Helen G. Crotwell - "Not Too Hard for You" (July 17, 1977)

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-	Duke University Chapel, service of worship,	0:04
	July 17th, 1977.	0:07
	(melodious organ music)	0:13
-	Almighty God to whom belong adoration and praise,	8:48
	illumine our hearts by the light of thy grace,	8:52
	that our lips may praise thee,	8:56
	that our lives may bless thee,	8:58
	that our worship may glorify thee,	9:01
	through Jesus Christ our Lord.	9:04
	Amen.	9:06
	(organ plays hymn)	9:08
	(congregation sings)
	When we gather to praise God,	12:25
	we remember that we are the people of God	12:28
	who have preferred our wills to the divine will.	12:31
	Accepting the power of God	12:35
	offers to us to become new persons in Christ.	12:36
	Let us confess our sin before God and one another.	12:40
	Most merciful God,	12:45
	we confess that we have sinned against you,	12:47
	in thought, word and deed.	12:51
	We have not loved you with our whole heart.	12:54
	We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.	12:58
	We pray you, of your mercy,	13:03
	forgive what we have been, amend what we are,	13:06
	direct what we shall be,	13:10
	that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways.	13:13
	Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.	13:19
	Amen.	13:21
	Hear the good news.	13:23
	Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.	13:26
	That is God's own proof of His love toward us.	13:29
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	13:33
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	13:37
	Glory to God. Amen.	13:42
	(organ plays hymn)	13:45
	(congregation sings)
	Let us pray.	15:16
	Lord, open our hearts and minds	15:19
	by the power of your Holy Spirit,	15:21
	that as the scriptures are read and the word proclaimed,	15:24
	we may hear with joy what You say to us today.	15:28
	Amen.	15:32
	Please stand for the reading of the scripture lesson.	15:34
	First reading will be from Deuteronomy 30, 11-14.	15:43
	"For this commandment which I command you this day,	15:49
	it is not too hard for you, neither is it far off.	15:51
	It is not in heaven, that you should say,	15:56
	'Who will go up for us to heaven, and bring it to us,	15:58
	that we may hear and do it?'	16:02
	Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say,	16:04
	'Who will go over the sea for us, and bring it to us,	16:07
	that we may hear it and do it?'	16:11
	But the word is very near you,	16:13
	it is in your mouth, and in your heart,	16:15
	so that you can do it."	16:18
	Gospel reading will be from Luke 10.	16:21
	"And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test,	16:33
	saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?'	16:37
	He said to him,	16:42
	'What is written in the Law? How do you read?'	16:45
	And he answered, 'You shall love the Lord your God	16:48
	with all your heart and with all your soul	16:51
	and with all your strength and with all your mind,	16:54
	and your neighbor as yourself.'	16:58
	And he said to him,	17:01
	'You have answered right; do this, and you will live.'	17:03
	But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus,	17:07
	'And who is my neighbor?'	17:12
	And Jesus replied,	17:14
	'A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho,	17:16
	and he fell among robbers,	17:19
	who stripped him and beat him and departed,	17:20
	leaving him half dead.	17:23
	Now by chance a priest was going down that road,	17:25
	and when he saw him he passed by the other side.	17:27
	So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him,	17:31
	passed by on the other side.	17:35
	But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was,	17:38
	and when he saw him, he had compassion	17:42
	and went to him and bound up his wounds,	17:46
	pouring on oil and wine.	17:50
	Then he set on him his own beast	17:52
	and brought him to an inn and took care of him.	17:55
	And the next day he took out two denarii	17:58
	and gave them to the innkeeper, saying,	18:00
	'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend,	18:03
	I will repay you when I come back.'	18:06
	Which of these three, do you think,	18:09
	proved a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?	18:12
	He said, 'The one who showed mercy on him.'	18:15
	And Jesus said to him, 'Go, and do likewise.'"	18:20
	May God add His blessing to the reading of His holy word.	18:24
