1 24 7 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/2cc681074a449040f89482829b9fa1f1.pdf 46906496104378bcca3987185f098787 PDF Text Text Love, Not Fear Text: I John 4:18; Luke 7:47 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan October 24, 1999 Transcription of the spoken sermon I caught an article in The New York Times about six weeks ago which said that The Rev. Dr. Mel White was going to be invited to dinner by Jerry Falwell of the Thomas Road Baptist Church in that marvelously named city, Lynchburg. I had more or less forgotten about it, and then last night I caught just a little glimpse of a newscast and there was Jerry Falwell and Mel White on the television screen together. Yesterday was the day of the dinner. I didn't get enough of the newscast to give you accurate details; I know that what was proposed was that Mel White was to bring about 200 gay-lesbian people to Lynchburg to have dinner with 200 of Jerry Falwell’s people. The reason this came about was that Mel White had been sending open letters to Jerry Falwell on the Internet, I understand. Mel heads up an organization called Soulforce. In fact, when he was here a couple of years ago, he led a seminar on Saturday morning in which some of you participated. It is a seminar on non-violence and he borrows from Gandhi and from Martin Luther King, who borrowed from Gandhi, in the use of non-violent protest in order to gain civil rights, human dignity, to change government structures, and so forth. You may remember that Mel White was a part of the inner core of what has come to be known as the Religious Right in this country. He was a ghostwriter for the biographies of Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Billy Graham, and others, and he was very intimately connected with the leaders of that whole movement. Then he declared himself to be gay after years of anguish and struggle. He had been married, had children, had gone through therapy, including all kinds of torturous attempts to prove to himself that he was not a gay person, and finally declared himself and lives openly now and is an advocate for gay rights, and particularly for his conviction that God loves all people, gay and straight and all the rest. So, the dinner apparently took place. I did hear Jerry Falwell say, "I stand where I have always stood, the biblical position on the practice of any homosexual engagement is it’s wrong, contrary to scripture." Mel White simply, on the other side of that issue, said, "I sit here with my brother in Christ and the reason for the coming together is Mel White's attempt to get leaders of the very conservative, evangelical movement to lower the decibels of their rhetoric, the kind of rhetoric © Grand Valley State University   �Love, Not Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 2   against the homosexual community which certainly has to be an element in the gay-bashing and the violence that has so tragically been experienced in the last months and years.” At the end of the first service, someone came running up to me who had already seen the morning paper and said that Jerry Falwell is in trouble and is now the victim himself of protest, being called a hypocrite by some of his religious colleagues for what they call a compromise of sitting down with Mel White, and so the story goes on. I thought of that in the context of the dinner at Simon's house. There are not a lot of parallels with that account in Luke's Gospel, but there is a sense in which what happened between Jerry Falwell and Mel White was something like what was happening between Jesus and Simon. Now, it has nothing to do with being a Jew. It really has nothing to do with him being a Pharisee. It has everything to do with Simon being a serious, responsible religious person who was very much committed to a tradition, a tradition that is very control-oriented in terms of being well structured, with all the rules in place, everyone knowing what one is to do and what one is not to do. Simon simply is a representative of the guardians of the moral, theological, the biblical tradition. A good person. I think he invited Jesus, according to Luke, because he was interested. Who is this man? And he also was not only interested, he was somewhat threatened by Jesus because it was Jesus' manner of life and ministry that was very threatening to a person like Simon. Jesus suggested that the marginalized were loved by God and had access to God. Jesus had table fellowship with all sorts and conditions of humankind. Jesus didn't play by conventional wisdom. All of this is old hat for us, I know, but nonetheless, this is what was going on. Jesus was a threat to a very traditional and tight religious system that knew who was in and who was out, that knew who was right and what was wrong. I couldn't help thinking about that story, being reminded about this encounter between Jerry Falwell and Mel White, if there were, indeed, 200 on either side of the table from each contingent, I'd like to imagine Jesus there. What if Jesus would come into the room? What do you think? What if seeing Jesus there, after all he's been through, Mel White just got overwhelmed. I've seen him cry. I can imagine him throwing himself at Jesus' feet, weeping. I think Jesus would have been very comfortable with it. I suspect that Jerry Falwell may have squirmed a little, because when you think that concretely, where would Jesus' sympathies lie? Can there be any question about that, in light of the nature of Jesus' ministry, his posture, his attitude, his spirit? I hope some good comes out of it, and I respect Jerry Falwell, no matter how much pressure was put on him, he apparently sat down with the enemy, and there's conversation, and good can come of that, and he'll probably suffer for doing it. But, I see it as a positive sign. Some of you read the newspaper with me in mind. Someone sent me an editorial, another person called me about it. It appeared in The Grand Rapids Press, © Grand Valley State University �Love, Not Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 3   written by Richard Cohen, and it referred to that leading statesman of our day, Jesse Ventura. Jesse Ventura did a body slam on religion, and a colleague of Richard Cohen wrote an article chastising Jesse Ventura for doing that, saying, "Jesse Ventura, you forgot all the sterling names of Christian leaders who have made a difference," and he named Mother Teresa and Reinhold Neibuhr, Martin Luther King, and so forth. Richard Cohen says, "Ah, but I have to say to my colleague -they're all dead. All the heroes are dead, and the celebrities today have taken quite a different tack. There was a time when the Reinhold Neibuhrs had the ear of power and could speak a word for grace and for inclusion and for integrity, but today the names that are bandied about and making news are names that are on the other side of the issue, time and again." Mr. Cohen refers to Eugene Carson Blake, a fine Presbyterian leader of the World Council of Churches back in the 60s, a time when some of you can remember the mainline church had to decide what it would do on the race question and finally, belatedly, stood up, took a stand and moved, and the nation moved, as well, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a consequence, not a little consequence of the fact that the mainline church finally said, "This is right." Cohen points out the fact that those heroes that his colleague mentioned in the column were the people who called us to be better than we are, to be done with prejudice and bigotry, to inclusion and embrace, and he contrasts that with what is going on in our own day. So, he says, maybe Jesse Ventura wasn't altogether out of line, but he points out the fact that the current crop of religious leaders don't ask us to accept homosexuality and they refuse to deal with the consequences of their rhetoric which leads to the gay-bashing, and he says what is necessary is to do what was done, for example, in the church at large recognizing that its traditional antiSemitism fed into the Holocaust. He says they also do not ask us to accept and understand modernity. They reject it almost in its entirety. For instance, in the matter of science and religion. They simply reject science and believe religion which is currently the case in Kansas, to which he points. There was a piece within the last two or three weeks about a couple in Kansas, again, very good and sincere people, who with their pastor are quoted saying if we lose Creation, we lose everything. The woman was a public school teacher who couldn't teach in good conscience anymore in the public school and so now she's in the Christian school whose library has a book with an orange sticker saying, "Warning: This book contains statements about evolution," and a book on great scientists that has the chapter on Darwin ripped out! Well, what's going on, friends? What's going on? Let me suggest that fear is going on, that all of this raucousness is consciously or unconsciously rooted in fear. If I were to read another lesson this morning, I would have read the lesson from Genesis, the third chapter, about our forbears, Mr. Adam and Mrs. Eve, who bit the apple, felt their guilt, hid in the bushes because they were afraid. And that profound myth recognizes fear as something endemic in the human person. Maybe the fear even precedes the breaking of the commandment. Maybe the fear © Grand Valley State University �Love, Not Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 4   comes from that anxiety of splashing down the birth canal into a cold, wide-open world, bright and cold. Whatever it is, there's fear in the human heart. And if I were to rewrite the Genesis myth (now, there's presumption for you), that profound story, if it were to be written today, we wouldn't have Mr. Adam and Mrs. Eve in their blissful perfection and innocence, frolicking in the garden. We would have an animal with a dawning conscience, and then a consciousness of another. We would have a story of two animals becoming human, and in that becoming human, in consciousness, self-consciousness, and consciousness of the other, we would have the first glimmerings of the possibility of relationship and community and, in the further development, we would have the first glimmerings of the possibility of love, of love in relationship, and we would understand even as far down the line as we are at this point in that evolutionary process of which we are a part, that there is a fear in the core of our being because we carry with us that whole genetic code, we carry with us that whole collective unconscious of the animal that survived because there was fear as a defense mechanism and alertness to every threat, a suspicion of every movement. Who survived? Those who had the savvy to fear and that fear, that threat to my person had to be dealt with, and consequently, in spite of the fact that we have come to the point where we have learned to love and understand Spirit and have left that primitive stage far behind, we are still people who very quickly become afraid, and what happens to an animal that gets cornered? And what happens to us when we come under threat? I do believe that we are seeing it all over the map in our time, so much threat, consequently so much fear, consequently so much violence, because, you see, what we tend to do as religious people, and religion really is a defense mechanism against the insecurities of the abyss of life, what we tend to do is structure something that is very clear, very solid, and very sure. We want it secure; we want a place to stand. We want to know who we are, why we are, whence we've come, whither we're going. We want answers. Life is full of mystery. Life is marked by tragedy. Life participates in awful suffering. How do you figure it out? How do you exist? It's scary business, and so, one of the places we go for security, for certainty, for shelter and refuge is religion, and the more certain, the better. Give me a divine revelation, gjve me an inerrant Bible, give me an infallible Pope so that in the midst of this stream of history that is ever moving, ever opening up into broader vistas, I have a rock upon which to stand. When