What's the meaning of this?" I wonder, what do you think? I suspect he knew what was going on, don't you? Don't you suspect he knew the father well enough to suspect that maybe the young rascal came home and all of the joy and celebration was about that? And I wonder if he didn't call the servant to confirm his suspicions in order not to have to go too close and be drawn into the circle of light and celebration. It's a sad story because, hearing the news, we're told that he was angry and he would not go in. He stayed outside the party, paralyzed, as it were, by that anger that welled up within him and erupted, probably surprising him, himself. There he stands. Can you get into his skin? The best way to hear the word of God is to put ourselves in the characters. Have you been there? Have you felt that kind of resentment and anger overcoming you in a moment, so unexpectedly that it absolutely paralyzed you, and you were consumed with a fury and a wrath that even scared you a bit? That's the sad story of the elder brother. I suspect that we've all been there on occasion, because I suspect that there are more elder brothers and sisters in church than younger rebels who have returned. Well, in a congregation like Christ Community, there are some rebels who've returned. But, by and large, we are the folks who stayed home, aren't we? We are the folks who've been serious and responsible and diligent and faithful, while the masses have left, seemingly rather carefree and reckless. Apparently they could not care less about whether the church lives or dies. I mean, we've stayed home, haven't we? We've taken upon ourselves the heavy burden for keeping the church alive, for God's sake. So, I suspect that when I ask you to get inside the skin of the elder brother, probably many of us here have been there a time or two. The elder brother is a type that is found often in church, because the elder brother was a good and righteous and serious and faithful and diligent and responsible person. But the thing that he didn't realize was that underneath, he was also a very angry person, full of resentment. I have a large library and I love books, and one of the most beautiful books in my library is a book by Henri Nouwen, the Dutch Catholic priest. You've probably read some of Nouwen's works; he's written a number of things - contemplative, meditative, about the spiritual life. Very fine writer. This book is called The Return of the Prodigal, and it's bound beautifully, and it is a meditation on his contemplation of Rembrandt's painting of the return of the Prodigal, and there are several colored plates of that painting in various scenes sprinkled throughout the book. That text is Nouwen's encounter with that painting. He tells about a time in his life when he was worn out, he had been carrying on his ministry, he had been teaching and traveling, he had been engaged in Latin America, concerned about the injustices there. He was really burning out and he came to a point when he knew that it was time for him to take a sabbatical or change his © Grand Valley State University �It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Richard A. Rhem Page 3   course or something, and he went into an office and there he saw a poster of this painting of the return of the Prodigal, and something in it drew him and he was drawn to it and struck by it and he saw the embrace of the aged father embracing the son, kneeling, weeping at his feet. Nouwen said, "I saw myself in that return of the younger son. I so yearned and longed for the embrace and the touch of the father. I needed to come home." It was a short time later that he was invited to travel to Russia and he went to St. Petersburg, formerly Leningrad, where in The Hermitage Gallery, is the original of the Rembrandt painting. Through special arrangements he was enabled to spend hours sitting in front of that painting, just contemplating it, seeing himself in the painting, thinking about Rembrandt, thinking about all of the dynamics of that painting, finding in himself that longing to be held by the father and to go home. He did change his career, of course, and he settled in and things began to move for him again and he shared with a friend one day that he identified with that younger son who'd been embraced by the father, and the friend said to him, "Henri, don't you really think that you're the elder brother?" And it took him aback. Then he began to think about it and he began to study the elder brother and think of his own life, and he said, "I had to conclude I was the elder brother." He said, "At the age of six I was already committed to the priesthood. I was the oldest child of the family. All of the expectations of the eldest child were upon me. All of my life I had tried to please; I had tried to measure up. All of my life I had been serious and responsible; I had obeyed my parents; I had obeyed my teachers; I had obeyed my bishops. I had given my whole life to the service of God. And as I thought about myself as the elder brother, I had to admit that there was some subterranean stream in me of resentment and of anger." He said, "I never cut loose, I never kick up my heels, and yet as I thought about my life at that point in my life, I recognized that there was a subtle anger within me and a resentment over against those who had been reckless and careless and seemingly to have gotten away with it. I was resentful about those who could go out and turn the tables upside down and then come back repentant and receive all grace. The more I thought about it, the more I recognized that it was me in that picture, that I was the one, underneath, resentful and angry for all of the diligence and all of the faithful service I had rendered." And Nouwen identified that which is the central characteristic of the elder brother, which is an anger that manifests itself in resentment. And it is a serious disease, and there are few of us who escape it totally, for whether we be the elder child like Nouwen or some other scenario is written over our lives, as a matter of fact, most of us at some time have to own up to having held a pity party, that "poor me" syndrome, the fact that I've tried so hard, I've worked so hard, I've been so faithful, I've been so righteous, and nobody really appreciates it; nobody really appreciates me. Who would ever throw a party for me? So, if there's a party around, I'm going to pout at the party because I'm feeling sorry for myself. © Grand Valley State University �It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Richard A. Rhem Page 4   I think Nouwen put his finger on that besetting sin of good people. It is doing everything right and hating it. It is being absolutely square and resenting it. And it doesn't take simply a child-parent relationship. The elder brother was resentful against the father, but those of us who are parents can pull the same trick on our children. Now, I'm sure there's not a father or a mother here that has ever given even a hint to a son or a daughter that, in light of the sacrifice that we've made for our sons or daughters, one might think that a phone call or a visit might have been in order. I'm sure that there's not a parent here who has ever felt sorry for themselves over against the tremendous job we've done in nurturing and raising and working hard and scraping and sacrificing for our children, and look what we get! And, it doesn't even have to be within the family. It can be among colleagues; it can be among friends. "Look what a friend I've been to so-and-so. Do you think that there's any reciprocity, any appreciation? In fact, as I think about it, nobody really appreciates me and I really do feel sorry for myself, and when somebody's having a good time and celebrating, I'm going to be outside, pouting at the party, because I am so angry." And the problem is no one can do anything for you because the problem's inside. It's a kind of feeling of inadequacy, a lack of self-confidence and self-esteem. And so, it doesn't matter how much affirmation we get. It doesn't matter how many kudos are sent our way. It's because we don't love ourselves and respect ourselves enough