-	What memories came to your mind as you heard the reading	18:41
	of the parable of the Good Samaritan?	18:45
	When I was growing up,	18:48
	I'm sure I heard more sermons preached	18:50
	on the parable of the Good Samaritan	18:53
	than and on any other one text.	18:56
	The people who passed by were always identified	18:59
	with those we expected to be helpful.	19:04
	The people who had the power, or the skills,	19:08
	or the sensitivity to respond to the need.	19:12
	The Good Samaritan was always a person	19:17
	who was not accepted by the society,	19:19
	and always I identified with those people who passed by,	19:23
	as it was intended that I do.	19:29
	Rereading the parable brought back some of the guilt I felt.	19:33
	This New Testament lesson is a clarification	19:38
	of the last half of what Jesus called	19:41
	the most important commandment,	19:44
	to love our neighbors as ourselves.	19:47
	But the identification of the characters in the parable	19:52
	did not enable me to become more responsible.	19:58
	Then I read the Old Testament lectionary for this Sunday.	20:03
	"The commandment that I lay on you this day	20:07
	is not too difficult for you, it is not remote."	20:11
	What I wanted to hear was an assurance	20:17
	that this was a tough commandment,	20:20
	so not to feel guilty	20:23
	that I was one of the ones who passed by.	20:25
	You have many responsibilities, important things to do.	20:28
	You can't respond to every need.	20:32
	But that wasn't the word.	20:35
	While I was living with my discomfort,	20:38
	we were watching a television program	20:40
	depicting the evolutionary process.	20:43
	It is fascinating to observe how paleontologists	20:47
	can take bits and pieces of fossils	20:50
	and reconstruct replicas of animals,	20:54
	which have been extinct for many, many centuries.	20:56
	We wondered if centuries from now	21:02
	a paleontologist would find our fossils	21:04
	and try to reconstruct what life looked like	21:08
	in the 20th century.	21:10
	A friend commented that some people believe	21:14
	that we have finished our physical evolution	21:17
	and the most radical change will be in the growth	21:21
	of the quality and depth and capacity of human life.	21:24
	How comfortable it would be to live in a time	21:31
	when it would be easy to love your neighbor as yourself	21:33
	because the development of the quality of human life	21:37
	had increased our ability to care and respond.	21:40
	But this line of reasoning was short-lived.	21:46
	While reading about the church's concern	21:49
	for social justice and human rights,	21:51
	there was this sentence.	21:54
	"We demand less from ourselves than from others,	21:57
	both as a church community, and as individual Christians."	22:03
	This one sentence called me back.	22:09
	I went back to the biblical text with the knowledge that	22:12
	I was at the same place as the person	22:15
	who asked Jesus the question, "Who is my neighbor?"	22:17
	He too was wanting a way out of a hard word.	22:22
	I went back to the biblical text,	22:26
	realizing that for a long, long time	22:28
	in this evolutionary process,	22:31
	we have had the capacity to respond,	22:33
	to be compassionate, to be caring.	22:36
	The text from Deuteronomy,	22:41
	that this commandment is not too difficult,	22:43
	is found in the context of God's calling the people	22:45
	to a renewal of that covenant.	22:51
	"The Lord will circumcise your heart.	22:54
	The covenant will then be internalized,	22:58
	will be written on your hearts."	23:01
	Jeremiah uses the same images with an additional image	23:04
	that says that people cannot listen	23:08
	because their ears have not been circumcised.	23:10
	Not only have people, for many centuries,	23:14
	had the ability to be compassionate and caring,	23:17
	but they, as we,	23:20
	sought to be responsible to God and their neighbor	23:22
	in ways in which they could still remain	23:26
	detached and un-involved.	23:28
	The Israelites wanted to externalize the covenant	23:32
	into laws and rules to follow,	23:36
	but God was calling them through Moses	23:39
	to a renewal of the true covenant,	23:44
	which would be written on their hearts.	23:46
	Now to move quickly to some affirmations	23:51
	which come to us from these texts.	23:53
	We can affirm that to love our neighbor as ourselves	23:57
	we are to respond to those who are caught in situations	24:02
	that they cannot get out of.	24:07