that rock moves, I become afraid, and when I become afraid, I can't love because love and fear do not dwell together. This is what John was saying in the fourth chapter of his first letter, perhaps the most profound statement of the scriptures, perhaps the one we would take if we could have only one - God is love. Think of the implications of that statement. God is love. Think of the light that that casts on the whole human story and the whole of reality - God is love. But, you see, if John simply said that and stopped, it would be one more propositional statement; it would be one more creedal © Grand Valley State University �Love, Not Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 5   affirmation, and it would be part of that belief system that we might cling to for security, and oh, how we want that belief system to be true and how we want that belief system to be believed by everyone else, and how we want every other belief system not to be true. Isn't that true? There was an article yesterday in the religious section of The Press that said that just down here south of us in some meeting of Deacons came the idea for a Millennial Campaign, entitled, "What If It's True?" The first proposition is, "What if it's true that Jesus is the only way to God?" Gosh, we want that to be true. Why do we want that to be true? We want to be true; we want to be right: we want to be right alone. The article said that we, Christ Community, could join in. They're gathering congregations now. Do you want to be a part of it? Buttons, flyers, posters, billboards. They're going to spend $243,000 at the turn of the millennium to suggest to under-churched and religiously deprived Western Michigan that it might be true, and I asked myself couldn't we better take that effort and live out something concretely with our neighbors? Because that's what John says. He doesn't leave it with, "God is love." That is a creedal affirmation. Creedal affirmations aren't true because we believe them. You can't believe them into truth. You can't find security and certainty and peace in any intellectual formulation. It's in the experience of love, dear friends. That's what John was saying. God is love, and the one who loves dwells in God and God dwells in that one. God is love, and the one who dwells in love abides in God and God abides in that one. God is love and when that is experienced, that becomes an existential, experiential reality that puts my heart at rest when I experience concretely love. John says, don't sit in splendid isolation contemplating God and fall in love with God. Well, there have been a few mystics throughout the centuries who were able to do that, but not according to John. John says no one has seen God, but you can see one another, and when you love one another, you are experiencing the love of God and the reality of God. He goes on, then, to say there's no fear in love. Perfect love casts out fear. It seems really simple to me and I don't know what I'm missing. Honestly, I don't know what I'm missing. I want to keep saying, "What are we afraid of? Why do we fear?" Because it is true - fear and love don't co-exist. There is hostility bristling across the table; there is tension in the room; there is over-againstness, adversarial spirit, mutual condemnation, threat, and down deep we're scared to death of each other. Then somebody moves in and loves, becomes the concretization of love, the embodiment of love, the word made flesh dwelling among us. In this we know the love of God, that God sent the Son, this concrete experience of incarnation, the embodiment of God in Jesus. That's where it started. It was in that person-toperson encounter. That's where love was experienced, and where love is experienced, somehow or other the questions dissolve and the fear is scattered. © Grand Valley State University �Love, Not Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 6   Where love prevails, there God is. John is so blunt. He says, "Don't tell me you love God when you hate your brother. If you can't love your brother whom you can see, who is flesh and blood, don't talk to me about loving God." So, this is my word this morning - Let us love one another and be agents of love out there, in every situation, every conflict situation, and every place where someone is being put down or marginalized or oppressed or taken advantage of or abused, because we have seen what love is, we have seen what God is because we have seen what love is, because we have seen love embodied and we have experienced it, haven't we? Isn't love that alone which transforms? It certainly is my story. The experience of unconditional grace, the experience of being embraced rather than shunned, the experience of being healed and helped and lifted, rather than left and discarded - that is transforming. All of the rigidity and all of the sincerity and all of the responsible religious structure cannot change one human heart. It can give guidance, it can coerce, it can control, but only love can transform, and where love is, fear will not be. And where there is not fear, there will not be violence and the destruction of one another. God is love. Those who abide in love, abide in God. There is no fear in love. Perfect love casts out fear. Jesus said to the woman, "Go in peace. You have a lot of love." © Grand Valley State University � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/85d354e868444d829a6a1c1af37a95dc.mp3 237a50383fec4ba71171a03ea6227e6f 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 XXIII Scripture Text I John 4:18, Luke 7:47 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-0-19991024 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1999-10-24 Title A name given to the resource Love, Not Fear Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on October 24, 1999 entitled "Love, Not Fear", on the occasion of Pentecost XXIII, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: I John 4:18, Luke 7:47. Community of Grace God is Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9e42196ca7c3dcc96759a710c953a116.pdf 54a09586e19db8459ea6b76f27313c6a PDF Text Text Take Care How You Kick Over the Traces Scripture: Isaiah 1:1-6; Luke 15:11-16 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan August 18, 1996 Transcription of the spoken sermon We're thinking, in these days, about organized religion, its institutional forms, and last week I noted that it can be an oppressive and de-humanizing force in one's life. Bad religion has destroyed a lot of people. But, we also noted its importance, its critical importance, because religion is that which relates us to that which is beyond us, and puts us in connection, in communion with God. So, it's not a matter of ridding ourselves of religion, but it is a matter of understanding religion's true function and what its true message really is. I clipped an article from yesterday's Grand Rapids Press. The headline says, "Church Attendance Reaches 20-Year Low." It's the research of a certain George Barna who has written a number of things about the contemporary scene, at least over the last decade, maybe two, and in this news report, he tells us that we have perhaps been lulled to sleep by the fact that the percentage of people who attend church has remained rather constant, but to remain constant in a growing population is like feeling good about the fact that I'm still making just as much as I made in 1960. The Church is losing ground and this article says that we are at a 20-year low. His comments about it reveal that all denominations, including conservative Protestants, have grown slower; there's been a very large decline in institutional religion. Young people especially are confused about morals and not familiar with religious tradition, and the global youth culture has become pluralistic and relativistic. I don't think anybody's doing much to help them sort it out. And then the commentator said it's not just a phase they're going through. There's less reason to say they'll come back when they never went in the first place. The reserves of religious tradition are dwindling. I believe that's true, and I believe that the frantic activity of much of the institutional church is an attempt to stem a tide and not very successfully. A few weeks ago in The New York Times Magazine, the magazine that's included in the Sunday edition of the Times, there was a brief article on the Willow Creek Church west of Chicago, which has become such a phenomenon in our day and has spawned so many look-alike congregations called "seeker congregations." It's been a very successful movement. But, the insight of the columnist in this particular magazine article was that the truth is in the packaging. In other words, © Grand Valley State University   �Take Care How You Kick Over Traces Richard A. Rhem Page 2   the success has been a success in marketing, and while marketing is not unimportant, it is not what is ultimately important, for in this little article, a representative of the Willow Creek Church said with some pride, "And we have not changed one article of our belief." And I want to say, "Shame on you." If you think you can take that old core and not re-examine it and bring it to new expression in a new day and in a culture that is radically changing all about us, if you think that you can take that old core and simply dress it up and put it in a shiny package and sell it, the success will be temporary because you have not dealt with the issue in depth. Good religion needs to be very clear about the message it presents and about its function, which is to be an agent, a means, not an end in itself. Good religion is a means to enabling the people to come into communion with God and to experience God in the depths of their being. The message is critical, and what is the message? The message is that God is love. Well, ho-hum, right? Haven't we always heard that God is love? But, I mean God is love in the deepest biblical sense, the most radical sense of love, that which came to expression in Israel in its best understanding. My text says that the "ox knows its owner and the ass its master's crib, but Israel does not know; my people does not consider." This is the portrait of God throughout the whole of Hebrew scriptures, the God Whose hands are always outstretched, the God Who pleads with God's people, the God Who never turns away but always beckons. In this context, a little further along the chapter - "Come, let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Farther on in that same prophecy: "Come, seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous one his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." Throughout the whole of Israel there was this pleading note of a pleading God with outstretched arms, waiting only to embrace the one who would return, coming to one's senses, coming home. But, of course, the consummate expression of it is in the parable of the Prodigal Son, which is terribly misnamed. It's not a story of a prodigal son; it's not a story of a son at all; it's the story of God, of a father, of an unquenchable love, of an irresistible grace, of a love that is unconditional and irresistible in its appeal to God's children. The context is important. It's the third of three stories. The first is the shepherd who goes after the lost sheep. The second, the woman who searches the house for a lost coin. And then this story of a father who had two sons. Jesus was responding to the criticism of his life and ministry. In the opening of the 15th chapter, those who represented institutional religion in the day of Jesus © Grand Valley State University �Take Care How You Kick Over Traces Richard A. Rhem Page 3   were grumbling. They were grumbling because they said he receives and eats with sinners. And as you've heard me say many times, the mark of Jesus' ministry, the way in which he embodied his message, was in the table fellowship that he practiced. Even for us to break bread together, to sit at a meal together is an expression of intimate friendship. But, in Jesus' day it was especially the case. You did not break bread with that one who was not friend. You did not share a meal with the outcast or the alien or the