and we can't believe anybody else would love and respect us. I think that's sort of what's going on with the elder brother syndrome. I see this in the Church because, again, I think we in the Church tend to be more the elder brother than the younger rebel. I ran into it in 1988 when I wrote that article on the extent of God's grace, and I found that people were really angry to think that perhaps the grace of God was broader than the scope of our human imagination, that maybe the grace of God could embrace even those who were outside our serious, dedicated, diligent, faithful, responsible commitment to the kingdom of God. At that time, a colleague of mine was quoted to me as saying, "If he believed the grace of God was that broad, he would give up the ministry and start selling used cars." We've experienced it recently again, haven't we? The Detroit Free Press headlines said, "If Dick Rhem Is Right, the Heart of the Gospel is Cut Out." That sounds to me an awful lot like those grumbling people who condemned Jesus for breaking bread with those who were outside the acceptable parameters. What is there about the Church? Do we feel put upon because we have stayed home? Do we feel jealous of those who have simply left? Do we resent the fact that we have a commitment to be faithful to the mission of the Church and to the broader kingdom of God? Do we do it, but do we hate it? It's such a pity, because the kingdom of God is about dancing and singing and feasting. It is to be a banquet. It is to be a ball. And it's a pity to pout at a party, but the Christian Church members are not the most spontaneous, joyful people in © Grand Valley State University �It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Richard A. Rhem Page 5   the world, but we should be. So, whether it's in our individual lives or whether it's in our corporate lives, it's a rather sobering thing to size up the elder brother and then see the contours written in our own hearts. But, again, this story isn't about those two boys at all. It's about God. And the thing I think I never really appreciated in this old, old story, although I would have thought that there wasn't another phrase in it that could have passed me by in the many years of my life, but the thing that amazes me is that the love of God is absolutely consistent over against the younger rebel and the older pouter. For, just as God the father runs to meet the youngster who is returning, so the father leaves the party and comes out into the darkness to plead with the elder son, and the word he uses in the Hebrew language does not mean "son," but "my child;" it is the word of affection. The father comes out to this elder son and pleads with him to come and the elder son begins a tirade, listing all of his credentials and all of his responsible actions and behavior, holding up to the father the dissolute life of "this son of yours," whom he doesn't even claim as "my brother." The anger just spews out of him! He can't contain it anymore. The dam bursts! To which the father says, "My child, all I have is yours. You are always with me." No accusation. No condemnation. Not of the younger one. Not of the older one. Just, "Look, look, I love you and I value you, and everything I have is yours." Unconditional love. If it's amazing that over against the younger one, he could let him go and love him still, this is absolutely incredible. I mean, it's not so hard to take a rascal back, is it? Particularly when the kid's weeping at your feet? One can embrace such a youngster. But, this elder brother standing stiffly in his selfrighteous pride, resentful and angry, spewing out to the father all of hurts over all of the years - to love that one? Well, I might have gone out, but I sure would have let him know how disgusted I was with his behavior. And then if he wouldn't have come in, I would have said, "Then stay there and rot!" But, you see? That's the amazing nature of the love of God. Jesus couldn't portray it any more vividly. It's not simply a greater degree of our love. It is a love divine. It is the love of God. And right now I think there's some of you that may feel a kind of constriction in your innards because you know that it is your nature to pout at the party. And I wish I knew how to set you free. I wish I knew how to set your tongue to singing and your feet to dancing, to lead you into the spontaneity of joyful celebration. I know what you need, what you yearn for - it is to be loved, it is to be valued. And I wish for just a moment this morning you could really hear Jesus, really hear the story, really put yourself in the skin of the elder son, acknowledge it, confess it, own it and then let the love of God wash over you. I tell you, it is so transforming, if once you feel it. Friday night Nancy and I were invited to the Sabbath service of the Muskegon Temple where I was invited to give the sermon. In 1984, in Schenectady, that congregation that I served for three months had an annual exchange with the Jewish community in Schenectady and, while I was there, that exchange took © Grand Valley State University �It’s a Pity to Pout at the Party Richard A. Rhem Page 6   place and we went to the Sabbath service in the temple. I have to tell you, I couldn't be free. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to pray. I wasn't even sure if Jesus' name wasn't attached to the prayer, if it was ... I mean, that's where I was. I was thinking about all of these things, and what I want to say to you is that, in that experience, I wasn't present with those people. I was there in body, but I wasn't present with them. Friday night it was quite different, because I know, I have experienced enough now to know those are God's beloved children, and I could rejoice when the candles of the Sabbath were lighted and when the bread was blessed and when the wine was poured. It was such an enriching, warming, human experience. And I could sing. And I could dance. And I could be there. Because, you see, the Kingdom of God is about a love that is so incredible that it far exceeds the measure of our lives, and God would have each one of us know down in our depths that we are valued and loved and hallowed, whether we've kicked up the traces or kept plowing the furrows. Whether we've been wild and decadent, or righteous and resentful - God wants us home. God wants us to know we're loved, and if you could believe that this morning, if you could feel that this morning, it would be wonderful, because it's such a pity to pout at a party! Reference: Henri J. M. Nouwen. The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming. Doubleday, 1992. © Grand Valley State University � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/3244b2d75715702d2c2fa0555c27d47a.mp3 378c350cf56df29a107db7c7d751760f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Pentecost XIII Series Prodigal Son Parable Scripture Text Isaiah 40:27, Luke 15:28, 32 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI References Henri J. M. Nouwen. The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming, 1992 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19960825 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-08-25 Title A name given to the resource It's a Pity to Pout at the Party Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on August 25, 1996 entitled "It's a Pity to Pout at the Party", as part of the series "Prodigal Son Parable", on the occasion of Pentecost XIII, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 40:27, Luke 15:28, 32. Inclusive Love Transforming Love Unconditional Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/976ede13b70af17c5fdbd0f1bfda8bc7.jpg 0612f19731bf86ff825df0ddf8d25cbe Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Decorated Publishers' Bindings Subject The topic of the resource Book covers Covers (Illustration) Graphic arts Publishers and publishing Pictorial bindings Description An account of the resource From the early 1870s to roughly 1930, many publishers issued their commercial book covers with a remarkable variety of graphic designs and illustrations. This sixty-year period saw many artists and designers contributing to this art form. While some can be identified from their style or initials, others remain unknown. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Seidman Rare Books Collection Michigan Novels Collection Regional Historical Collection Lincoln and the Civil War Collection Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-08-30 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>, <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context DC-01 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source Seidman Rare Books. DG420.W55 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context DC-01_Bindings0321 Title A name given to the resource Italian Villas and Their Gardens Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Decorative Designers (Designer) Description An account of the resource Binding of Italian Villas and Their Gardens, by Edith Wharton, published by The Century Company, 1910. Subject The topic of the resource Book covers Covers (Illustration) Graphic arts Publishers and publishing Pictorial bindings Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1910 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/95fa5e04f38017daf2dcc03bec2a9153.jpg 3f56e5813b32d44b3a0c2a32adc1b7eb Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00468 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Camels at Naples dock Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide of a herd of camels on a dock in Naples, Italy. Nearer the camera a line of men in uniform stands facing the camels, and several buildings are visible in the background. Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Naples (Italy) Camels Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/90d01f587491e99f72d7484019ddfd7e.jpg 309c2ac59dee847f3fb374b92c3bb8c5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00427 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii Apollo python, Agamemnon Artemis Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide close up view of an artistic depiction of Apollo wrapped in a python with Agamemnon and Artemis from Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 12143 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9b3ee4560ae36a3b92d1f71161b70d4a.jpg 686aa66d82976670676087b1dbe2f049 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00426 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii cupids chariot racing Description An account of the resource Black and white lanter slide close up view of an artistic depiction of a chariot race between several people with wings in Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 12141 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/352aac569fc6c531046b1c2b29d6f924.jpg 76ecf34df9e65360e0bfa0d3055d6952 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00425 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii cupids silversmiths Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide close up view of an artistic depiction of winged silversmiths in Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 11980 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6357c923342e188784893ca45aeef5db.jpg e6eb0428e21bfcd9e3ed37a65904ae6c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00424 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii redecorated room Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide (dark) of a decorated interior room in a house in Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 12138 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6f378fe33c06b7b30a175d9aa8a738f4.jpg a6f16691a7fa9a32810c6199ef02bcd7 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00428 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii room interior decoration Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide of a room interior decorated with murals and paintins in Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 113494 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/132d641664c2cb07f520d52fa1340f3f.jpg 3c7095d40c0e5af016936c714b493d71 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00423 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource circa 1937 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii sink plumbing Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide of ancient Roman plumbing in Pompeii. Serie Artistica No. 19185 Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct city) Ruins Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/bb9cf2faa650a2ee4b59586a879c9e72.jpg e4b9fe43925db8de40ffd624a5c046db Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert H. Merrill photographs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1909/1950 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-222 Description An account of the resource Photographs, negatives, and lantern slides digitized from the papers of engineer and archaeologist Robert H. Merrill. A Grand Rapids native, Merrill held an accomplished career as a civil engineer. He founded the company Spooner & Merrill, which held offices in Grand Rapids and Chicago. From 1919-1921, Merrill lived in China, working as Assistant Principal Engineer on a reconstruction of the Grand Canal - the oldest and longest canal system in the world. Merrill became fascinated by archaeology, and among other projects, he traveled to the Uxmal Pyramids in Yucatan, Mexico, with a research expedition from Tulane University. Merrill's photo collection includes images of his travels and projects, friends and family. Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Merrill_LS00467 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1937-04-06 Title A name given to the resource Italy. Pompeii Station Description An account of the resource Black and white lantern slide of a train station near Pompeii, Italy. Subject The topic of the resource Lantern slides Pompeii (Extinct City) Railroad stations Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Merrill, Robert H., 1881-1955 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Robert H. Merrill papers (RHC-222) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource In Copyright Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/3011f13add33890319260fec1a3ea5b9.m4v c8113203b7fdaede4cd8e720d45c77d6 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/5f5a4f2f4fbd1fe8cf90490de38ad193.pdf 6a7e5292fb2527bc382e05c4aed96f55 PDF Text Text Grand Valley State University Veterans’ History Project Franjo & Etela Ivkovic Yugoslavian War 34 minutes 56 seconds (00:00:10) -Their situation started in Yugoslavia in September, 1990. -Franjo was born in Yugoslavia on March 19, 1964. -Etela was born in Yugoslavia on May 24, 1967. -Refugees from the Yugoslavian War in 1990. -Separationists wished to have their independence. -They are from the area that is now Serbia. -Next, Croatia wished to gain independence as well. -Croatian population was much more mixed of different ethnicities. -The borders between the various states began creating more physical borders. -They worried what may happen if they were to become a minority in their state. -Three major religions: Catholic, Orthodox Catholic, and Muslim. -The Yugoslavian constitution requires men from age 18 to 65 to be drafted. -Discussed leaving to Hungary if it seemed like he were being drafted. -Government did not have enough draftees, and so they would pick people up from populated buildings. -The police came to their door and Etela hid in the attic while they left. -The War in Croatia was getting very bad. -Franjo’s cousin and several friends were drafted (00:10:00) -People that came back from the War were “not normal anymore”. -They crossed the border to Hungary and encountered many of the people they already knew. -Decided to stay in Hungary. -Individuals they worked with bought a bar/pizzeria so they began working there. -The lead up to the War happened quickly. -Lived in Hungary for three months. -People began going to Sweden to obtain refugee status. -The UN had recognized the civil war and refugee status. -They decided to go to Sweden. -However, the EU was becoming fearful for being overwhelmed with refugees. -Authorities in