	Certainly today we think of the people in New York	24:10
	who were robbed and beaten during the blackout,	24:13
	but our problem has never been	24:17
	that we could not identify those who needed our help.	24:20
	We know too many.	24:25
	And we remember Jesus pushing our law	24:27
	to include those who are our enemies,	24:31
	those who persecute us.	24:34
	If you love only those who love you,	24:36
	if you love only those who can benefit you,	24:40
	what's so great about that?	24:44
	Anyone can do that.	24:47
	Yet to love the neighbor as ourselves	24:50
	is not an impossible burden	24:52
	which has been placed about our own neck,	24:54
	but in fact is an important dimension	24:57
	of what it means for us to be made in the image of God.	25:01
	We can also affirm that what is important	25:08
	is an internalization of this commandment.	25:11
	That our ears be circumcised	25:15
	so we can hear the word, can hear the cry.	25:17
	That our eyes be circumcised so we can see the need,	25:21
	and that our hearts be circumcised	25:25
	so that we can feel the pain and so be able to cut through	25:27
	all that has been immobilizing us.	25:31
	We know that our Christian community's worship,	25:35
	including the word and the sacrament,	25:40
	is central to our loving and caring for our neighbor.	25:42
	The important qualities of being made in God's image	25:48
	are compassion, justice and mercy,	25:53
	and these, nurtured in our Christian worship,	25:58
	help us to identify with those who are our neighbors.	26:02
	I am convinced such identification	26:08
	with the people's condition	26:11
	is one of the critical dimensions of our Christian community	26:13
	and is the basis of all of our social action.	26:17
	When someone says,	26:23
	"There's no way you can know the hurt of another,"	26:25
	I know this is not true,	26:29
	for I have felt painfully another's need	26:31
	and other people have identified with me in my hurt.	26:34
	I don't know how this happens.	26:41
	God's grace, the work of the Spirit,	26:43
	but it is possible for us in some degree	26:48
	to identify with our oppressed, the one in need.	26:51
	Even though this will not be complete identification,	26:56
	it is sufficient to enable us to respond in ways	27:00
	that are loving and not degrading.	27:04
	To respond as we would to one we love,	27:08
	to a brother or sister, a mother, a father,	27:11
	a husband or wife, or child who is in need, who is hurting.	27:14
	Now such immediate response does not make simple	27:20
	a complex social structure in which it is not easy	27:24
	to discover what is the most loving and helpful action.	27:28
	Nor does such immediate response	27:32
	remove our responsibility	27:35
	to work to change dehumanizing structures	27:37
	which place people in these situations of need.	27:40
	But identification with the people in need	27:46
	is the place we begin.	27:50
	So, we come today to a celebration of Holy Communion	27:53
	which unites us with God and binds us to our neighbor.	27:57
	It is a time for binding our wounds,	28:02
	for healing our broken humanity,	28:05
	for allowing our eyes and our ears to be opened.	28:08
	It is a time to internalize the most important commandment,	28:12
	to love God with all of our being	28:17
	and our neighbor as ourself.	28:20
	Your participation in this sacrament	28:24
	is a signal of your desire to take on hope.	28:26
	You are invited to come expecting, anticipating,	28:32
	with your hearts open to God and to your neighbor.	28:37
	Amen.	28:42
	And amen.	28:44
-	Let us identify with others as we join responsively	28:54
	in the prayer for others.	28:58
	Let us pray.	29:01
	That the world may live in peace	29:03
	and that the church may achieve unity,	29:05
	fulfilling its service here and everywhere.	29:08
	Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.	29:12
	That the leaders of this nation and the world	29:16
	may govern with justice and mercy.	29:19
	Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.	29:23
	That those who suffer disease or poverty,	29:27
	or loneliness or grief may be healed and comforted.	29:30
	That those who are oppressed or persecuted	29:35
	maybe strengthened and delivered.	29:38
	Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.	29:41
	Amen.	29:45
	Before we come to Christ's table,	29:47
	let us remember this morning one who is not with us.	29:50
