963 24 26018 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/4b58f1476b566ca784a964a288c2fd8f.jpg d5248671fd9364b7d6eb9f2ca63a05b1 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. PR6045.E95 L66 1903 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_Bindings0282 Title A name given to the resource The Long Night Description An account of the resource Binding of The Long Night, by Stanley J. Weyman, published by McClure, Phillips & Co., 1903. 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 1903 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/04fae8e78999c087f73acbf444bd5df3.mp3 5c900bd76f93dda4743073d5e871cbe1 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/92824c9b7765dd1454c511e648063236.pdf 7a097dda5e6479bb20737536e724ed17 PDF Text Text The Lost Cause of Christmas Advent III Text: I Samuel 2:8; Luke 1:52-53 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan December 17, 2000 Transcription of the spoken sermon Last week I spoke a bit about Christmas and its drivenness and the frenzy of the season that can be so distracting for us that we fail, ironically, to do the very thing the Advent season is for, which is to wait, to be quiet, to contemplate. I spoke of that because I think it is an important fact of which to become aware, to be conscious. I didn't really mean to-be "Rev. Grinch," throwing a wet blanket on your celebrations, and it was not one more preacher's harangue about keeping Christ in Christmas or scolding you for the commercialization of the day. That is not how I understand preaching. My task is not really to scold you or to drive you or impose guilt upon you. My task as a preacher is to hold up a slice of life and invite you to think about it, invite you to think with me about it in order that we might come to full consciousness of our lives, in order that we might come to an awareness so that we live our lives and are not simply lived, in order that we might live from the inside out, and so I try to hold up that slice of life and invite you to think with me. This is really a conversation in which you are invited to think about it with me. Receive it not as some authoritarian proclamation, some declaration from above, some dogmatic utterance which is absolute. It's more often tentative. Someone went out last week and, apparently agreeing that the days could be frenzied and we could be driven in our life, said, "Now, next week tell me how to unplug." Well, as a matter of fact, we can't unplug. We are so thoroughly woven into the fabric of our cultural experience that what we have to do is live, learn to live with attention, and the only way that we can overcome that drive that would snuff out the spirit and stifle the emergence of spirit in our lives is through awareness and consciousness. But we cannot disengage from our social, political, economic structures, the whole social context in which we live. We could try to escape life somehow, maybe, flee to a monastery or a convent, but that's not possible for most of us. We're going to have to deal with life and all of its variety and all of its diversity and all of its seductiveness and all of its pressures and, in the midst of that, do our best to live with awareness that we might be intentional, that we might realize our fullest humanity and our greatest potential. © Grand Valley State University   �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 2   I saw a cartoon in The New Yorker the other day and clipped it out. The scene in the background was probably the Himalayas and there was a cave in front of which was sitting one of these Eastern gurus and there was a young man sitting in front of him with his backpack on, and the caption under the cartoon was, "Don't you think if I knew the meaning of life, I wouldn't be sitting in this cave in my underpants?" That's the way I feel often when I prepare to come here to try to say something with enough significance to get you out on a Sunday morning in a blizzard when you might well read the paper with a cup of coffee. So, hear me again this morning as I address the idea of the lost cause of Christmas. By the lost cause of Christmas, I want to set before you the almost impossibility of us celebrating the Christmas miracle as it originated in this world. I want you to think with me this morning about the fact that for people like us, it is almost impossible to observe Christmas according to its original meaning and intention – almost impossible, because the Christmas story is a story about a revolutionary movement toward liberation. It has a particular historical, social, economic, political context, and in the last decades we are becoming more and more aware of the times of Jesus, the time of Jesus' birth, the nature of the life of the average person the majority of which were peasants at the time that Jesus came into this world. I hope this afternoon sometime you take a moment and read the page in your liturgy from a book, The Message of the Kingdom, by Richard Horsley and Neil Silberman. Horsley has another excellent book that I did not quote called The Liberation of Christmas, and these scholars have taken what we know now about the concrete historical context of Jesus' birth and life and, in setting that forth, have come to understand the birth stories, as I believe they were intended when they were written by Matthew and by Luke. The context of the world into which Jesus came was a world in which the people of Israel, God's, people, Jesus' people, were a people occupied by a foreign power, a backwater province in a vast Roman empire, and there was social disruption brought about by heavy taxation, loss-of land, movement to cities, and the ever-present Roman legions. The period is spoken of as the Pax Romana, the Roman peace. The Romans were not bad people. In fact they were wonderful administrators. They are still revered for the law, the administration of government of which they were geniuses. But, nonetheless, the bottom line was the Roman legion, and there was the exploitation and the oppression of the poor of the provinces, and the people to whom Jesus came were a marginalized people who were voiceless and powerless, and the Song of Mary, is a revolutionary ballad. The closest I could come to in thinking about a parallel in our own experience would be the song “We Shall Overcome." There is tremendous power in music, tremendous emotional power that unites and bonds human beings in a cause or a movement- and those songs, in Luke's © Grand Valley State University �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 3   gospel the Magnificat which I read a moment ago, the song of John, the Benedictus, the song of Simeon, the Nunc Dimittis, those songs which were based on the psalmody of the people of Israel’s past – Mary's particularly, as I mentioned, very much dependent on the song of Hannah. Those songs that celebrated the birth of Jesus were revolutionary ballads, which celebrated the mighty act of God moving for the liberation of God's people. "The mighty cast down from their thrones, the lowly lifted up,,.the hungry fed, the rich turned empty, away." The world is turned upside down in those songs. The way of the world as experienced by those poor and dispossessed people is turned upside down. There is a reversal of circumstance, and God is praised in a spirit of Doxology with great joy because now God has acted, God has moved, and those songs and the birth stories of Matthew and Luke are probably some of the earliest records we have of that early Jesus movement that was a revolutionary movement, looking for a change of historical circumstance, moving from being the underdog to the possibility of a humane existence. I don't think that, if we look at those songs carefully and if we put them into the context of which we are becoming more and more aware, the social, historical, economic, political context at the time of Jesus, there can be any question about that. Those songs continue that grand tradition of the Hebrew prophets who saw the possibility of an alternative world, of an alternative kind of community. And so, I say to you what must be obvious - it is extremely difficult for us to celebrate Christmas in its original meaning and significance, because we just have nothing in common with the poor, marginalized, voiceless and powerless people among whom Jesus was born. We naively identify with those people. We put ourselves in the skin of Zechariah and Elizabeth and Mary and Simeon and Anna, the people of Israel to whom the Lord came, but, as a matter of fact, if we're honest, we're on the other side of the line. We are Rome. We are empire. We are affluent. We are powerful. We call the shots in our world, and for us to celebrate Christmas in its original meaning and significance is to undercut ourselves and the status quo, which has dealt very kindly with us. Now, that isn't so profound and I think it must be clear if we think about it for a moment. The reason that Jesus was crucified, my old Lenten theme put concisely, is that he died the way he died because he lived the way he lived. The autnorities, ecclesiastical and political, of the day of Jesus, rightly saw him as a threat to the world as it was organized at that time. Any time a world is organized in any time, those who are the power brokers are not going to want that world to be changed, and they are not going to be happy with the prophetic voice which suggests an alternative possibility. So, I simply make the point - for us to celebrate Christmas is pretty much of a lost cause. So, what have we done? Well, I talked about one possibility last week. We have made a holiday out of it, and it's a wonderful holiday. Friends gathering together, families coming home, beautiful trees and flowers, the sights and sounds and fragrances of the season, all the remembrances of Christmases past, all of that © Grand Valley State University �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 4   wonderful, beautiful, warm, human experience. Nothing wrong with that. We've made the Christmas mystery and miracle into a wonderful holiday. I emerged from my lofty perch last night only to find that Nancy was channel surfing. When Nancy surfs, she is bored. Now, on most Saturday nights she is bored because I am incommunicado from about Saturday noon until I get here Sunday morning, I grunt. That's all. But I emerged long enough to come down into the bedroom where she was surfing the TV only to see that Lawrence Welk had arisen from the dead and there he was! It was the conclusion of what must be a famous Christmas special that is probably trotted out every year about this time, and I entered just at the end of the program where Lawrence Welk said, "And here comes Santa Claus," and Santa Claus came out in all of his regalia and all of his splendor and the band struck up "Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come!" I said to Nancy, "God has just spoken to me. I'm going to write this down so I don't forget it." Precisely, precisely. On this wonderful holiday, Santa Claus comes and the band plays, "The Lord Has Come, Joy to the World!" In the Church we have done another thing with it In the Church we managed to celebrate Christmas by weaving it from its original intention as a social protest, as a social critique, and moved it to the personal experience of salvation. We sang it a moment ago as a supplication and one of my favorite carols, "0 Little Town of Bethlehem, Cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today." It's wonderful. Nothing wrong with that, either. The personal experience of being in communion with God, being at peace with God, the experience of grace and forgiveness, my goodness, how could I be against that? It is very, very important. It is just that that is really not what Christmas was about. Christmas was about an alternative kind of community, a different kind of society, different power arrangements, different economic arrangements. Now, if Jesus had been about personal salvation, Jesus may have gone about to people and said, "Are you saved? This is how you can be saved, if you will repeat this formula, if you believe in me, your sins will be forgiven and you will have the hope of heaven, the promise of something in another time and another world." The Gospels were not good news about the fact that a person can be reconciled with God through Jesus Christ. Paul talks about that, but then Paul thought the end was right around the corner and so he was excited about the fact that this treasure of Israel was for all people and all people could come into this experience of grace in this God of Israel, and of course, he identified this with the death and resurrection of Jesus which you don't find in the Gospels. The birth stories in Luke serve as a preface to his Gospel, which is about the life and the ministry and the teaching of Jesus, and Luke tells us in those birth stories how he understood this Jesus. How he understood this Jesus, according to the Gospel that we read every Christmas, is that this one was the act of the eternal God coming into human experience in the flesh of Mary's child in order to change the world. But, we've been able to salvage some of the spirituality and the piety of © Grand Valley State University �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 5   the holiday by turning it into the possibility of personal salvation and making of our Christian religion, frankly, a salvation cult. That's what we are, and we invite people to faith in Jesus, to receive forgiveness and have then heaven's gates open wide. Go through your hymnal, read your