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Text
A Declaration of Inter-dependence
Text: Psalm 33:16-17; Romans 12:21; Matthew 5:44
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Independence Day Weekend, July 5, 1998
Transcription of the spoken sermon
We celebrate 222 years of existence as a nation, born as an experiment in human
freedom, a nation in which the government was of, for and by the people. The
ideal of our founders was a magnificent vision worthy to be celebrated in public
festivals and to be reflected on in Divine worship because, while the early framers
of our founding documents were not evangelical Christians as is loudly claimed in
some quarters today, their vision was grounded in the biblical vision of
humankind created by God, not only the ground of all reality but the source and
enlivening presence of all life, including human life - a Creator Who is the
guarantor of human dignity and freedom.
Our founding vision was a radical experiment, to be understood in the
background of the European origin of the nation, a background of Divine Right of
kings and nobility and human domination. The American experiment was an
attempt to limit government and vastly restrict its arena of operation. The early
documents resonate with lofty idealism and there is too little appreciation of the
greatness of that founding vision.
It was flawed from the beginning; it had its limitation of the radical nature of the
freedom it was espousing and has been in a process of development over the 222
years of our national existence. But we have been blessed to have entered into the
fruit of that vision, for which we give God thanks.
The Declaration of Independence, the claim of national sovereignty, was a bold
and daring act in the 18th century. As the 21st century dawns, an equally bold
and daring act is imperative; it is the declaration of inter-dependence with all
nations and peoples of the earth. Such a claim is not wild-eyed fantasy of a
hopelessly idealistic and impractical dreamer. Rather, it is a practical and
necessary response to the real situation of our world on the threshold of the Third
Millennium.
The most telling image of our situation as humankind on planet earth is the
astronaut’s picture of the earth taken from outer space - the earth, a beautiful
globe of blue and green hanging in the frozen darkness of space - obviously an
© Grand Valley State University
�Declaration of Inter-dependence
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
inter-related, inter-connected whole. The picture gives vivid witness to the
commentary of the astronaut who says there are no real barriers or divisions; the
earth is one; a planetary unity.
What the picture of the earth as a whole points to is being realized in actual
human experience. The amazing accomplishments of technology have put the
world’s people into instant communication. Travel exposes us to the whole rich
diversity of the human community. What happens in one part of the world
impacts every part. We cannot wash our hands of the ongoing tensions in the
Middle East, not turn our backs on the anguish of the Balkan states.
The ecological concern for the well-being of the environment can only be
addressed from a global perspective and nuclear non-proliferation is essential for
the whole global family.
Speaking of the drive toward one world totally intertwined is not fantasizing
about what might be, but simply being responsible before what is; and the best
place to see it is in the actuality of a global economy. Multinational corporations
and international banking are a reality. The move to one currency in the
European community is only a symbol of the interlocked economics of the world.
We bail out Mexico, cajole and press Indonesia and support the Japanese yen not because we are an altruistic nation wanting to help those in distress, but
because we are invested literally around the globe and need a healthy global
economy to keep our own GNP in good shape.
As the Third Millennium approaches and the 21st century breaks upon us, it is
time for a declaration of inter-dependence.
It would be foolhardy to think that we, the USA, the world’s only present
superpower could insulate and isolate ourselves from the rest of the earth in the
ongoing development of the cosmic drama and the human story. These are not
far out ideas.
The Fourth of July in Flint was marked by picketers with American flags. We are
witnessing a serious social situation in our own state that is impacting not only
Michigan, but the nation. What is the underlying reality? It is not a simple
matter. One can fume at General Motors - giving the store away in the past. One
can fume at the UAW - bringing on what they claim they are trying to avoid. But,
General Motors cannot go on as is. And autoworkers in Flint are human beings
being disrupted and dislocated.
I mention this not to take sides or examine all the issues involved - and it is very
complex; rather, to show that this kind of crisis close to home has to do with
globalization.
© Grand Valley State University
�Declaration of Inter-dependence
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
Some philosophers and theologians suggest that we must dismantle the global
networks of industry and economics, return to small regional communities of
production and consumption, nurturing local customs and ethnic diversity. They
rail against globalization as the loss of particular cultural identities and want to
stop the whole process toward one world.
I understand, but I don’t think that will happen. There is a tide, broad and
powerful, that is sweeping us toward one world, totally inter-related. It seems to
me what we must do is not throw up barriers against ongoing development, but
rather, seek ways to make the future humane, just and peaceful. We need a vision
of inter-dependence and then the will to make it happen.
What is needed is a transformation of consciousness. We simply must begin to
think differently. We need a prophet to annunciate the new and emerging reality
- the global reality of which we are a part. Rather than the reactionary rhetoric of
the religious Right that is attempting to re-invent yesterday, we need someone to
help us find a new orientation in a new cultural situation. Rather than a fearful,
defensive posture that is marked by a militant mind and hostile spirit, we need to
cultivate a global consciousness that thinks of how to make the future more
humane, more just, marked by planetary peace.
We are not without resources for such a vision. In 1848 Karl Marx and Friedrich
Engels published the Communist Manifesto. It was focused on economics, but it
was really a revolutionary social document. On the 150th anniversary of its
publication, a number of works are being published. In an article in The New
York Times, the present debate was set forth, but what seemed to be commonly
agreed on was that Marx did see the relentless power of capital to produce wealth
and he did see what we are currently experiencing globally. He failed to see how
Capitalism could pull the proletariat into the game and thus avoid what he
thought would be inevitable revolution.
Again, here my point is not to argue Marx pro or con, but to suggest that we need
such a powerful prophetic visionary in our day.
Where did Marx get his vision?
Communism has been called a biblical heresy. The founding story of Israel is the
freedom of a people from domination and ruthless exploitation, and the story is
shaped by the Hebrew prophets who envisioned a peaceable kingdom where the
lion and the lamb would lie down together. The vision, the passion for justice and
human well-being that found expression in a Karl Marx was in that biblical
tradition.
We have the biblical story as resource. Psalm 33 celebrates the sovereignty of
God who fills the earth with steadfast love. The image of God as Ruler out there in heaven - controlling the affairs of the nations is not in line with the experience
of cosmic movement and historical development, but I believe the Psalmist had
© Grand Valley State University
�Declaration of Inter-dependence
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
true insight into the human situation - we did not create this world; we are not
sovereign, nor can we secure ourselves by human means. The King - the symbol
of human sovereignty - is not secured by horses and armies. Military might won’t
do it. Economic power won’t do it. No human reality is impregnable.
God is at the heart of things.
Love is at the heart of things.
Grace - modeled out in God, as we see it revealed in Jesus Christ, is the only way
to peace on earth.
Paul, responding to the encounter with the grace of God in Jesus Christ, appealed
to followers of Jesus in Rome - on the basis of the mercies of God, to present
themselves a sacrifice to God - living, holy, acceptable. This, Paul said, is only
logical - it makes sense.
Grace at the core of things, as he had so eloquently written as chapter 11 ends,
calls for a transformation of life, a new way of being, not conformed to the
structures and forms of this world, but transformed by the renewing of the mind.
A shift in consciousness - that is radical, thinking differently!
Paul, of course, was reflecting Jesus. The Sermon on the Mount is filled with
concrete, practical counsel on how to live. Paul said do not meet evil with evil, but
overcome evil with good and, obviously, he was trying to counsel a way of being
that emulated the way of Jesus who said "No!" to the old code of justice - an eye
for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Rather, "If anyone strikes you on the right
cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give
her your cloak, as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the
second mile."
Again, radically, Jesus declares, Love your enemies.
In short, be God-like, the God who causes rain to fall on the righteous and the
unrighteous alike and causes the sun to rise on the good and the evil. That section
ends with "Be perfect as God is perfect," and the connotation of the word
translated perfect is "mature." In effect, we need to grow up.
Hans Küng brings this radical counsel of Jesus into the concrete circumstances of
our day. In his work, Judaism, he addresses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Recognizing the delicacy of any non-Jew dealing with the issue, he nonetheless
points to the frequency with which the Likud party, particularly, uses the word
retaliation. One must be sensitive to the Israeli position, given the suffering and
loss that people has suffered over the centuries. Yet, he wonders if the word of the
Jew Jesus is not a better way to the future and peace - not retaliation, but the
voluntary renunciation of power and rights.
© Grand Valley State University
�Declaration of Inter-dependence
Richard A. Rhem
Page 5
For many years I did not preach on the Sermon on the Mount. I was not content
to interpret it as a code of personal ethics irrelevant to the world of real politics.
Yet, it seemed so incredible, so impossible in the real world of international
relations. But, the longer I think about these things, the more I am convinced that
Jesus’ way is the only way there can ever be peace on earth, the realization of the
Creator’s intention for Shalom - the peaceable kingdom.
If Jesus’ way won’t work, there is no other way.
© Grand Valley State University
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/3b3317e031eb6f4d29193b5f043218bf.mp3
9df576e251d76b5603a5470fc2302ff1
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Richard A. Rhem Collection
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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
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Religion
Interfaith worship
Sermons
Sound Recordings
Creator
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Rhem, Richard A.
Source
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a>
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
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English
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Sound
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KII-01
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1981-2014
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audio/mp3
text/pdf
Sound
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Event
Pentecost V
Series
Independence Day Weekend
Scripture Text
Psalm 33:16-17, Romans 12:21, Matthew 5:44
Location
The location of the interview
Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
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KII-01_RA-0-19980705
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1998-07-05
Title
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A Declaration of Inter-dependence
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
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Grand Valley State University
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
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Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
Language
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eng
Type
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Text
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audio/mp3
application/pdf
Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on July 5, 1998 entitled "A Declaration of Inter-dependence", as part of the series "Independence Day Weekend", on the occasion of Pentecost V, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Psalm 33:16-17, Romans 12:21, Matthew 5:44.
Consciousness
Global Community
Inclusive
Justice
Peace
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/588b99d438b1bf4edeb1a4a63a6f2e76.pdf
a70652caf985f5da4c566316cf1e7faa
PDF Text
Text
A Dreamer’s Portrait of God
From the Lenten sermon series: The Dream
Text: Luke 15:20
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
March 19, 1995
Transcription of the spoken sermon
I love books and I have many books. One of them is a book by Henri Nouwen, the
Dutch Catholic contemplative writer. Henri Nouwen has written many books, but
this book is special. It is entitled The Return of the Prodigal Son. It's beautifully
bound and it has reproductions of Rembrandt's painting of the return of the
Prodigal. And the picture returns throughout the course of the book as Nouwen
writes about the wonder of the love of God that embraces this son, and speaks
also about the elder brother who stands on the sidelines. It is a beautiful book.
The portrait struck Nouwen back in the early 80's. He purchased a poster
reproduction of it, put it wherever he was living at the time, and then had
opportunity to go to Leningrad to the Hermitage Museum, where he saw the
original. The picture is one of an old father, nearly blind, with his hands on the
son as he kneels, and Nouwen contemplated that picture for over four hours on
two different occasions; he sat before that picture and just absorbed it. It became
for him a portrait of God as it was a rendering of the portrait of God that Jesus
painted in words in the Gospel lesson of the morning.
As Nouwen contemplated this picture, he noticed that the left hand was
masculine and it was firm on the shoulder of the son, but the right hand was
obviously not a match. It was a more feminine hand, and Nouwen contemplated
what Rembrandt was expressing near the end of his life after he himself had
suffered such deep loss of his wife and of children and of dear friends. The aged
Rembrandt painting an aged father receiving a child, one hand obviously
masculine, the other as though it would caress, a feminine hand. I suppose that
Rembrandt was familiar with that word from Isaiah, where Judah says God has
forsaken us; God has forgotten us, and the Lord responds, "I have not forsaken
you. I have not forgotten you. Could a mother forget a child at her breast? Could a
mother lack compassion for the child of her womb? But even if these should
forget, I will never forget you. I have engraved you in the palm of my hands. Like
as a mother comforteth, as a father pities his children ..." I suppose all of those
images were in Rembrandt's mind as he painted this magnificent portrait of the
father receiving the son to his home. And I suspect that all of that imagery was
also in the mind of Jesus.
© Grand Valley State University
�A Dreamer’s Portrait of God
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
We noted last week that he came to his hometown and declared his dream, and
the contours of that dream he took from the Prophet Isaiah, "The Spirit of the
Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor, the
release of the captives, to bring healing, to cause the lame to walk and the blind to
see and the deaf to hear, to proclaim the year of God's favor." This was the
declaration of the dream of Jesus.
Where do dreams come from? What is it that settles in on one, that takes
possession of one, that causes one's whole life to be shaped, and energizes and
empowers one's life to live out that vision? A transforming moment? Certainly in
Jesus' case, the deep mining of that tradition of Israel that had shaped him. Some
encounter perhaps, some human encounter that made it all come together for
him. A Rosa Parks climbs on a bus and sits where she is not supposed to sit
because she is a black woman. And they tell her to move and suddenly she says,
"No." Because suddenly in a moment, her own human dignity takes possession of
her and she resists that code that was written in concrete. Martin Luther King
picks up the story and stands eventually before the Lincoln Memorial and sings,
"I have a dream." What was it that triggered a Gandhi to become the leader of
passive resistance that had such earthshaking effect? What was it that caused a
Nelson Mandela to be willing to endure years and years of incarceration for what
he believed to be right and true? What was it that enabled Jesus to live out so
faithfully that vision he had of who God was and what God was calling him to be?
He was a dreamer, and it's dangerous to dream. Because it's so possible that the
dream will fail, or that we'll be rejected. Remember the story in Genesis of Joseph
- he was a dreamer. And he came one day approaching his brothers with supplies,
and they said, "Here comes the dreamer." It's so easy to write off the one whose
life is consumed by a vision. They make us nervous, I suppose. It's unsettling. The
dream is too bold, too daring. If it demands change and transformation,
dreamers die.
Jesus was a dreamer. And his whole life was the living out of a dream, and he
said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He certainly claimed the authorization of
God. He must have been totally convinced that his vision of God was rooted in
reality and in truth. It was a vision of God, a portrait of God that ran contrary to
the accepted wisdom of the time. He ran into conflict because he lived out his
vision of God full of mercy and compassion, a God who would not exclude, but
include, a God who caused him to sit at table with anyone, a God who would
break through all of those dividers between people that we call alienation, that
would make some people inside and some people outside. There were so many
people outside in Jesus' day. He saw them all. They were like sheep without a
shepherd, harassed, and Jesus was moved with compassion for them because he
must have been convinced that there was compassion in the heart of God for
these people because they didn't really have a chance. They were ruled out from
the beginning. People wear down after a while, if they get continually reflected
back to them that they don't amount to anything, they are ritually impure, they
are in a class that is not acceptable, finally people just wear down.