Sweden asked where they came from. -They explained they came from Hungary. -Have relatives in the US. -Sweden authorities rejected their entry to Sweden. -Sent via train back to Yugoslavia. -Had enough money for food thanks to their employment. -Upon arriving home, their parents were shocked claiming it was too dangerous. -For the next day they stayed indoors all day so nobody would know they were there. -Did not trust anyone. �-There was a UN refugee camp in Vienna, Austria. -Left on a train in the evening for Vienna. -Police on the train asked for their passports. -They lied to say they were going to Vienna to buy goods to import back to Yugoslavia. -After an extensive ~10 minute inquisition, the man sent them on their way. -Refugee camp was full of thousands of people. -It was an old military camp from the Austrian monarchy. -UN refugee center for people from all over the world. (00:20:00) -People may have been in the camp for months or years already. -Refugees from Yugoslavia were held there for the moment. -It wasn’t yet clear where to send them. -Nobody wanted the refugees. -UN began paying bed and breakfast type places to host refugees in Austria. -They spent seven days in the camp. -Stayed for eight months in the bed and breakfast. -Were not allowed to work due to protectionist laws. -They attempted to learn the local language, German. -Austrian government decided to only offer refugee status to those that were directly involved with the action of the War. -They denied their refugee status, but they were not sent out of the country. -Granted a temporary working permit. -Required visiting the local unemployment office once a week. -Very long line. -Each week they insisted that they couldn’t be given work because they can’t speak German. -Franjo got a job at a locksmith shop. -He spoke Hungarian and they needed Hungarian translation. -Because he got a job, Etela was not allowed to work. -Eventually, four years from then, she obtained an under the table job. -They were not making enough to live from his job alone. -She worked to do misc. tasks for the bed and breakfast. -They lived in Austria for five years. -Later she began working sewing in a factory for men’s underwear. -Paid on the amount produced. -Made decent money. -Began saving money to buy tickets go to the US and obtain a visa. -At the American embassy in Vienna, the ambassador granted their visas. -Worked for three and a half years under a sponsor. -The sponsor ended the sponsorship so they were preparing to leave the country. (00:30:00) -Came to the US in 1996. -They lived with his uncle for 4/5 years. -Eventually they moved to Bloomington, Michigan. -They learned English while living and working in the US. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Veterans History Project Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. History Department Description An account of the resource The Library of Congress established the Veterans History Project in 2001 to collect memories, accounts, and documents of U.S. war veterans from World War II and the Korean War, Vietnam War, and conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, and to preserve these stories for future generations. The GVSU History Department interviews are part of this work-in-progress, and may contain videos and audio recordings, transcripts and interview outlines, and related documents and photographs. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1914- Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Afghan War, 2001--Personal narratives, American Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981--Personal narratives, American Korean War, 1950-1953--Personal narratives, American Michigan--History, Military Oral history Persian Gulf War, 1991--Personal narratives, American United States--History, Military United States. Air Force United States. Army United States. Navy Veterans Video recordings Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Smither, James Boring, Frank Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-27 Language A language of the resource eng Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project interviews (RHC-27)</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context IvkovicF1826V Title A name given to the resource Ivkovic, Franjo and Etela (Interview outline and video), 2015 Description An account of the resource Franjo and Etela Ivkovic are a Yugoslavian couple that fled Yugoslavia during the Yugoslavian War. Franjo was born in Yugoslavia on March 19, 1964, and Etela was born there as well on May 24, 1967. The two of them left for Hungary temporarily when the War drafting was intensifying. A later attempt to enter Sweden was rejected. They managed to leave Yugoslavia on a train to Vienna, Austria where they stayed in a UN refugee camp. For the next five years they struggled to work in Austria. Eventually they saved enough money to come to the US with a sponsorship and they are now full US citizens Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ivkovic, Franjo and Etela Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Schmehling, Madeline (Interviewer) Subject The topic of the resource Oral history Veterans History Project (U.S.) United States--History, Military Veterans Video recordings Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/455">Veterans History Project Collection, (RHC-27)</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Moving Image Text Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Relation A related resource Veterans History Project (U.S.) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2015-05-25 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf video/mp4 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8f21ace56fb55b08f2f26289e7195ff7.pdf f1f6379686ea07710856d139ff23c536 PDF Text Text Speaking Out Western Michigan’s Civil Rights Histories Grand Valley State University Special Collections Interviewee: Ivo Soljan Interviewers: Logan Knoper, Alyssa Hall, Tim O’Neil and Tierra Jackson Supervising Faculty: Melanie Shell-Weiss Location: Grand Valley State University Special Collections Date: 2/23/2012 Biography and Description Ivo Soljan compares and contrasts the different countries that he has lived in. Transcript O’NEIL: Ok, we just need you to say what your name is. It’s lvo Sol SOLJAN: Ivo (EE-VO). That’s how you pronounce that. O’NEIL: Oh, I’m sorry SOLJAN: That’s ok. That’s Ok. Some call me even “Evil”. Don’t do that. Ivo Soljan. O’NEIL: Ok, could you say that just once so we have a SOLJAN: Ivo Soljan O’NEIL: Alright. SOLJAN: OK. O’NEIL: So, could you give us, like, a basic biography; where you are from, how you got to West Michigan? SOLJAN: Yeah. Born about 85 years ago.{laughter} No. Born about sixty four, right now, an old guy. Came here to Grand Valley in 1991. So it’s been twenty years now. But I was in connection with Grand Valley even earlier than that because my university in Europe where I taught, and Grand Valley used to have a very fruitful exchange program. It was the University of Sarajevo in former Yugoslavia, in Bosnia. And it was established as one, probably the first exchange program between Grand Valley and some other university overseas. And in ‘75, 1975. So I participated in a number of activities the symposia every second year, either at Grand Valley or over there in Europe, and also there was an exchange of students here. So I was really quite engaged in that, so when there was a war which was kind of a serious war I needed a place to continue my life, and applied, and was invited to come here, and to be interviewed. {Iaughs} Page 1 �O’NEIL: {laughs} Yes. You mentioned overseas. Could you give us, like, a country? SOLJAN: The country, as I mentioned, the country is formerly Yugoslavia, which doesn’t exist any longer. It fell apart during that war because it was it was an artificially created country. Like Czechoslovakia, or a number of- or even the Soviet Union if you ward. it consisted of six republics, like six states in the United States. And, so it was a unified country, but it didn’t really function quite well. and there were very strong movements within the