Christmas carols and just see how we have domesticated and spiritualized the story of the birth of Jesus. I don't mean to ruin the carols for you but, if you read them perceptively over against what was quite obviously the intention in the original story, you will find that we have made of this revolutionary liberation document an event, a matter of personal piety and salvation. So, what are we to do? We can recognize, for one thing, that throughout the centuries the Christmas story has regained here and there its original intention, because there have been peoples who have read the story and found hope and been inspired and have initiated movements toward liberation and freedom. Most recently in our own experience we know of Liberation Theology that originated among the poor, particularly in Latin and South America, in what they call base communities where the poor folk, the peasant folk would come together in homes and study the Gospels and they actually read themselves into the story. As I said a moment ago, we tend to identify with Anna and Simeon and Mary and all of them, when really we have to identify ourselves with the Roman Empire. These base communities of people that are dispossessed and socially outcast, marginalized and powerless, read themselves into the story and are able to identify with it and it has become a tremendous source of ferment and a movement toward more justice and equity and it has had that revolutionary intent realized in many of those communities. Interestingly, the Vatican has silenced some of the leading voices of Liberation Theology because the Church, in order to maintain its establishment status, doesn't want to rock the boat and get a peasant rebellion going, and so the Church has officially said you may not talk about the original meaning of Christmas. Continue to speak about saving souls. You can have the most wonderful personal spiritual experience in the world and no one's going to care. You can be just as pious, just as devoted, just as full of faith, just as sure of your salvation as possible, and there is not a tyrant or a dictator or a politician anywhere who will bother you. It's only when you begin to speak and act like Jesus did that you get into trouble. But, the stories have been a stimulus for that through the centuries. Still, here we are. What are we going to do? How are we going to celebrate Christmas, being in the position we are? Here I am white, male, affluent, powerful. The nation went through an extended period of time without knowing which candidate for the Presidency actually won, and now we know. Some voices are being raised about the fact that there are minority groups that have been disenfranchised, and I don't suppose we're ever going to know the full story of everything that went on, or really who got what numbers of votes. But, I wonder © Grand Valley State University �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 6   if there is anything to that. Is it a fact that minority people were herded down to get registered and that they went to vote, and once they went there, they didn't really know what they were doing? That's a possibility, isn't it? And one shouldn't be too surprised about that. For whatever reason you might defend it or attack it today, the Electoral College originally was instituted in order to ensure that the elite would rule, and as a matter of fact, when the elite rules, things go better. For people like me, at least, they do. But, now, I wonder if there is anything to the claim that the poor and the marginalized were disenfranchised. Jesse Jackson says so. I don't like Jesse Jackson. I worry about the fact that I don't like him and I really ask myself, "Is it because he's black that you don't like him? Is it because he's black that your first response is negative?" I don't think it is; I think it's because of the curl of his lip and the shape of his moustache, but then, my mother didn't like my moustache, either. So, I have to say, when he comes on the screen, I don't want to hear him, and when he talks about a mass demonstration of minority folk on Martin Luther King's birthday in January, I say, "Jesse, we've just been through a rather strenuous period of time. Can't we get on with life? Can't you drop it? You're nothing but an opportunist, anyway. Why don't you just let it go?" And then, I realize that I'd jolly well like it to be let go. In fact, I wouldn't change anything if it were up to me, if nobody complained. If there wasn't somebody out there, a gadfly, an irritant, a revolutionary, with all of his flaws and all of his foibles, if there wasn't somebody agitating, I wouldn't do anything about the world. What can a white, male, heterosexual, powerful, affluent person do to capture something of Christmas? If I were a woman, I would use the revolutionary, ballads to get equal rights. If I were a person of homosexual orientation, I would use it in order to gain respect and dignity and be accepted just as a human being. But I'm on top of the heap. Any protest that changes anything is going to diminish my privileged position. How can I celebrate Christmas? Holiday cheer? Revel in my personal salvation? And then, these words from Rudy Wiebe. I don't know who he is, but I like what he wrote: Jesus says in his society there is a new way for people to live. You show wisdom by trusting people. You handle leadership by serving. You handle offenders by forgiving. You handle money by sharing. You handle enemies by loving. You handle violence by suffering. In fact, you have a new attitude toward everything, toward everybody, Toward nature, Toward the state in which you happen to live, Toward women, © Grand Valley State University �The Lost Cause of Christmas Richard A. Rhem Page 7   Toward slaves, Toward all and every single thing, Because this is a Jesus society and you repent, not by feeling bad, but by thinking different. Maybe the only way I can be honest with Christmas and honest to God is to work at thinking different. References: Richard Horsley and Neil Silberman. The Message and the Kingdom: How Jesus and Paul Ignited a Revolution and Transformed the Ancient World. Grosset & Dunlap, 1997. © 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 Advent III Scripture Text I Samuel 2:8, Luke 1:52-53 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI References Richard Horsley, Neil Silberman. The Message and the Kingdom: How Jesus and Paul Ignited a Revolution and Transformed the Ancient World, 1997. 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-0-20001217 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2000-12-17 Title A name given to the resource The Lost Cause of Christmas 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 December 17, 2000 entitled "The Lost Cause of Christmas", on the occasion of Advent III, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: I Samuel 2:8, Luke 1:52-53. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Advent Awareness Incarnation Intention https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/ac479f0e4568dbd04cf69def43e58dbb.jpg a0219ba0c89c16985570ab89ad689023 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. PS1085.B63 L6 1893 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_Bindings0296 Title A name given to the resource The Love Affairs of an Old Maid Description An account of the resource Binding of The Love Affairs of an Old Maid, by Lilian Bell, published by Harper and Brothers Publishers, 1893. 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 1893 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/a6bf36b4538b54149b42fd49f4298ad3.pdf 4d732d4dd1660be98b9df3fdcc22b20b PDF Text Text LOVE That Loves Us Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga Memorial Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8, 11, 13; I John 4: 7-8, 12, 16, 19; John 1:1-5, 14, 18 Richard A. Rhem Freedom Village, Holland, Michigan May 25, 2013 It is an honor and my privilege to conduct this service of worship and celebration of the life of Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga. I do so as family as much as pastor. When Margaret married Richard she married into a family of Mulders and Kruizengas who were, with a couple of other families, the core of the First Reformed Church of Spring Lake, Michigan. Dick’s parents were baptized on the same day in the First Reformed Church of Spring Lake and, I’m told, Dick’s father winked at his mother across the baptismal font and said, “She’s for me!” The tradition was also Margaret’s, coming, as she did, from Long Island and a Reformed congregation there which steered her to Hope College where she met her husband to be, a marriage of over 60 years. I mention my presence as family because, graduating from Western Seminary in 1960, I was extended a call to the Spring Lake congregation. In the first congregational meeting I ever conducted in the fall of 1960, Dick’s father, Richard J. Kruizenga, was elected once again an elder and proved an early formative influence on me. After a hiatus of seven years, having left for New Jersey and then Europe for post-graduate work, I returned for a visit with a very painful divorce ahead. Dick’s father, with consummate skill, succeeded in leading the congregation to extend a call to me even in the tenuous circumstances of my life at that time. In 1971 I began again in Spring Lake and from that time Dick’s father became a surrogate father to me. And in that almost impossible situation of assuming the pastorate of that fine congregation, divorcing with children 7, 9 and 11 for whom to care, it was primarily Dick’s sister Dorothy and her husband Gordon who “adopted” us and made it all possible. (Gordon is present with us; Dorothy died on the past New Year’s Day.) I relate this history because I want you to sense the personal meaning of this celebration to me. Over many years, Dick and Margaret would return to Spring Lake. I met them but didn’t really know them well until, in retirement, they were summer residents of Spring Lake and Grand Haven. Over these last years we have shared many happy occasions with them and were privileged to come to know their family. © Grand Valley State University   �LOVE That Loves Us Richard A. Rhem Page 2   From that history it is obvious that I did not know the Margaret Dick fell in love with, married and eventually traveled the world with. Even in retirement Margaret’s strength (She was no shrinking flower!), intelligence and acute engagement with current events were clear. She held strong opinions and was not reticent about expressing them. A time or two she straightened me out! But one comment in the Funeral Home Obituary Internet Site caught my eye and I determined I would share it with you because in brief, concise fashion I suspect Margaret could not receive a finer portrait. Her friend Nancy wrote: Margaret was a dear friend for many, many years – and remained so from all corners of the world. I met her when I was just out of college and she was a sophisticated New York wife, mother and world traveler. I always admired and looked up to her for her great taste, wit, intelligence and generosity. My love and thoughts are with her wonderful husband Dick and with Meg, Derek and families. Margaret will always have a special place in my heart. That is the one whose life we celebrate today – and yesterday – at the Ground Breaking for the Kruizenga Art Museum on Hope’s campus. My first serious encounter with Dick and Margaret was many years ago at the Spring Lake cemetery – a graveside service for their child Dwight, a special needs child. In her determined fashion, Margaret sought every possible means to give Dwight a normal childhood but ran into a wall; nothing in science, medicine or technology could bring her child to wholeness. I think it was at that critical juncture that she found in Christian Science spiritual resources that enabled her to cope with human impotence in face of deep human need. Her spiritual quest became her lifelong pursuit. She was serious, engaged and generous in her support of the Church of Christ, Scientist where she found a spiritual community. Through her leadership and support, the church in Irving, Texas, was transformed into a beautiful sacred space and she was very supportive of the church in Grand Haven as well. Margaret was seriously engaged in the spiritual quest for meaning, indeed, for the Sacred Mystery we call God. In the teaching of Christian Science she was pointed to God as Spirit, Mind, Love and the critical importance of prayer and meditation. The Scripture Lessons were chosen in light of Margaret’s spiritual quest. The familiar poetry of Ecclesiastes 3 moves to God has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. © Grand Valley State University �LOVE That Loves Us Richard A. Rhem Page 3   One whose knowledge of Hebrew far surpasses mine has rendered those lines thus: God has made everything beautiful in its own time and has put an eternal yearning in our hearts even as we live before the face of Mystery. An eternal yearning before the face of Mystery – my sense is that that might fit Margaret well. It is my sense that in her spiritual pursuit she came to rest in the God of Love – a central biblical teaching underscored in Christian Science – Divine Love come to expression in the life of Jesus. “No one has ever seen God,” declares the writer of the Fourth Gospel in his prologue to his story of Jesus decades after the event itself. But the eternal Word, Creation’s Agent, assumed flesh – humanity – and in that human face, the writer claims, God is revealed. Out of that Johannine Circle, also near the end of the first century as the early Christian community was trying to give expression to the Gospel, the writer of the First Letter of John picked up that statement from the Gospel – “No one has seen God.” For him as for the Gospel writer, the Mystery of God was revealed in Jesus. He opens his letter: We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. But then later in the letter he calls the community to love one another for “God is love.” He then repeats the acknowledgement of the Gospel – No one has ever seen God.” But he goes on to make a startling claim – If we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. He moves beyond the Gospel’s claim that God is revealed in Jesus – the Word made flesh – to the amazing claim that God is revealed in our love one for another. If we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. God is Love, Love known and experienced in our human love. The Hebrew poet sensed an eternal yearning as he lived before the face of Mystery. The writer of the First Letter of John read off the story of Jesus that God is Love. But not only that; God/LOVE is known/experienced in the concreteness of human love – as we love one another. © Grand Valley State University �LOVE That Loves Us Richard A. Rhem Page 4   The human quest for meaning, for some understanding of the mystery of being human, our whence, our whither, and what it means in the meantime is both ancient and contemporary. One of the greatest film directors of our time is Terrence Malick. He produced The Thin Red Line and more recently a film entitled The Tree of Life – a deeply spiritual film starring Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain. But last month To the Wonder came out, a film in which Malick reveals the deep human hunger and quest for what ultimately grounds us, forms us, calls us to communion. A reviewer writes, Ultimately, for Malick, the experience of falling in love grants us a glimpse of the divine – of a ‘LOVE that loves us.’ Humanity was made for God. And He is present all around us – in the transfiguring, wondrous joy of romantic love, in self-giving sacrifice, in our suffering and the suffering of others, in the charity we offer to those in pain, in the resplendent beauty of the natural world – if only we open our eyes to see Him. That, it seems, is Terrence Malick’s scandalous message….an ecstatic tribute to God. (Damon Linker) The film’s title says it all – “To the Wonder.” I find it fascinating that one of our contemporary film directors should with such artistry cause us to wonder – wonder about the Wonder that is God. In a three-way e-mail conversation in which I engage and, in this instance, about Malick’s “To the Wonder,” one wrote: In this context it makes a lot of sense to me that in wanting to speak redemptively about what grounds us in all that we are Malick wrestles with love as Love. In being Loved I know God and in loving I walk with God (Hendrick Hart) I entitled my meditation the LOVE that Loves Us – loves us into being, undergirds, overshadows ‘til finally we move through death to Eternal Light dwelling in the LOVE that loved us into being! God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Margaret believed that. In her final barely conscious moments she was bathed in it. I stood vigil with Dick. I witnessed his deep love in a final embrace and “I love you,” as well as the heavy grief he felt. Dick violated the Kruizenga canon against showing emotion! It was quite beautiful, moving. God is Love. LOVE loved her into being. Margaret believed that. Now she knows. © 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 Meditation for Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga Scripture Text Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 11, 13, I John 4:7-8, 12, 16, 19, John 1:1-5, 14 & 18 Location The location of the interview Freedom Village, Holland, Michigan 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-0-20130525 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-05-25 Title A name given to the resource The LOVE That Loves Us 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 Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on May 25, 2013 entitled "The LOVE That Loves Us", on the occasion of Meditation for Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga, at Freedom Village, Holland, Michigan. Scripture references: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 11, 13, I John 4:7-8, 12, 16, 19, John 1:1-5, 14 & 18. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Family Funeral Love Sacred Mystery Spiritual Quest https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/26d5c464febce8bb0f61d51eaab82f39.mp3 a254f791cea9e06c4ed86de2bbd96234 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 Passion Sunday Series The Way to Life Scripture Text Hosea 11:8-9, Romans 5:8 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-0-19860316 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1986-03-16 Title A name given to the resource The Love That Overcomes Estrangement 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 16, 1986 entitled "The Love That Overcomes Estrangement", as part of the series "The Way to Life", on the occasion of Passion Sunday, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Hosea 11:8-9, Romans 5:8. 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/b65b24d840554ca0bd080236a2f52dbd.mp3 db0e26e9462ec35c07a8f0d74a23b3ee 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 XXI Series One Covenant of Grace - the Salvation of the World Scripture Text Galatians 2:21 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-0-19871025 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1987-10-25 Title A name given to the resource The Lure of Legalism: Fallen from Grace 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 October 25, 1987 entitled "The Lure of Legalism: Fallen from Grace", as part of the series "One Covenant of Grace - the Salvation of the World", on the occasion of Pentecost XXI, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Galatians 2:21. 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/44f20a6203da0f1e58ebe5bb07d81352.pdf 0f12c33a8eaf01d8ca13459fdf17b5d8 PDF Text Text The Lure of Love: The Christmas Revelation I John 4: 7-9, 12, 16, 19; Luke 2: 1-14 Richard A. Rhem St. John’s Episcopal Church Grand Haven, Michigan Advent, December 19, 2010 I hardly know how to begin. I’ve pondered long over how to engage you with what I want to say. I think my struggle derives from the fact that what I want to say seems so obvious, so expected, so ordinary at Christmas – that God is love, that love came down at Christmas, that heaven touched earth with love at Christmas, that the Christmas story is love talk. What a story it is! A heavily pregnant teenager, unmarried, who had been visited by an angel, on an arduous journey with the faithful man to whom she was engaged. The story is so familiar – the crowded inn in which there was no room, the onset of labor pain, the cattle shed, the birth, the baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and laid in the manger – the star, the angel chorus, the shepherds, the adoration. A beautiful story; a lovely story that never fails to touch us deeply. And as many years as we have celebrated it in pageant and song and worship, it never loses its power to move us. For a brief season the world becomes a softer place. God is love. The writer of the letter of First John said it just that way. In John’s Gospel the familiar John 3: 16 tells us God so loved the world…, but I John 4:8 states it straight out – God is love. I wonder if that isn’t so familiar that we don’t hear it. Or, perhaps, we think of God loving us, the world, whatever, but how often do we really take in the straightforward statement that God is love. And, I suspect, even more rarely do we contemplate what that means for the world, for creation and history, its process and destiny. Let me state my theme clearly: The Christmas revelation is precisely that God is love. And that I would claim is a radical affirmation. If God is love then the source, ground and goal of reality, of all being, is love and it is the lure of love that moves creation from planets and stars to people and particles in the cosmic dance. Love is the originating fount, the dynamic of the emerging process and the final destiny of being. It would have been quite another revelation if God’s presence had been marked by blinding power, scattering Rome’s legions and establishing a Divine Potentate © Grand Valley State University   �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 2   to rule with a rod of iron. As a matter of fact John the Baptist hoped for such a display of God’s power – the power of the righteous Ruler of the universe. In the Gospels as well there are apocalyptic moments which claim to be from Jesus but which scholars now question, seeing them as reflecting the continuing apocalyptic movement in the early Jesus movement. So we must recognize that the New Testament itself is not consistent. Still we have that central core – The Word became flesh and the flesh was the flesh of a child born in deep humility and obscurity, in poverty and peril. Is that the sign of the presence of God? Is this one Immanuel – God with us? Then what is revealed of God? God is love in all the vulnerability and precariousness of love. Is that the way you think of God? Is that the God you worship, to whom you pray? I raise those questions because I have become quite overwhelmed with the disconnect between the Christmas revelation of God whose only mode of operation is the lure of love and our more traditional description of God using the Latin Prefix omni meaning “all”– omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent – oh, that is one of our favorites isn’t it? Almighty God! Don’t we really want the God on our side to be almighty! In his Gifford Lectures of 1927-28, Alfred North Whitehead, one of the profound thinkers of the 20th century pointed out how the Christian movement, adopted by the Roman Empire, lost “the brief Galilean vision of humility” and, he claims, “the Church gave unto God the attributes which belonged exclusively to Caesar.” (Process and Reality, p. 519). I can’t imagine a more concise statement of how the revelation of God in the birth of a child was turned into its opposite – a God of imperial power ruling with might. And yet we can never feel comfortable with the God of power and might; we have a deep intuition that the Christmas revelation is true and, annually as we make our journey to Bethlehem, we know it is so. We are moved anew; we are touched in the depths of our being. Love is the creative center of Being, of reality, and love is the most potent force in the world – the lure of love beckons us to love and offer our lives to build a world where love prevails. As we survey the human historical record, the brief Galilean vision of the Christmas child become an agent of grace, of healing and compassion, flickers pathetically in light of the brutal power moves of the caesars of this world. And yet that light has never been extinguished and over the long haul the world is moving toward more peaceful existence. If we look simply at the present, there is reason enough to despair and it seems positive movement is so painfully slow. It is tempting to yield to depression and grow bitter with cynicism. But, if we take © Grand Valley State University �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 3   the long-range view over aeons of time, surely there is a movement toward the light, toward a more humane world, a world at peace. Oh, perhaps you are thinking, “He has had too much Christmas eggnog.” Perhaps you think I’ve ceased reading the news or watching the evening news. Not so; I am sorely tempted to despair when I see the continuing tragic chess game of the world powers, jockeying for dominance, jockeying for natural resources, jockeying for theaters of control. I’m quite aware that we are at war in situations where our military leadership itself tells us the solution cannot be found militarily. I know we are as a nation in the grip of a military-industrial dominance that is secured in place by special interest; that we are becoming a plutocracy – with government by wealth for wealth; that we are polluting our earth and fouling the air – in a word, I am not unaware of the peril in which we find ourselves presently and I am not naïve to think suddenly one will arise with a magic wand. But this too I know: two thousand years ago much of what we speak of as “the West” was ruled by imperial power and actually a rather advanced governing power – the Roman Empire. We can’t be certain of the details of the Christmas story – perhaps the edict of Caesar Augustus, the journey to Bethlehem were just that – story, to convey the connection of an ancient promise about the birth of one from the tree of Jesse, to be born in Bethlehem, with the birth of Jesus. Nonetheless, a child was born in poverty and obscurity and that child has changed the face of the earth and transformed the human story. The mighty Empire whose edicts moved the masses under its domination eventually crucified that child that was born in Bethlehem. He had grown to maturity at a restless time in that ancient world. Apocalypticism – hopes and fears of the end of the world – was widespread. He came under the influence of a preacher named John who baptized him and he too sensed a call to call his people to repentance and faith in the God of that covenant faith. And then something happened. He sensed