© Grand Valley State University
�A Dreamer’s Portrait of God
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
The worst thing in the world we can do to people is to reflect to them that they
don't count, that they have no value, that they belong on the outside. Finally, one
begins to imbibe that in the very marrow of one's bones and one begins to take
for granted that that is what one is - just one no-account. And Jesus broke
through all of that and he had relationship with all kinds of people, he sat at table
with and he invited them to his table and he scandalized those who were
responsible for keeping society orderly. That's the setting of the story he told. I
didn't read the first three verses of Luke 15, but you'll find there that it was the
religious leadership of his day that was grumbling because he communicated with
tax collectors and sinners. Now, sinners – they weren't bad people. That was a
class of people, people that were simply outclassed. And they grumbled and they
said, "Look, he sits at table with people like this!" And so, he told his story. It had
three parts - about a lost sheep, and a lost coin, and about two lost sons.
We call it the parable of the prodigal son, but even in that we misname it and we
resist what is really there. It is not the parable of the prodigal son. Neither is it
the parable of the elder son, although there is a prodigal son and an elder son,
two brothers, but it's not about the boys. It's about God. It is about the father.
This is a story about God. This is Jesus' understanding of God. This is the
dreamer's portrait about God. He tells the story about the father who gives to the
younger son his inheritance, knowing that it will be spent in the far country away
from the father's home. And Jesus tells about the young man coming to himself
and coming home. To show how we resist the real truth of this parable, you
probably have heard it preached on as the parable of the prodigal son illustrating
conversion, the son out in the far country having sinned grievously, comes to
himself. Oh, my dear friends, he was not converted in the far country. Coming to
himself in this story only means that he wised up. He sat down and took account
of his circumstances and he said, "Look, I'm hungry and destitute. No one is
giving me anything. And the hired servants of my father are better off than me."
So, he memorized a speech. He was still scheming. He was still strategizing. He
still wanted to be in control. He was not going home to love the father; he was
going home to get a bunk bed and three square meals.
That boy wasn't changed until he felt the salty tears of his father. Because Jesus
knew. And Jesus believed that God knew that it is only unconditional love that
can transform a human personality. And the transformation took place in the
light of this old father who gathered his skirts and ran down the street contrary to
every good social conduct and code, and embraced the son without
recrimination; rather, he threw a party.
That is Jesus' understanding of God. That is the dreamer's portrait of God so
beautifully captured by Rembrandt, continuing down through the centuries to be
the most profound image of God that we have as a body of Christ, as the people of
God.
© Grand Valley State University
�A Dreamer’s Portrait of God
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
Can you hear it without being moved by it? As many times as you have heard it, is
not that God, is that not amazing? Is it not true that that transforming love alone
can change a person? Or change the world? But, Jesus, of course, painted the
portrait because he was encountering the anger of those who purportedly were
the advocates of God. And so he told of the elder son, as well, the elder son who
came in from the field and saw the party and, finding out that the father was
throwing the party for the son who had returned, was offended and grew angry.
I'll give you a mystery to think about. This is a mystery. Why is it that
unconditional love and grace proffered elicits such anger? Jesus painted the
picture of the elder son as well to whom the father went out and pleaded, without
recrimination to him, saying, "Son, everything I have is yours. Come in! It is
simply good that we celebrate. Your brother is home and he's safe." Why is it that
grace and love promiscuously offered in the name of a prodigal God elicits anger?
Jesus must have understood this, as well. Maybe the elder son has his
counterpart in the Prophet Jonah in the Old Testament. Remember that story?
God says to Jonah, "Go to Nineveh, a foreign city and a pagan people, and preach
there." And Jonah took a boat and went the other way. Not because he was afraid
to preach, but because he knew that if he preached and Nineveh heeded, God
would forgive Nineveh. And Jonah didn't really want God to forgive Nineveh.
Jonah really wanted God to damn Nineveh. But finally, you know, when you're in
the whale of a belly, ... you reconsider, and so he went and he preached. And it's
just like he suspected. Nineveh heeded the word of God and repented. And just as
he suspected, God being an old softy, spared the city. And if you take that little
book of Nineveh, if you can find it in the Minor Prophets, only four chapters, look
at the 4th verse of the 4th chapter - Jonah is pouty, and God comes and says,
"Jonah, do you do well to be angry?"
"Yes!" So, Jonah takes his place over in the hill overlooking the city and the sun is
hot. God causes a gourd to grow up to give him shade. Jonah's happy. Next
morning, God creates a little worm that gnaws at the gourd and the gourd wilts
and falls down and the sun blasts Jonah in the face again, who is angry. God says,
"Jonah, do you do well to be angry at the gourd?"
"Yes!"
"Well, Jonah, if you're angry about a gourd that was here yesterday and is gone
today, how do you think I feel about all the people of Nineveh? Don't you know
that I care for them, too? Don't you know that they, too, are my children? Don't
you know that my heart of compassion would embrace them as well?"
Jesus was consumed by his understanding of God, which was a God that would
exclude no one, that would embrace everyone, Whose compassion knows no
limit, Whose mercy is as broad as the whole human family. And so, in the face of
the anger, he told this story, and the story is just this, dear friends. God has one
deep passionate desire - God wants you home. God wants you home. That's all.
© Grand Valley State University
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/205861631cd00d22bcd7326ef6ecd82b.mp3
41176c4ee9e66e91d2f9c5ee0852cba0
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
Lent III
Series
The Dream
Scripture Text
Luke 15:20
Location
The location of the interview
Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
Dublin Core
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KII-01_RA-0-19950319
Date
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1995-03-19
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A Dreamer's Portrait of God
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Richard A. Rhem
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
Relation
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Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
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eng
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Sound
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audio/mp3
application/pdf
Description
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A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on March 19, 1995 entitled "A Dreamer's Portrait of God", as part of the series "The Dream", on the occasion of Lent III, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Luke 15:20.
Inclusive
Nature of God
Transforming Love
Way of Jesus
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PDF Text
Text
A Hope Too Narrow
From the series: Memory and Hope
Text: Isaiah 35:4; Matthew 3:12
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Advent III, December 12, 1999
Transcription of the spoken sermon
Have you noticed how you might hear of a person or a region or perhaps discuss a
disease, you've never heard of them before, you had no knowledge of them, and
the next day you go out and you see the same thing referred to and within the
next few days you find that particular new piece of information everywhere? It's
not as though it suddenly came to expression, but simply because you suddenly
had an awareness, your attention was called to a certain phenomenon and then
you began to see it everywhere. You had a fresh awareness that caused the filter
of your mind to take in that piece of data and to register it. It's a common human
experience, and I have found that to be the case as I have reflected on the larger
religious scene and, more specifically, the Christian tradition and the Christian
church. It continues to impress me, startle me, and amaze me how narrow is the
hope of the Christian church. I want to suggest to you today that the Christian
church has traditionally had a hope too narrow and, that being the case, it is not
true simply for Christian faith, but I come to see more and more that it is an
aspect of religion itself.
Ironically, religion doesn't always make us very nice people. Religion can bring
out the worst in us and can feed the baser nature, which is a part of our human
creaturehood, and so this morning I had you open your Bibles to that section in
Isaiah to see the contrast between Isaiah 34 and 35. I didn't intend to do that,
frankly, until I got studying the whole thing. I was going to simply use 35; it's a
wonderful passage. However, there is one verse in there, verse four, which
contrasts the blessing of God for Zion, for God's people over against the
vengeance with which God will come to judge the rest. But, as I was studying and
I read Chapter 34 before, I said, "Oh, my goodness! What a picture!"
Did it shock you just a bit? Did you know that that was in there, this chapter
about the vengeance of God, the furious God, the God who is furious with the
nations, who is going to come to judge the nations, whose sword is sated with
blood? The judgment scene of the devastation of the nations and specifically of
Edom.
© Grand Valley State University
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Edom was a neighboring tribe, a neighboring people, and perhaps you will
remember that Edom comes from Esau so that what we have is the old rivalry
between Jacob and Esau, the rivalry between the brothers and, of course, no one
gets our vengeance more than those who are closest to us. So, what we have in
Isaiah 34 is a picture of a coming devastating judgment on the nations about
Judah, and in Chapter 35, the restoration of Judah and the desert blossoming as
a rose. Some phrases out of Chapter 35 you have seen on greetings cards,
Christian greetings cards - streams in the desert, for example. How many
sympathy cards haven't you seen with the last phrase that I read, that time "when
all sorrow and sighing will flee away"? Chapter thirty-five is magnificent in the
images that it portrays for the people of faith; it is as wonderful as chapter 34 is
terrible in that awful judgment that is depicted for all of those who are not the
people of God, Zion, Jerusalem.
As I see that contrast, I see something that, unfortunately, I am seeing
everywhere and that is the tendency of religion to polarize people, the tendency of
religion to become tribal. Tribal religion. Now, we don't face that fact very often
because we say, "Well, the Bible begins 'in the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth.' We're talking about the one true God, the creator of all," and so
forth. And to be sure, there is a complex tapestry that makes up the Hebrew
Scriptures as well as the New Testament documents. There is not a one-party
line, there is not a consistent witness, and so next week I'll take a couple of
passages that will show that larger hope. But this morning I want simply to call to
your attention that aspect of religion that tends to hold a hope too narrow. That
tendency of religion, in all kinds of religious communities and in all kinds of
religious traditions, to become tribal, to put it bluntly in a word, the tendency of
too much religion that tends to hope for God to lift one up and damn one's foes,
tribal religion which can become very violent and which shapes an unsavory
human character.
Bad religion is really bad stuff because it is so powerful, because it is so potent,
because its claim is that it puts one in touch with God, because its claim is that it
gives one truths that are absolute, and therefore that will justify almost any kind
of human action in the name of that God and that absolute truth.
That kind of religion is alive and well in our world today, and in this Advent
season as the millennium is about to turn, we have an added emphasis on that
end time drama. You'll hear from various angles in various forms, that kind of
religious faith set forth that says this is the way to salvation, and either says
explicitly or leaves for you to draw your own conclusion that, for all the rest, there
is condemnation, eternal suffering, torment, and darkness. That's tribal religion.
That is religion with a hope too narrow and there is something in the human
person, it seems, an insecurity and a fearfulness that tends to make us vulnerable
to that kind of message that will secure us over against the others, that will
convince us that we have the absolute truth and the corner on the truth and the
only way of salvation. The violence of Isaiah 34 can be duplicated throughout the
© Grand Valley State University
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Hebrew scriptures, to say nothing of the Book of Revelation which you had wellexpounded to you last week, that apocalyptic frame of mind that so permeated
the century before Christ and into the first century, that apocalyptic frame of
mind that was expecting the end of the world and was hoping for the judgment of
God to fall on all of the rest.
I can understand how it comes about. You have a little people like Judah, just a
little tribal people and they're the pawn of the power brokers from Egypt up to
Assyria to Babylon. You have them as this pawn in the power plays of the great
empires; they are occupied, abused and oppressed, and the most natural reaction
in the world for the human creature is anger, frustration, and finally the crying
out for vengeance. It’s all in the book and it is expressive of a tribal religion, of a
tribal God, my God, not the God of my enemies, the kind of religion that divides
the world into my kind of people and all of the rest, the kind of religion that
wants God to lift us high and damn our foes.
I call it to your attention because it's so alive and well in our day. As I began,
sometimes you become aware of something and then you see it everywhere, and I
have to say that, having been in this business all of my life, which is a long time
now, I have become increasingly aware of the tribal nature of much religious and
especially Christian expression in the media, newspapers and journals. Then,
being somewhat masochistic, I tune into late night evangelical television. Now,
it's not exactly the kind of thing that soothes me and puts me to sleep, but the
thing that concerns me is that those who are the true believers cough up the kind
of funds that keep this kind of mentality and this sort of spirit alive and well so
that it almost seems to me that the public expression, the broadcast expression of
Christian faith is permeated with more of the spirit of Isaiah 34, or if that's too
strong for you, consider John the Baptist.
Now, John's situation was different. John wasn't talking about "us" and "them."
John was talking about us and those of you within the circle, the religious
leadership whom John condemned in strong terms. But, the spirit is the same.
John the Baptist breathes fire. John the Baptist speaks about a God who is
violent, a God who will come with vengeance, a God who will square the accounts
with a wicked world, and it is a God that cannot be squared with the God and
father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the kind of religious message that betrays
what we really believe about the grace of God and the love of God. If it is true that
Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, if it is true, as Jesus says according to
John's gospel, "If you've seen me, you've seen the father," you're talking about
another kind of God than the God of Isaiah 34, and you're talking about a God of
quite another spirit than the God of John the Baptist. I've gone through that more
than once here. Jesus distanced himself from John the Baptist, distanced himself
from the ministry of John, the ministry of fire and judgment, and, if you want the
starkest contrast reflective of Jesus over against this other mentality, then just
remember him in the anguish of crucifixion praying, "Father, forgive them for
they know not what they do." There was an awareness in Jesus of a God who was
© Grand Valley State University
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beyond the tribal gods, and at this time of the year, in the lines of George
McDonald,
They all were looking for a King
To kill their foes and lift them high.
Thou cam'st a little baby thing
That made a woman cry.
I wonder why it is that there is such a tendency to hold on to the spirit of John the
Baptist rather than to see through the eyes of Jesus the totally different
understanding of God, a God full of grace, the God of whom John wrote, "God is
love, and those that dwell in love dwell in God and God abides in them." Why is it
that so much of religion even to our day is marked by the kind of arrogance that
says we have the truth and the whole truth and there is not truth or salvation any
other way? Why is it, in spite of the possibility of the experience of other
traditions, there is still in our day such a shrill note sounded about the exclusivity
of Jesus Christ? Why does what I find in Jesus Christ, why is it in any way
diminished if that is not the only way?
I know from personal experience the difference in my whole demeanor, in my
whole being, having moved from an exclusivist position with a God of vengeance
whose vengeance would never have come on me, of course, but always on the
other; I know the difference it makes to live with a larger hope.
Why is it that so much of religion lives with the hope too narrow, shaping people
with a spirit bristling, on edge, condemnatory, afraid, defensive? Why have we
not been able to see that so much of religion is focused on a tribal God rather
than on the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ? Why can we not see that no
understanding of God is worthy that doesn't understand that God will not rest
until all God's children are home, because God loves all and embraces all and has
come to us so wonderfully in the vulnerability of the child that should give us a
clue from the beginning that it is not by domination, coercion, and
condemnation, but by the embodiment of grace that God is best served. Only
such will keep us from living with a hope too narrow.