	Dean Clellan is in the hospital this morning	29:54
	and I would ask that as a community,	29:57
	we bow for a few moments of silent prayer for him.	29:59
	In Christ's name, Amen.	30:18
	Christ our Lord invites us to his table	30:22
	as those who love Him	30:25
	and who desire to live in peace with one another.	30:27
	May the peace of the Lord be with you always.	30:30
	And also with you.	30:34
-	And also with you.
-	As forgiven and reconciled people,	30:37
	let us offer ourselves and our gifts to God.	30:39
	(gentle organ music plays)	30:47
	(vigorous organ music plays)	36:44
	(congregation sings)
-	The Lord be with you.	38:39
-	And also with you.	38:41
-	Lift up your hearts.	38:43
-	We raise them up to the Lord.	38:46
-	Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God.	38:48
-	It is right to give him thanks and praise.	38:52
-	Oh God,	38:57
	it is right that we should always and everywhere	38:59
	give You thanks and praise.	39:02
	Only You are God.	39:06
	You created all things and called them good.	39:08
	You made us in your own image.	39:13
	Even when we rebelled against your love,	39:16
	You did not desert us.	39:19
	You delivered us from captivity,	39:22
	made covenant to be our God and king,	39:25
	and spoke to us through your prophets.	39:29
	We thank You, Holy God,	39:33
	that You loved the world so much	39:36
	You sent your only son to be our Savior.	39:38
	The Lord of all life came to live among us.	39:42
	He healed and taught people, ate with sinners,	39:46
	and won for You new people by water and the Spirit.	39:51
	We remember that on the night	39:57
	in which He gave himself up for us,	39:59
	the Lord Jesus took bread.	40:02
	After giving You thanks He broke the bread,	40:05
	gave it to his disciples and said,	40:09
	"Take, eat, this is my body, which is given for you."	40:12
	When the supper was over, he took the cup.	40:19
	Again, He returned thanks to you,	40:23
	gave the cup to his disciples and said,	40:26
	"Drink from this all of you.	40:30
	This is the cup of the new covenant and my blood,	40:33
	poured out for you and many for the forgiveness of sins."	40:38
	When we eat this bread and drink this cup,	40:44
	we experience anew the presence of the Lord, Jesus Christ,	40:47
	and look forward to his coming and final victory.	40:52
	Accept our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving	40:56
	in union with Christ offering for us	41:00
	as a reasonable and holy surrender of ourselves.	41:04
	Center the power of your Holy Spirit on us,	41:09
	gathered here out of love for You, and on these gifts.	41:13
	Help us know in the breaking of this bread,	41:20
	the presence of Christ	41:23
	who gave His body and blood for all people.	41:26
	Make us one with Christ, one with each other,	41:30
	and one in service to all people,	41:34
	together through your son, Jesus Christ,	41:38
	with the Holy Spirit and your Holy Church,	41:42
	all glory and honor is yours, God almighty.	41:46
	In unity with Christ and each other	41:51
	we pray the Lord's Prayer.	41:55
	Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name;	41:58
	thy kingdom come;	42:04
	thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.	42:06
	Give us this day our daily bread;	42:10
	and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those	42:14
	who trespass against us;	42:18
	and lead us not into temptation,	42:21
	but deliver us from evil.	42:23
	For thine is the kingdom,	42:26
	the power and the glory, forever and ever.	42:28
	Amen.	42:32
	Please be seated.	42:33
	Because there is one loaf,	42:56
	We many, as we are, are one body.	43:00
	For it is one loaf of which we all partake.	43:04
	When we break the bread,	43:10
	is it not a means of sharing in the body of Christ?	43:15
	When we give thanks over the cup,	43:21
	is it not a means of sharing in the blood of Christ?	43:29
	In recent years it has been customary in the chapel	43:38
	for the members of the congregation	43:44
	to partake of these holy elements by coming forward,	43:45
	guided by the ushers,	43:50
	and forming a series of large circles around the altar.	43:53
	For those of you who prefer to be served at your seat,	43:59
	there will be a time in the service for you to be served.	44:04
	But whether around the altar or at your seats,	44:09
	you may receive the elements separately	44:13
	by first taking the bread	44:17
	and then drinking from the common cup.	44:18