God calling him to bring another message – a message of grace and healing. He moved north to Galilee and created in Whitehead’s words that “brief Galilean vision”, a vision of grace and healing and compassion. Returning to Jerusalem for the observance of Passover his popularity preceded him. Empire and Temple conspired together; he was crucified and there was darkness at noon. Ironically we call that Friday “Good”; the darkest day on the human calendar we call “Good”. Perhaps because that darkness was soon dispersed by the light of Easter – the most joyful, triumphal celebration on the Christian calendar follows hard on the heels of the darkest moment on our Christian world calendar. That’s why the Fourth Gospel relates the coming of that one into the world as the dawning of Light – light the world has never nor will ever extinguish. The eternal Word or Intention of God became enfleshed in our world history and there was grace and truth. Oh, a light too bright, a truth too telling and so the powers that © Grand Valley State University �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 4   be thought to extinguish the Light by crucifying the one who embodied grace and truth that exposed their schemes of domination and brutal control. But it didn’t work, you see, for we continue to tell the story. Once every year we return to Bethlehem and the world becomes a softer place. Once every year we go to Calvary and feel the darkness and then wait for the dawning of Easter light. You see that Light will never be extinguished; that movement from the death of crucifixion to the triumph of resurrection is the last word. And do you know why that is the case? Is it not what we are celebrating yet again? Is it not because of what we have learned at the Manger – that the presence of God in our history is, as it were, the presence of a child – vulnerable, precarious, defenseless – telling us in the revelation of Christmas that God is love. God is love. Do you sense the radical claim we make thus? How can we get beyond all the sentimental accretions to the word Love? As I began I said, “If God is love then the source, ground and goal of reality, of all being, is love and it is the lure of love that moves creation from planets and stars to people and particles.” What does that mean? Let me suggest a possibility. Might it not mean that the creative source and center of being, of the whole of reality is love and that love keeps on giving, sustaining in existence the whole cosmic drama and will do so until love has overcome all resistance and the Kingdom of God,of love, prevails. When will that be? We don’t know for there is no predestined plan – contrary to my Calvinist forbears. Love does not control; it simply gives and gives again on behalf of the other while it is in the hands of the other to receive and secure the triumph of love or reject and seal love’s tragedy. W. H. Vanstone, an Anglican priest, writes profoundly on this matter in his work, Love’s Endeavor, Love’s Expense (1977): The power which love gives to the other is power to determine the issue of love – its completion or frustration, its triumph or tragedy. This is the vulnerability of authentic love – that it surrenders to the other power over its own issue, power to determine the triumph or the tragedy of love. The vulnerability of God means that the issue of His love as triumph or tragedy depends upon His creation. There is given to the creation the power to determine the love of God as either triumphant or tragic love. This power may be called ‘power of response’: upon the response of the creation the love of God depends for its triumph or its tragedy. ( p. 67) But, in the straightforward words of St. Paul, “Love never ends.” In face of every tragic rejection, love seeks out another way to overcome resistance and alienation. Love never ends. © Grand Valley State University �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 5   Do you suspect I am sniffing some happy drug? No, I’m serious. Love will prevail. Think about it; two thousand years ago would anyone have believed a child born in obscurity and poverty would transform the world? One of the great accomplishments by which the Roman Empire kept the empire in hand was the Roman road system. But by land or sea, how long did it take to move from Rome to Jerusalem? And yet the Christmas child of Bethlehem rocked that empire and has forever changed life on earth. What might Jesus have accomplished with a smart phone or a Blackberry! I’m not sure what you think of Julian Assange – well, I bet I do know! Nonetheless, whether he is a serious idealist or a dangerous anarchist, he has the empires of the world as worried as was Rome about Jesus. We are told we need the cover of secrecy to make the world work – no transparency allowed because we really don’t want our scheming and conniving and manipulating exposed to the light of day. The world doesn’t work that way! But it will one day. Because from the creative core of reality love will find a way and it will never quit until there is peace on earth, human wellbeing, global community – until the nations beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; until nation shall not lift up sword against nation, and neither shall they learn war any more. Love will not quit until the wolf and the lamb feed together and they shall not hurt or destroy in all God’s holy mountain. Why am I so certain? Is it not because every year as we journey again to Bethlehem we really know it is true? Do we not know deep down that it is true? Love is the ultimate truth, the one cosmic absolute – our hearts tell us so. We have the concrete instance of Jesus. Who would have believed it? Who would have wagered that that one solitary life would have greater impact than all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the kings that ever ruled or parliaments that ever sat? It happened because the love of God found a willing envoy. Jeremy Rifkin has written a thick volume entitled The Empathic Civilization in which he traces the course of human development to the present in which he challenges the long-held assumption that human beings are by nature aggressive, materialistic, utilitarian, and self-interested. He opens this large study with the scene on Flander’s Field on Christmas Eve, 1914. Hellish conditions prevailed. German and English troops were dug in in trenches only 30-50 yards from each other. © Grand Valley State University �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 6   The trenches were waterlogged. Soldiers shared their quarters with rats and vermin. Lacking adequate latrines, the stench of human excrement was everywhere. The men slept upright to avoid the mud and sludge of their makeshift arrangements. Dead soldiers littered the no-man’s-land between opposing forces, the bodies left to rot and decompose within yards of their still-living comrades who were unable to collect them for burial. As dusk fell over the battlefields, something extraordinary happened. The Germans began lighting candles on the thousands of small Christmas trees that had been sent to the front to lend some comfort to the men. The German soldiers then began to sing Christmas carols – first “Silent Night,” then a stream of other songs followed. The English soldiers were stunned. One soldier, gazing in disbelief at the enemy lines, said the blazed trenches looked “like the footlights of a theater.” The English solders responded with applause, at first tentatively, then with exuberance. They began to sing Christmas carols back to their German foes to equally robust applause. A few men from both sides crawled out of their trenches and began to walk across the no-man’s-land toward each other. Soon hundreds followed. As word spread across the front, thousands of men poured out of their trenches. They shook hands, exchanged cigarettes and cakes and showed photos of their families. They talked about where they hailed from reminisced about Christmases past, and joked about the absurdity of war. The next morning, as the Christmas sun rose over the battlefield of Europe, tens of thousands of men – some estimates put the number as high as 100,000 soldiers – talked quietly with one another. Enemies just twenty-four hours earlier, they found themselves helping each other bury their dead comrades. More than a few pickup soccer matches were reported. Even officers at the front participated, although when the news filtered back to the high command in the rear, the generals took a less enthusiastic view of the affair. Worried that the truce might undermine military morale, the generals quickly took measures to rein in their troops. (pp. 5-6) Fascinating true story. That’s what Christmas does to us because it is true and deep down in our being we know it is true. Fortunately for the old world order of empires there were level-headed generals there who put an end to it before the Christmas truce might undermine military morale. Thus the war went on until November 1918, accounting for 8.5 million military deaths. But it was a sign. © Grand Valley State University �The Lure of Love Richard A. Rhem Page 7   God is love – that is the Christmas revelation and the day is coming when that love signed in the child will prevail – Next year? Next century? Next millennium? No one knows but surely it will come for at the creative core of Being we are being lured by love and love will prevail; God will prevail and All will be well, All will be well, All manner of things will be well. Reference: Jeremy Rifkin. The Empathic Civilization: The Race to Global Consciousnes in a World in Crisis. New York: The Penguin Group, 2009. © 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 Advent Evensong Scripture Text I John 4:7-9, 12, 16, 19, Luke 2:1-14 Location The location of the interview St. John's Episcopal Church, Grand Haven References Jeremy Rifkin. The Empathic Civilization, 2009. 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-0-20101219 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2010-12-19 Title A name given to the resource The Lure of Love: The Christmas Revelation 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 Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on December 19, 2010 entitled "The Lure of Love: The Christmas Revelation", on the occasion of Advent Evensong, at St. John's Episcopal Church, Grand Haven. Scripture references: I John 4:7-9, 12, 16, 19, Luke 2:1-14. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives A Humane World God Revealed as Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/83facdebde0d21920172dcf9c1cf1dce.pdf 639e568d0ead7885d5858d339b63249d PDF Text Text The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Summer Social Gathering Richard A. Rhem The Spring Lake Country Club Spring Lake, Michigan August 27, 2006 On this, another social gathering, I want to say what a pleasure it has been to be with you on these summer evenings, and to thank you for giving me an opportunity to reflect on my life and ministry from the perspective of my retirement. For the first time in that two-year period, I have been stimulated to think about my journey from the deep Christian formation of my childhood and youth to the unabashed posture of a critical thinking intellectual of open and liberal mind and spirit. That is the identity I would claim for myself. Critical Thinking - We live in a cultural period named Post-Modern which is a designation that means simply "after the Modern," and conveys the fact that we don't really know what to call the present. Post-Modern thinkers criticize the Modern Period - the Enlightenment over-confidence in human rationality to master the Mystery of reality. However, one of my best teachers, Hans Küng, wrote in one of his earlier works that the one mark of modernity that we must never lose is critical rationality, the exercise of human intelligence, of human reason, in the pursuit of the human project. Intellectual -I remember so vividly the Sunday the great New Testament scholar, Bishop Krister Stendahl, preached at Christ Community and spoke at the Perspectives hour. He said, "I am an unabashed intellectual." I loved it and began at that point to own the designation for myself. There are intellectuals and there are intellectuals, and I have no illusions about being in the "Intellectual Big Leagues." Nonetheless, I do value the life of the mind, the world of ideas and the intellectual probing of new frontiers of the human experience. Being a pastor first of all, I did not have the luxury of the scholarly life of reading, reflection and writing. Yet, in the tasks of preaching and teaching, I was always fascinated by the intellectual task of understanding - understanding the biblical story, the theological tradition and their application to ongoing human experience. Of Open and Liberal Mind and Spirit. My last presentation traced my movement to a liberal posture - liberal of mind and spirit. Let me pick up the story there, reminding you that being liberal is not a position, but a posture. It is not a creedal position or even a religious commitment, nor is it a political platform. It has to do with the open mind operating with critical © Grand Valley State University   �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 2   rationality that engages religious/cultural/moral and political issues, seeking understanding in order to forge commitments and action intended for the enhancement of the human situation - ultimately for creating a global community rooted in love, marked by grace - in a word, the realization of the Hebrew