© Grand Valley State University
�
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3dd10fe480640b1328b808102b473f77
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
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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
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
Contributor
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Language
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English
Type
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Sound
Text
Identifier
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KII-01
Coverage
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1981-2014
Format
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audio/mp3
text/pdf
Sound
A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds.
Event
Advent III
Series
Memory and Hope
Scripture Text
Isaiah 35:4, Matthew 3:12
Location
The location of the interview
Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
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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
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KII-01_RA-0-19991212
Date
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1999-12-12
Title
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A Hope Too Narrow
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University
Rights
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<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 December 12, 1999 entitled "A Hope Too Narrow", as part of the series "Memory and Hope", on the occasion of Advent III, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 35:4, Matthew 3:12.
Advent
Grace
Inclusive
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ab7384b8853b936c8ef9c57ad3f7e62e
PDF Text
Text
A Simpler Way
From the series: Meeting God Again For the First Time
Text: John 4:23-24
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
October 5, 1997
Transcription of the spoken sermon
The writer of the fourth Gospel tells us explicitly that he was very intentional in
the creation of the Gospel he wrote: John 20:30-31 - a portrait painted, a story
told, that you might believe that Jesus was the Messiah, thereby finding life
through his name.
This one, the author believed, came from God and was the embodiment in human
form of God’s being, purpose, and grace that, through God’s Spirit, possessed him
and filled him.
The God Who in the beginning breathed the creative process into being was now
breathing life in a new dimension in and through this one, Jesus - Jesus was
anointed with God’s Spirit. The Hebrew word for that anointing was Messiah; the
Greek word, Christ.
John was writing at a time of great turmoil, tension and ferment in the Jewish
community. The center of Israel’s life and worship - the symbol of God’s presence
in their midst – had been destroyed in 70 A.D. by the Roman occupying power.
How now would they maintain their peoplehood, their identity as God’s chosen
ones? The dominant group emerging was the Pharisaic party - to become the
group that eventually determined the Judaism of the future, the Rabbinic group
ensuring that Judaism would be a people of the Book, the sacred text.
But, in the last decades of the first century, the movement stemming from Jesus
was a viable contender. The followers of this crucified one whom his followers
experienced as living and present to them made up a significant segment of the
population. But they had reached out beyond the narrow confines of the Jewish
community; they had, in quite revolutionary fashion, formed a Jesus community
among the Samaritans with whom the Jews lived in great hostility and even
among the Gentiles - that is, with non-Jews.
At least in part, the fourth Gospel was written to root this outward reaching of the
very early movement in the understanding and ministry of Jesus himself.
© Grand Valley State University
�A Simpler Way
Richard A. Rhem
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The reason is obvious:
There were strong differences in the Jesus movement that in its early stages was
exclusively Jewish. There were Jews who believed Jesus was the Messiah and the
End was near, the reign of God approaching, but who failed to see the reason for
reaching out beyond their own. And there were others - think of Stephen and of
Paul who felt the call to bring the story of God’s grace in Jesus to the nations.
In other words, there were advocates of a purely Jewish Jesus community and
there were advocates of a universal mission. I think that is the rationale by which
the Gospel writer chose the story of the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well who
was encountered by Jesus.
I will not retell the story; suffice it to say that Jesus chooses to go from Judea in
the south to Galilee in the north by the direct route which takes him through
Samaria, a hostile territory peopled by those the Jews considered alien, whose
worship the Jews considered false, even though the Samaritans stemming from
the ten Northern Tribes of Israel shared the Mosaic heritage, following the
Pentateuch, the first five books of the Hebrew Scripture.
It is in Samaria at the place of the ancient well of Jacob that Jesus engages a
Samaritan woman in conversation. He asks for a drink of water from the well,
only to offer her living water. The writer’s literary technique is to reveal the soul
thirst of this woman for the truth. The conversation issues in a question that
divided the Jews and Samaritans: the Samaritans claimed their Mt. Gerizim was
the place of true worship, pre-dating the establishment of Jerusalem later by
David, while the Jews, of course, contended it was at Jerusalem that God caused
the Holy Name, or the Presence, to dwell.
This allows the Gospel writer to put Jesus on the side of those who saw the
universal implications of Jesus’ ministry "Woman," he says, "the hour is coming and now is when you will worship
the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem ... The true
worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth."
Without attempting to give an in-depth explanation of that response, it must be
obvious on the surface that Jesus here points to a new situation and a new
manner of worship and devotion.
He does not say worship at Mt. Gerizim or Jerusalem had never been true
worship, or that God could not be worshiped at one place or the other.
He does, however, relativize the question of place which would represent the
whole apparatus of the cultic forms used in the worship of the respective
communities.
© Grand Valley State University
�A Simpler Way
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
We have come to a moment in the practice of religious worship, Jesus contends,
according to this account, when place and all the external accouterments that go
with it become matters of indifference.
The external forms of worship are intended to be and can be means by which,
through which, the human spirit comes into communion with the divine Spirit the liturgy, the ritual action, the very physical space designated for the worship of
God, can be vehicles of grace through which the communion with God is affected.
The setting and the manner of our worship is not a matter of indifference to be
tended to in a slovenly way. But they are the triggers only to bring us to
awareness of the Holy, of that transcendent source of our being by whose grace
we live and move and have our being.
It has been characteristic of Christian preaching to set Jesus and thus Christianity
off from Judaism as a spiritual religion over against a religion of outward
observance. This is a distortion and it misses the point.
Jesus was a Jew.
Jesus was not saying Judaism as a religion was being superseded, to be replaced
now by Christianity. Jesus was pointing to the nature of true worship and the
temptation of all religious worship to become an outward form lacking inward
transforming power.
The result of this encounter is not Christianity - Jewish - 1 and Samaritan
devotion - 0.
Worship that is inwardly aware of the gracious ground of our being is present in
many religious traditions. Formalism, devoid of Spirit, is to be found, as well, in
all forms of religious devotion, Christianity included.
But, that in no way detracts from the stunning breakthrough that Jesus
represented in his life and teaching. Jesus saw the temptation of the religious
institution to make itself exclusive and absolute and he broke through the false
barriers that purported to demarcate the only true way. Jesus saw the demonic
barriers that walled people off from one another, defining those who were in and
those who were out, the accepted ones and the rejected ones.
He conversed with a Samaritan. Jesus saw the oppression and domination of
women by men who considered women of a lesser subhuman class. In a society
where a man prayed daily thanking God he was not born a woman, Jesus
conversed with a woman, treating her with respect and dignity and human
decency.
Jesus saw the restrictive limitations of religious and cultural patterns and dared
to defy them, to shatter them and to declare by word and action a new day, a
© Grand Valley State University
�A Simpler Way
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
movement toward a fuller humanization of society. And Jesus did it not because
it was in the cultural air, but because he believed that is the way God intended it.
God is Spirit. God must be worshiped in spirit and in truth. Jesus refused to bow
to social custom or religious regulation when those violated the reality of the
Spirit.
Traditional definitions, conventional wisdom, social mores, cultural patterns - all
of that, for Jesus, needed constantly to be examined, reformed, transformed in
the light of the spiritual reality that comes from inward awareness and
attentiveness.
There are times of cultural crisis when old ways are challenged and foundations
crumble. We are in such a time; it has been a long time building - perhaps since
the 15th century, or certainly since the 18th. It is my contention that the church has
not yet faced the implications of the modern period. The structure of faith and
biblical understanding in which I was nurtured and trained and that has shaped
the Christian tradition, Protestant and Catholic, is largely the product of the postReformation, a 17th-century paradigm of biblical faith impacted very little by the
explosion of knowledge in the modern world.
The Christian tradition from which we stem still speaks in terms of an absolute
truth it claims to possess and an exclusive truth to which it must bring the world,
denying the salvific value of all other traditions.
I included a couple of paragraphs from Gordon Kaufman’s God, Mystery,
Diversity as an alternative to the absolutism and exclusivism claims of Christian
orthodoxy. I think what Kaufman is contending is very much in the spirit of what
Jesus said to the Samaritan woman The hour is come when the model can no longer be pronouncement of our
way as the only way. Rather, the time has come when the Spirit is calling
us to break down the barriers we have erected.
Is it not ironic that the one who threw down the exclusionary barriers that
divided people and defined the truth is, in the Christian church, made the
absolute revealer of God and the exclusive source of the grace of God?
The disciples returned from buying food to find Jesus in conversation with a
Samaritan, and a woman at that, but they dared not mention it. Instead, they
said, "Eat." But, Jesus wasn’t hungry any longer. The conversation triggered in
him the realization of the deep hunger in the hearts of humankind. He was a man
obsessed with his sense of calling to do God’s work.
"Look around you," he said. "Don’t you see the spiritual hunger ... see how the
fields are ripe for harvesting?"
© Grand Valley State University
�A Simpler Way
Richard A. Rhem
Page 5
Don’t you see it?
The mainline churches are limping badly and the world is spiritually starved. The
Promisekeepers have tapped into this spiritual hunger, but I don’t think the
answer lies in what is an attempt to return to yesterday with a strong dose of
emotion. The megachurches are flourishing, but there is no attempt to re-think
the faith in the modern world.
Jesus said neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem - old forms can’t bear the
weight of truth for our world. The old institutional alignments are dead - the old
orthodoxy cannot prevail.
But, God is God.
There is yet living water flowing to quench the thirst and satisfy the hunger of the
soul - if only we would let go, wait with openness and awareness to hear and
sense what the Spirit is saying to us. If only we would give up our certainties and
wait in the darkness, trusting that the living God will show us wonders of which
we’ve not yet dreamed.
Reference:
Gordon D. Kaufman. God, Mystery, Diversity: Christian Theology in a
Pluralistic World. Fortress Press, 1996.
© Grand Valley State University
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c657977270b6d84ea29123f64fdadf45.mp3
63a277b14df03c33cbf65eb7249af756
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 XX
Series
Meeting God Again for the First Time
Scripture Text
John 4:23-24
Location
The location of the interview
Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
References
Gordon D. Kaufman. God, Mystery, Diversity: Christian Theology in a Pluralistic World, 1996
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
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KII-01_RA-0-19971005
Date
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1997-10-05
Title
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A Simpler Way
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University
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<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
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eng
Type
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Text
Sound
Format
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audio/mp3
application/pdf
Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on October 5, 1997 entitled "A Simpler Way", as part of the series "Meeting God Again for the First Time", on the occasion of Pentecost XX, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: John 4:23-24.
Awareness
Follower of Jesus
Inclusive
Nature of Religion
Spirit
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/6505688a405d511abb8ccd28dfd7ca7a.pdf
631ebabaf7e5f96faf555414fda32a10
PDF Text
Text
A Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace
In Memory of Barbara Dee Timmer
Richard A. Rhem
Hope Church
Holland, Michigan
May 31, 2013
Thank you, Barbara and John, for an invitation to pay tribute to your mother,
Barbara Dee. It brings closure for me to the warm and gracious relationship I was
privileged to share with your parents. As I reflect back over the years, I’m
reminded of so many wonderful moments and experiences.
Norm and Barbara showed up at Christ Community one Sunday for worship. The
trigger that moved them was their recognition that we needed affirmation and
support for the position we took with regard to sexual orientation – not a moral
issue, just a matter of the marvelously diverse patterns of creation. We did not
decide one day to address the issue, although we should have long before.
However, as so often happens, something occurred that put before us an occasion
to do the right thing.
It was the height of the AIDS epidemic. My pastoral team at Christ Community
Church designed a workshop on a Saturday composed of physicians, health care
workers, and clergy and invited the community to be present. With no
responsibility – simply being present – I noticed a man with a clerical collar
whom I did not know. I introduced myself and asked where he was from. He told
me he was starting a Metropolitan Community Church in Muskegon. I asked
where they met and he said in the basement of a bar on Sunday evening. I asked
why such a setting. He said they had contacted a dozen churches in Muskegon
but either did not get a response or were turned down. I was shocked. I told him I
would bring the matter to our consistory. I remember vividly the meeting when I
put forth the request. One of our young deacons said, “What would Jesus do?”
Issue settled. The Metropolitan group was offered our chapel on Sunday evenings
and a classroom for Bible study during the week.
The Muskegon Chronicle learned of the group and wrote a story. They also
published with the story a picture of the group in our chapel, telling how we
offered them hospitality.
That story appeared in the press about a week before the spring meeting of the
Muskegon Classis and became the catalyst for an investigation of our ministry to
homosexual persons. The rest is history.
© Grand Valley State University
�Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
I tell you that story because – so typical of their spirit – Barbara and Norm
showed up at CCC to encourage, affirm and support. I like to think we borrowed
them for a few years as positive signs of grace in the face of some difficult times.
On an All Saints’ Day Service in 2002, I preached a sermon that spoke especially
meaningfully to Norm. He told Barbara, “I want that sermon preached at my
funeral.” Norm’s health broke down. He was taken to The Inn at Freedom Village.
Returning home from Florida, I saw I had received an email from John saying
that his dad was failing. I called Barbara. She was on the way to The Inn. I met
her there. Norm had not been communicating for a day or two. I came to his side
and something happened. We had a wonderful conversation – he poured out his
life story with the church – a pastor who asked his father, an elder, to tell Norm
not to ask questions in catechism, and so on. It was a very meaningful time. I
prayed with him and left.
That evening a message from Barbara was on our answering machine. I wasn’t
clear about what she was saying. In the morning I called her. As she began I
interrupted – “Barbara, what are you telling me? Did Norm die?”
Yes, Norm had died some time after I left. It was as though he made his last and
good confession and passed into Light Eternal. He expressed his gratitude for the
“Grace Note” that marked our worship over the past few years.
And, of course, he would, for is there any word that describes this wonderful
couple more than Grace? And to the end of her long and beautiful life Barbara
Dee kept the Grace Note alive and well. My last really good conversation with her
was at Rest Haven, in which she was very much herself. We talked about our past
times together, about how fortunate we were to have lived in the ambience of
Grace, to have found God all-embracing and all-inclusive.
Thinking about what I would say today, I reviewed the great women of Scripture;
none measured up! But then one of my favorite biblical characters came to mind
and immediately I knew I had a match for Barbara – Barnabas! Have you ever
taken a magic marker to your Bible as I have to Acts and traced the story of
Barnabas? I find it quite amazing how his story in Acts reflects the qualities and
character of Barbara Dee.