country to kind of, coming from different sides, to get independent and kind of break that united kind of somewhat like the American CMI War, and perhaps even in terms of if you compare that in terms of the number of the dead and the victims it’s pretty comparable. In Yugoslavia, about 200,000 people died and in America, about 600,000, but, if you compare the populations, it would be pretty much the same ratio. So that’s the country. And the city, as, I mentioned the city that I lived in, I wasn’t born there, but I taught there for 20 years, is the city of Sarajevo, which is often it often used to be mentioned at least when you were all toddlers because when the war was there the city was besieged for three and half years. It was really in very, very bad shape. A lot of people died. — O’NEIL: Logan, do you want toKNOPER: Well I mean we can just start little bit about the city you were born in and about your childhood over there, growing up. What was that like? SOLJAN: Mm-hm. Yeah. I was- I’m sorry I have a lot of stuff upstairs, but I couldn’t really prepare- The city I was born in is, it’s kind of a funny name in English, it’s called “Split”. but it’s not really Split, though I occasionally joke that I’m a Split personality. {laughs} But the thing is that it’s a Mediterranean city on the coast of thethe sea that is part of the Mediterranean and that sea is known as the Adriatic, Adriatic Sea. That’s the sea which is probably somewhat bigger than Lake Michigan. And that’s the sea where Venice is so that particular part. I was born there, virtually with my feet, you might say, in the sea. My father was a marine biologist. He led a significant marine biology institute there. So my first ten years of my life were really just- kind of swimming if you want. KNOPER: Yeah. SOLJAN: Yeah. For some reason, we moved to Sarajevo, which is inland, but it’s not very far inland. It’s probably about three hours drive. O’NEIL: Okone of the big buzzwords of the assignment: Identity. Is there any, like, specific things that you can think of about how moving to West Michigan has shaped your identity? SOLJAN: Yeah O’NEIL: I mean, your sense of humor seems very- relatable. {laughs} SOLJAN: {laughs} Thank you. Well, things, any change is a change, and initially it wasn’t easy because we, in that kind of panic, and it wasn’t just panic, it was actually well calculated. We went to holidays, basically, trying, hoping that that war would finally be stopped by the European powers in America, but it wasn’t completely for four years. So that, we basically left everything. All of our possessions, our Page 2 �assets- home, just name it. Our library, all our investments in the retirement funds and so on, just was wiped away. So, west Michigan, or rather Grand Valley I should say, has always been a nice place to us. Before coming here permenantly as a (?) scholar I spent a year in California, then a year here, and I was always very friendly with a lot of people around here among the administration and the professors. I taught english, in fact, in ‘89 and ‘90. I was very friendly with President Lubbers. I don’t know whether the name at all, but he used to be- he was our first president- oh, actually the second, but I mean the first, in that he was 32 years on the helm of Grand Valley. So it’s- in many ways it’s been a soft landing and it’s been a soft landing also becauseboth my wife and I are in English studies, so english really wasn’t a problem for us. it’s not like you find yourself suddenly on Mars Something wenot only we could – I mean, because of our qualifications would could actually teach (laughs) American students how to speak proper english. ALL: (laugh) SOLJAN: So our english- our english used to be prominently British english. And some of that is still probably noticeable in my pronunciation, but I’ve been teaching for twenty years, so it’s been lost. Our children also spoke english and they liked it immediately It was fine. We knew- it was it wasn’t like falling from the moon. We lived in California one year before that and then Grand Valley another year. Then we went back home for just one and a half year. there were significant political things that were happening there we wanted to participate in that, and, it was realized that it was going to be much more painful than we expected. So we came here and Grand Valley, - from our first, we lived in Grand Haven. And it’s a great place too. It’s a small city, or rather “tn-city” as they call it. And found plenty of friends, very manageable. We lived- all our lives we’ve lived in big cities. I mean, Sarajevo is half a million or more than that and in other in London, in- just name it- but we like the- especially now when the children have gone. they got married and have families, so it’s easier. It’s kind of nice to live a rather simple life. If we need entertainment, it’s mostly in terms of music, opera, stuff like that. Or lectures. This area offers you plenty. It’s just amazing how much you have here. The colleges, there’s Aquinas and there’s Calvin and there’s Hope and there’s Grand Valley, you just, - plenty. So we don’t miss that, I mean that is something that is plentiful here and we enjoy that. There are plenty of opportunities. KNOPER: You mentioned you were, your dad was a marine biologist and you loved the water and stuff, so Grand Haven do you—? SOLJAN: -Oh yeah! Oh yeah! We often actually refer to the lake as “the sea.” “Oh, look at the sea today.” It’s kind of automatic. Oh yeah, it’s lovely actually We just like it, the- well, what we miss in fact is thekind of this smell of the salty sea. Otherwise it’s just lovely. Yeah, we enjoyed it. O’NEIL: You mentioned a couple kids? maybe — SOLJAN: Yeah. There are a couple kids, in fact well, they will be kids forever. (laughs) But the son isthirty, thirty one, and my daughter is thirty six. he lives in New York and he completed his studies here. It was half price. So why not? (laughs) ALL: (laugh) Page 3 �SOLJAN: He studied- he studied English and Spanish and ended up in film industry. he is really a smart guy and he elbowed his way into the film world. He is a producer in New York and kind of makes a big buck. He enjoys- his wife is fine. They have a little kid, little Allegra, who is a year and a llttle bit more now. Now the daughter is in the Hague and she is a very smart woman. She is a lawyer by profession. And she works for this international court for war crimes, in the Hague in the Netherlands. Her husband is Dutch too. And so, they have one kid, they have a little- little girl, little Nora and they are expecting a second one in May. So things are- they are well placed. They seem to be happy in their lives. But of course, kids are kids, as all too well. (laughs) O’NEIL: Just little details: were they born here or—? SOLJAN: No, no. No, we came here- I was nearly, I was forty three, four, something like that. They werethe son was eleven when we came here to stay. Although they were, as I mentioned, we were here before so when he first visited he was eight. But he was eleven when we came to stay and the and the daughter--. They had five years difference, so she was, well, sixteen. So she completed the final year of the senior year of high school here then went and did her studies at Massachusetts at a rather small college and went to NYU, New York University, to complete her legal studies. O’NEIL: Ok, so we’re going to bounce around a bit here SOLJAN: By the way I’ve never been on drugs. ALL: (laugh) SOLJAN: -for the record. KNOPER: Oh well that question came later- (laughs) SOLJAN: I’m very healthy. O’NEIL: Have you lived anywhere else in the United States? I’m sorry if I missed that detail earlier. SOLJAN: Well I did mention it earlier- We lived in Irvine, California, which is kind of a broader, metropolitan L.A. and we lived there for a year. I was a Fuibright scholar doing my post-doctoral work. that was about twenty two years ago. I enjoyed that very much, that was very nice. But otherwise, no, no, we didn’t really. We kind of stuck here. I was traveling a lot all over America because I worked. I used to work during the summers for the US State Department