prophets' magnificent vision of Shalom - peace as total harmony. The Vision The vision of Shalom - of a new creation - comes to expression in various prophetic writings in the Hebrew tradition. I refer you to two, one from Isaiah, the great 8th century, B.C.E., prophet, in Chapter 11, which begins with the idea of "a shoot" from "the stump of Jesse," and Chapter 65 of Isaiah, a writing from a later prophet during the Exile looking to the Return. We need not debate the conception of God as the sovereign of history, nor the fact that the vision was not realized in the Exile's return and which, in the present violent chaos of the Middle East, seems farther from realization than ever. The vision ends: They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. There was in the human mind and heart over two and a half millennia ago such a vision. I find that most remarkable. It remains a dream in the human breast while our whole understanding of cosmic reality and the action of God in history has been radically transformed. That transformation has come about by the emergence of the scientific breakthroughs through the empirical method, applied by critical reason to the study of the natural world. And that transformation has been fought at every new breakthrough by religious authority and, unfortunately, such fighting still marks much of the religious world. Such opposition is futile and fruitless and has caused much of the intellectual community to write off the religious community as hopelessly benighted. In the epic struggle of science and religion, there have been scholars on the scientific side who have claimed more than their empirical investigations can justify, denying the whole realm of religious mystery and experience. One such is Francis Crick, who, in his The Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the Soul, writes, The astonishing hypothesis is that "you," your joys and your sorrows, your memories and your ambitions, your sense of personal identity and free will, are in fact no more than the behavior of a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules. As Lewis Carroll's Alice might have phrased it: "You're nothing but a pack of neurons ..." The scientific belief is that our minds - the behavior of our brains - can be explained by the interactions of nerve cells (and other cells) and the molecules associated with them, (p. 3, 7) Crick claims this position stands in contrast with "The religious concept of a soul, and puts science in a head-on contradiction to the religious belief of billions of human beings alive today." © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 3   "A head-on contradiction ..." indeed, and it rages still. But, is that impasse the only possibility? I contend it is not and will attempt to offer an alternative possibility. In doing so, I do not claim to be proposing something new and original, but rather, what many scholars both in science and religion have proposed. The Wonder of the Cosmos The scientific endeavor is never finished, but what we have learned about the natural world takes our breath away. We stand in wonder and awe before the unfolding of the cosmic dance - an unfolding we are told that has been in process for over 13 billion years. And space! Can we begin to comprehend the thought of an expanding universe of billions of light years, of billions of stars and galaxies and, some would claim, parallel universes? Mind-boggling beyond my capacity to take in. At its best, the scientific enterprise continues to probe, recognizing, as the great Einstein claimed, it is probing Mystery, with each new breakthrough bringing forth fresh questions, creating models, carrying on experiments which bring forth more data that, in turn, call for new paradigms. It is a wonder-full drama with no necessity to threaten religious reality, although certainly necessitating adjustment of ancient forms of religious belief. To resist the ongoing march of scientific discovery, as indicated above, is futile and foolish and it robs one of the freedom to revel in amazement at the natural order into which our lives are woven. Rather, in my experience, it is inspiring to take in the natural world to the extent possible and then re-think the possibilities of religious response in light of what is. So, where are we? We have a marvelous vision of Shalom from the ancient prophet, expressed in a worldview and conception of God which the natural sciences and historical consciousness make necessary to revise. Let me attempt to portray the ongoing development of human understanding by reminding you of my own journey which I think many of you have traversed, as well. That journey consists of three stages: The Pre-Critical The Critical The Post-Critical In my first presentation, I told you of my whole academic experience through high school, college and seminary which left me in a pre-critical stage, unable and unwilling to think critically as I held to and taught the biblical story in terms of the ancient biblical worldview. I was defensive of that worldview, took it literally, and was threatened by all knowledge to the contrary. But, alas, finally I could no longer deny that my deeply formed and very rigid understanding of the biblical paradigm could no longer be held with integrity. In the words of Alfred Lord Tennyson, © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 4   Our little systems have their day, they have their day and cease to be. They are but broken lights of Thee, and Thou, O Lord, art more than they. It must be obvious that being deeply formed in a pre-critical mindset in a world exploding with data that could not be incorporated into that pre-modern understanding of God, nature and history put one in a very uncomfortable position - constantly threatened, always on the defensive and wondering what the next breakthrough in the sciences might reveal. Finally, my "little system" broke and I was ready to open myself to the best of human knowledge and understanding. Intellectual honesty, I realized, was also a spiritual matter. I wanted to know the truth and tell the truth to the extent that was possible for me. Thus, I entered the next phase of my life and ministry - the critical phase - a phase that lasted for me about thirty years, during which I was preaching and teaching, thinking, reading and writing. My move into the critical stage was never marked by a "loss of faith" or a negative spirit over against my Christian faith. During those three decades, I was being a pastor and living out of a deep faith that was undergoing considerable revision, but never overthrown. I lived out the experience that Gary Dorrien, in his Making of the American Liberal Theology, documents. I find his definition of the Liberal movement and his high valuation of it precisely my experience. He defines the Liberal movement thus: In accord with my concept of it as a movement that began in the late eighteenth century, I define liberal theology primarily by its original character as a mediating Christian movement. Liberal Christian theology is a tradition that derives from the late-eighteenth and early nineteenthcentury Protestant attempt to reconceptualize the meaning of traditional Christian teaching in the light of modern knowledge and modern ethical values. It is not revolutionary but reformist in spirit and substance. Fundamentally it is the idea of a genuine Christianity not based on external authority. Liberal theology seeks to reinterpret the symbols of traditional Christianity in a way that creates a progressive religious alternative to atheistic rationalism and to theologies based on external authority. (Vol. I, p. XXIII) It took me a long time to work out the question of biblical authority and I can trace the gradual movement in my understanding. But, the mediating function of the liberal approach was obvious to me, once my infallible, inerrant scripture eroded and my conservative biblical paradigm collapsed. I spent the Fall Term in 1983 at the University of Michigan with Professor Hans Küng, who was deeply engaged at the time in his work on paradigm change in theology. A book of great impact, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962), by Thomas S. Kuhn, had, in the words of one commentator, made clear that © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 5   science is not the steady, cumulative acquisition of knowledge that is portrayed in the textbooks. Rather, it is a series of peaceful interludes punctuated by intellectually violent revolutions ... in each of which, one conceptual world view is replaced by another ... The book was enlarged in a second edition in 1970. Küng charted the course of paradigm shifts in theological development from the earliest centuries much as Kuhn did for the unfolding scientific worldviews in which he showed how, in the scientific revolutions, one worldview is replaced by another. Kuhn documented how the scientist takes the data available and builds a model or a paradigm. Further data comes to light that doesn't fit into the prevailing paradigm and it is resisted, but finally more data is accumulated and the prevailing paradigm is rejected, its data and the new data of discovery are combined into a new paradigm that can accommodate all the data available at that time. Küng documented a similar movement in theological conception except, in the religious community, there were always groups that perpetuated a given paradigm despite the ever-evolving knowledge of the cosmic story and scientific understanding. Out-of-date worldviews are manifold in religious worldviews. But, this is where the Liberal movement comes in - no longer willing or able to deny the explosion of knowledge provided by the natural and social sciences, the liberal Christian thinkers were open to scientific breakthroughs and, with continuing commitment to their Christian faith and experience, sought to distinguish the faith from the worldviews in which it came to expression. Thus, there was revision of much biblical conceptuality and the faith that came to expression in the ancient worldview was set free from the ancient forms in which it was expressed. This was the mediating function of the liberal movement - the use of critical reason to understand the data of scientific discovery and the discernment of Christian faith that was wrapped in now outdated worldviews that had to be abandoned in light of new discovery. This process which marked the Liberal movement and continues to be its finest gift to Christian faith is a process I have gone through, as indicated above, and let me acknowledge it is scary and sometimes painful. One wonders if one's faith will dissolve, leaving one without the source of one's meaning, hope and comfort. And, it can be costly! Hans Küng, in 1983, had just learned that the German Bishop, Joseph Ratzinger, presently Pope, had passed on Rome's decree that the theology courses Küng taught at Tubingen would no longer be credited for those studying for the priesthood. To read Küng's Memoirs is to realize the risk one takes as one seeks to bring one's Christian understanding into accord with one's understanding of the knowledge available in all the disciplines of human learning. Yet, once one sees one's faith as distinct from the conceptual framework in which it first came to expression, and once one opens one's mind to the knowledge of the natural and social sciences, there is no "going home." And so one must move through the Critical stage, testing everything, ruling out no question, claiming no privilege of "the eyes of faith" in one's inquiry. © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 6   The Critical phase is both necessary and dissatisfying for one deeply formed in the conservative biblical paradigm as I was. It is an anxiety-ridden experience; one wonders where one will end up. But I was fortunate in that I had time to read and think and write sermons. And, I took a cadre of folk with me in Wednesday evening classes where we probed the questions and read significant scholarly works. And along the way, there were cumulative experiences. I've already mentioned the semester with Küng. And, in the early 90s, the exposure to the Jewish community, involvement with the Jewish-Christian committee, and the inter-faith experience was very significant for me. Perhaps the most significant endeavor for me was serving on the Board of Editors of Perspectives, a journal of Reformed theology intended to stimulate theological dialogue in the Reformed Church. In the writing of several essays, I began to focus the new understanding I had been gaining in my reading and reflection. In these years 1985-95, I brought into sharp focus the results of my critical inquiry of the previous years post-Europe. I won't trace the development of my thinking here, but simply point out that by the mid-90s, the Muskegon Classis challenged my theological position, determining I was outside the pale of Reformed theology and, with the congregation, I moved out of the RCA to independency. I experienced freedom - a freedom I did not know I did not have while engaging in my critical testing of my theological understanding while still in the ordained ministry of the RCA. Now I was finally free to follow the consequences of years of critical investigation. Declaring our independence in 1996, by 1999 I had moved into a Post-Critical stage. But, before I go there, I must mention that my understanding of the nature and function of religion was changing. This change came about as I got involved in inter-religious dialogue, as well as experiencing firsthand the deeply religious life