In Acts 4 we read of that early Jesus-Jewish community which held everything in
common. Enter a Levite from Cyprus named Joseph. But soon the community
gave him a new name, Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement.”
Obviously there was some magic about him – a bit like meeting Barbara, I
suppose. They were taken with him. His first recorded deed was to sell a field and
give the proceeds to the community.
Those in the Temple leadership were not happy about the growing vitality of the
Jesus Jewish group. Persecution ensued and we meet Saul, full of rage at the
community. You know the story: he affirms the stoning of Stephen and then goes
© Grand Valley State University
�Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
on his way to Damascus to ravage the community. But he has a vision; he hears a
voice and sees a light. Saul is converted and, instead of arresting the Followers of
the Way, he preaches, proclaiming Jesus as the Son of God. For that he became
the enemy and his life was in jeopardy. Back to Jerusalem he attempted to join
the disciples but they were afraid of him. And we read of Barnabas’ first act of
grace – he brought Saul/Paul to the apostles and told how Saul was transformed
from persecutor to preacher of the Lord.
As the story goes on, we will see this was characteristic of Barnabas – full of
grace, sensitive, believing a person can change, trusting what he saw.
The persecution of the Jesus People scattered them abroad. Antioch became a
center and there an amazing thing happened – the Jesus Jews spoke the Good
News to non-Jews! And, amazingly, the Gentiles believed! Now what to do? The
General Synod leaders in Jerusalem got nervous. They decided to send an envoy
to check out this new development. And, by the Grace of God, they sent Barnabas.
He came to Antioch and the Acts account tells us,
When he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced…for he was a good
man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.
So Barbara-like! No big theological dilemma – he saw the Grace!
Paul had returned to his home in Tarsus and Barnabas sought him out and
together they ministered for a year to that community in Antioch where the
disciples “were first called ‘Christians’”!
After a year there, the Antioch Church commissioned Paul and Barnabas to go on
the road telling the Good News, which they did with great success. They had
taken a young believer, John Mark, with them. Half way through their journey he
left them, we know not why.
Their success created a major crisis for the Church leaders – the General Synod
as it were. Could one come into the Grace of God through the Good News of Jesus
without becoming a ritualized Jew? How about food laws? How about
circumcision?
They called a Council – church historians call it the first major church council.
There Peter told his story about his Cornelius experience – how, while he was
speaking, the Holy Spirit “fell” on the household of this Roman Cornelius. Then
Paul and Barnabas told their story – “The signs and wonders that God had done
through them among the Gentiles. The evidence was overwhelming – something
of global significance was happening and challenging the deepest foundations of
Jewish faith, now focused on Jesus.
© Grand Valley State University
�Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
The “General Secretary “of the “General Synod,” James, ruled in favor of
recognizing God’s Grace among the Gentiles, who could come to God through
Christ without going through Moses.
Wouldn’t Barbara Dee have been clapping her hands, pumping her fist, saying,
“Yes!”
After the Council’s decision Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s retrace our steps and
visit the communities we gathered on our first journey.” Barnabas said, “Great,
I’ll invite John Mark.” Paul said, “No way. He deserted us!” Barnabas responded,
“He was young. He has really grown up. He’s a great leader!” Paul said, “No way!”
The argument was sharp. They parted ways, Barnabas taking John Mark.
Who was right?
Barnabas, full of grace, of course. He saw deeply into persons. He was sensitive,
kind, compassionate, loving. (Don’t you see Barbara Dee in him?)
And he was proven right. Check Paul’s letters – in the personal greetings at the
end of the letters, Paul mentioned Mark in Colossians, Philemon, and in II
Timothy 4:11 Paul writes, “Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in
my ministry.” Obviously John Mark lived into Barnabas’ intuitive sense of the
quality of his person. Again, Barnabas, full of grace, hope, and sensitivity saw
what Paul had missed. Barbara would not have missed what Paul missed and
Barnabas saw.
Scholars tell us Acts was written to smooth over the tensions and divisions of the
early Jesus movement. There I find a portrait of Barnabas. The big names are
Peter, James, and Paul but I sense Barnabas was the key. He trusted Paul’s
conversion, he saw God’s Grace in Antioch, he made his witness at the Jerusalem
Council and he gave John Mark a second chance.
Barbara Dee loved deep issues of Bible, theology and issues before the church in
the evolving of cultural expression. Would she not have loved to make her witness
to St. James! Would she not have stood up to Paul and hugged Barnabas?
She was our Barnabas – full of faith and the Holy Spirit, full of grace and
sensitivity, full of compassion and love – and all with her beautiful smile.
Barbara’s open mind, warm heart, loving presence – inclusive, embracing,
enlivening, and enhancing the humanity of all she met…
Can you imagine a world created in her image!
I can! I do! And she makes me want to work to that end!
© 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
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Language
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English
Type
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Sound
Text
Identifier
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KII-01
Coverage
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1981-2014
Format
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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
Barbara Dee Timmer Memorial Service
Location
The location of the interview
Hope Church, Holland, Michigan
Dublin Core
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Identifier
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KII-01_RA-0-20130531
Date
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2013-05-31
Title
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A Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Rights
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<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 31, 2013 entitled "A Tribute to a Lady Full of Grace", on the occasion of Barbara Dee Timmer Memorial Service, at Hope Church, Holland, Michigan.
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
Grace
Inclusive
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/ca0f94d5ded23ef2a9b140556380e774.mp3
823a60f76b7991bf8686bd2b01afa77a
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
Midweek Lent
Series
I Choose to Believe
Scripture Text
Luke 9:51-56, 22:39-46, 23:32-38
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
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KII-01_RA-0-20040310
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2004-03-10
Title
A name given to the resource
About Christian Faith
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. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
Relation
A related resource
Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
audio/mp3
Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on March 10, 2004 entitled "About Christian Faith", as part of the series "I Choose to Believe", on the occasion of Midweek Lent, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Luke 9:51-56, 22:39-46, 23:32-38.
Christian Faith
Inclusive
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e8abbe1ccd7abb62d747fb166c7ac9a4.mp3
0819db9323d8cd7a0e1e78bc4c6281fa
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
Midweek Lent
Series
I Choose to Believe,
Scripture Text
Isaiah 44:9-20, Acts 17:16-31
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-0-20040303
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2004-03-03
Title
A name given to the resource
About Religion
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. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
The topic of the resource
Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
Relation
A related resource
Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
audio/mp3
Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on March 3, 2004 entitled "About Religion", as part of the series "I Choose to Believe, ", on the occasion of Midweek Lent, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 44:9-20, Acts 17:16-31.
Inclusive
Religion
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/21e0333f8480149ab7da9b8d664ff8c9.pdf
4e18b48e4094c4aee7a752a5ff50c47a
PDF Text
Text
All Are Welcome Here
Scripture: Isaiah 42:1-4; Luke 15:1-2, 25-32
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
June 27, 1999
Transcription of the spoken sermon
All are welcome here - to this congregation; to our worship; to this Table of our
Lord.
Shouldn’t that be obvious? Isn’t that taken for granted? We are a Christian
Church, after all; of course, all are welcome here, or should be.
But, of course, it cannot be taken for granted and in practice it simply is not true
for the Christian Church at large – All are not welcome, at least not unless they
conform to whatever the prevailing ethos of a given Church may be.
This is what made Jesus’ behavior so revolutionary - he broke the social customs,
overturned the conventional wisdom, embraced all manner of persons and
excluded none. That is old hat at Christ Community. The gracious acceptance of
all has been a hallmark of this place for nearly three decades and the grace we
have purveyed is the grace I personally received when in 1971 this congregation
invited me to return to be their pastor, even though I was at that time going
through a divorce and in a struggle for the custody of our children. In 1971 that
was a daring decision. Divorce was still stigmatized in the Church and clergy
divorce almost unheard of.
I experienced grace tangibly; it changed my life and it became the mark of my
ministry. When we speak of Christ Community as an alternative to Church as
usual, that is what we point to - the grace that we offer to all and any who desire
to be part of this community. For all these years I have been working out a
theology of grace, discovering the implications of grace.
Acceptance, embrace without fear of rejection - that’s what everyone desires and
needs. Whether our lives unfold without a wrinkle or whether we find ourselves
in a situation we never intended or could even conceive of, the one thing we
desperately need, and the only thing that can heal us and move us on toward
wholeness is the unconditional love and gracious acceptance by another and by a
community which enables us to believe in ourselves and know we are valued.
© Grand Valley State University
�All Are Welcome Here
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
The Church has been very slow to learn this, act it out and thus mirror the grace
that was lived out by Jesus. The Gospel lesson from Luke 15 portrays a conflict
situation. Jesus’ open table fellowship, which was a hallmark of his ministry,
demonstrating his embrace of all, caused the religious leaders to grumble and
their grumbling triggered perhaps Jesus’ most memorable parable, called the
parable of the prodigal son, although it is really a story of the unconditional love
of God.
The story is familiar; the younger son asks for and receives his portion of the
father’s estate, goes off to a far country, spends all in reckless living and finally,
hitting bottom, returns to the father to plead for mercy to be accepted as a hired
servant. You know the story - the father sees the son coming while he is still afar
off, runs to him, embraces him with tears of joy. No talk of servanthood; rather,
the father orders a great party because his son has come home.
The Gospel lesson then records the reaction of the elder brother who had stayed
home, faithfully worked the farm and done it all right. He comes upon the party
and he is angry, protesting to the father that in all his years of faithful service
there had never been a party for him. And now this wild one returns and there is
joy, music, dancing and a great feast. The elder brother, in spite of the father’s
assurance of love and pleading that he join the party, refuses to go in.
That was Jesus’ response to the religious leaders who grumbled at his open table,
his inclusion of the excluded ones. And that story is the heart of the Gospel of the
grace of God as understood in the Christian faith. It is also the understanding of
God in what I think is one of the most beautiful portions of the Hebrew scripture
- II Isaiah, where we find the Servant Songs, poems describing the mission of
God’s servant. In 42:1-4, the servant is one who will not break a bruised reed or
quench a dimly burning wick. It is not an accident that Jesus found his identity
and the nature of his mission in those Servant Songs.
Why is it that the Church acts more often in the spirit and posture of the elder
brother? Why has the Church so often been marked by a judgmental spirit of
condemnation and exclusion rather than by the gracious inclusivity that marked
the life of Jesus?
Why are we so threatened by those whose race or ethnicity or sexual orientation
differs from ours? Why can we not see the common humanity that transcends
such superficial and accidental differences?
The religious grumblers of Luke 15 criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors
and sinners, but that was not a moral issue; rather, those excluded were ritually
impure according to the religious practice of the day. In other words, they were
different, they didn’t fit the mold.
Why is grace so difficult to come by?
© Grand Valley State University
�All Are Welcome Here
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
I mentioned the grace extended to me when I was called here, even though going
through a divorce. A young couple came to me to be married; one from this
congregation, one from another. The one from the other congregation
acknowledged he had asked his pastor about being married by a divorced
minister and he assured me that his pastor said that he could rest easy because in
divorce, I must have been the innocent party. And I knew at that moment that
that was wrong - I knew in that moment that a minister of the Gospel of the grace
of God should have known that in human relationship there are no innocent
parties, but even so, had I been the chief offender, would that have forever after
made me a moral leper, unable to be a servant of Christ?
Some years ago a fine Christian gentleman, a professional, came to me to
acknowledge alcoholism. He sought treatment and was experiencing a solid
recovering mode. He related how hurt he was when a Christian friend, a
professional man, took him aside, assuring him that there was forgiveness.
He didn’t need forgiveness; he needed recovery and, as AA demonstrates so
powerfully, that comes best by the gracious acceptance of others who lay on no
guilt, but give encouragement on the road to sobriety.
I suspect there is no more volatile issue facing the institutional Church in its
respective denominational groupings than the matter of sexual orientation.
Denominations are in turmoil, threatening to split over the issue, clergy are being
put on trial in ecclesiastical assemblies for blessing same-sex unions, and Church
synods become battlegrounds between those who advocate the full recognition
and rights of gay/lesbian people and those who condemn them.
A week ago there was a piece in the Grand Rapids Press about the Christian
Reformed Synod which called the Church to repentance for its failure to minister
to gay/lesbian folk. But, the Synod affirmed a 1973 report on homosexuality that,
for its time, was ahead of its time, but which still held that the expression of one’s
sexuality in a same-sex relationship was sin. And then one of the more
compassionate spokespersons explained the Synod’s counsel to the churches love the sinner, not the sin, and I just shook my head and murmured, "They just
don’t get it." That won’t work. If my sexual orientation is a given and my
expression of it is reflective of my person, you can’t love me but not my
expression of who I am.
What hurt, what pain we have inflicted on persons simply for being who they are.
Professor David Myers of Hope College’s Psychology Department and a deeply
committed Christian, has just written an excellent piece in Perspectives which I
would be happy to pass along to any of you who honestly wonder about this
matter.
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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... Can we, should we, relax and believe that, regardless of our sexual orientation,
God loves us "just as I am"? Can we accept our own and others’ sexual orientation
without excusing promiscuity, exploitation, or self-destructive behavior? Can we
regard bathhouses and brothels, gay bars and strip joints, as similarly degrading?
Can we accept gays who, not given what Catholics call the gift of celibacy, elect
the functional equivalent of marriage (which society denies them) over
promiscuity? To merit our acceptance must they live alone? Can our family values
include love, care, loyalty, and respect for a son or daughter who may be
predisposed to homosexuality? And might we Christians benefit from praying
Reinhold Niebuhr’s serenity prayer?
God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be
changed, courage to change the things that should be changed, and the
wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.
This is Gay Pride Month. I’m sorry there needs to be such an observance, but
until persons of homosexual orientation are treated as they are, simply human
beings reflecting the diversity of human sexuality, such observances will be
necessary.
We’ve seen that lady of great dignity, Rosa Parks, in the news recently. She
received the highest civilian award from the President for the part she played in
the Civil Rights Movement, being the catalyst for black protest when one day she
refused to go to the back of the bus.
Can we even imagine the indignity of Jim Crow laws today? Look how long we
lived with that horrible injustice inflicted on black people. And while racism is
alive and well, no normal person with a modicum of humanity would think of reinstituting such racist legislation.
And one day I trust it will be the same for people of homosexual orientation.
Until then, the cause must be carried on by all people of good faith.
We didn’t like Civil Rights marches and black power activity in the 60s’. We don’t
like gays/lesbians acting up. We would rather coexist with injustice and
inhumanity. But, the time is long overdue, and until the time comes, I will wear a
ribbon as a sign of my commitment to equal rights for all people, in this case, for
the gay/lesbian community.