estranged. And in the temple religion of the day with its code of holiness, it was very clear who was in and who was out. There was a kind of exclusion practiced. And the reason that the temple authorities were grumbling at Jesus was because Jesus went against the conventional wisdom, he went against what everybody else was doing. He opened his heart and he opened his table to all comers. No one was excluded. And that was threatening to the institutional religion of the day, and they grumbled. And so, as Jesus always did, he responded with a story: There was a father who had two sons. There was a younger son who was a rebel who asked for his inheritance early on and who left home and wasted his life, ending up in decadence and despair. And there was an obedient son who followed the letter of the law, but grudgingly so with a kind of inward resentment over against the father that was as painful to the father as was the rebellion of the other. There was a father who had two sons, both of whom broke the father's heart. So, for two or three weeks, let's think about this old story. Maybe you say, "How can you say anything new about that old story?" Well, I wonder myself, but let's try. Let's focus primarily this morning on that younger son. For him to ask for his inheritance and to leave home was a radical request that was unheard of. In his culture, in Jesus' day, what he was really asking for was the death of his father. He was cutting himself loose from his whole legacy, everything that was sacred and holy, everything that was home. For in that day more than our own, a person was identified by a father's house, by the village from which he stemmed. All of his life, that was his identity. His total social security was in belonging to a house and to a village and to a community. That's who he was. And so, the request of this young man was a horrible request that implicated him in the wish for the death of his father. I don't know whether Sigmund Freud ever talked about this parable or not. I've never seen a reference to it, but I think he could have done a lot with it because, according to Freud, the origin of religion is in the wish for the death of the father which then creates guilt which then needs atonement. I don't think Freud had it all right by any means, but I wonder without reading Freud back into Jesus or taking contemporary psychological insights that we do have from the behavioral sciences and reading them into the parable, I wonder if Jesus was not essentially, intuitively, instinctively understanding that there is within us that which would leave home. © Grand Valley State University �Take Care How You Kick Over Traces Richard A. Rhem Page 4   As a matter of fact, I think the two sons are not two different sons; I think the two sons live in all of us, whether it be two sons or two daughters, both reside in the heart of each of us and there is in each of us that which would leave home, that which would rebel, that which would cut loose. And I suspect that Jesus understood that as an observer of human nature and human behavior. He didn't need Freud to tell him about that; he didn't need our modern psychological insights to know that. Truth and illumination were not born in the 20th century. And if we walk around that for a moment, I wonder if Jesus was really condemning that leaving of home altogether because we have learned, have we not, that it's necessary to leave home. Now, in the maturation process of every individual, is it not true that we must go through a process of individuation? Must we not separate? Doesn't every parent want a son or a daughter to move from under their roof and to find that kind of independence that will bring to expression the fullness of that person? I shake my head at how in earlier years I preached this parable and it's still being preached that way all over the church, as though this is the parable of the Prodigal Son and as though it is a warning to young people that there are great dangers in loose living. That is to trivialize this story. As a matter of fact, aimless freedom or autonomy, in this case, can lead to decadence and destruction. There's no question about that. But, that's not what Jesus is talking about. Jesus is talking about that within us that necessarily and normally and naturally must find its own independent expression. And I think what Jesus is saying is that's a very perilous journey. Well, it is a perilous journey, isn't it? Is there a parent among us that doesn't hold their breath when our youth are going through that process? A few weeks ago my elderly sisters came up to visit Nancy after her surgery and one of my sisters is here today, but I talk about my sisters once in a while because they hear the tapes and they feel good just to know that I'm still thinking about them, but my sisters were remarking about what a nice boy I was, what a nice child, and the fact that as a youth I never brought any grief to my parents. The years of adolescence when one ought to be separated, I just sort of lollygagged along and didn't cause any particular concern, to which Nancy responded that she sort of wished that I would have gone through my adolescence when I was with my parents rather than with her. I don't know whether we just go through our adolescence one time. I was comforted hearing one psychologist speak one day who said for the male, adolescence is from 17 to 47. But, as a matter of fact, folks, it is necessary for us to move away from home in order that we can be at home with who we are, and it is a perilous process. My sermon title this morning is, "Be Careful How You Kick Over the Traces," because the pitfalls are many and potential disaster lies around every corner, and there is no parent that has not had sleepless nights over a son or a daughter who was struggling to find themselves. And it isn't just the adolescents. Those of us who are old enough to have children and grandchildren © Grand Valley State University �Take Care How You Kick Over Traces Richard A. Rhem Page 5   know that there is never a time when our children get beyond the pale of our concern and are not the subjects of our prayers. To be human isn't easy, and to find that kind of independent expression of the fullness of our own person - that doesn't come without some struggle and some serious mistakes and often some pain and some dreadful hurt. But, that's really enough about that younger son, because that's not the focus of the story. As I said, the focus of the story is the father. That father in the story is a window that Jesus offers us into the very heart of God, and if good religion is to reflect accurately the nature of God, then it must listen to Jesus in this story, because if the son's request is outrageous, then the father's response is incredible! For, what does he do? He gives him the goods and lets him go. And that is the point at which it is most difficult for us to emulate the behavior of God, this God reflected in this story by Jesus. He loves him and lets him go and stands by the side of the road, trembling, watching and waiting, hoping that this one will return. That is the picture of a love that is unconditional. It is the story of a relationship whose bonds are love with no other strings attached. And even those of us who love our kids find that there are times when we get into a tug of war and a battle of the wills and, love them as we may, our own egos do get involved. There is a power struggle often before parents and child come to reconciliation and peace. But, that's the amazing thing about the biblical nature of God - that God loves and lets go and keeps arms outstretched, waiting for the free and uncoerced return. This is where the Church has failed so miserably and not just the Church, but institutional religion, period. For institutional religion moves into the role of parent, not after the model of God, but after the model of the human parent, the stern, demanding parent, the parent that, if Freud has any truth at all in him, is the parent that we would kill, the parent that we must flee, the parent that we rebel against. The Church becomes the upholder of virtue and of morals, the guardian of society's values; the Church condemns and excludes, draws lines, and to that extent conveys a distorted image of God and sets forth altogether the wrong message, for that message is being rejected en masse! Institutional religion is being left in droves because there is that within the human person that simply will not remain in that position of childhood and servitude and, consequently, God is dishonored through God's own people. I said the message is God is love and you said, "Ho-hum, so what else is new?" That is new, that God is that loving, that love is that unconditional, that love is finally irresistible, that to the rebel, there is finally nothing against which to rebel! There is no barrier that needs to be overcome; there is no seawall against which to break one’s waves, for God stands with arms outstretched and the only thing that can break the rebellion is a love in which there is no fight, and if I read this story accurately at all, that's the amazing news of that which Jesus taught and in his life embodied - that God is love, period. © Grand Valley State University �Take Care How You Kick Over Traces Richard A. Rhem Page 6   How do you fight love? When the son comes home, no questions are asked, no condemnation is offered, just salty tears and arms that embrace. Because all that God is ever about is to bring God's children home. Years and years ago I read an old sermon illustration; it's about as musty as the book in which it now resides. It's about a son who left home with brokenness with his father and went out and got rid of all of the rebellion and came on hard times and sent a letter to his father saying on such and such a day I will pass by the house. If I would be welcome, tie a white handkerchief in the branch of the old apple tree in the front yard. And as he approached the homestead with heart pounding, he saw not a handkerchief tied in the apple tree. He saw hundreds of white handkerchiefs tied to every branch of the apple tree, because finally, all the divine parent wants is for you to come home. I invite you this morning, whether you're young and rebellious or old and crotchety, why don't you come home? Come on home. © Grand Valley State University � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/20040fa0f427ae2ec56ac12b2cd6cfe7.mp3 c62eb01261940b58ba78f89dff12a047 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 XII Series Prodigal Son Parable Scripture Text Isaiah 1:3, Luke 15:13 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-0-19960818 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-08-18 Title A name given to the resource Take Care How You Kick Over the Traces Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on August 18, 1996 entitled "Take Care How You Kick Over the Traces", as part of the series "Prodigal Son Parable", on the occasion of Pentecost XII, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 1:3, Luke 15:13. God is Love Inclusive Grace Nature of Religion Prodigal Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/f3af856cca191e82568101d78c5fd644.pdf 7bd84097904914930803c85b7479417b PDF Text Text Prayer Offered By Richard A. Rhem At the Memorial Service for Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga Freedom Village, Holland, Michigan May 25, 2013 Oh God, beyond our fathoming, eternal, infinite – terms we use to describe what is indescribable – we bow in these moments conscious that we are in the presence of Mystery, a Mystery that embraces us and will always defy our lust to define, to reduce to manageable terms, yet a Mystery not all mysterious for, eternal though You be, You have taken time for us. In the beginning You stepped out of eternity’s depths and called a world into being. In the fullness of time You spoke once more and the Word that wrought our time became flesh in our midst; a human face gave shape to the glory of Your being and revealed You full of grace, mediated to us through the Presence of Your Spirit. Thus, on the morrow, the Lord’s Day, Trinity Sunday, we shall worship You, Father/Son/Holy