of one who called himself a Religious Naturalist - Dr. Duncan Littlefair. I saw in him the celebration of the wonder, miracle, joy and glory of life, lived out in a life of worship and the wonder of all creation and the human being. These concrete life experiences were life-changing for me. I wonder if we ever really change, if we are ever transformed in any other way than through encounter and concrete experience. I had to rethink the phenomenon of religion itself, all knowledge to the contrary. One of the significant scholars whose work we studied was Gordon Kaufman, who had recently retired from Harvard. His In Face of Mystery was a great "revelation" for me, especially his claim that religion is a human creative construct. Tracing the development of the human from earliest beginnings, he showed how the religious dimension developed and I found his explanation compelling. I came to understand how religion played a significant role in human development, beginning within clans and tribes as the means to explain the natural phenomena experienced, to seek security and harmony with the Ultimate Mystery, eventuating in 800-600 BCE in the great religious traditions that arose simultaneously in what is called the First Axial Period. Informed by such an understanding, I came to see religious truth, not as a series of creedal propositions containing absolute truth, but as sacred story lived out in © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 7   life-forming fashion through prayer, ritual and moral living. The story was celebrated in music and sacred dance and worship. And, as Karen Armstrong has claimed, at the heart of all the great religions is the call to compassion. Understanding the nature and function of religion thus, I realized exclusivism was a hangover of tribalism and, for me, the theology of religion pointed to pluralism as the only reasonable conclusion. This, too, was freeing; with absolutism and exclusivism removed, I was able to go back to my own story, the biblical story and my Christian faith - no longer needing to defend or convince or argue, but simply search out again its depth and meaning, its wisdom and its teaching as to the meaning of human existence before the Face of the Sacred Mystery we call God. I had entered fully the post-critical stage where I could see the whole grand story and tradition as for the first time - and loving it now, not as the only way, truth and life, but as my way, my truth, my life. No need now to prove anything; rather, I could live fully in the human world, open to the wonder and miracle of the universe, trusting that all Being was grounded in an Ultimate Mystery that was the creative, enlivening source of all that is. An Ultimate Mystery who is lifegiving, as seen in the cosmic drama that has been emerging with life to the point at which the human can trace the process of billions of years and stand in awe of it all, giving voice in praise and adoration. Emergence has become a key concept for me as I survey the whole cosmic drama - the gradual unfolding of the universe issuing, at this point in the process, in creatures such as we are. Emergence I understand as a model I create in place of the ancient Genesis story with its profound mythical story, and I propose emergence because I can hear all the data available from cosmology in its present state and see it as the emerging reality that has come to this point without feeling any threat to my religious being. In other words, I can receive the latest and best knowledge and then think about it religiously in terms of my biblical story. And here I find a fascinating point of connection. In John's Gospel the prologue begins In the beginning was the Word ... In Greek, "word" is logos, a philosophical term that points to the divine intention in Creation. The prologue reminds us of Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God... And then in verse 14, The word became flesh ..., a reference to Jesus as the human incarnation of the Divine Intention. Then in verse 18, an interesting statement, No one has ever seen God, followed by the claim that Jesus, the Word made flesh, has made God known. This, of course, is the Christian understanding of Jesus as the embodiment of God in human being - The Christian understanding of Incarnation. God become Human. Translating that into Emergence conceptuality, I would say that the cosmic process emanating from the Creative Source, the Ultimate Mystery, has evolved to a point where that Infinite Mystery emerged in human form. © Grand Valley State University �The Magnificent Vision of Shalom Richard A. Rhem Page 8   Stating it differently, the Infinite is now revealed in finite form - the human - and the human, in the image of the Infinite, is the emergent form of that Infinite Ground - thus, the deep yearning for God in the human being. This whole idea is given a further and profound development in the First Epistle of John, chapter 4. In verse 7, we are called to love one another because love is from God, and "God is love." Then the phrase from the Gospel, 1:18, is repeated, No one has ever seen God. But, then a significant development of the idea of incarnation is added: If we love one another, God lives in us, and God's love is perfected in us. A few lines later, the same claim is made. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. If we put all this together, we have a theological model which is in harmony with an emerging cosmic drama whose Creative Source, God, is understood as Love and whose presence in the cosmos is experienced in human love, the human being the embodiment of the infinite creative Ground of Being. The cosmos becomes conscious in the human and love is the highest expression of cosmic reality - love that gathers all into harmony, the only possibility for Shalom, the ancient prophets' vision. And where do we see such love lived out? In our biblical story, we see it concretely come to expression in Jesus, in whom the cycle of violence was broken, who counseled, "Love your enemies," and whose non-violent resistance to imperial power and political expediency brought him to the violent death by crucifixion. Jesus, who was true to his own teaching as he died, prayed Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing. Other religious traditions teach and encourage positive human values and contain profound insights, having guided generations in their respective "ways." I need not denigrate another tradition. I need not claim I have fully grasped the deepest insights of the biblical story, nor claim I have embodied the way, the truth and the life as it came to expression in Jesus. But, it is enough for me that that story, that life in which I have been nurtured, which I have preached, challenges, inspires and enables me to realize my full humanity. And I believe that in that “Way, Truth and Life” lies the hope for a human future - the realization of the vision of Shalom. References: Francis Crick. The Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the Soul, 1994. Scribner reprint edition, 1995. © 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 Summer Social Gathering Location The location of the interview Spring Lake Country Club References Francis Crick. The Astonishing Hypothesis: The Scientific Search for the Soul, 1994. Gary Dorrien. The Making of the American Liberal Theology, Vol. 2, 2003. 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-0-20060827 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2006-08-27 Title A name given to the resource The Magnificent Vision of Shalom 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 Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on August 27, 2006 entitled "The Magnificent Vision of Shalom", on the occasion of Summer Social Gathering, at Spring Lake Country Club . Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives God as Love Paradigm Shift PostModern Shalom https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/652a2e0f38138c10e17ff262e8cc0d65.pdf e2e2e005e79611c0d8bf98d299f22f1e PDF Text Text The Making of a Liberal Sunday Evening Social Richard A. Rhem Spring Lake Country Club Spring Lake, Michigan August 6, 2006 Prepared text for talk It is wonderful to see you and to be with you again. I was delighted with the first social gathering – it was electric – hugs and tears and laughter: a great combination! As I indicated then, I was a bit embarrassed that so many came to hear my story, but then realized that was what was advertised so you came anyway. Then Tom Hammond clarified the situation for me when he assured me that the reason this community gathers is not because of the address but rather to meet one another – and I know he was teasing me, but he was also correct. Being together with such a community is a rich experience worth enduring sermons poor and poorer. Some of you have told me you know my story and the first presentation didn’t bring anything new. Let me say I know some of you know my story well, but my decision to go over it again was not to tell it one more time but to tell it for the first time from the place to which I’ve come and the present understanding I have. My story, as all of our stories, is particular but in the particular there lies the universal and it is the universal aspects that interest me – not just for myself, but for all of us. I hope my reflection can be a catalyst for you to reflect on your own story, bringing to awareness where you are and why you are where you are. To live with awareness and intentionality is a great gift – awareness of why we are passionate about some questions, why we react strongly in some situations, why some things simply don’t touch us or move us. The process about which I’m speaking involves increasingly bringing to consciousness that vast underground sea of the unconscious. I’m no expert here but I know that there are depths in us that erupt or seep through, fashioning our attitudes and determining our actions. The more I am aware of how I act and react in any given situation, the more I will live with self-understanding and selfknowledge. Why am I moved, or not, by religious experience; why am I a Christian – a conservative Christian or a liberal Christian; why am I a Republican or Democrat; © Grand Valley State University   �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 2   why do I feel as I do about Israel, the Middle East – Iraq, Iran, Hamas, Palestinians, and so on… It is with such questions in mind, with such a search, that I go over my story from the present perspective. And I do so for my own understanding but, more importantly here, to trigger a similar process in you, because such a process renders great riches and enhances our lives. The fascinating question for me revolves around the relationship of my early nurture and my educational experience. As I reported last week, high academic achievement throughout my schooling, yet, at age 25, I was not an educated person in terms of critical thinking and critical analysis. What would I have gained from a more open nurturing? Yet, when my system broke, I never felt adrift from God, rudderless, or despondent. When the dogmatic structure imploded, was it the deep nurturing that enabled me to stand amidst the failed system? And how about you? Have you mapped your journey? Not everyone experiences a crisis of faith and identity but I did – a total swing from absolutism to critical rationality and provisionalism. That is where I find myself at this point in my life – knowing my values, beliefs, commitments are choices I make without absolute certainty and without verifiable proofs. I hope in my third presentation to detail some of the fundamental choices I have made and the fundamental trust with which I live. But let me pick up the story where I left off in my first presentation: I have settled in the Netherlands enrolled in the doctoral program at the University of Leiden under the direction of Professor Hendrikus Berkhof. As I have indicated, a recent re-reading of Gary Dorrien’s The Making of American Liberal Theology, Vol. II, brought me to a sharp awareness that I had never studied or been aware of the theological development in this country and yet it was a remarkable tradition. I had, however, studied in depth the liberal development in Europe. That development looks to Friedrich Schleiermacher as the Father of the Liberal Theological movement. The orthodox Christian faith was seriously challenged in the late 18th century. The rise of the natural sciences employing the scientific method of empirical investigation and the rise of historical consciousness in the 19th century were the major challenges to the dogmatic structure of Christian faith, both in its Catholic and Protestant expressions. The culture of the European universities were not at all sympathetic to religion and, specifically, not to Christian faith. Schleiermacher, at age 29 in 1797, wrote On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultural Despisers, a title that speaks volumes. He was part of the cultural elite but felt © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 3   totally isolated from his contemporaries. His “Speeches” were his attempt to give expression to his own deepest truth. In the first speech he acknowledges no authority beyond his own thought and experience. Why then, as I am fully conscious that in all I have to say to you I entirely belie my profession, should I not acknowledge it like any other accident? Its prepossessions shall in no way hinder us. Neither in asking nor in answering shall the limits it holds sacred be valid between