Martin Luther said,
If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of
the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the
devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however
boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the
loyalty of the soldier is proved. To be steady on all battle fronts besides is
mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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This is not an optional issue for the Church; it is a test of its authenticity, of its
commitment to justice and the grace of inclusiveness.
Let me tell you honestly - I am sick at heart at the ignorance and arrogance of the
Church. I nearly despair. I am torn, deeply torn. Were it not for this community
and thus my experience of what a powerful influence for good, for human healing
and well-being a faith community can be, I would leave the Church. I am so
blessed to have this ministry. It is who I am; my best gifts are utilized, my passion
given focus. But, were it not for you, I would give up.
Yet, the one we follow would not give up and for that he got executed, But that
was not the end of the story, for those who followed remembered him as he said
and in the center of the Church has been a Table with bread and wine
symbolizing body and blood, body and blood separated which points to execution
- violent death - and we are invited to take bread and cup as sign of our solidarity
with him, with his cause, and in solidarity with all who desire to gather here,
making a renewed commitment to be the body of Christ, a sign of God’s reign, a
community of justice, grace and peace.
© Grand Valley State University
�
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Richard A. Rhem Collection
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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.
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Religion
Interfaith worship
Sermons
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Rhem, Richard A.
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a>
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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English
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KII-01
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1981-2014
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audio/mp3
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Event
Pentecost VI
Scripture Text
Isaiah 42:1-4, Luke 15:1-2, 25-32
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Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
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KII-01_RA-0-19990627
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1999-06-27
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All Are Welcome Here
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Richard A. Rhem
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Grand Valley State University
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
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Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
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eng
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Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on June 27, 1999 entitled "All Are Welcome Here", on the occasion of Pentecost VI, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 42:1-4, Luke 15:1-2, 25-32.
Compassion
Inclusive
Theology of Grace
-
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4f89485f5759cb8a57dc7c293481ccdd
PDF Text
Text
An Alternative To Church As Usual
Article by
Richard A. Rhem
Minister of Preaching and Theological Inquiry
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Published in
Perspectives
A Journal of Reformed Thought
September 1991, pp. 12-15
Our discussion went on for nearly two hours. The pain in ministry was expressed
in example after example. Pastors—competent, committed, working hard, even
loved and respected by the community—were nonetheless seeing little or no
church growth; the traditional congregation in instance after instance was dying.
I was one of only two pastors in the circle; the others served the church in the
academy. Finally, the group leader turned to me and said, “In all of this
discussion about the pain of ministry and grim prospects for the church, you’ve
not said anything.”
It was true; I had said nothing. I am not unaware of heartbreak, disillusionment,
and despair in the ranks of clergy colleagues, frustration among laity, unrest in
congregations, but the experience is foreign to me. I have had quite the opposite
experience: delight in ministry; the joy of growth; a flourishing community rich
in gifts, supportive, positive in spirit—making ministry for me a challenging,
fulfilling vocation. Two decades of pastoral experience in the congregation I
presently serve have seen the numbers multiply nearly five times over. The giving
has grown proportionately, the site and facility expanded, and a large team is now
engaged in creative ministry. Now, as I enter my fourth decade of pastoral
ministry, I do so with greater zest, confidence, and joy than when ordaining
hands set me aside for this task.
I had listened and felt the hurt. I knew I had no answer, no formula for success,
no quick fix to make the pain go away and turn it all around. Further, I, too,
wonder about the future of the institutional forms of the church which, not only
at the local level, but even more critically at the level of denominational
structures, are experiencing sickness unto death. I felt disinclined to give some
triumphalistic testimony of success in ministry.
Someone suggested I write a piece explaining what people are fleeing when they
come to Christ Community Church. I resist that idea lest it appear that large
numbers have joined from other congregations, which really is not the case. Yet,
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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there are many among us who have fled the institutional church at some point;
they have simply dropped out, despairing of finding an authentic spirituality and
sensing that the church was a source of manipulation and coercion, imposing
shame and reinforcing guilt, rather than offering release from it. They found the
church to be ever so much like a dysfunctional family.
Others have fled the reactionary posture of the church on contemporary issues,
the slowness of the church to address matters of human sexuality, feminist
concerns, and concerns for justice and peace. Weary of fighting, waging battles
about questions on which contemporary society has reached a responsible
consensus, some have left the church with bitterness and cynicism. Yet,
eventually the hunger for spiritual reality sets them on a quest and many have
found a home and kindred seekers in this community.
We have welcomed many others who sense they had been cut off, rejected. The
human situation is messy. At some point most folks color outside the lines;
traditional expectations are shattered. And, too often, precisely at that point, the
church is awkward, daring not to reach out and embrace lest it appear to sanction
the life beyond the pale. If not in word, perhaps in body language, a person
stained with grit picked up along the way senses he or she threatens accepted
morality and the proper mode of behavior.
I like to speak of Christ Community as “an alternative to church as usual.” Over
and over again, witness is borne to the tangible experience of “something
different.” To flesh out the ingredients that create the alternative is not an easy
task, and I hesitate even to try, lest, defining too specifically, that elusive spirit be
lost, becoming one more “formula for success.”
What follows renders no formula, and what is proffered comes with the
acknowledgment that Christ Community is fragile, flawed, and riddled with
weaknesses. It is simply the story of a pastor and a congregation over two
decades.
The story actually begins in 1960 when I became the pastor of this congregation
for the first time after seminary graduation. During those first four years of
preaching and pastoral work, the theology with which I entered the ministry was
tempered by concrete experience.
Mary was a bright, lovely high school girl. She was one of those exceptions to the
rule; her parents had nothing to do with the church, but she did—on her own. She
was in worship, church school, and youth groups. She had a significant spiritual
experience, was baptized, made a good confession. She was radiant and I was her
spiritual guardian. For summer work, she left the community to join a friend
whose mother was a strong Mormon. When she returned, she was in spiritual
turmoil. I cited the Scriptures; she the Book of Mormon; two authorities and an
impasse. I lost her and I was shattered.
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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In that experience, I came to see that my every claim was banked on the person’s
accepting the authority of the Bible as the exclusive source of saving truth.
Otherwise, I was stumped. The foundation of my theological system was
beginning to crumble.
Moving to a conservative congregation in the East, I began to research the nature
of biblical authority. At that time, the Reformed Church cooperated in the
publication of a new curriculum for church school, and it was introduced by study
papers that dealt with the questions of Scripture’s normative function in the
church and scriptural interpretation. I became convinced that my own understanding of biblical authority was untenable; if I were to continue to preach, I
needed a new basis upon which to do it. Evangelical passion was possible for me
only if it could be coupled with intellectual integrity. I needed to find “my gospel”
or I knew I would never be able to preach with power and authority, with a note
of authenticity.
That was the existential quest that led me to pursue graduate study in the
Netherlands. Hendrikus Berkhof, then professor of dogmatics at the University of
Leiden, agreed to become my mentor in a doctoral program in which my major
area was the history of dogma. Hearing my questions and sensing the nature of
my quest, his first assignment for me was to read Barth’s Church Dogmatics, Vol.
I.1-2, The Doctrine of the Word of God. I was amazed; Barth took the Scriptures
seriously, as seriously as I had ever experienced. I thought to myself, one day
conservative Christian thinkers will run to Barth for refuge, if ever they discover
the dynamic of this great mind and heart. I read with a voracious appetite. Pages
522 and 523 of that volume lie open before me now, dog-eared, as much underlined as not, margins full of my jottings as I struggled to understand Barth. Barth
writes,
The Reformers’ doctrine of inspiration is an honoring of God, and of the
free grace of God. The statement that the Bible is the Word of God is on
this view no limitation, but an unfolding of the perception of the
sovereignty in which the Word of God condescended to become flesh for
us in Jesus Christ, and a human word in the witness of the prophets and
apostles as witnesses to His incarnation. (p. 522)
As the passion and vitality of the sixteenth-century Reformers’ experience was
replaced by the second-hand experience of their spiritual heirs, there was an
effort to establish certitude of faith through a high doctrine of inspiration. Barth
contends that the statement “the Bible is the Word of God” was transformed from
a statement about the free grace of God into a statement about the nature of the
Bible “as exposed to human inquiry brought under human control.”
Barth goes on to point out that the eventual historical investigation of the Bible in
the Enlightenment period was simply a logical consequence of viewing the Bible
as under human control rather than as available as the instrument of God’s
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Richard A. Rhem
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revelation by God’s free grace. He gives a thorough review of the history of the
elevation of the doctrine of inspiration. I found myself in Barth’s description:
But ever more clearly and definitely a certainty was sought and found
quite different from the spiritual certainty which could satisfactorily have
been reached on these lines, and which on these lines would have been
recognized as the only certainty but also as real certainty. What was
wanted was a tangible certainty and not a divine, a certainty of work and
not solely of faith. In token of this change there arose the doctrine of
inspiration of the high orthodoxy of the 17th century. (Ibid., p. 524)
And the consequences?
Should there be found even the minutest error in the Bible, then it is no
longer wholly the Word of God, and the inviolability of its authority is
destroyed. (Ibid.)
Barth rejected the attempts of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to make
the Scriptures the object of historical investigation as one might investigate any
literary piece, and he rejected, as well, the attack on the seventeenth-century’s
supernaturalism. He insisted,
We must attack it rather because its supernaturalism is not radical
enough. The intention behind it [seventeenth-century supernaturalism]
was ultimately only a single and in its own way very “naturalistic”
postulate that the bible must offer us a divina et infallibilis historia; that it
must not contain human error in any of its verses; that in all its parts and
the totality of its words and letters as they are before us it must express
divine truth in a form in which it can be established and understood; that
under the human words it must speak to us the Word of God in such a way
that we can at once hear and read it as such with the same obviousness
and directness with which we can hear and read other human words....
The Bible was now grounded upon itself apart from the mystery of Christ
and the Holy Ghost. It became a “paper Pope,” and unlike the living Pope
in Rome it was wholly given up into the hands of its interpreters. It was no
longer a free and spiritual force, but an instrument of human power. And
in this form the Bible became so like the holy book of other religions, for
which something similar had always been claimed, that the superiority of
its claim could not be asserted in relation to them or to the many
achievements of the human spirit generally.... The intention of
establishing the authority of the Bible along these lines was to avoid
historical relativism, but it opened up the way to it, and theology and
Church did not hesitate for a moment to tread that way. In content the
17th century doctrine of inspiration asserted things which cannot be
maintained in face of a serious reading and exposition of what the Bible
itself says about itself, and in face of an honest appreciation of the facts of
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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its origin and tradition. Therefore the postulate on which 17th century man
staked everything proved incapable of fulfillment (Ibid., pp. 525-26)
I was reading my own spiritual biography; the existential pastoral experience that
had exposed the vulnerability of my own theological position and triggered the
serious search for a new basis for preaching and pastoral care led me to the
discovery that I had fallen into the very pitfall against which Barth warned.
I struggled. Berkhof watched me dangle. I wanted him to give me answers, to
solve the mystery of biblical authority. He only smiled and let me keep working.
He did tell me he, too, had walked the path I was on, but I would have to find my
own way. He was not forthcoming with answers but was most helpful in aiding
me to clarify the questions.
I remember suggesting I should write my dissertation on this matter. I was
convinced there would be little theological progress on any front if in the RCA we
were not freed from a doctrine of inspiration that, for all the protestations, looked
suspiciously like the seventeenth-century version Barth attributed to the
orthodox who lost the vitality of faith by lusting for certainty they could control.
He responded simply, “Do you realize what they will do to you?”
My dissertation subject did not develop in the area of biblical authority, but I did
come to an understanding that enabled me to remain under the authority of
Scripture as Word of God while recognizing as well the human nature of that
witness and the continuing work of God’s Spirit making the witness the Word of
God here and now.
Just as I was forging a new foundation for preaching and pastoral care, I
experienced a personal crisis, a painful divorce and breakup of my family. It
seemed my future ministry was in jeopardy just when I felt more strongly than
ever the desire to engage in the ministry of the Word. Then the congregation I
first served, which is the Spring Lake, Michigan, congregation I still serve, invited
me to return, an act of grace and, for me, the greatest confirmation of my call to
ministry I have ever experienced.
Grace became a tangible human experience. Grace was incarnate in this people.
They touched me and I knew the touch of God. They took me in, supported me in
the care of my three small children, believed in me, and through them, I was
healed. That took courage, for in 1971 that was a radical thing to do. That is where
it all started, I believe, for my experience became a paradigm for the ministry of
grace in this congregation.
Two decades of exhilarating pastoral ministry have issued from a mediation of
grace from people to pastor. The conjunction of intensive theological reflection
and concrete human experience created the occasion for a congregation to
become an alternative to church as usual. That combination continues to be
fruitful as we strive to live into our name, Christ Community, a name we chose in
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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1971 to express a new vision and to create a new image. Newness did not come
without cost, without a willingness to let go of congregational patterns which had
grown and developed over 101 years of life in the Spring Lake community. The
name change signaled a willingness to die to what had been, trusting the God of
resurrection to create something new.
A theological vision, hammered out of the dialogue with Scripture and concrete
human experience, is at the center of our life. For me, human experience has
driven me to theological reflection, and theological investigation has freed me to
proclaim good news with evangelical passion and intellectual integrity.
The vision that shapes us could not have evolved had I not come to a new
understanding of Scripture, as indicated above. I believe Scripture is normative,
God’s Spirit moving the human author to witness to the “happening” of God’s
revelation. Scripture arises out of the history of Israel and Jesus, the locus God in
freedom chose to unveil God’s eternal purpose for Creation, the “place” in which
God’s grace has come to clear demonstration.
But, the story goes on. Just as the biblical witness is the interpretation and
reinterpretation in light of ongoing historical experience of living under the reign
of God, so the church keeps alive the story of Israel and Jesus Christ, but must
constantly re-frame the given story, casting it in new perspective, as it moves
through history’s unfolding landscape. Any expression of Christian faith must be
shaped through dialogue with that witness. The Bible is the inspired preaching of
the community of faith, but preaching in the power of the Spirit is today, as well,
Word of God. God’s revelation in Israel and Jesus is listened to in the context of
concrete human experience. Revelation “happens” as Barth insisted, and it still
happens.
Traditionally, the Scriptures have been used in an authoritarian manner, laying
the “then” over “now” in a prescriptive way. One preaches “correct beliefs” and is
locked into specific practices of life and worship. We are seeking rather to
experience God in concrete human experience illumined by Scripture so that our
faith and our life connect.
In preaching and teaching I have cultivated openness, affirmed diversity, and
encouraged respect for a broad spectrum of opinion. A closed belief system
disallows the possibility of a full human experience, which is always developing,
to remain connected to one’s authentic spiritual perceptions—which cannot help
but receive the impact of present experience. If an external rule holds absolute
authority, then I cannot honestly evaluate my own concrete human experience. I
have the answer before I can formulate the question. Where such biblicism is the
rule, the gulf between “correct belief” and actual experience widens. Subscription
to a doctrinal system that is absolutized forces compartmentalization of religious
belief from everyday experience of the world and life.
© Grand Valley State University
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Richard A. Rhem
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If there is a center to the theological understanding that shapes our total
existence as a people, it is the theology of grace. Out of the barrenness of Sarah’s
womb (Gen. 11:30) God began a movement with particular focus in order to
realize the universal purpose expressed in creation. A theology of creation
embraces the covenant of grace initiated with Abraham, through whom God
would bring grace to all nations. God’s electing love found expression in the
covenant community, not to the exclusion of the many, but on behalf of the
many.
If I would point to one theological insight that has transformed my preaching and
released me to embrace all who come and, consequently, has formed the mind
and heart of this community, it is the universal extent of God’s grace. I will not
argue universalism; I think when we come to “isms” we generally know too much;
we become ideological. But that God’s grace is of far greater extent than it has
been traditionally understood is a deep conviction and it has changed my
ministry.
The limits of grace can be debated. Christians differ. But that to which I witness
regarding my own experience of ministry and the tone quality of the congregation
cannot be denied. It is rooted in a theology of grace that takes historical shape in
Israel and the church and embraces creation.
A profound sense of God’s grace brings one a very great freedom, freedom from
fear and defensiveness, freedom from the anxiety of what the future holds for
human development, scientific discovery, or philosophical formulation. Grace
brings freedom and creates openness. There are no questions we dare not ask, no
perspectives we fear to bring to expression.
The people have joined me in a pilgrimage of faith. There is no “Christ
Community line.” They trust me and give me freedom to probe and test, and I
give them freedom to agree or disagree. I have continued to do serious theological
study and I offer classes in theology. For example, we have studied Berkhof’s
Christian Faith, Küng’s On Being a Christian, Does God Exist?, and A Theology
for the Third Millenium, along with David Tracy, Charles Davis, Edward
Schillebeeckx, and many others. I always let the congregation know where I am
investigating, what questions are pressing to me, and in which direction I am
moving.
We do theology together—indirectly. Out of concrete human experience, the stuff
of our present experience of life in family, community, and world, we think
theologically. The biblical story illumines experience, and experience elicits new
light from the Scriptures. Our theology is not a static given; it is in process, an
ongoing adventure of seeing our life in God’s light, a joyful and serious endeavor
of discovering what it means to live before the face of God.
By seeking to define and clarify the questions that move our human existence,
rather than claiming to have answers, we give space for a broad spectrum of
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Richard A. Rhem
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persons to join the journey. The openness of the community creates freedom to
be open to any contemporary quest for meaning, for transcendence. Those who
are empty and rootless are not impressed if handed a ready-made answer before
their question is sensitively heard.
The recent widespread interest in the work in mythology by Joseph Campbell,
popularized by the interview with Bill Moyers and published under the title The
Power of Myth, is just one example of the spiritual quest of multitudes who have
given up on the institutional church as a place where their quest might be
satisfied. What responsibility do we bear for their despair of finding in the church
some clue to spiritual reality, to the experience of God? Secure in the grace of
God, our faith is not fragile. When I encounter the defensiveness and fear so
common in our churches today, I am amazed at the lack of confidence in the
truth of biblical faith as though it need be protected from the challenge of new
insights and angles of vision.
God’s grace—before it, I am in awe, humbled, full of gratitude. I rest in it and feel
a freedom to let God be God, to entrust my flawed self and fallible understanding
to God s mercy. I don’t know why some experience anguish in ministry and I have
known such joy. I know all is Grace; therefore boasting is excluded, but so is
despair.
There is enough pain in the church to go around, and simplistic solutions and
pious clichés only deepen the woundedness. Our story is simply a story of trust,
resting in the good and gracious God, letting go of yesterday’s formulations if
they no longer connect with today’s experience; letting go of church structures
that have outlived the purpose for which they were created.
Maybe the truth is that the institutional church has to die. Maybe our pain stems
from our desperate attempts to rescue structures which are warring against the
larger purposes of the Sovereign One. Maybe our techniques and promotional
schemes, our growth strategies and evangelism campaigns are human control
measures borrowed from the marketing strategy of a consumer society. We may
have to let the church die, but God is not dead.
Reference:
Karl Barth. Church Dogmatics, Vol. I.1-2, The Doctrine of the Word of God. First
published 1957; T & T Clark Ltd., 1961.
© Grand Valley State University
�
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Richard A. Rhem Collection
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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.
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Religion
Interfaith worship
Sermons
Sound Recordings
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Rhem, Richard A.
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a>
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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English
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KII-01
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1981-2014
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References
Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics, Vol I, 1961.
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RA-4-19910902
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1991-09-02
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Text
Title
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An Alternative to Church as Usual
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Perspectives: A Journal of Reformed Thought
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Richard A. Rhem
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eng
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Article created, delivered, or published by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on September 2, 1991 entitled "An Alternative to Church as Usual", it appeared in Perspectives, September 1991, pp. 18-21. Tags: Authority of Scripture, Faith Community, Church, Universal Grace, Inclusive, Spiritual Journey. Scripture references: Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics, Vol I, 1961..
Format
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application/pdf
Authority of Scripture
Church
Faith Community
Inclusive
Spiritual Journey
Universal Grace
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/27177fb47ead74bafb941554695dc9e2.mp3
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Text
An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
From the series: The Heart of the Matter
Text: Psalm 78:6-7; Jeremiah 29:11; James 4:14
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Pentecost XVIII, October 8, 2000
Transcription of the spoken sermon
Psalm 78, from which I just read, continues as a recitation of the history of Israel
because the Psalmist did as he instructed people to do, that is, to tell the stories,
to tell the stories in order that the children might know them, even the generation
yet unborn, and come into the same experience of the grace of God.
I'm going to tell you a story this morning. It is a story that some of you have lived
and others of you know, and for some of you, it may be new. But it is not so bad
when you are trying to figure out the future to look at the way you have come. The
story centers around that wonderful text in Jeremiah 29, the 11th verse. Israel is in
exile. There are those voices that are saying, "Don't settle down. Get ready to get
out of here. You can never be blessed here." And then the voice of Jeremiah is
heard in a letter, and Jeremiah says, "Settle down. Seek the welfare of this place."
And then this wonderful promise, "I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord,
plans of good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."
It is a wonderful image - to give you a future and a hope. There are times when
we all need images to sustain us, to inspire us, and to keep us going, and the 11th
verse of Jeremiah 29 was that for me in a very personal way at a time that was
very dark in my own life and I had to cling to that promise, a future and a hope.
How would you have written to your parents that your ministry was probably
over if on the day of your ordination you got a letter from your father who said
that while you were in the womb you were prayed over and dedicated to God?
And having been thus warped from the womb and entering obediently into the
paths of service, now to find myself in a situation where, through the breakup of
my family, I figured that there would be no more ministry for me, because we are
talking about the dark ages back in 1970, and I had to sit down in Europe and
write a letter to Mom and Dad and tell them the bad news. But, I appended to
that letter of doom Jeremiah 29:11, a future and a hope. And, by the grace of God,
the congregation here assembled at that time extended to me an invitation to
return here and to become their pastor once again. I never really thought about it
so much as I have just reflecting on all of this for this message. I have been
© Grand Valley State University
�An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
accused of being a "Johnny-one-note" with the theology of grace, and I'm guilty.
That remark resembles me. But, there was grace here before I came back. There
was a people here full of grace who made a very bold move in extending to me the
opportunity to be their pastor when the next item on my agenda was a divorce,
having three little children to care for and one chapter of my dissertation written.
Now, that's a risky business and this congregation was full of grace, and it was
that grace and that experience of grace that made Jeremiah 29 come true in our
lives together.
The 70s were heady days. The experience that was mine became a paradigm for
the experience of many people who were broken and bleeding and bruised and
hurting, who had been excluded in one way or another from the Church. We
became a model of gracious acceptance, and that theology of grace that was
resident in the people before I came became the hallmark of this community, and
the growth went off the charts, so that we had to go from one service to two and
from two services to three, and then eventually we had to build this sanctuary, for
when I came back, we were in the original little church that is now the Parlour. It
was June of 1978 when we held a service starting there and we processed out of
that sanctuary around the sidewalk and into this sanctuary. The longest running
television program on the networks at that time was CBS' "Look Up and Live,"
which was on every Sunday morning. The CBS cameras were here to catch us
leaving there and coming in here, and they broadcast our first service in this
sanctuary.
Well, those were pretty heady days. The growth was exciting and the grace was
resplendent. About that time I began to worry about that growth. I don't know if I
ever articulated this publicly or not, but I began to worry about becoming an
entrepreneur of religion. We were becoming a mega-church before the era of the
mega-church, and I could see how easy it would be to get caught up in that and to
be determined and shaped and formed by that exploding growth rather than
shaping that growth in a way that was consistent with my understanding of the
word of God and the Christian tradition. I actually spoke that to some of the
leaders and they were very, very understanding of what I was talking about. So, in
1980, we came out with our second Identity Statement. Perhaps you will
remember that last week I held up this little brochure, "Dreaming the Future."
There still are a few of them in the boxes around the church. In this brochure,
there are Identity Statements from 1971, full of grace, 1980, and 1993, and the
one from 1980 is very interesting, in light of what I have just been saying, because
it was in 1980 that we began to ask the question, not how do we continue to grow
and succeed, but after all, what is God calling us as a church to be? In that
statement which is a rather long statement, these points occur,
We would be a place for the intersection of the word of God and the world,
of the Christian tradition and contemporary culture. We would be a place
where the Christian tradition is translated into the idiom of contemporary
culture, giving it a voice to speak meaningfully in the pluralistic society of
© Grand Valley State University
�An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
our day. We would be a place where controversial issues, ethical, social,
political, find a forum for discussion, enabling persons to understand the
issues and to live out a faithful response as a people of God.
You can begin to get a sense of what was going on at that time, a growing
awareness of the world about us and a growing intention to address that world
from the perspective of the Christian tradition. And then there is this significant
statement –
We determine to be true to that which we believe God is calling us to be,
whether that means harmony with the religio-cultural flow or not. We will
adjust our program and mission with the dynamic movement of history,
not in order necessarily to be successful in institutional terms, but in order
to be faithful to what God is calling us to be, and to be effective in
mediating the grace of God to the world. We will be what we determine
God is calling us to be, not in order to be successful, but in order to be
true.
It was a watershed moment for us as the decade of the 80s dawned and we had all
of this exciting growth behind us. It was a watershed moment in which we said
success is not an end in itself. We determine to have integrity. We determine to
be true to what we feel God is calling us to be.
It was during the decade of the 80s after this statement was published here that I
was invited eventually to be Professor of Preaching at the Seminary. It was in
1985 that a Reformed journal was founded for the purpose of stimulating
theological discussion in the Church, and I was invited to be on the Board of
Editors of that journal, and I began to write articles and those articles reflected
the things that we had been talking about here, the things I'd been preaching
about, the things I'd been teaching on Wednesday nights. It was like a harvesting
of all of that. It was a bringing together and coming to clarity of all of the ferment
that had been a part of the scene here now for some 14-15 years, and those
articles brought me to clarity and bringing me to clarity, that clarity began more
and more to be expressed in the pulpit here.
It was in 1988 that I wrote the now famous article on "The Habit of God's Heart"
in which I suggested that maybe the extent of God's grace was as broad as the
human family. Even though that article seriously called into question Hell, all
Hell broke loose, and the Church decided that no Professor of Preaching with that
kind of wobbly theology ought to be nurturing new preachers, and so I came back
here. But, I came back here saying we must be not less radical, but more radical,
because I had begun to sense that that is where the rub was. Martin Luther in a
marvelous statement says you can confess Christ all over the board, but if you
don't confess Christ at the point where the issue is burning, you betray Christ,
and so we began to deal with the issues more forthrightly than ever before and in
1993, we published what is now on the back of your liturgy, printed on everything
we do, and that was another movement forward for us.
© Grand Valley State University
�An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
That text, Jeremiah 29:11, was my inaugural text March 14,1971, for it had been
not only my own existential anchor, but it was that vision with which we began
and now, in 1993, we wrote the statement that is still our statement, and we
moved to be specific about the grace of God in terms of those who were
embraced. We added one category, that of sexual orientation, because that is
where the fire was raging, and we wanted to be clear and explicit that there was
nothing in the sexual orientation of a person that had anything to do with
exclusion from the grace of God.
There was one other point in this last statement - we had come to see that if the
grace of God is as broad as all of that, then there must be revelatory and salvific
significance in the religious traditions of others, and so we said it explicitly that
the light of God is found in other traditions. To say it another way, we denied the
exclusivity of salvation through Jesus Christ alone. In so doing, we have found
ourselves standing alone, an independent congregation.
As I look back over that unfolding, that developing story, I see how an energizing
vision becomes the emerging vision of a people on the way. To me, it is an
exciting business. It fascinates me how important it is to ask "Who are we?" To
have a sense of identity and a sense of purpose, to live with awareness and to live
with intentionality, for a people who does so will continue on a journey and will
get to a point where we are today where we have the opportunity to re-imagine
what the Church is all about.
I have been using that language for some time, but this is the time now to do it, to
think entirely new thoughts about the very structure and the nature of the
Church, for the Church is an ancient and venerable institution and its structures
and its ways taken for granted, never even thought about anymore, and we are at
a point at which, well, to use my old phrase, we can throw all the pieces up in the
air and let them come down once again. For, maybe the congregation gathered in
worship today and in the future is just one facet of this Center of Religion and
Life. Maybe we will look back in ten years and we will say there was a watershed
in the year 2000 when we chose an academic person to come in and run this
church rather than another ordained clergy person. Maybe it will indicate that
our move is to a Center where there is awareness and intentionality through
reflection and serious, hard wrestling with the truth, which frees up worship
which is celebrative, in which the passages of life can be celebrated, the passages
of birth and confirmation and marriage and death - a Center wrestling with
reality, reflecting on the truth which filters down into a marvelous Worship
Center where our grandchildren are told of the love of Jesus in a way that will
enable them to wonder and to grow and to come into their own experience of
reality without all that painful dismantling that so many of us have to go through,
a Center academically tilted, perhaps, because if you are not aware, if you don't
understand, if you don't know, then how can you worship right? How can you
nurture? And that correct thinking must ultimately lead to correct action and
compassion.