Spirit, in whom we live and move and have our being. When we have done our best to grasp you, image you, only one thing matters – Eternal Love that came to expression in the face of Jesus. God is Love. All of our theology and philosophy, our reasoning and our wondering, comes down to that: God is Love. Thus Margaret knew you, trusted you, committed her life to you in her love of family, her community, whomever crossed her path in need. We remember and we give thanks. © Grand Valley State University   �Prayer Richard A. Rhem Page 2   Images tumble through our minds of the way she was, larger than life. Perhaps her fondest dream, her greatest gift, was the Art Museum for which ground was broken yesterday. How ironic, O God of Mystery, that this Memorial Day Weekend should see the realization of her dream and the celebration of her life in death. Yet so it is and, not denying the grief, still there is something rather beautiful – in her death her crowning achievement realized. We remember and give thanks for this one who touched so many with grace, whose heart was large enough to embrace a broad and diverse community, whose wisdom aided so many onto the paths of well-being. We remember and we give thanks for this remarkable woman, this Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga, strong of mind and will, strong of conviction and of faith, yet generous, full of life, good humor, loving to delight, one whose strong presence made a difference. And in such a time as this, in such a place as this, Gracious God, we are grateful above all that the end is not broken health and dreams unfulfilled, swallowed up in death, but rather the confidence that to live is to live unto the Lord, and to die is to die unto the Lord. So then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. Receive our thanksgiving, O God. Grant the comfort of Your Spirit, renew our hope and lead us on in the confidence that nothing can ever separate us from Your love in Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Event Memorial Service 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 RA-1-20130525 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2013-05-02 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Title A name given to the resource Prayer in Memory of Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga 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> Language A language of the resource eng Description An account of the resource Prayer created, delivered, or published by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on May 2, 2013 entitled "Prayer in Memory of Margaret Feldmann Kruizenga", on the occasion of Memorial Service, at Freedom Village, Holland, Michigan. Tags: God is Love. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf God is Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/49c4f2edec6ef7d1a97ce7a3f640402a.pdf dd79361a24ed6b4c1a25ce0f08c8ce6d PDF Text Text Restless Mind and Quiet Heart Quest and Rest Text: Job 23: 1-10; Psalm 42: 1-5; John 3: 1-10; I John 4: 7-8, 12, 16 Richard A. Rhem Freedom Village Holland, Michigan September 28, 2014 Transcription of the written meditation Once in a while in the ministry of preaching I have discovered not only some fresh insight into the biblical faith as I worked on a passage, but some new insight into myself. Now on the threshold of my 80th birthday, it happened again. When I decided on my theme for today I was well aware that I would be probing the question of my life – the God Question. I have lived a “God-obsessed” life and that not surprisingly. On the day of my ordination to the ministry I received a letter from my father relating the fact that, when my mother was carrying me, he prayed that, should I be a boy (women’s ordination not yet in the picture), he would dedicate me to God’s service. Well aware that we don’t choose, God must call, one of my early memories as a child is his telling those who referenced me as a young lad that his prayer was that God would call me to the ministry. As a child I was a bit embarrassed but I got the message! Interestingly, I never considered doing anything else and I never rebelled against the pre-programmed vocational “choice.” However my ministry has been a journey of probing the God Question and the years of my retirement have only given me more time to continue the quest. I still read and wonder, question and probe. And, as I do that, I never doubt being held in the embrace of God’s love as I have come to experience it in the face of Jesus. When I decided on my theme – Restless Mind and Quiet Heart – Quest and Rest, I was well aware that I was describing my own spiritual journey – always wondering, questioning – always securely resting. However, as I began to gather materials and ideas for this meditation, I came to a realization that the God Question goes on and is alive and well to the present. I saw afresh, or for the first time, my own spiritual journey – a restless mind © Grand Valley State University   �Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 2   seeking to come to a critical, intellectual understanding of the story of religion and, specifically, the Christian faith. But doing so with a quiet heart because of the fundamental trust in which I was spiritually formed. The insight into my own journey had to do with what was happening on the broader cultural scene. I was ordained in 1960 as a very conservative Reformed Christian minister. I’m sure you remember the 60s. Just for fun I googled the term and was reminded of that decade, so tumultuous, as much that had been taken for granted was put in question or simply overturned. The 1960s was a decade that began on I January 1960 and ended on 31 December 1969. The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends around the globe. This “cultural decade” is more loosely defined than the actual decade, beginning around 1963 and ending around 1974. “The Sixties”, as they are known in both scholarship and popular culture, is a term used by historians, journalists, and other objective academics; in some cases nostalgically to describe the counterculture and revolution in social norms about clothing, music, drugs, dress, sexuality, formalities, and schooling. Conservatives denounce the decade as one of irresponsible excess, flamboyance, and decay of social order. The decade was also labeled the Swinging Sixties because of the fall or relaxation of social taboos especially relating to racism and sexism that occurred during this time. From Wikipedia The world was changing around me. Time magazine for April 8, 1966, (the Easter Issue!) had a black cover with the question “Is God Dead? in red letters. The God is Dead theologians created quite a stir. The New Georgia Encyclopedia (August 6, 2013) reports: A popular debate over whether “God is dead” was occasioned by the socalled radical theology propounded in the 1960s by such theologians as William Hamilton, Gabriel Vahanian, and Paul van Buren. The best known of these proponents was Thomas J. J. Altizer, then a professor of religion at Emory University in Atlanta. The controversy reflected many of the broader cultural and political changes in American society often associated with that decade. “We must realize that the death of God is an historical event, that God has died in our cosmos, in our history, in our [existence],” Altizer claimed. His frequently provocative manner of speaking, which masked a more complex discussion taking place among academic theologians, for a brief time made him a minor celebrity in the popular media. Although the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche had asserted the “death of God” nearly a century earlier and a theological movement had already adopted the phrase to express the perceived incompatibility © Grand Valley State University �Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 3   between a modern worldview and belief in a transcendent deity, the controversy did not fully erupt until 1965. For a decade before this, Altizer wrote, he “had been torn between an interior certainty of the death of God in modern history…and a largely mute but nevertheless unshakable conviction of the truth of the Christian faith.” It was in such a time that this very conservative, very traditional, rather insecure and somewhat defensive preacher began. I won’t bore you with the details but, after four years in Spring Lake and three in Midland Park, New Jersey, I had begun to realize that I needed help; I needed to go back to school! Again, without boring you with the details, I went to The Netherlands, the University of Leiden, being accepted as a graduate student by a great theologian and wonderful human being, Professor Hendrikus Berkhof. As I rose to leave his study after our initial meeting, I noticed a piece of paper pinned to a drape. On it in the blue ink of a ditto copy were the words of Tennyson: 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 was an epiphany moment. My little system was broken. I desperately needed a new understanding of the Christian Faith if ever I was again to bring the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But God was more than my little system that was broken. Four years of intensive study, reading, writing, conversation with my Professor followed. During those years I was not sure if I would preach again, but I was learning and getting the education I never had, not because I didn’t have good teachers but because I was not open to learn. Now with existential hunger I began at least to understand the questions. The Spring Lake congregation invited me to return and I did. And so I began again, this time quite a different person, now preaching and teaching out of my European experience, the restless mind now dealing with faith’s question but, saturated with Grace, a heart at rest. But it hasn’t gotten any easier. If the 60s were revolutionary in society as a whole and the Death of God theologians challenged the very existence of God, there was no possibility of returning to business as usual. The God Question was in play. As I came to my retirement in 2004, a new generation of scholars created the new atheism. New Atheism is a social and political movement in favour of atheism and secularism promoted by a collection of modern atheist writers who have advocated the view that “religion should not simply be tolerated but © Grand Valley State University �Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 4   should be countered, criticized, and exposed by rational argument wherever its influence arises.” There is uncertainty about how much influence the movement has had on religious demographics, but the increase in atheist groups, student societies, publications and public appearances has coincided with the non-religious being the largest growing demographic, followed by Islam and evangelicalism in the US and UK. The 2004 publication of The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason by Sam Harris, a bestseller in the US, marked the first of a series of popular bestsellers. Harris was motivated by the events of September 11, 2001, which he laid directly at the feet of Islam, while also directly criticizing Christianity and Judaism. Two years later Harris followed up with Letter to a Christian Nation, which was also a severe criticism of Christianity. Also in 2006, following his television documentary The Root of All Evil?, Richard Dawkins published The God Delusion, which was on the New York Times bestseller list for 51 weeks. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Atheism) Recently I have been picking up some well-worn books on my shelves, which I remember were breakthrough books, writings that made a deep impact on me in my quest to understand the mysteries of God, cosmos and human being. The British New Testament scholar John Knox, in his The Humanity and Divinity of Christ, wrote a statement that spoke deeply to me – gave me, I suppose, some self-understanding in my spiritual journey. Knox wrote: For our hearts cannot finally find true what our minds find false. (p. 107) I have on occasion rephrased his claim: The heart cannot rest where the mind cannot follow. In either case Knox’s claim is that heart and mind, though with different functions, must be in harmony. Intellectual quest cannot issue in a heart at peace. A peaceful heart cannot be secured without the mind’s understanding. And such equilibrium is not static, for life is dynamic, on the way. Thus quest and rest – a restless mind and a quiet heart. Religion is the quest for God and the great religions of the world point to the Mystery beyond human comprehension, beyond the change and decay that marks our common experience, the shifting tides of human opinion and practices – the Mystery that is sought as the truly Real, the final resting place of the restless human quest, the source and ground of being and the goal toward which all presses. The human longing for God is well documented in our story, the biblical story. The story of Job in the Hebrew Scriptures is a powerful and eloquent witness to © Grand Valley State University �Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 5   the struggle to find God in the midst of human suffering. Determined not to yield to the popular theology and conventional wisdom of his day, Job refuses to accept the idea that suffering is the punishment of God for sin and wrongdoing. In the midst of his debate with those miserable comforters who visited him, he cries out, “Oh, that I knew where I might find God; that I might come even to his dwelling! …I go forward, he is not there; or backward, I cannot perceive him. On the left he hides, and I cannot behold him.” “Oh, that I knew where I might find God.” Indeed! Or the Psalmist – again one whose soul is cast down, suggesting that it is most often at life’s extremity that the God Question obtrudes itself – writes: As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God? Job is a drama, not an historical account; the Psalmist is a poet writing a hymn. This is the stuff of poetry and theater because we are dealing with the depths of human experience, the longing for some clue or glimpse or token that our human existence has meaning, some significance, that it is not simply sound and fury, a tale told by an idiot. But it need not always be triggered by suffering or threat. Sometimes life experience itself simply raises the question – What is the meaning of it all? Nicodemus was a religious teacher, a rabbi, and in his own spiritual quest and questioning he came to Jesus to ask about the God Question, to which Jesus responded with the familiar, “You must be born again,” or “from above,” pointing, of course, to a spiritual illumination beyond the capacity of pure intellectual, rational thinking. And Nicodemus reflected what we must all feel at some time: “How can this be?” My soul longs for God. Oh, that I knew where I might find God. How can this be? Born from above? The God Question – the question that will not go away. What a fascinating quest is this quest for God, and this is a great time in which to be engaged in the quest and question. The God Question is alive and well. It will not go away ever for long, but it is my sense that there is more open discussion about God, about the spiritual life than has been true in my lifetime, and with the vast communication networks of our world, the God question flourishes as never before. © Grand Valley State University �Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 6   In our human experience, as our minds remain open to new breakthroughs in the understanding of our cosmic journey, we know finally, intellectually we will not uncover the mystery that we call God. Are we then engaged as persons and as a human family in an eternal quest that knows no rest? No, for what we cannot discover intellectually we can experience as we love one another. In John’s Gospel, in The Prologue, we read, “The Word was make flesh and lived among us.” And the writer goes on to declare, “No one has ever seen God.” He then points to the Word become flesh. The writer of the First Letter of John repeats the statement of the Gospel writer – “No one has ever seen God!” But then, in a marvelous expansion of the Gospel’s focus on the Word made flesh as the place of revelation, the writer of the First Letter of John declares, No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and His love is perfected in us. Again he writes, God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. The quest goes on. The cosmic journey continues to amaze us as the mysteries of the universe are opened and the restless human mind will continue to lay bare those mysteries. But in the meantime, a quiet heart rests in the Love of God experienced in our human love. The dynamism of the quest keeps the mind open, alert, full of wonder with never ending questions. Loving another, thus experiencing God who is love, the heart finds rest. From my favorite musical drama, Les Miserables, the moving closing song says it all: “To love another person is to see the Face of God” – and experience a heart at rest! © 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 Freedom Village Service Scripture Text Job 23: 1-10, Psalm 42: 1-5, John 3: 1-10, I John 4: 7-8, 12, 16 Location The location of the interview Freedom Village Chapel, Holland, 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-0-20140928 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2014-09-28 Title A name given to the resource Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest 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 September 28, 2014 entitled "Restless Mind and Quiet Heart: Quest and Rest", on the occasion of Freedom Village Service, at Freedom Village Chapel, Holland, MI. Scripture references: Job 23: 1-10, Psalm 42: 1-5, John 3: 1-10, I John 4: 7-8, 12, 16. 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 Change Faith Journey God is Love Spiritual Quest https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/30b1e68986db9f35cd76ddaff5337336.pdf c8f118fc1a672f1a000c0b2bfe037893 PDF Text Text Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh Ordination Service for Bill Freeman Micah 6:6-8; I Corinthians 13; John 1:1-5,14,18 Richard A. Rhem First Congregational United Church of Christ Belding, Michigan May 7, 2006 Transcription of the spoken sermon No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and God's love is perfected in us ... God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. I John 4:12, 16 I am deeply honored to have been invited to preach Bill Freeman's ordination sermon. That Bill should have asked me is especially gracious and remarkable because, if he had listened to me about five years ago, we would not be gathered here to witness his ordination. I told him not to pursue the ministry. For a decade or so, I was a member of a Tuesday conversation that gathered at a little round table in a corner of Duba's bar. The center of the conversation was the incomparable Dr. Duncan Littlefair, whose penetrating mind kept us engaged in stimulating conversation. One day he said to me, "There is a guy who has hung around Fountain Street Church named Bill Freeman. He is thinking about the ministry and I don't think it's a good idea, but I told him to talk to you." Well, this story moves around interesting times and places. A grand tradition each Friday before Christmas was a Christmas party at the Littlefair home. The choir, old and new, gathers and there is a wonderful Carol Sing preceded by good food and drink and social engagement. You don't really need an invitation; you just show up. It must have been about five or six Christmases past at Duncan's gala that Bill got hold of me and we found a narrow alcove where we could talk. He told me of his desire to enter the ministry - the feeling that this was something he felt compelled to do. I asked him why. I told him he had and was still making a difference through his media and communication skills. I suggested there were better ways for a person in his mid-40s to be involved in significant movements than going back to seminary and jumping through the hoops the institutional Church sets up for those who would become ministers of the Word. And I tried to scare him out of the idea. To be sure, I was one of the lucky ones - a great congregation, a wonderful experience of over three decades. But, I told him of all the pain I saw in congregations and in pastors. I told him bluntly - it is a © Grand Valley State University �Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh Richard A. Rhem Page 2 tough business. This is not a good time for mainline churches or for pastors who would approach their task with critical intelligence and a liberal and open spirit Bill listened attentively and then went on with his intention as if we had never spoken. And I'm glad he did. In ensuing encounters, both Dr. Littlefair and I became believers. This was not just some restless guy looking around for some new path to follow; no, this was a man yielding to an inner calling that was compelling him forward. Eventually, we said to him, "You have to do it!" He has, and here we are today - his seminary diploma and United Church of Christ credentials in hand, and he will be ordained in the midst of a congregation that, in extending to him the Call to be their pastor, has confirmed that inward call that he felt five years ago. Bill, I'm delighted you did not listen to me. I now know what you strongly suspected back then - there was something stirring in your life that was of the Spirit of God. The call of God is a mystery, but we know it when we see it. In you, we see it. I have entitled my ordination sermon "Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh." "Seeing is believing" is a common phrase employed when a claim is made that is questionable. Another way to express one's doubt might be, "Show me," or "Prove it." Using this phrase, I'm thinking about the Church. I'm thinking specifically about the Congregational Church in Belding and I'm thinking, too, about your ministry, Bill. You may have a well-honed Mission Statement. There are confessional statements that have formed the United Church of Christ, and, of course, the whole Christian movement has been shaped by Scripture and the ancient ecumenical creeds that affirm the truth claims of the Christian Church. But finally what really matters is the concrete life of this community and what is really critical for the execution of your ministry is the Word becoming flesh. There is a great theological tradition that reverses my claim. None less than the great St. Augustine and St. Anselm put it the other way around and you may recognize the Latin. St Augustine said, "Credo ut intelligam" - "I believe that I might understand," and Anselm's phrase was "Fides Quaerens Intellectum" "Faith in search of understanding." Stated popularly, believe it and you will understand eventually. In this case, faith precedes reason; if you believe, you will come to see. There has been a great philosophical/theological discussion down through the centuries and, frankly, I have loved being immersed in that conversation; I do not denigrate it. But, we live in a day that has seen the upheaval of the great theological systems and a challenge to all the great religious absolutisms in the respective world religious traditions. To continue simply to make claims with the counsel that if only one will believe, one will see and will understand is a losing enterprise. © Grand Valley State University �Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh Richard A. Rhem Page 3 Thus, Bill, on this your day of ordination, and Congregation, on this occasion of the ordination of your new pastor, let me suggest that you will share a fruitful future as the Word becomes Flesh here and Belding sees and believes, believe that God's Spirit is in your midst and the grace of Jesus Christ is being lived out in your shared life. Let me root that claim in what I believe to be the central claim of the Christian faith as it came to expression in the Fourth Gospel, the Gospel that emerged from the Johannine community from which we also have the Letters of John. My text is from First John 4:12 and 16. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and God's love is perfected in us ... God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. No one has ever seen God. That clear acknowledgment comes right out of the Gospel; you will find it in 1:18. And that acknowledgment also points to the deepest yearning of the human heart — to see God or to have one's life touched by God, by the deep Mystery of our existence. In John 14 we read that familiar statement of Jesus, "I am the way, the truth and the life ..." and then Jesus says, "If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him," to which Philip responds, "Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied." Have we not all at some time expressed that wistful longing of Philip -just show us! If only we could see, really see and know! And then Jesus comes back with that audacious claim, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." I am convinced this is the central core of John's Gospel. In the Prologue to the Gospel, 1:1-18, we have the theme set forth. The opening words remind us of the Creation Story - "In the beginning was the Word ..." and someone has translated that "In the beginning was the Divine Intention." And then in 1:14, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us ..." or the Divine Intention became flesh. That, of course, is that marvelous statement of the Incarnation - God become Human, for "Flesh" is synonymous with human. Now, move to 1:18; there we have the acknowledgement we have already noted in I John 4:12- "No one has ever seen God." and now the writer goes on to express the incarnation in other words, "It is God the only son, who has made him known." And here again it is possible to translate the text in a most revealing way; the claim is that Jesus is “the exegesis of God." I must point this out because Bill has just graduated from seminary where he learned the art of exegesis, that is, the art of interpreting the text — drawing © Grand Valley State University �Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh Richard A. Rhem Page 4 out the meaning of a literary piece. The Greek word behind the English "made him known" is Exaeasis. or exegesis in English. But, we are not finished with our biblical foundation of my claim that seeing is believing when the Word becomes flesh. If we had only John's Gospel, we might think that God became human once for all in the humanity of Jesus, that incarnation was a once for all episode and, for those of us who have come after that once for all occurrence, the only possibility was believing, hoping to see. That is where the Gospel would leave us, as we can see, if we stay with the Gospel of John for a moment. Remember the post-Easter encounter of the risen Lord and Thomas? Thomas had missed the Easter evening appearance of Jesus to the disciples. He didn't believe it. He said, "I won't believe he lives unless I can touch his flesh." Thomas was a "show me" person. But, the Gospel writer knows from that time forth "show me" persons were out of luck. And so, we have the encounter of the risen Lord and Thomas, in which Thomas is invited to touch the wounds of Jesus, the explicit statement that such tangible experience is less blessed than those "who have not seen and yet have come to believe." The purpose statement of the Gospel, John 20:30-31, is clear: It follows immediately the Thomas story. Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But, these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing, you may have life in his name. There you have it. The Fourth Gospel gives us that profound portrait of Incarnation - "The Word became flesh," and the further claim that in that incarnation in Jesus we have the clue to the Mystery of God. The truth is affirmed, but for all who follow that episode of incarnation in Jesus, the only option is to believe it hoping thereby to gain life. Precisely here the writer of the First Letter of John moves beyond the Gospel in a significant manner. The Gospel: Believe and you will see. The Letter: Love one another in concrete human community and you will see and experience the Presence and Grace of God. Both writers acknowledge the same truth: "No one has ever seen God." Both writers affirm the revelation of God in humanity - the Word become flesh. But, here is the critical difference: © Grand Valley State University �Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh Richard A. Rhem Page 5 For the Gospel, the location of that revelation is in Jesus in the days of his flesh; for the writer of the Letter, the location of that revelation is the community of human love in ongoing human experience. Jesus is the Exemplar of what is universally true - we see God in the face of the other. So, when we fall in love and exclaim, "It is divine!" that is not hyperbole. It is true. For, God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Notice again the writer's intentionality: he does not say, as we might expect those who abide in God abide in love. Then again, we might throw up our hands and exclaim, how do I abide in God? Too often in the Church we get it backwards: cultivate the devotional life; worship regularly; give generously; live piously; love God. and you will know and you will find salvation. No, that is all backwards. Love one another - Love the stranger - Love and the rest will follow; it is as simple as that! I’m confident, knowing you, Bill, and knowing that this congregation has called you to be their pastor, that I am preaching to the choir. But, looking out on the wasteland of religion in these United States in our day, this elementary truth has been largely forgotten. I'm pleased to know in that vast wasteland there will be here an oasis of Grace, a concretion of Love, and Belding will see and believe. © 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 Ordination Service for Bill Freeman Scripture Text Micah 6:608, I Corinthians 13, John 1:1-5, 14, 18 Location The location of the interview First Congregational United Church of Christ, Belding, 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-0-20060507 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2006-05-07 Title A name given to the resource Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh 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 7, 2006 entitled "Seeing is Believing: When the Word Becomes Flesh", on the occasion of Ordination Service for Bill Freeman, at First Congregational United Church of Christ, Belding, Michigan. Scripture references: Micah 6:608, I Corinthians 13, 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 Divine Intention God is Love https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6d0471d7986b52aa8b2a1f521d45bbb9.mp3 aea0c5cc6cdfd79102491fe40d559287 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7517ec487cc04336dc944c776fa33f2b.pdf 7c5d73e5f5789a91031bbc80298688d6 PDF Text Text A Little Less Certainty and a Lot More Love Text: II Kings; I Corinthians 13; Luke 9:46-56 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan November 23, 2003 Transcription of the spoken sermon I added the reading from the Hebrew scriptures, because in going to that Gospel passage, I knew that the background was important, that story of Elijah and King Ahaziah, violent, causing us to shudder a bit, of course, but yet representative of that particular day. The issue was that the king did not honor Yahweh, the God of Israel, but rather was seeking counsel from one of the Canaanite deities, and of course, the violence was consuming two groups of fifty with fire. That’s the background of the story in Luke. That ninth chapter always surprises me again when I read it - the disciples following Jesus, living with Jesus, imbibing the spirit of Jesus, arguing among themselves which one of them is the greatest, and having a child placed in their midst, with Jesus’ words, “The least among you is the greatest.” And then John proudly telling Jesus that he caught some evangelist out in the suburbs who set up a tent and was conducting exorcisms, and John told him to stop, and Jesus said to him, “Don’t tell him to stop. If he’s not against us, he’s for us.” And then finally Jesus sets his face to go to Jerusalem, and he’s going to go through Samaria. He sends some ahead to make preparations, but the village in Samaria will not receive him because his face is set to Jerusalem, the other rival spiritual center, and so, James and John, who were rightly called the Sons of Thunder, said, “Show us. Call down fire to consume them,” and Jesus just shakes his head and looks at them and says, “You don’t know what spirit you are of.” They go on to another village. I want to say quickly that the contrast is not between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The contrast is not between Judaism and Christianity. The contrast is between two Jews, Elijah in the 9th century B.C.E., and Jesus, so about 900 years separate them. They are both Jewish and they both live out of the same covenant relationship. It’s not a contrast of religions here. It is a contrast of spirit and the different embodiment of, the different understanding of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who Israel was certain is God alone. The issue with Elijah was that there was not an honoring of God alone. With Jesus, it was an issue of love refusing violence, retaliation, vengeance. © Grand Valley State University   �Less Certainty; A Lot More Love Richard A. Rhem Page 2   It was a couple of months ago when I was setting my preaching for the fall that I came to this particular sermon idea, which I call “A Little Less Certainty and a Lot More Love.” The reason I came to it is about that time there was the frontpage headline in the Grand Rapids Press that the Christian group of churches, the ecumenical center called GRACE, was withdrawing from the interfaith Thanksgiving service. On the front-page, two prominent Christian Reformed pastors of that group were quoted as saying, “Obviously we have given off the wrong signals in our interfaith activity. It might appear that we are worshiping the same God and that’s just not true.” I was shocked, I was saddened, I was disappointed by that, I was embarrassed by that. I did not think out of the Reformed community in this area that there would be that kind of statement of an exclusivistic spirit because there’s a theological issue here, and the theological issue here is that there is only God revealed in Jesus Christ and every other God and every other tradition is the false God, is an idol. To me, the theological issue is that you cannot have many gods. If you say God, you are saying God alone. Jesus never intended that he was bringing to expression a new God. This was the God of Israel. This was the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The whole early Christian movement was a Jewish movement that had no conception of some other God because they had no possibility of another God. God is God. The Apostle Paul remained a Jew all of his life and he certainly never conceived of the fact that he became the apostle of some other God. There is God. And then there are our respective religious traditions, and in those respective religious traditions, we have a groping, seeking, yearning after that God who is God alone, that infinite mystery who transcends us, who is beyond our definition, who is beyond our ability to define or domesticate. I had thought that possibly we had come to an understanding of the fact that religion is a human imaginative, creative construct. Someone has an epiphany, a vision, tells a story, gathers a community, forms a ritual, gains an identity, and there is a people formed around that identity and in that ritual and observance experiencing that transcendent God who is beyond all of our naming and all of our defining. I had really thought that maybe we had gotten to that point, but obviously, we have not. I want to be very clear - in no way is my Christian faith denigrated by the recognition that God’s grace and God’s revealing is also accessible to those other traditions. It does not take away from mine at all. I can simply recognize that I am born into, nurtured in a community that has an identity, that has a ritual and an observance, a story that becomes a medium for the experience of God, but that that is also the case for those other great traditions in which the children of God experience that touch of transcendence, that Infinite One whose presence becomes tangible in the finite, religious expressions of humankind. And so, because that exclusive spirit is so often marked by a dogmatic certainty, the title of my message is “A Little Less Certainty and a Lot More Love.” © Grand Valley State University �Less Certainty; A Lot More Love Richard A. Rhem Page 3   Near the end of his narration of the tragic history of 2000 years of the Church’s relationship to the Jewish people, James Carroll in Constantine’s Sword, which some of us have been working through this fall, suggests that truth is not the possession of any institution, any institutional grouping, but rather, that truth is the gift of the Holy Spirit to the people of God, and he concludes that fine paragraph with a statement that says, “Finally, the revelation of Jesus is not about knowing, but about loving.” He refers to I Corinthians 13, for that is precisely what Paul was saying. In a fractured congregation that was filled with all kinds of arrogant claims as to the superiority of my gift over your gift, Paul says we need all the gifts because we are a body, but let me show you a better way, and then he pens that magnificent hymn to love, and it is based on the fact that our knowledge is in part. To be human is to have only relative, partial, provisional knowledge. It is the very nature of being human. Paul says, “We see in a mirror dimly. When I was a child, I thought as a child. When I became an adult, I put away childish things.” Right now, he is saying, “Human family, Corinthian congregation, we are in the childhood of our human experience. That will change some day when we see face to face. But, as for now, because our knowledge is limited, humility becomes us.” A little less certainty and a lot more love, because all knowledge will pass away and be superseded, but love is ultimate. Love can be a “mushy” kind of a word. But to love calls for tangible expression, and I would suggest that in our society today and in the Church today there is an issue that is tearing people apart, an issue that has become a scapegoat issue in society. It is the issue of sexual orientation. In the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling this past week, it has sent Right Wing forces scurrying to try to get state amendments to constitutions defining marriage as between a man and a woman, when the constitution already assumes that and takes that for granted. But, this is an end run trying to stave off the possibility that what the Massachusetts Supreme Court said is a right, a human civil right, a same-sex union, could be authenticated in society. Yesterday’s New York Times had an Op-Ed piece that spoke eloquently and powerfully about marriage and about the crisis in which marriage finds itself because of the lack of devotion and commitment, the contingent nature of marriage where, if it isn’t working out, we just forget it. David Brooks, a Conservative voice, writes, Still even in this time of crisis, every human being in the United States has the chance to move from the path of contingency to the path of marital fidelity, except homosexuals. Gays and lesbians are banned from marriage and forbidden to enter into this powerful and ennobling institution. A gay or lesbian couple may love each other as deeply as any two people, but when you meet a member of such a couple at a party or he or she then introduces you to “a partner,” a word that reeks of contingency, you would think that faced with this marriage crisis we Conservatives would do © Grand Valley State University �Less Certainty; A Lot More Love Richard A. Rhem Page 4   everything in our power to move as many people as possible from the path of contingency to the path of fidelity, but instead, many argue that gays must be banished from matrimony because gay marriage would weaken all marriage. A marriage is between a man and a woman, they say. It is a woman who domesticates men and makes marriage work. Well, if women really domesticated man, heterosexual marriage wouldn’t be in crisis. In truth, it’s moral commitment renewed every day through faithfulness that domesticates all people. The Conservative course is not to banish gay people from making such commitments. It is to expect that they make such commitments. We shouldn’t just allow gay marriage, we should insist on gay marriage. We should regard as scandalous that two people could claim to love each other and not want to sanctify their love with marriage and fidelity. In the Episcopal Church, the consecration of a gay man in a committed relationship to the office of bishop is tearing that church apart. And a very clever journalist, Garry Wills, in Newsweek a couple of weeks ago, titles his column, “The Limits of Inclusiveness,” and he maintains that in the American Episcopal Church, opening up the office of the Bishop to a gay man in a committed relationship has broken the bounds by which the Church can finally stay together. That’s just too much inclusion. And he denigrates Bishop Spong who, in explaining why the Episcopal Church, Anglican Church worldwide, is so divided on this is because, in Africa and Asia and Latin America, [there is] a very conservative element of the Church [who have not moved beyond] superstitious Christianity. For the American Episcopal Church to have an insight and a conviction about what is morally right and decent and dignified, [but] to wait for the rest of the Church to catch up would be to violate their own conscience and their own truth before God. Wills suggests that the argument that the various provinces of the Anglican Church be allowed to determine themselves is like at the time of the Civil War when there was an argument that the states should be allowed to determine whether or not they had slaves, and he wants to suggest that that kind of determination by the states would have been just too much inclusion, that rather Lincoln said there are some things that are right and we must stand there. I want to turn that argument right against Wills and say that is precisely what is going on here. In the case of slavery, Lincoln was saying slavery is contrary to the very essence of this country, to this experiment in freedom. And I want to say to him the inclusion of the Episcopal Church is not too inclusive. If it is, then let the community be shattered and broken until there be enough light from God’s word that will allow others to come along and to see that we need a lot less certainty and a lot more love. We cannot as a community simply mouth love. There are times that we must stand up for what is good and dignified and decent and moral, and before the face of God for us true, to stand up and to be counted. © Grand Valley State University �Less Certainty; A Lot More Love Richard A. Rhem Page 5   No one has ever seen God. John writes, “God is love. No one has ever seen God. But the one who dwells in love, dwells in God, and God dwells in that one.” Dear friends, I know I’m preaching to the choir, thank God. But, we need a little less certainty and a lot more love. © 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 Pentecost XXIV Scripture Text II Kings, I Corinthians 13, Luke 9:46-56 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-0-20031123 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2003-11-23 Title A name given to the resource A Little Less Certainty and a Lot More Love 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 November 23, 2003 entitled "A Little Less Certainty and a Lot More Love", on the occasion of Pentecost XXIV, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: II Kings, I Corinthians 13, Luke 9:46-56. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives God is Love Inclusivism https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/cc683672d489b1d8a22bf5f74bd796e4.mp3 1ede0a2155f35506c45ab5e2ebce0b3f https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b19cdda82c25c9e6be51e28fbffbea31.pdf 4d5272f8180d4b2f608406923ce18dcb PDF Text Text Loving is Living Without Fear Text: Luke 1:30; Matthew 1:20; Luke 2:10; I John 4:18 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan January 4, 1987 Transcription of the spoken sermon ... Do not be afraid, Mary for you have found favor with God. Luke 1:30 ... Joseph ... do not be afraid to take Mary home with you as your wife... Matthew 1:20 And the angel said to them [the shepherds), "Be not afraid; for behold I bring you good news of a great joy ..." Luke. 2:10 There is no room for fear in love; perfect love banishes fear. I John 4:18 If we did a little word association game and we were looking for pairs of opposites, and I said "black," you would probably say, "white," and if I said "hot," you would say, "cold," and if I said "war," you'd say, "peace," and if I said "love," you'd say, "hate." And you would be wrong. Love and hate seem like a pair of opposites, but when you really stop to think about it, it's not really love and hate, but love and fear. That's an insight which has been brought to light by a psychiatrist named Gerald Jampolsky. He shared that on the Hour of Power, and it was an insight that Bob Schuller appreciated so much that he got to know Jerry Jampolsky and last year, in March, when we were on Maui at a theological conference with Bob Schuller, Jerry was there. I must say that he lives his creed. He's written a little book, Love Is Letting Go Of Fear. It's a simple book; it's almost a simplistic book. It has cartoon characters and bold-type declarations that one can memorize, but in spite of the fact that it seems like an elementary treatment, he does have hold of something, and there is a profound truth there. He has had, in his own experience, life transformation through the insight. On reflection, I got to thinking, "Well, Jerry, you're not so smart. The Apostle John in the First Century said that a long tine ago!" He said there's no room for fear in love. Perfect love banishes fear. And so, what has been rediscovered in our day is simply an old truth, and, as a matter of fact, it's at the very heart of the Gospel; it is at the very root of what God has done for us at Christmas in the incarnation of the Word, in © Grand Valley State University   �Loving is Living Without Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 2   the revelation of His glory in the face of Jesus Christ. The Christmas message, at its very core, says that loving is living without fear. Love and fear, according to John, are mutually exclusive. Love and fear cannot coexist in the same heart. Well, I suppose our hearts are always living in a balance of love and fear, but to the extent that we are loving, we are not fearing, and to the extent that we are fearing, we are not loving. And the battle is to get hold of the insight of Christmas and begin to love and not fear. Loving is living without fear, and that is a life-transforming truth if we'd ever let it grip our souls. We do have some control over the ingredients of our minds and the stuff of our life. We can make some conscious and deliberate choices, and those conscious and deliberate choices can be made, for a Christian, on the basis of a foundation of truth rooted in the Gospel, rooted in the Christmas Gospel. John says the greatest reality is that God is love. It is repeated over again in that fourth chapter - God is love. God is love. The ultimate reality is love. At the heart and center of things is love. Reality, history, human experience, the transcendent ground of everything is not love, among other things - it is love. That's John's grasp of the truth that he discovered in Jesus Christ. God is love. And so, when he says that there is no room for fear in love, but rather that perfect love casts out fear, he is giving a very practical prescription for living and that prescription can really transform our human experience. At the heart and center of reality there is love, and he says that love came to manifestation. If you want next week's word, Epiphany, the word is in this text. God showed or God manifested His love to us in that He sent His son. Jesus was the gift of God by which he signaled to the world that He is love. The Gospel of