us. As a man I speak to you of the sacred secrets of mankind according to my views – of what was in me as with youthful enthusiasm I sought the unknown, of what since then I have thought and experienced, of the innermost springs of my being which shall forever remain for me the highest, however I be moved by fear. Nor is it done from any caprice or accident. Rather it is the pure necessity of my nature; it is a divine call; it is that which determines my position in the world and makes me what I am. Wherefore, even if it were neither fitting nor prudent to speak of religion, there is something which compels me and represses with its heavenly power all those small considerations Let me be clear. As I arrived in Leiden at age 32, I was nowhere near the wisdom and insight of Schleiermacher. My foundations were crumbling and my systematic theological scheme was faltering but I was not yet able to diagnose my dilemma. Even so, I begin with Schleiermacher because I now realize that the task he set for himself was precisely what I have been engaged in for over 30 years – for me a long, arduous journey toward freedom – the freedom to wonder, critique and change. It was right here in Spring Lake that this drama took place during the years 1971 to 2004. I remember vividly my return here in 1971. I was not sure I had anything to preach or if I could lead the worship service. I had been in Europe for four years, having preached twice: once in The Hague and once in Antwerp. I chose a dissertation subject that was just breaking with most of the work in German philosophical theology that was heavy indeed but the focus – the question of whether there are traces of God’s action within history that were discernible – was my question. The discussion centered in the resurrection of Jesus – a subject that had not been seriously considered in German theology for over a century. I was full of that discussion and had written the first chapter when I felt it necessary to return to the States to check on my children who had left with their mother on July 1, 1970. My whole domestic situation at the time would take a chapter to portray and was not insignificant to my eventual theological movement but would take me from my purpose in this presentation. In sum, I returned here, not knowing whether I could find my voice to lead the Spring Lake congregation but I did insist, “Give me Jesus and the resurrection and the rest is negotiable.” © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 4   What Schleiermacher was consciously about as the 18th century closed, I was about also, but without the clarity with which he sought to ground his faith in a new mode and bring Christian faith to fresh expression. In a series, Makers of the Modern Theological Mind, C. W. Christian writes the volume Friedrich Schleiermacher. He sets the historical context for Schleiermacher’s work. The question confronting Schleiermacher and nineteenth-century theology was whether it was any longer possible to restore the vitality of Christian faith and to provide a basis for a vigorous and creative future. The double crisis of scientific empiricism and relativizing historicism seemed to tear away the foundations on which traditional Christianity had stood. Claude Welch has expressed the two absolutely urgent questions which confronted the generation of Schleiermacher; namely, whether theology is any longer possible in the modern world, and, even if it is, whether a Christian theology is possible. Schleiermacher’s work as a theologian can be understood in large measure as a response to these questions. If the rehabilitation of faith and theology was to be more than doctrinaire, several specific demands faced the one who assumed the task. First, he must find a new authority for faith, since the traditional appeal to church authority and Scripture seemed no longer sufficient. Second, he must demonstrate how the work of theology is to be done in the changed, intellectual and cultural atmosphere of the modern world. Finally, he must show what an adequate theology – one which is at the same time truly modern and genuinely Christian – has to say. Thus the theological quest of Schleiermacher is threefold: it is (1) a search for authority, (2) a reconstruction of theological method, and (3) a reformulation of the content of religious faith in general and of the Christian faith in particular. That concise summary of Schleiermacher’s task is possible when one looks in retrospect from the end to the beginning – something I am now attempting for myself. While at the time of my European experience I did not have such clarity, one thing I knew for certain: the authority with which I had based my Christian faith to that point was broken. I knew the view of Scripture that sees it as an inerrant, infallible revelation from God, mediated by the Spirit through human instrumentality, was no longer a tenable article of faith for me. Thus I did know in personal experience that I needed a new authority. It is understandable that those who go through a faith crisis most often come face-toface with the matter of authority. As Gary Dorrien writes in the first volume of his trilogy The Making of American Liberal Theology: Imagining Progressive Religion: The idea of liberal theology is nearly three centuries old. In essence, it is the idea that Christian theology can be genuinely Christian without being based upon external authority. Since the eighteenth century, liberal Christian thinkers have argued that religion should be modern and © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 5   progressive and that the meaning of Christianity should be interpreted from the standpoint of modern knowledge and experience. For the most part we are born into a faith, whether Jews, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and all the myriad of religious expressions. That is the way it has been in traditional societies. With the advent of modernity in the West, that has broken down, eroded by the rise of critical rationality. The empirical method of the natural sciences and the rise of historical thinking in the 19th century have caused us to question the received tradition handed down. Still, we begin at heart in the religious understanding and posture into which we are born, for the most part. But then, for some of us, questions arise. For Schleiermacher, as the 18th century closed, the whole elite cultural milieu was hostile to religion as a phase in human development that was passing before the triumphant march of human rationality. For me, it was simply questions that I could no longer suppress, spawned by pastoral experience and continuing study and reflection. I began to realize how many pat answers were really learned responses that were not rooted in reason, tried and tested, but simply what the narrow confines of my conservative tradition taught. And the wider my exposure to other traditions and communities, the more it was apparent that the whole structure of faith and practice was arbitrary, constructed at some point in the past, given the mantle of divine authority and passed along as absolute truth. One of the unexpected gifts of my experience in The Netherlands was worshiping at the American Church in The Hague as well as the Dutch Hervormde Kerk. The Hague had about 4000 Americans, many of them southern oil folk who worked the North Sea. Those for whom a church community and worship was important gathered on Sunday, coming from all points on the Protestant spectrum. A good number of Southern Baptists with big red-covered floppy Bibles, High Church Episcopalians, Methodists, Presbyterians and even some Dutch folk wanting to practice their English. For me this was a marvelous introduction to ecumenical Christian community. All the respective forms were used. If an Episcopal baby was to be baptized, the Episcopal liturgy was used, if Presbyterian, the Presbyterian liturgy and practice was followed, and so on. When the Eucharist was celebrated, one could go forward, kneel and receive the sacrament at the rail or wait in the pew for the elements to be passed. The congregation from various backgrounds found community in a foreign land and celebrated their mutual Christian faith by means of their respective traditions. I’ve often reflected on that experience as the seed bed for my return here and our name change from the First Reformed Church to Christ Community Church four months later. Once let loose in such a rich ecumenical experience, I wanted us to become more than a Reformed congregation. In June 1971, we took our first step © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 6   out of the narrow confines of a particular parochial institutional affiliation, opening up to the whole spectrum of Christian institutional alignments. The point I’m making here is that what for me once was the divinely ordered institutional form and structure, as expressed in the Reformed Church in America, was now understood as one historically conditioned institutional form and structure – relative to its time and place of origin. This all seems so elementary, such recognition seems so obvious to me now, but it was not always so. It was a process of exposure and experience beyond the narrow confines of my early exclusive experience in the Reformed church with its heavy Dutch ethnicity, piety, and doctrinal teaching. But the breaking out of church forms and structures was child’s play compared with the theological struggle that lay ahead of me. It was the engagement with the theological formulation of my Christian faith that brought me to Europe and, again, the question of authority was the first item that needed to be dealt with. Slowly, painfully, I was moving from a Reformed Christian with the mantra “Soli Scriptura” – by Scripture alone – to a liberal posture that approached the Bible critically, understanding it in terms of the historical context in which it arose and recognizing that it was not a book of one unified theme, consistent from Genesis to Revelation, but a vast collection of writings covering centuries of variegated human experience and spiritual insight, wisdom and historical experience. Where does one find authority? Why do I believe this rather than that? How does one arbitrate between conflicting claims of the respective faith traditions? Huge questions! And, reading in The Christian Century the report of the annual synods of the respective denominations, one is aware that these respective bodies have not yet come to consensus on the authority question. As I said above, I was on the way to a liberal posture. Let me attempt to put “liberal” in the context in which I use it. I cannot trace the history of the liberal movement as it issued from Schleiermacher in Europe or as it developed in the American liberal tradition, but I hope I can enable you to see the liberal posture, not as a movement with its own set of religious insights and doctrinal formulations, but rather as a method, a set of mind as one approaches all questions. I find it interesting that in our present religious and political discourse the liberal label is looked on as negative. There is an election Tuesday and the campaign literature that has come to our house finds the candidates touting their conservative credentials; a liberal doesn’t stand a chance in our region. Yet the Oxford Encyclopedia English Dictionary defines “liberal” as “giving freely, generous, not sparing; open-minded, not prejudiced; not literal (of interpretation); for general broadening of the mind, regarding many traditional beliefs as dispensable, invalidated by modern thought, or liable to change.” © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 7   Sounds pretty good to me. Why would not everyone want to be liberal? Well, perhaps because the liberal movement also became codified with its own set of beliefs; it became liberalism marked by its own creedal formulations. This discussion would lead us astray from my purpose which is to see the liberal approach, not as a well-formulated set of beliefs, but as a method. This was insisted on by one of the Chicago School Theologians, Shailer Matthews (born 1863). He wrote The Faith of Modernism, using the term “modernism” in a positive sense although it was used as a derogatory description of those liberal thinkers who were trying to find an expression of Christian faith in light of modern knowledge. As Dorrien describes Matthew’s work, The mainline churches were trapped in stupid debates over outmoded literal dogmas while the world went to hell…. “There are two social minds at work in our world,” he observed. “The one seeks to reassert the past; the other seeks by new methods to gain efficiency.” The first was a futile reaction against modernity, but the second could not succeed without progressive Christian guidance and support. (Vol. II, p. 205). …The key difference was its scientific character. Matthews argued that modernism was not a new theology or philosophy. It was essentially a method, not a creed…it was “the use of scientific, historical, social method in understanding and applying evangelical Christianity to the needs of living persons.” Modernism had no confessions, it did not vote in conventions, and it did not enforce belief by coercion…Dogmatic Christianity is based on doctrinal conformity through group authority; modern Christianity begins with the religious movement that gave rise to doctrine and interprets the movement through the use of critical methodologies. Modernists are Christians “who accept the result of scientific research as data with which to think religiously.” (Vol. II, p. 