© Grand Valley State University
�An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
Richard A. Rhem
Page 5
If you walk in these halls some day during the week, you may bump into some
elderly person obviously needing help and, being helped with tenderness, being
accorded respect and dignity, for our Adult Day Care ministry is underway. And
so, whether it is a newborn upon whom we place the waters of baptism, or
whether it is the last rites for one who is moving from life through death to life
eternal, whether it is a child in the Worship Center hearing the stories so that
they may ultimately put their hope in God, or whether we're caring for one
another, the marginalized, the most vulnerable members of society, as a matter of
fact, there will be a community aware, intentional, ever re-inventing itself, reimagining itself, becoming what it must become because of what it sees and
understands.
James says, "What of your life? What is your life?" This will be a place where you
can come and, in all of its various facets, be faced with that question, "What is
your life?" God knows when you get to this advanced point, you recognize that
James is right. It is a brief moment; it is a vapor, but the thing that is important is
the nurturing of the young so that the future generations will come with us, not to
imitate our forms and structures, but having been grounded in the truth, set free
to find their own way.
I was in the airport in Rome a couple of weeks ago and going back and forth from
pilgrims to gates to passport control and walking through that vast hall, and there
was a moment in which it was like all the action froze, just for a moment, and I
saw people everywhere dashing for a gate, furiously fumbling for their cell
phones, lugging their luggage, and I looked on their faces and I wanted to say,
when the action stopped for me just in that moment, "Do you all know who you
are? Do you know where you are going? What is your life?" What really matters is
awareness, intentionality, issuing in worship irrepressible and nurture that sets
free and grounds and gives wings, and compassion that never quits
© Grand Valley State University
�
Dublin Core
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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
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
Contributor
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Language
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English
Type
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Sound
Text
Identifier
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KII-01
Coverage
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1981-2014
Format
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audio/mp3
text/pdf
Sound
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Event
Pentecost XVIII
Series
The Heart of the Matter
Scripture Text
Psalm 78:6-7, Jeremiah 29:11, James 4:14
Location
The location of the interview
Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI
Dublin Core
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Identifier
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KII-01_RA-0-20001008
Date
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2000-10-08
Title
A name given to the resource
An Emerging Vision: What Matters?
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
Publisher
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Subject
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Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Sermons
Relation
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Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/
Language
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eng
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Sound
Text
Format
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audio/mp3
application/pdf
Description
An account of the resource
A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on October 8, 2000 entitled "An Emerging Vision: What Matters?", as part of the series "The Heart of the Matter", on the occasion of Pentecost XVIII, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Psalm 78:6-7, Jeremiah 29:11, James 4:14.
Inclusive
Pluralism
Theology of Grace
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e24c866d4fc8f971db1f98c6ef9feb68.pdf
af35786b348ad742682d6dc8f6ba4f05
PDF Text
Text
An Intentional Ministry
Article by
Richard A. Rhem
Minister of Preaching and Theological Inquiry
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Published in
The Church Herald
The Magazine of the Reformed Church in America
April, 1990, pp. 11-13
The people of God are a pilgrim people, a people on the move within the stream
of history following a call from beyond history. The institutional form and
witness of this people on pilgrimage will be shaped at any given point on the
church’s journey by the present historical context of its life and by the
transcendent reference which provides its identity.
The church as the people of God will be in a constant state of tension, needing
always to reflect faithfully the intention of the One who calls it into being and
needing always to be in touch with the contemporary world in which its mission
is executed. The very nature of the church’s existence in history means that it is
never finished with this task of finding its own shape. Faithfulness to the Lord of
the church and insightful understanding of the time keep changes coming.
In going about this task we must first recognize that, just as the landscape of the
world through which we are passing is changing, so the nuances of our message
and our institutional structures must be open to change, to development. We
have the given of the scriptural witness to God’s revelation in Israel and in Jesus
Christ, and that remains the norm by which our institutional forms and our
witness are to be determined and judged. But our understanding of the biblical
witness is not static; it is a growing, developing understanding. Movement
through history corrects us at some points, expands our insight into the tradition
at others, and demands of us an ongoing translation of the biblical proclamation.
The movement of history calls forth new forms of institutional structure and new
shapes of corporate life.
The first requirement for the church that wishes to be faithful to its transcendent
call and to be significantly engaged with the contemporary world is to hammer
out an identity arising out of the intersection of the gospel and the present
horizon. The search for that identity must be intentional and executed through a
© Grand Valley State University
�An Intentional Ministry
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
serious wrestling with the biblical witness, with the cumulative store of the
tradition, and with an in-depth understanding of contemporary society.
At Christ Community Church we created an identity statement at the onset of the
1980s. We had begun the 1970s with an intentional posture and a clearly defined
sense of identity and mission. We had experienced a genuine spiritual renewal
and explosive growth. As the 1980s approached, a small group met over a period
of months to reflect on where we were and what our context of ministry and the
contemporary horizon were calling us to be. The box accompanying this article
presents the essence of that statement.
A decade later I can say that that statement indeed shaped us and, in large
degree, expressed and formed the identity that our life was to become. A decade
has passed, however, and neither we nor the world in which we carry out our
ministry is the same. Position papers on various aspects of our corporate life and
structure have been written in the meantime, but it is time for a major review as
we enter the 1990s.
The task now is to view the identity statement in light of the present state of the
world and American society and, more specifically, the concrete setting of our
ministry. Are there sociological trends or international developments or
community concerns that will call for new emphasis, new structures, an
adjustment of basic congregational posture?
If the initial work on a congregational identity statement is carefully done, the
basic document will probably not need to be altered, but the manner of its
concrete application will change. What once was affirmed may even need to be
opposed and vice versa.
Let me illustrate. Habits of the Heart, a book by Robert Bellah et al. that
appeared in 1985, was hailed as the most significant sociological analysis of
American society to appear in decades. The title comes from Alexis de Toqueville,
who studied American democracy and who in the 1830s published his
Democracy in America. De Toqueville much admired what he observed here but
warned of some aspects of our culture that disturbed him. He saw our
individualism as potentially isolating Americans from one another.
In Habits of the Heart the authors fear that this individualism may have grown
cancerous. They wonder if the protective social shields remain by which a free
society may sustain itself. They point to the flight of people to enclaves in which
“self-interested individuals join together to maximize individual good.” The
lifestyle enclave is a group of sympathetic people who spend their leisure time
together in an atmosphere of acceptance, happiness, and love.
In such a society the desire to be successful may tempt the church to forget its
transcendent calling and to become simply one more enclave of like-minded
individuals giving a spiritual legitimization to an essentially selfish existence. In a
© Grand Valley State University
�An Intentional Ministry
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
recent national sampling of Roman Catholic opinion, the two things most desired
were “personal and accessible priests” and “warmer, more personal parishes.”
The authors comment,
The salience of these needs for personal intimacy in American religious life
suggests why the local church, like other voluntary communities, indeed
like the contemporary family, is so fragile, requires so much energy to keep
it going, and has so faint a hold on commitment when such needs are not
met.
In The Public Church, published in 1981, Martin Marty recognized the legitimate
place of the church as community. He writes, “In the Church the possibility of
mutual support and bonding, so needed in an impersonal world, lives on.” But he
points out as well the weakness of the church’s voluntary character: “People are
aware that they can choose a particular church, reject all churches, or switch
between them should one or another inconvenience participants or challenge
their cherished ways of life.”
A 1978 Gallup poll reveals that 80 percent of Americans agreed that “an
individual should arrive at his or her own religious beliefs independent of any
churches or synagogues.” Yet, traditionally, it has been precisely the church or
synagogue that formed religious beliefs. If the society to which we are called to
witness in large measure sees the determination of religious beliefs as a personal
responsibility and prerogative, is it any wonder that many mainline churches,
which hold historical and corporate beliefs, are in trouble?
How should we react? Will we succumb to the methods of a consumer society?
Must the local congregations compete like so many religious supermarkets? Must
the pastor become an entrepreneur of religion? Will the church forget its
transcendent calling and prostitute itself by pandering to popular taste? Should
we forget our identity statement and simply seek to discover what works, what
brings success? The answer to these questions is a resounding no, but the
temptation is strong and many have succumbed to it.
It is not enough, however, to sit smugly by with declining membership, salving
our wounds with the claim that we have been faithful. We live in a time of
unprecedented spiritual hunger and openness to transcendence. There is an
immense longing for God, for reality, and there is a widespread network of people
engaged in a quest for a new world and the transformation of society. The label
New Age has been given this amorphous movement, and within its ranks there is
to be found a broad spectrum of beliefs and practices, some serious, some
bizarre. Whatever variety of forms and beliefs may be manifested, one
characteristic is shared: a large-scale rejection of the traditional, institutional
forms of religion.
Certainly it is naive to think we can simply do away with forms and structures.
But here, too, we must not grow defensive and, with some panic, frantically shore
© Grand Valley State University
�An Intentional Ministry
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
up the traditional forms we have inherited and now oversee. Why is so much of
contemporary society spiritually hungry but largely without interest in the
institutional church? To what extent are the criticisms valid? Is there some
dismantling that needs to occur, some deaths in order that the new may spring
forth? It is easier to raise the questions than to give the answers, but the
questions must be heard.
Let me point to one more mark of contemporary American society that demands
our consideration as we determine our posture for the 1990s. In 1971 Dean Kelly
wrote Why Conservative Churches Are Growing. I remember taking his book
into the pulpit and declaring that if Kelly was right, Christ Community was in
trouble because all the things that characterized the conservative church in his
description were the things we had set ourselves against. He was right. Nearly
two decades later, the socially conservative attitudes he foresaw have increased.
There is a conservative tide which has about it a mean streak, an adversarial air
that militates against the openness, freedom, and civility which the gospel of
grace creates.
Again here, if it is simply success in externals that we seek, we had better tailor
our message to this conservative tide, exploiting people’s fears and dishing out
simplistic answers to complex problems. But here is an instance in which the
church must simply set itself against popular demand no matter what the cost.
For God’s sake and for the sake of society’s health, the church needs to find a
voice that is “both civil and committed,” to borrow a phrase from Martin Marty.
The above discussion is illustrative of the kind of hard thinking, reflection, and
wrestling that must characterize the church whether on the denominational,
regional, or local level. And it must be done not simply because the turn of the
calendar has brought us into the 1990s, but as an ongoing process. Only thus will
we be intentional in our ministry, self-consciously faithful to the God who calls us
into being and fully cognizant of the changing panorama of the society to which
we bear witness and in which we live out concretely the life of the kingdom.
Christ Community Identity Statement:
Christ Community is theologically self-conscious; it is catholic, evangelical,
and Reformed. It is firmly rooted in the historic Christian tradition:
catholic in that it seeks to express the one, holy, and apostolic faith
symbolized in the Apostles’ Creed; evangelical in that it believes that God’s
supreme revelation and the good news of God’s grace appeared in Jesus
Christ—“Our message is that God was making friends of all persons
through Christ”; Reformed in that its articulation of the faith finds its
authority in the Scriptures and is never finished, but rather needs constant
reformation and new translation, that it may be understood afresh in every
age.
© Grand Valley State University
�An Intentional Ministry
Richard A. Rhem
Page 5
Believing in God’s eternal purposes of love for the whole created order,
ours is a theology of grace. Grace is the heart of our theology, and this
church is a community of persons who have received God’s grace in Christ
and who extend that grace to one another in Jesus’ name.
Believing in the sovereignty of God in the totality of the created order and
in the lordship of Christ in the full range of human existence, we are
seeking to bring the whole of life under the aegis of God’s gracious rule—
fashioning here a center for creative Christian living, enabling a fully
human existence. Consequently, we are committed to creating and
maintaining here
—A place where we live out the conviction that God’s cause is the
human cause, where the quality of our lives is ever more enhanced
and the fullest realization of our human potential is enabled.
—A place where all persons can find a point of entry, experience
unconditional grace and total acceptance whatever their history,
wherever they find themselves on the spectrum of Christian
experience; where those who are broken may find refuge and
healing and those who are moving toward wholeness may
experience Christ in their strength.
—A place where the tone quality of grace creates a non-threatening
atmosphere where all persons will be encouraged to live on the
growing edge, stretching, probing, deepening knowledge and faith.
—A place where we experience community, have a sense of
belonging, find a home together; where the blending of traditions
results in a rich and full expression of the Christian tradition and
where the grace of God reconciles us into one body in which every
barrier that separates and isolates persons is transcended.
—A place where persons are motivated, discovered, affirmed, and
equipped; their gifts identified and strengthened for mission,
making tangible the grace of God locally and throughout the world.
—A place where the majesty of God and the mystery of life is
honored; where many answers remain elusive, but where life’s great
questions are heard and acknowledged; where persons learn to live
the questions and to enjoy the journey, resting in the all-embracing
grace of God.
—A place for the intersection of the Word of God and the world, of
the Christian tradition and contemporary culture.
© Grand Valley State University
�An Intentional Ministry
Richard A. Rhem
Page 6
—A place where theological reflection happens in the setting of the
Christian community where the ministry of grace is taking place.
—A place where the Christian tradition is translated into the idiom
of contemporary culture, giving it voice to speak meaningfully in
the pluralistic society of our day.
—A place where controversial issues—ethical, social, and political—
find a forum for discussion enabling persons to understand the
issues and to live out a faithful response as people of God.
We must determine to be true to that which we believe God is calling us to
be, whether that means harmony with the religio-cultural flow or not. We
will adjust our program and mission with the dynamic movement of
history, not in order necessarily to be successful in institutional terms, but
in order to be faithful to what God is calling us to be and to be effective in
mediating the grace of God to the world. Thus having a sense of who we
are and a commitment to share the gospel in all of its dimensions, we will
be open to the world and flexible in our life and mode of ministry in order
to be instruments in God’s hand for the humanization of society to God’s
glory.
We commit ourselves to be alive and alert to what the movements and
trends of society and church are. It will be incumbent upon us as well to
evaluate ourselves annually as to the effectiveness of our ministry in terms
of what we see happening in the world at large. A strong sense of identity
and confidence in the grace that has set us free to be God’s servants will
enable us to be open to our world and to enter vitally into dialogue with
the world, being ready through engagement of world religions, political
and economic ideologies, scientific and technological development, and
the evolution of social customs and mores, to go back to the Scriptures,
seeking new understanding in the light of new knowledge. In so doing, we
will seek to translate the faith for our day, being faithful to God’s supreme
witness, Jesus Christ.