and they- the assignment would usually be to take the European delegations for three week visits to America. So in that capacity, I was contracted by the State department probably for about, at least thirty five states. I was going all over America. I haven’t seen Hawaii. I haven’t seen Alaska, but otherwise, — O’NEIL: Is there anything you noticed about the people in those areas of the country? Like, the way they treat you or other people around them? SOLJAN: Mmhm. Oh well Americans are very, very hospitable I must say that Well, I must in other parts of the world too We often hear about the English being cold and reserved We lived in England for four years all together, off and on. the English can be {hospitable} also— it’s just a question of they don’t hug Page 4 �so much, like we in America. They tend to be kind of private and they have a little suspicion if you hug them too much. ALL: (laugh) SOLJAN: But otherwise, no. we know other nationalities. We also spent time in Italy, and we have friends in France and so on. So, people are- you find good people and friendly people everywhere. And you find also, I don’t know, I wouldn’t call them “bad” people but, the people you wouldn’t gladly spend time with. You find them everywhere. O’NEIL: The less nice. SOLJAN: Mmhm. O’NEIL: Ok, continuing with the civil rights topic, like how people treat each other- has anyone, like you or your family been — SOLJAN: Mmhm. — Welt, no. We’ve never really— As a matter of fact we’ve been treated always as if we were special. The one thing was the compassion, the fact that they knew that we lost everything and were the victims of the war in that sense. So they extended help, “Whatever you need..” and so on. Always only positive. But then of course, I think it’s always mutual. We’ve always treated people very very nicely. And I think it’s, it’s a very simple rule it’s kind of the “the rule of thumb” as they call it. “You treat me well, I’ll treat you well.” There are of course, there are segments of any population and you see, we had this civil war which was- terrible, where some of my— very close friends ted out to be war criminals. Kind of— participating in—slaughters and what not. So you never know. Things happen in life. But to us, it’s been a— a very good experience. I might even say blessing. our children had a- stable place to continue their life. We enjoyed- our life back home was very good. I had very good- I worked at the university and taught there for about twenty years and was highly respected. My wife, she was a high school teacher and then editor later on in a publishing house. So, it was a good life. But then suddenly, everything just caved in. So you change everything. You adapt. The most important thing is to be able to adapt. Accept what life brings you. O’NEIL: Were there any people in particular that affected your thinking about- particularly ethnicities or genders or religions? SOLJAN: I wouldn’t say so. we as a family are catholics and of course in America the church life is - in contrast to many, MOST, of the rest of the world. It is one of the hubs where people, I mean very often you have the impression that it’s more of a- club. You cannot feel that so much because you live here but if you go to other countries, there’s much more indifference, Americans on the whole are very religious. At least they say, or at least they think they are. But for those who go regularly and attend churches it’s often really—companionship, more- I don’t know. I don’t want to be nasty, but sometimes it’s not really something profoundly spiritual at it is just getting together, having donuts and coffee. Well, there’s nothing wrong with that! After all, the relationship, the companionship is religion. get together and be together and help each other. So no. I must say-well, I’ve come across bigotry, there’s no doubt. Not against me, but I’ve heard where people are speaking about the blacks very very, - in a Page 5 �way that you don’t like to hear. Or others it’s not just blacks, it’s- but then, these are the people that, you normally wouldn’t associate yourself with anyway. And you’ll keep them at arm’s distance. So there is, sadly there is still- you know and that’s part of my— You asked me, or whoever did, in my Anthropology class—, I have a pretty big political experience. I participated in a number of political events here in America, and back home. One of them was peace negotiations in Dayton, Ohio. You weren’t born, or were little kids so you don’t remember that. It was November of ‘95, which actually ended that war in the Balkans. It was a very exciting thing to see all these, kind of, dignitaries . And I was invited by President Clinton actually to go and accompany him to go to Bosnia on Air Force One to visit the troops So then, you find wonderful people and of course you find people who would definitely need some— re education. Especially in the sense of the feelings of superiority, but you have that in other countries too. The thing that particularly hurts me, because I’m an American, we got American, nationality in 2001 so it’s been ten years now, is that especially now the treatment of the people of the middle east. The Muslims and the— there is this rather unjustified sense of superiority “These are the primitive guys that have to give us our oil, because that’s our oil. If not we’ll kick some butts.” ALL: (laugh) SOLJAN: So, this whole ideal - and that’s very often actually articulated as “ugly American” or “arrogant American”. There is that. You find that also that some people I’ve met that belong to the militia the Michigan Militia. There is a lot of bigotry there. I won’t say that, at least publicly they’re not Ku Klux Klan, but a lot of their thinking is along these lines. KNOPER: So what would you say in the big scope the “American view” of other cultures or other countries versus your country’s, or Yugoslavia’s view, or the world view? How would you compare their views? SOLJAN: Well, again I must say, sadly, because America is such a huge country, and such a huge potential economic and whatnot, Americans are very ignorant. That’s one thing that, well, you are privileged because you come to college and suddenly your eyes open. But it’s just —what’s Jay Leno’s—, there’s a part of the program he does every several weeks where he—”Jaywalking” or something like that, where he confronts these youngsters and asks them “What is the capital of America?” “Puerto Rico!”, these guys know nothing! No history. Sadly, it’s the consequence that these subjects are being removed. “Oh, do we need that? We’re a big country. We’re so important.”, but it really, —it closes your horizons, and that’s not good. I just, right now, an hour ago, or two hours ago— there was a lecture in Kirkhof center. There was a guy from one of the universities in Pennsylvania talking about American politics and policies in the Middle East. And it’s defeating to see that most Americans don’t even know, after ten years of the war in Iraq, “Where’s Iraq?”, and stuff like that. Not interested!, American population, like so many others, and I see that actually being spread all over the world, that’s the very strong, American consumerism. People are primarily consumers. Buy, buy, buy. And in a number of homes you don’t have books at all. A book is a rarity. There are televisions perhaps in every—there’s a plasma in every room, and then there are eight hundred channels but seven hundred ninety-nine are nothing something like that. So there’s a huge offer on the market, but very little- very little selectivity. That should be and that could be. I know that from the education of my kids and I Assume you are in the same thing. If you try and you get good direction from your professors and the surroundings where you are, America can Page 6 �easily produce brilliant kids, brilliant experts. But a lot of that is basically just buy your car, buy your home, go and spend some time—a lot of time in casinos and go to Las Vegas, that kind of stuff. In order, politically speaking, in order actually to keep social unrest controlled—because there is a lot of reason for unrest—there is a huge difference