Jesus is the good news that the heart of God is the heart of love, and that the great, basic, ultimate, final, supreme reality of everything, of human life and of the world and of the whole of the cosmic scope of things is love. That's the Christmas message. The Christmas message is meant to enable us to live with love and to be done with fear. That is very, very elemental; it speaks to the root of our problem. God displayed love that casts out fear. I was rather surprised as I began to think about the story, this wonderful Christmas story that we've just lived through again. Mary gets a marvelous announcement from Gabriel. I suppose it would strike fear into one's heart. Gabriel's words to Mary were, "Mary, fear not. Fear not. Don't worry about the fact that you're engaged and the marriage hasn't been consummated. Don't worry about what the community will say. Don't worry about the fact that you might lose Joseph and lose everything and have all your dreams shattered." Easy to say, Good Old Gabriel - "Don't be afraid." But that was his word, because that was Mary's problem. It's always our problem. We're always afraid. Who knows what this new year will bring? Sometimes we grow anxious. How will our new business do? How about the new practice we've just started? How about the new relationship we've just established? How about the new child in our home, or © Grand Valley State University �Loving is Living Without Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 3   grandchild? What about all the scary possibilities of this new year, in this world that is going with such a whirl, on its way, always teetering on the brink of disaster? Fear fills the human heart. "Don't be afraid, Mary." And then, there's Joseph. Joseph is a decent sort of person. What will he do? Will he be willing to risk being made the laughingstock of the community? Will he expose Mary to that ridicule? Will he be so put off and offended at Mary? "Yeah, sure, Mary, a dove. I know, a dove." The angel comes and says, "Joseph, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid to take Mary." He would be afraid. Who wouldn't be afraid? And so the Word of God always has to come through His angelic messenger. "Don't be afraid." And then this marvelous event is broadcast to the world, brought personally to shepherds. Good News! And what did the angels have to say? "Don't be afraid. Fear not. Good news of a great joy that shall be to all people. Settle down. Calm yourselves. Don't be afraid." It must be that there is something intrinsic, something at the very core of our being; there is something about being human that makes us react to life with fear. It's very elemental. It's a very primitive response to life. I suppose it's because of our connection with the whole animal kingdom, our connectedness with all of Creation, that survival instinct. Did you ever watch a bird in the grass looking for a worm, cocking its head, listening? I'm never sure if it's listening for a worm rattling down in the clay, or whether it's cocking its head to see if I have a slingshot in my hand. I think it's always worried about a BB gun. Here, there, all over the place. A parable of a human being. Always looking around for the next threat, the next attack. Life is viewed as threatening, and people's relationship is often viewed as an attack, and we live our lives in an adversarial environment with others. Always feeling that we have something to protect, something to hold onto, something to possess, something to guard. Fear is a very primitive human response. So, all of our lives we go about being afraid and interpreting the behavior of others as an attack. And it happens all over the place. Did you ever go in for a nice meal in a restaurant and the waitress begins by spilling your ice water over the table, pours hot coffee down your back, and snarls, "What do you want?" And you've just come in, expecting a pleasant evening with a waiter to be at your service, and he turns out to be grouchy, and so you say to the people with you, "Well, I'll fix him. We'll give him a little tip." (Don't leave out the tip completely, because then the waiter will interpret that as though you forgot to leave a tip.) Leave a quarter when it should have been a tendollar bill. That will get the message across. Then he'll know that I am saying to him that I am displeased with the service. And, of course, that will make his day, won't it? And maybe the man's wife was just laid off with the prospect of unemployment for months. Maybe his son was just taken to the Emergency Room, having been struck down with an automobile. Maybe he is about to go in for emergency surgery with a bleeding ulcer that's about to burst in the next two © Grand Valley State University �Loving is Living Without Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 4   or three hours, and maybe you were able to add to all the anxiety that will bring it to a head. We do it to each other all the time. Never stop to ask, "Why? Wow, that person must be struggling with something." Rather, we say, "Who do you think you are? And I'll fix you. I'll get my own back." And so, we get this adversarial kind of relationship going, static sparks between us, and we go around through life like a bull in a china shop, we go around causing sparks to fly all over, and sparks fly all over the landscape. What does it do to us? It leaves us more deeply entrenched than ever before in that which has shackled us and gripped our spirit. The pall of darkness is heavier; the loneliness, the isolation is more extreme. And the reaction of fear and anger is all the more intense. We do that to each other, and it's one thing when we do that to each other, but we do it also as peoples and as clans and as ethnic groups and as races and as nations, so that the whole world, the whole human story is a violent story of action and reaction, charge and counter charge. Attack and fearful response, and attack again. There must be something deep down in us that causes us to respond with fear – basic insecurity that makes us go through life always interpreting everything as an attack to which we, out of fear, respond in anger. Attack and anger and attack and anger and the static grows and the sparks grow and the conflagration explodes on the earth. Now, God wants to get through to us. Why don't you do what would be so obvious to do, God, for rebellious subjects like we are? Why don't you come in and clobber us? Why don't you come in with a 2 by 4 to get our attention, beat us over the head? Why don't you come in as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, with angel hosts and flashing lights and great power? Why don't you climb on a bulldozer and move through history? Get our attention! Show us who we are! Put us in our place! Well, that's what He decided to do. But He figured, if He did it that way, He'd make us more of what we were already. Oh, He could get our attention. He could make us cower in the corner. He could probably even get our grudging conformity to His will, but it would be full of hostility. It would be full of anger. And it would be the kind of relationship that is characterized by coercion and manipulation. Well, He had a problem, didn't He? So, He decided to come in the vulnerability of a child. Because what He really wanted was not our subservience. What He really wanted was not our obedience, not our cowering, groveling before the presence of His glory. What He wanted us to do was look Him in the face so that He could say to us, "All I am is love, and I love you." So that we might be able to look Him in the face and say, "I love You, too." And how do you get that kind of thing going? You only get that kind of thing going when you take the risk of vulnerability. So there he lies in a cradle, in a child, in all of the harmless vulnerability of a child there's the Lord of glory, there's the everlasting God, the Prince of Peace. And you can handle Him and you can run roughshod over Him and you can put Him up © Grand Valley State University �Loving is Living Without Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 5   on a cross and do away with Him. But He'll have the last word – it's Love. And every once in a while – out of our intense fear and anger that frequently lashes out from us, at various times or inappropriately – every once in a while, somebody looks up and says, "Why am I fighting and full of anger if God is Love?" Every once in a while, somebody gets disarmed by love. That really is what Christmas is all about. God is love. He didn't write that in the sky. John says, "In this the love of God is manifested in that He sent His son." Then John says, "Beloved, if God so loved us..." Well, obviously, again, in our human understanding of things, we know the concluding clause will be, "We ought to love God," because we expect that love will be responded to with love. If God loves us, we love God. How neat. We can go through life with this nice, personal relationship with God and create Hell the rest of the time. But that's not what John says. "Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought to love one another." Isn't that amazing? The Gospel is radical. The word "radical" comes from the root, "radix," which means "root." God addressed the root of our problem at Christmas. The root of our problem is that we're insecure and we're afraid, and so we live always on the attack, interpreting everything as threat, and we create Hell on earth. The Gospel is the radical solution to the human dilemma. The Gospel is God's move into the vulnerability of a child by which He signals to us, "I am love. Be not afraid." Loving, is living without fear, because there is no room for fear in love; perfect love casts out fear. Every once in a while somebody wakes up to that radical story and says, "Wow," and finds the hostility and the anger melt away and life absolutely transformed. One set free - free from fear, free to love. That is a radical message. That is the Christmas message. That is the truth, and in a moment like this, if one could just be grasped by it, it could change one's life. One could go out for dinner and get illserved and smile at the person and give them a gentle touch, and leave a large tip and turn their life upside down. They'll tell you that this won't work. This won't work in Washington, of course. Nor in Moscow. Or Beijing. It won't work in Geneva. It won't work at City Hall. It won't work at the boardrooms of industry. Well, as a matter of fact, it really won't work anywhere without the possibility of one being taken advantage of, made a fool of, maybe even crucified. So, it probably won't work. But, to be honest, nothing else works; we only compound the problems: fear, threat, anger, attack, leaving all parties more deeply entrenched in fear. Nice going, God. We're going to try it on our own. We've got a couple more techniques up our sleeve. But, to be honest, what we need is a miracle of love. I wonder if it would work. I am, on the first Sunday of 1987, going to make a public pledge to try it, intentionally, in that little circle of my life. I invite you to join me, for loving is living without fear. And I suspect that's really living. © Grand Valley State University �Loving is Living Without Fear Richard A. Rhem Page 6   Let us pray. Father, forgive us for all of the common sense rationalization of our failure to live the Gospel. Release us from our fears. Help us to hear Your word, "Be not afraid." Enable us to respond to Your love by loving. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Christmastide II Scripture Text Luke 1:30, 2:10, Matt. 1:20, I John 4:18 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-0-19870104 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1987-01-04 Title A name given to the resource Loving is Living Without Fear 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 January 4, 1987 entitled "Loving is Living Without Fear", on the occasion of Christmastide II, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Luke 1:30, 2:10, Matt. 1:20, I John 4:18. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Community of Grace Fear God is Love Incarnation Love at the Core of Reality Transforming Love