© 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/.
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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
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Rhem, Richard A.
Source
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<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a>
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Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
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Kaufman Interfaith Institute
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Language
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English
Type
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Sound
Text
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KII-01
Coverage
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1981-2014
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audio/mp3
text/pdf
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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/.
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RA-4-19900401
Date
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1990-04-02
Type
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Text
Title
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An Intentional Ministry
Publisher
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The Church School Herald Journal
Creator
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Richard A. Rhem
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<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
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eng
Description
An account of the resource
Article created, delivered, or published by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on April 2, 1990 entitled "An Intentional Ministry", it appeared in The Church Herald, pp. 11-13. Tags: Church, Journey of Faith, Community of Faith, Inclusive, Reformation, History of Faith.
Format
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application/pdf
Church
Community of Faith
History of Faith
Inclusive
Journey of Faith
Reformation
-
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/2b648f9c8b4d7e595089e58f24973425.pdf
33904c27e10276e6c462b647910c0670
PDF Text
Text
Beyond Reason: Discovery in Worship and Mission
Christian Unity Sunday
Text: Isaiah 49:6b; John 1:9
Richard A. Rhem
Christ Community Church
Spring Lake, Michigan
Epiphany, January 19, 1997
Transcription of the spoken sermon
(On this Christian Unity Sunday, the choirs of the two parishes, St. Mary's
Catholic Church and Christ Community Church, in Spring Lake, have joined
together in Antonio Vivaldi's "Gloria," during the 10:00 am worship hour. The
choirs have been singing together, on occasion, since 1973, and there exists a
special affection between the two parishes.)
(Scripture is read by Jim Penrice, a seminarian intern at St. Mary's, from
Mundelein Seminary.)
On behalf of our pastor and all of your sisters and brothers at St. Mary's parish, I
bring you warm greetings on this cold morning. Somewhere in the scripture it
says, "It is good to be here." And it certainly is good to be with you today to
worship together as sisters and brothers in Christ.
This is a reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah:
Listen to me, O coast lands, and hearken, you peoples from afar. The Lord
called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my
name. He made my mouth like a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand,
he hid me. He made me a polished arrow. In his quiver he hid me away.
And he said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be
glorified." But I said, "I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength for
nothing and vanity, yet surely my right is with the Lord and my
recompense with my God." And now the Lord says, who formed me from
the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him and that Israel
might be gathered to him, for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord and my
God has become my strength. He says it is too light a thing that you should
be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved
of Israel. I will give you as a light to the nations that my salvation may
reach to the end of the earth." Thus says the Lord, the redeemer of Israel
and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the
servant of rulers. Kings shall see and arise, princes, and they shall
© Grand Valley State University
�Beyond Reason: Worship
Richard A. Rhem
Page 2
prostrate themselves because of the Lord who is faithful, because of the
Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.
I invite you to please stand for the proclamation of the Gospel:
In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word
was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through
him and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was
life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and
the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose
name was John. He came for testimony, to bear witness to the light that all
might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness
to the light. The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the
world.
This is a great experience for us; it is the Sunday designated by a large part of the
Church as Christian Unity Sunday. It's a time in which we acknowledge that
which is not true, but that which ought to be true. We acknowledge that we know
better than we do, and, over the past 25 years of my second term here in this
congregation, one of the great experiences for me has been the warm friendship
between our neighboring parishes, St. Mary's and Christ Community. We have
sung Christmas carols together; we have joined together in ecumenical services;
the choirs have made presentations as this morning; we've had good fellowship
together in our halls with hot chocolate and good things to eat - it's been
enriching for me to experience the unity and the community between these two
parishes, and I've heard the same thing from many of you. I've heard it also from
the people of St. Mary's when we've had these occasions because, prior to that, we
lived in the community together, perhaps we were neighbors, maybe we worked
together, but on Sunday morning there was this kind of "Iron Curtain" that
divided us and no one gave us permission to embrace one another as brothers
and sisters in the faith. And so, it has been a beautiful experience for two
neighboring parishes, one Roman Catholic, one Protestant, to recognize that the
things that divide us are superficial and the things that make us one are
fundamental, and this morning is another wonderful experience of that unity that
we have in Jesus Christ.
God knows that unity is imperative for our world. The Roman Catholic theologian
from whom I have learned so much, Hans Küng, has said that there will be no
peace among the nations until there is peace among the religions, and there will
be no peace among the religions until there is peace among the churches. That
says it succinctly and pointedly, and it is true. Wherever you look in the globe
today, wherever there is trouble, potential violence, living on the edge of war, you
will find at the root of the conflict religious fervor, or someone using religion to
fuel the fires of discord and alienation. It is imperative that as people of faith we
learn to live together and in order to live together, it is imperative that we come
to experience that oneness that is ours because we are all the children of the one
© Grand Valley State University
�Beyond Reason: Worship
Richard A. Rhem
Page 3
eternal God, who in the beginning brought all things into being and created
humankind in God's image with a heart that continues to yearn, to embrace all
God's children. I believe that's a biblical truth.
The passage from Isaiah is a very familiar passage; it's one of the servant songs in
that section of Isaiah 40-55, a servant poem in which, to begin with, the servant
seems to be Israel itself, and then moves to an individual who calls Israel to come
to itself and to realize its purpose, because the song indicates that Israel was to be
the place in which God was glorified on earth. God chose this people and in this
people God would show God's glory. And so, the servant is to call Jacob back to
God, to that prior claim to be that place where the light of God would dwell on
earth.
God chose Israel, not to the exclusion of the nations, but in order to bring light to
the nations, and in this poem after the servant hears the call to bring Jacob back
to God, the voice says, "But, that's not enough. That's too light a task. I will make
you a light to the nations in order that my salvation may be known to the end of
the earth."
I believe that Israel at its best, at its moments of most profound understanding,
saw itself to be the light of God to share with the nations in order that the world
might experience God's saving grace.
We in the Christian Church believe that that light came to sharp focus in Jesus. In
the prologue to his Gospel, John writes of the Word, the word that in the 14th
verse becomes flesh. In the meantime, that word speaks of a God Who is the
source of life and light for the world. The Gospel writer points to John the Baptist
and says John was not the light, but John came to bear witness to the light, and
that light that enlightens everyone was coming into the world. Christmas was the
coming in human flesh of that one who would say, "I am the light of the world."
Jesus was not, in himself, the source of light. Jesus was not the exclusive light
given to humankind. Jesus was the human flesh, was that supreme moment when
the light that flows from God, that enlightens everyone, was coming into sharp
focus. Jesus became the locus of the light, the light of God that enlightens all. I
believe that is biblically true.
But, if it's true, how can we realize it? How can we make it concrete in our world?
What I want to say to you this morning is that, beyond reason, the truth is
discovered in worship and mission. I say, beyond reason, because we will never
come to the experience and the realization of unity through rational discussion.
It is strange for me to say that, eh? I'm the incurable theologian. I am always
thinking, thinking, thinking. When I write with great persuasion, when I speak
with the tongues of angels, I think the whole world will understand. I can't figure
out why everybody doesn't see it! But, alas, I learned to my despair, that wellreasoned argument doesn't do it. It must be beyond reason; it must be
experienced. When it is experienced, it need not be discussed, debated or argued.
© Grand Valley State University
�Beyond Reason: Worship
Richard A. Rhem
Page 4
When it is experienced, it is known; it becomes a reality, and it is my claim this
morning that the experience comes not as I wish it would come, by some finely
fashioned sermon, some theological discussion, some erudite essay - no. It will
come when it comes in worship and in mission. It will come when "Gloria in
excelsis Deo" is sung magnificently by human voice, accompanied by instrument.
It will come when we as a people are lifted into the presence of the living God,
when we are lifted out of ourselves and there is that transcendent moment when
we know ourselves caught up in wonder, love and praise. It is in worship, those
moments of adoration, those experiences when we lose our head, when we open
our heart, when our whole being pulsates, when our goosebumps have
goosebumps, and we know beyond any argument when we see two choirs
gathered together from two parishes from two great traditions singing one voice
to the glory of the one God - don't we know in that moment that we are together
the children of God who delight in the worship of that combined chorus? It is in
worship, whether in corporate worship like this or in other moments when in
different gatherings we may suddenly experience ourselves together.
You know that Saturday nights are sacred. I seldom venture out of the house, but
we did last evening for a special occasion - the birthday of the husband of the cochair of the Jewish-Christian Dialogue Committee, Sylvia Kaufman, and it was
one of those decade-turning birthdays, a very festive evening, a wonderful party.
Because Sylvia and Dick Kaufman are Jewish, there were Jewish friends and
relatives. But because they have been in that community so long, there were
Gentiles, as well, and people of all stripes. And because Sylvia is Chair of the
Jewish-Christian Committee, there were members of the committee. There
happened to be four clergy persons there, and in spite of that, it wasn't a bad
evening! Sylvia said, "How about our resident clergy blessing the meal before we
partake?" And so, we did - a Presbyterian, a ... (what am I?), a Lutheran, and a
Jewish rabbi, and for a moment that assembly there gathered knew a
transcendence that deepened the evening and we knew that we were one before
the true God Who gives us bread.
It is in worship that the superficial things that divide us are dissolved and we
know ourselves truly to be one. And it is in mission, it is when we are not thinking
the faith, but doing the faith. It is when our Parlour on Thanksgiving is filled with
the aroma of roast turkey and there are people from various parishes around the
community gathered together to roll up their sleeves and serve those who need a
place on Thanksgiving, washing the dishes, making this a place of hospitality. It
doesn't really matter what your brand is. Together there is a servant community
of the people of Christ serving as an expression concretely of the compassion of
God for all of those who would come. It comes in mission.
This is the birthday of Martin Luther King. It was 29 years ago that he was cut
down by an assassin's bullet. He was a prophet in our midst. We liked him not a
little, not a lot. He did not, of course, receive the honor in his life which is typical
for prophets. But, he had a dream and in the rich cadences of that black preacher,
© Grand Valley State University
�Beyond Reason: Worship
Richard A. Rhem
Page 5
this nation was sensitized and we recognized the horror of the racism that was
encased in law, and his dream caught on and black and white together began to
make those moves to dismantle the structure of racism which is still far from
where it ought to be, but which has been moved immeasurably by one man who
had a dream of the day when people would be judged not by the color of their
skin, but by the character of their soul. The dream was caught by black and white
and young and old, and the landscape has changed, and we came together
because we were doing what was right and when we were doing what was right,
then we knew that there was a deeper unity that bound us together, that we were
all the children of God.
It is in worship and it is in mission that we come to experience the genuine unity
of the human family. I got a call three or four weeks ago from a man named David
or Daniel Fox. I had gotten a note to call this person. I didn't know who he was.
There were some notes scribbled about what he wanted, but they didn't make any
sense to me, and I've returned a few calls in the last few months that I wish I
hadn't, and so I wasn't too eager to dial up this number, but I did. I found out
that this was a gentleman who was a nephew of a chaplain in the Second World
War who had been one of the four chaplains who had gone down with a troop
ship. (Those of you who are older, like I am, will remember the story, perhaps.)
He knew that I was a minister in the Reformed Church of America at the time
and thought I might be able to give him some information about one of the
chaplains, Clark Poling, who was a minister in the RCA I pointed him to the
archives of the RCA and we chatted a bit about the story, which I did remember,
but he reminded me that it was early in the Second World War, the USS
Dorchester was torpedoed in the North Atlantic by a Nazi torpedo and they had
not enough life jackets on board.
There were four chaplains on board and those four chaplains took off their life
preservers and handed them to the troops. And, as the troops were scrambling
overside and into life boats, the chaplains stood on deck and they prayed for the
troops, for their survival and their safety. The ship was mortally wounded and as
it was slipping into that watery grave, the four chaplains stood on deck, linked
arm in arm, praying for their people. One was a Methodist. One was a pastor in
the Reformed Church. One was a Catholic priest, and one was a Jewish rabbi.
What a picture. What an image. As they slipped under those icy waters and came
into the presence of Light Eternal, do you suspect it mattered one whit that one
was Jewish, one was Catholic and two were Protestant? Of course, it didn't. You
know it didn't.
The reason I know that you know it didn't, is that about five years ago I had an
epiphany experience in this congregation. I was on my way to Brandeis
University to a think tank on congregational affiliation for Catholics, Protestants
and Jews. Do you remember? It happened to be Reformation Sunday and I told
you where I was going and for what reason and I suggested that perhaps I should
go to Brandeis and say to that group that what we really need to do, we who are
© Grand Valley State University
�Beyond Reason: Worship
Richard A. Rhem
Page 6
from Geneva, is go to Rome and pick up our brothers and sisters there and go to
Constantinople, picking up more brothers and sisters, moving to Mecca and then
to Jerusalem where we might all experience the truth - that we are all together
the children of God. And you know what you did? It had never happened before.
For the first time in my ministry, you applauded the sermon and you said to me "We've known it all along. When will you catch up with us?"
You, the people, knew it. When I articulated it, you affirmed it, because you knew
it. You knew it here and my confidence for the future lies in the fact that you
know it and increasingly the people of God of whatever stripe will be saying to
ecclesiastical leaders, church bureaucrats and bishops and all kinds of such
animals, you will be saying, "Get out of the way!" because we're coming together,
because in your heart, you know it's true.
© Grand Valley State University
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9f2f012ad9ce38692adcd6676146dc99.mp3
6f1888b33127356521eb6787d5dea25b
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Richard A. Rhem Collection
Description
An account of the resource
Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar.
Subject
The topic of the resource
Clergy--Michigan
Reformed Church in America
Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.)
Religion
Interfaith worship
Sermons
Sound Recordings
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Rhem, Richard A.
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
<a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a>
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Kaufman Interfaith Institute
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
KII-01
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
1981-2014
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
audio/mp3
text/pdf
Sound
A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds.
Event
Epiphany III
Scripture Text
Isaiah 49:6b, John 1:9
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-0-19970119
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1997-01-19
Title
A name given to the resource
Beyond Reason: Discovery in Worship and Mission
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
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audio/mp3
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A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on January 19, 1997 entitled "Beyond Reason: Discovery in Worship and Mission", on the occasion of Epiphany III, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Isaiah 49:6b, John 1:9.
Community of Grace
Epiphany
Inclusive
Pluralism