in income that’s a problem right now, so huge it’s just unbelievable. In order to keep people peaceful, give them things to buy! That’s exactly what President Bush after 9/11 just said, “Oh,”, “go out and buy! Go out! Shop!” (pause) SOLJAN: Anything else guys? O’NEIL: I have one little thing SOLJAN: A couple of jokes from Bosnia? ALL: (laugh) O’NEIL: If you want, go ahead! (laughs) You’re clearly very well-read, being an english professor and knowing Shakespeare and everything, is there any particular work of literature or art or a book or a movie that influenced your perception of people? SOLJAN: Yeah, well all literature is about people, so there’s no doubt about that, even when you cannot project it and very often that (?) it’s always about people. And even if they have these horns, different (?) on their heads and what not, three heads and what not, they’re people, because human psyche is the same otherwise we wouldn’t understand. these creatures that are just a blob of energy, even they love or hate or something. but literature in general is just a—wonderful tool of understanding, learning and learning about your life and the life of those around you, but Hamlet is of course one of my favorites but there are so many others. The list is just huge. O’NEIL: This is just my personal curiosity, but you said you were on Air Force One? SOLJAN: No, I was invited to go there; I had to miss it, because I had separate problems here at Grand Valley at that time so I was really engaged deeply in resolving that first. But it was I got the White House invitation that said will you go with the President and work and be his interpreter over there, which is kind of a very, very wonderful I just said that after “How stupid of me. I should have done that, and remain in the White house! No, but, I’m here in Grand Valley. O’NEIL: Well I’m glad you stayed. (Laughs) Another little curiosity—how many languages do you speak? SOLJAN: Well, my native tongue is known as—its a Slav language like Polish or like Russian. It’s called Croatian. O’NEIL: Okay! SOLJAN: —l can tell you a little bit here, so you have that there for curiosity. . (Speaking in Croatian) “What would you like me to tell you? If you want I can tell you all sorts of things.” Thats what I said. Now, that’s Croatian. Then English—English of course—English is not my mother tongue, but I’m pretty Page 7 �fluent in English. And I speak Italian. Can read Spanish--I can pretty much atone with French. it’s pretty much a common thing with intellectuals in Europe. They speak— they’re small countries, so you need -it’s not like it is in America where you travel two days and you’re still in America. Ya, or three days even, if you go by car. Over there you can—there you can go through three or four countries and with different languages. That’s what I mean. KNOPER: Yeah I know, like my friend from—he’s in Czech Republic, and I mean all in Europe they like teach English. They have English along with their other stuff. SOLJAN: Oh I know. Absolutely. When I started, it was pretty new there at that time, because it was not so long after the second world war, but we started when I was like ten years old—and it was full eight years there. So after that—well even so some of them would never—, it just depends on how attentive you are, and you must pay attention or otherwise it doesn’t go into your head by itself. But yeah, that’s it. And then normally you just pick up a couple of others at least so much that you can make yourself understood and can read popular things and so on. O’NEIL: do we have most of our—at least all of— KNOPER: Yeah we pretty much got through everything. I mean we covered the views—we can talk about the past I guess, but — SOLJAN: I got something of my past; I never killed anyone—but I might! (All laughs) KNOPER: oh. (Laughs) Hopefully no one in this room! O’NEIL: Yeah! (Laughs) KNOPER: So like what about your—you mentioned you came over here at age forty-something— SOLJAN: Forty-three, yes. KNOPER: Forty-three. What kind of like—in your teens—what kind of things were you like going— were you interested in. Did you go to school at Grand Valley also? SOLJAN: No. You mean myself? KNOPER: Yeah, like in college and all that stuff. SOLJAN: Oh no! No, no. I got my education in Europe. So I completed my—I got my higher degrees in England. So I lived in England. And in a sense—and of course England is quite different from America, but America is much more unified so to speak—i mean McDonald’s everywhere Taco Bell everywhere, and four kinds of gasoline everywhere. But no I came here, as I say after being really rather thoroughly familiar with American way of life and American culture and American history, that’s another thing that I often find frustrating here when I ask my students about American history. O’NEIL: A bunch of blank stares— Page 8 �SOLJAN: Yeah. My usual joke is “Was it before Vietnam or after Vietnam?” Something that happened like three-hundred years ago. So as I say, the only psychological shock was the feeling that you lost your country, that you’ve lost all the things you’ve been building through through twenty-five, thirty years— and that you have to start from—even though we’ve been many places in the world, it’s kind of tough initially. You have to accommodate yourself and say well that’s it now so it’s being here. And we didn’t come, —typically people come to America for economic reasons. It’s kind of immigrants who--as they like to say here, dream their American dream or something—fulfilling their American dream. No it wasn’t our case, our case was to—as we couldn’t ret—I mean the war was just raging over there. We couldn’t go back. It was basically starting life somewhere you could start it. It wasn’t economic stuff. KNOPER: Was there ever—did you ever like think of going somewhere in Europe at that time? SOLJAN: Well, that was a possibility. We had some good friends, American diplomats. And before thinking of going here, he said there is a possibility you can actually—he worked as an American diplomat in Northern Germany; he said their American base is here—he said you can just kind of start from. But, I contacted Grand Valley, and they just said pack up and come here immediately —and that’s it. O’NEIL: Was the fact that Grand Valley offered you a position something that influenced you to become a professor— SOLJAN: Well no, as I said I was a professor for twenty years before that back home, so I’ve been teaching for forty years—more than forty years. I had this—I was primarily thinking, because I have a major in violin too and music—and I was thinking to myself as a music performer and violinist, at certain point there are these branching roads, and you have to choose, you cannot take both—and there was this good opportunity, and even someone from the university of Sarajevo told me, Why don’t you complete your graduate studies and join us?”, it’s a chance like so many things in life—you start—that’s one good thing with studies- -you said you were still undecided, it doesn’t matter. You can always change as I told you. My son completed English and Spanish and you could say that doesn’t really lead him to a producer in film industry, but that’s where he ended up and he’s extremely happy. that’s what he considers—you can learn all the time. That’s the point. And if you’re willing to learn the roads are open. KNOPER: Would you say Americans have more opportunity than maybe you had early in your life like college? Or is it just like now a days— SOLJAN: Yes and no. In the sense that even here—I don’t know we call something here complaints that not enough American youth go to—, many of them are dropouts even in high school, and many of them don’t complete their studies. So I’m wondering--there’s no doubt that the American facilities or the American universities—the huge difference between the American universities and European universities—generally speaking European universities- -that you pay here. It used to be—I don’t know whether it’s going to change under American influence, but in other words, universities here are business proposition. You pay—what you call that? KNOPER: Tuition. Page 