206). Dorrien has been most helpful to me in defining liberal theology. In the Introduction to Volume I, he writes, The intellectual giants of nineteenth-century theological liberalism were German theologians and philosophers, but the questions that gave rise to this tradition were not unique to German academics: Is it possible to be a faithful Christian without believing that God willed the annihilation of nearly the entire human race in a great flood, or that God commanded the genocidal extermination of the ancient enemies of Israel, or that God demanded the literal sacrifice of his Son as a substitutionary legal payment for sin? Is it a good or true form of Christianity that teaches the doctrines of double predestination and biblical inerrancy? Can Christianity claim to be religiously true if the bible contains myths and historical errors? Is there a progressive Christian “third way” between the authority-based © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 8   orthodoxies of traditional Christianity and the spiritless materialism of modern atheism or deism?... The liberal tradition of theology that flowed out of the enlightenment established the methods and laid the enduring conceptual foundations of modern critical theological scholarship by appealing to the authority of critical rationality and religious experience. In accord with my concept of it as a movement that began in the late eighteenth century, I define liberal theology primarily by its original character as a mediating Christian movement. Liberal Christian theology is a tradition that derives from the late eighteenth and early nineteenthcentury Protestant attempt to reconceptualize the meaning of traditional Christian teaching in the light of modern knowledge and modern ethical values. It is not revolutionary but reformist in spirit and substance. Fundamentally it is the idea of a genuine Christianity not based on external authority. Liberal theology seeks to reinterpret the symbols of traditional Christianity in a way that creates a progressive religious alternative to atheistic rationalism and to theologies based on external authority. Specifically, liberal theology is defined by its openness to the verdicts of modern intellectual inquiry, especially the natural and social sciences; its commitment to the authority of individual reason and experience; its conception of Christianity as an ethical way of life; its favoring of moral concepts of atonement; and its commitment to make Christianity credible and socially relevant to modern people. (Vol. I, pp. xiii-xxii). In the second volume, Dorrien defines liberal theology’s essence. The essential idea of liberal theology is that all claims to truth, in theology as in other disciplines, must be made on the basis of reason and experience, not by appeal to external authority. Christian scripture may be recognized as spiritually authoritative within Christian experience, but its word does not settle or establish truth claims about matters of fact. In the nineteenth century this idea was imagined and developed by a relative handful of American religious thinkers, until 1880’s, when it became a movement… (Vol. II, p. 1). References: Gary Dorrien. The Making of American Liberal Theology: Imagining Progressive Religion, 1805-1900, Vol. I. John Westminster John Knox Press, 2001. Gary Dorrien. The Making of American Liberal Theology: Idealism, Realism, and Modernity, 190-1950, Vol. II. Westminster John Knox Press, 2003. © Grand Valley State University �The Making of a Liberal Richard A. Rhem Page 9   C. W. Christian. Makers of the Modern Theological Mind: Friedrich Schleiermacher. W. Publishing Group, 1979. Friedrich Schleiermacher. On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultural Despisers, 1797. © 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 Summer Social Gathering Location The location of the interview Spring Lake Country Club References C.W. Christian.Makers of the Modern Theological Mind, 1979. Gary Dorrien. The Making of American Liberal Theology, Vols I, II, 2001, 2003. Friedrich Schleiermacher.On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultural Despisers, 1797. 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-0-20060806 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2006-08-06 Title A name given to the resource The Making of a Liberal 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 Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on August 6, 2006 entitled "The Making of a Liberal", on the occasion of Summer Social Gathering, at Spring Lake Country Club . Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives History of Liberalism personal journey PostModern https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/0ed93eb2092fe74fcf88a86d8d7a71be.jpg 6d23baf01958e8618f0ff34ffac824be 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. PS1072 .M36 1906 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_Bindings0436 Title A name given to the resource The Man Between: An International Romance Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Matthews, Harry B. (Designer) Description An account of the resource Binding of The Man Between: An International Romance, by Amelia E. Barr, published by The Authors and Newspapers Association, 1906. 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 1906 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/1ae727b37e65dc323ba63102ecae694f.jpg 570f142a7d7a44a737a50cf4d950344b 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 Michigan Novels Collection. PS3539.H985 M36 1905 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_Bindings0006 Title A name given to the resource The Man from Red-Keg Description An account of the resource Binding of The Man from Red-Keg, by Eugene Thwing, illustrations by Walter H. Everett, 1905. 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 1905 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/734151c422ec8f9ef789bce7109ea6b7.jpg ef3f2f50a3980787fb77830d80f44ea0 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. PS3503.A89 M36 1903 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_Bindings0442 Title A name given to the resource The Man in the Camlet Cloak Description An account of the resource Binding of The Man in the Camlet Cloak, by Carlen Bateson, published by The Saalfield Publishing Compnay, 1903. 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 1903 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/bb375591cd4bf9adf191d9f1d0785397.jpg d28527fce7fb563bcd7d93e4a8b818cb 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. PS3539.R23 M27 1915 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_Bindings0073 Title A name given to the resource The Man Who Rocked the Earth Description An account of the resource Binding of The Man Who Rocked the Earth, by Arthur Train and Robert Williams Wood, published by Doubleday, Page & Co., 1915. 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 1915 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/2e9c7c433a15c991e8822ca40510f7a2.jpg be59487b4377a809f946ed14e107cf0b 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. PS3521.E815 M36 1901 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_Bindings0271 Title A name given to the resource The Manager of the B&A: A Story of Modern American Life Description An account of the resource Binding of The Manager of the B&A: A Story of Modern American Life, by Vaughan Kester, published by Harper & Brothers, 1901. 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 1901 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/631375132860cad62a8a327d1b97d7c7.jpg e1349506c859ad1a890f489e3d8612c6 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_002 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image members of the cast and crew sit together. Many wear street clothes from the time period, and one man is dressed in a bishop's robes. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7e87b3adc4de285de80aca7f78b53a94.jpg 4a6159ae9070bc5e00c08692d2c509ec 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_006 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image members of the cast post together in costume. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a6c91737f8a54370a4859c2bc66d5720.jpg 6e40dbea90ef66f3a04472841950c051 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_013 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image two women in bridesmaids' gowns appear distressed. One is sitting with her cello, while the other stands beside her. Both raise their hands as if helpless. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/219a1e20af143bb0c7ae0e7d4c11c2ec.jpg c86aecd4cfefb7d1a6454ddb56ed1e50 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_014 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image a woman dressed as a bride sits and appears to be screaming. A man stands next to her in a red cardigan and holding a glass, looking at the camera exasperatedly. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e34f92ec583ccaaf4c8bbc996ab36571.jpg b7a0725b68b74f8dc10de5329165d30c 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_016 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image three actors stand on stage. In the foreground, a man in a light suit walks towards the camera. Behind him a woman in a fur coat clenches a cigar in her mouth and holds her hands to her face as if in pain. A man in a dark suit and hair dyed grey stands next to her. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/671e28c8d314961312f690e20c00e03a.jpg 7770f4f711c828857ce6d72acf24438b 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_026 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image a man is lying on the ground like a dead body, his walking cane lying beside him. Four women in gowns, three standing and one kneeling, are behind him with shocked and sorrowful expressions. In the background a man in a sweater vest leans forward, appearing confused. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/364fa8c4aafb05ead99f105a709d8fe0.jpg 9775e8c4cfd0279f5bb69afd80ebe6fc 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_041 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image a couple is wrapped together in a white cloth. The man holds a telephone handset to his ear and looks down tolerantly at the woman, dressed in white, who is gazing up at him adoringly. Beside them a purse lies discarded on the ground. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1801c1687c043ba9731ed5fc16a77b1c.jpg bb23be00f9437e6b91ae4acc549f590e 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_047 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image a group of actors and crew sit for a meeting backstage. They are seated around a table littered with books, papers, and drinks. One man smokes a cigarette. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/184b3896a4513ef65f7e3c70e66aeb03.jpg b17d1a4359a5007d2ec64fa8faefd2f3 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_065 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image a bishop raises his finger pointedly as he preaches. Three women in bridesmaids' dresses sit solemnly in front of him. One dabs at her eyes with a handkerchief. Behind them sits a young man in a sweater vest sits smiling, flanked by a smiling bride and a man in a suit. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/465b686084e915461a9729a76e90eb2d.jpg 21db09bf7f48fa97f9949e0a0164a681 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 Theatre Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Description An account of the resource Photographs of Grand Valley theater productions from the 1980s to the 2010s. Photos include shots of performances, backstage, casts and crewmembers. Included in the collection are Shakespeare Festival productions and small acts such as Bard to Go and the Greenshow. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Copyright Grand Valley State University Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context GV058-01 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1982-2017 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01) Subject The topic of the resource Theater Performances Plays Musicals College Students Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. Special Collections and University Archives. Allendale, MI 49401 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource eng 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 GV058-01_1989_marriage-of-bette-and-bo_066 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. Theatre Department Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1989 Title A name given to the resource The Marriage of Bette and Boo (theater production), 1989 Description An account of the resource Color photograph of Grand Valley's 1989 production of "The Marriage of Bette and Boo." In this image four actors pose dramatically. In the center of the stage, a man holding a walking cane raises his hands as if in surrender. In the foreground a woman dressed as a bride and a man in a suit point at each other accusingly. In the background a young man in a sweater vest holds his arms wide and seems very confused. Subject The topic of the resource Theater College students Plays Performances Acting Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/754">Theatre Department photographs (GV058-01)</a> 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 Image Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/jpeg 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 1989s