	Or you may receive the elements by intinction,	44:23
	that is, you may dip the bread into the wine.	44:27
	For those of you who wish to come around the altar,	44:32
	will you now come?	44:35
	Yeah.	44:42
	Just one minute.	44:44
	(softly played organ music)	45:01
	(softly played organ music)	47:37
	(indistinct speech)	48:55
	(softly played organ music)	49:43
	Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,	53:28
	That saved a wretch like me,	53:31
	I once was lost, but now I'm found,	53:34
	Was blind, but now I see.	53:38
	Go in peace.	53:41
	(softly played organ music)	53:44
-	It was Judas who betrayed him.	58:21
	It was Peter who denied him in a moment of weakness,	58:24
	thrice before the dawn.	58:27
	Shall we as sinners be like the prisoner	58:30
	who turned to him and said,	58:32
	"Lord, when thou comest into thy kingdom,	58:34
	please remember me."	58:38
	Go in peace.	58:41
	(softly played organ music)	58:48
	For those of you who desired to commune at your seats,	59:26
	would you please give some indication	59:29
	to the ushers at this time?	59:31
	And they will direct us to you.	59:33
	Have all been served on my right?	59:43
	Are there any others on my left?	59:53
	(footsteps)	1:00:02
	(softly played organ music)	1:00:44
	Our prayer of commitment.	1:03:16
	You have given yourself to us, oh Lord,	1:03:19
	and now we give ourselves for others.	1:03:23
	Your love has made us a new people.	1:03:26
	As a people of love we will serve You with joy.	1:03:30
	Your glory has filled our hearts.	1:03:34
	Help us to glorify You in all things.	1:03:38
	Amen.	1:03:42
	Now, as we, the celebrants greet each other,	1:03:45
	you, the members of the congregation,	1:03:49
	may express wishes of peace and love toward one another	1:03:52
	in words and expressions of your choosing.	1:03:58
	Would you please stand?	1:04:04
	(indistinct greetings)	1:04:08
	("Now Thank We All Our God" by Martin Rinkart, 1636)	1:04:26
	♪ Now thank we all our God ♪	1:05:09
	♪ With heart and hands and voices ♪	1:05:14
	♪ Who wondrous things has done ♪	1:05:21
	♪ In whom his world rejoices ♪	1:05:26
	♪ Who from our mothers' arms ♪	1:05:33
	♪ Has blessed us on our way ♪	1:05:38
	♪ With countless gifts of love ♪	1:05:44
	♪ And still is ours today ♪	1:05:49
	♪ O may this bounteous God ♪	1:05:57
	♪ Through all our life be near us ♪	1:06:02
	♪ With ever joyful hearts ♪	1:06:09
	♪ And blessed peace to cheer us ♪	1:06:14
	♪ To keep us in his grace ♪	1:06:21
	♪ And guide us when perplexed ♪	1:06:26
	♪ And free us from all ills ♪	1:06:32
	♪ In this world in the next ♪	1:06:37
	♪ All praise and thanks to God ♪	1:06:44
	♪ The Father now be given ♪	1:06:50
	♪ The Son and Spirit blest ♪	1:06:57
	♪ Who reign in highest heaven ♪	1:07:02
	♪ The one eternal God ♪	1:07:09
	♪ Whom heaven and earth adore ♪	1:07:14
	♪ For thus it was, is now ♪	1:07:19
	♪ And shall be evermore. ♪	1:07:25
	♪ Amen ♪	1:07:33
	Go out in peace to serve God and your neighbor	1:07:40
	in all that you do.	1:07:44
	We are sent in Christ name.	1:07:47
	The blessing of almighty God,	1:07:50
	creator, redeemer, sustainer is with you always.	1:07:53
	Amen.	1:08:02
	(bright organ music)	1:08:03
	(indistinct chatter)	1:12:52

Item Info

Title:

Helen G. Crotwell - "Not Too Hard for You" (July 17, 1977)

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4td9s94j

Date:

July 17, 1977

Speaker:

Crotwell, Helen Gray, 1925-2006

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-0907
ref7017_zy7
uachapelsermaud
duke:628618
dcrau002852
ark:/87924/r4td9s94j
89eb2b6f-c33b-4e50-ad11-6f8d7bf4b277

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Related Resources:

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Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

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

Rights:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the Creative Commons license indicated here. For more information see https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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Helen G. Crotwell - "Not Too Hard for You" (July 17, 1977)

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1. Helen G. Crotwell - "Not Too Hard for You" (July 17, 1977)

Duke University Archives

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Helen G. Crotwell - "Not Too Hard for You" (July 17, 1977)

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