9 �SOLJAN: Tuition, right. and it grows and grows and grows and without tuition the univeisities wouldn’t exist. And over there, in most countries it used to be free university—you wouldn’t have to pay. Now whether that’s good or not, I don’t know. I got very good education there, but I must say the high school also, I think, was much more concentrated on important things—that’s what I say the sense of history and geography is also something we immediately recognize and know about that. Now whether that’s the ultimate thing in your life, I don’t know it doesn’t have to be. There are differences, and again, I’m not someone who—back home I also had a very developed cultural life, intellectual life, so I had no problems, moving anywhere. For someone who actually came here—and I think that’s the majority of people who come from other countries—they usually move to America in order to make some money and to start a new life, economic life. And of course for them it’s difficult. Number one, the language barrier, number two all these customs they don’t really know and they have to get used to them. It’s difficult to say I never really systematically thought about that. (Pause) KNOPER: Anything else? SOLJAN: You fed up with me? O’NEIL: No, I could just ask you questions for hours, but in terms of the assignment I think we— SOLJAN: Good, wonderful. Well if you want to add something I haven’t said, please do. No problem. Only let it not be dangerous. The Italians have a nice saying, they say, “(speaking in Italian). If it is not true it’s well found.” KNOPER: Exactly! SOLJAN: Okay guys! Thank you very much. All the best. And have A’s. Four A’s! KNOPER: Hopefully. END OF INTERVIEW Page 10 � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/4a68ce5b8a81d860dc370e1cab3e2318.mp3 b2b05271d1182746fb7b82022eff8eb3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Speaking Out: Western Michigan Civil Rights Oral Histories Subject The topic of the resource Civil rights--Michigan--History Personal narratives Oral histories African Americans--Personal narratives Gays--Personal narratives Lesbians--Personal narratives Bisexual people--Personal narratives Transgender people--Personal narratives Veterans--Personal narratives Women--Personal narratives People with disabilities--Personal narratives Muslims--United States--Personal narratives Hispanic Americans--Personal narratives Homophobia Discrimination Islamophobia Stereotypes (Social psychology)--Upper Penninsula (Mich.) Description An account of the resource Collection of oral history recordings documenting the history of civil rights and social justice advocacy in Western Michigan. The collection was created by faculty and students as a project of the LIB 201 (formerly US 201): "Diversity in the U.S." course from 2011-2012. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Speaking Out: Western Michigan Civil Rights Oral History Project (GV248-01) Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-05-02 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV248-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1930-2011 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV248-01_Soljan_Ivo Title A name given to the resource Ivo Soljan audio interview and transcript Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Soljan, Ivo Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Knoper, Logan Hall, Alyssa O'Neil, Tim Jackson, Tierra Description An account of the resource Ivo Soljan compares and contrasts the different countries that he has lived in. Subject The topic of the resource Civil rights--Michigan--History Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Relation A related resource Speaking Out: Western Michigan Civil Rights Oral History Project Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-02-23 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d1a443cf3c851ba9ac1eafcacd48139d.jpg cd59d128b1fa40fef3fefb5c402285c1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1370 Title A name given to the resource J-21 fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource J-21 Swedish fighter, October 1, 1947. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Sweden Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1947-10-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c84a37ae7aec5d6482122f2fd13669a3.jpg 98ea751ae2967f425d5c35fee44610be Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1371 Title A name given to the resource J-21 fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource J-21 Swedish fighter, October 1, 1947. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Sweden Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1947-10-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/20368c666ce8cb15e87eeca3b4382137.jpg a0c91c69c47e333e27d0e07ce91b7edf Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_1372 Title A name given to the resource J-21 fighter Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource J-21 Swedish fighter, October 1, 1947. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Sweden Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1947-10-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. 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The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. 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Navy Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Slides Sweden Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1947-10-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. 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The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. 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Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. 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Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. 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Navy World War, 1939-1945 Sweden Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Slides Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1947-10-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9dbbd65a6be1feb6529da3423c0ca34c.jpg 22fe81a92b48f121f3edc23d6ed53116 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Naval Recognition Training Slides Subject The topic of the resource Slides Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Warships--Recognition World War, 1939-1945 Description An account of the resource Slides developed during World War II as a training tool, for top-side battle-station personnel on board ship and for all aircraft personnel, by the US Navy. In 1942 a Recognition School was established by the Navy at Ohio State University where the method of identification was developed. In 1943 the school was taken over by the US Navy. The importance of training in visual recognition of ships and aircraft became even more evident during World War II. Mistakes resulting in costly errors and loss of life led to an increased emphasis on recognition as a vital skill. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides (RHC-50)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource image Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1943-1953 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Source <a href="http://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/477">Naval recognition slides, RHC-50</a> Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context RHC-50_X1382 Title A name given to the resource J-32 Swedish fighter aircraft Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource United States. Navy Description An account of the resource J-32 Swedish fighter aircraft, September 1, 1954. Subject The topic of the resource United States. Navy World War, 1939-1945 Sweden Military education Airplanes, Military--Recognition Slides Language A language of the resource eng Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?language=en">No Copyright - United States</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Naval recognition slides (RHC-50) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1954-09-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives