Moved Permanently. __________________ As almost all of you know, a week ago last Monday night, driving in a terrible storm, my son Alexander who to his friends was a real day-brightener, and to his family fair as a star when only one is shining in the sky my twenty-four-year-old Alexander, who enjoyed beating his old man at every game and in every race, beat his father to the grave. God is dead set against all unnatural deaths. The one thing that should never be said when someone dies is "It is the will of God." To them Western attitudes would be incomprehensible. For all she had to say. William Sloane Coffin Jr., was arrested several times during the civil rights movement. In a prideful way it would be easier to walk the valley alone, nobly, head high, instead of as we must marching as the latest recruit in the worlds army of the bereaved. Rev. So if you want to know where God is in this or in anything, look for love., Your email address will not be published. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Yes, but at least, My God, my God; and the psalm only begins that way, it doesnt end that way. The use of Gods will or God has chosen to take whatever the phrase has always made me uncomfortable. But you seem to be able to deal with these problems in a way that recalls some deep confidence. Brett & Kate McKay March 18, 2017 Last updated: June 16, 2021. As his younger brother put it simply, standing at the head of the casket at the Boston funeral, You blew it, buddy. Like A.E. Do you think about that? After the death of his wife, C.S. I swear to you, I wouldnt be standing here were I not upheld. And Christ spent an inordinate amount of time delivering people from paralysis, insanity, leprosy, and muteness. Famously, at the height of that conflict . I did grief work. Can you explain what that means for you? In other word, good patriots are not nationalists. Receive small business resources and advice about entrepreneurial info, home based business, business franchises and startup opportunities for entrepreneurs. Q: Many of us say, "Well, you know, I've got to work hard to support my family, I don't have a lot of time," or "I don't want to seem radical," or "I don't want to cause my neighbors to suspect I'm not fully patriotic." These sermons were delivered from the pulpit at Riverside Church, N.Y.C. How much suffering? For some reason, nothing so infuriates me as the incapacity of seemingly intelligent people to get it through their heads that God doesn't go around this world with his fingers on triggers, his fists around knives, his hands on steering wheels. If we (me included) could only get a fraction of a grasp between the difference between time and eternity we would cling much less to time and be closer to God's perspective. If the order gets mixed up, thats misery. There's something deep in there that involves joy and hope. I think in the end they pay him a fortune to make the dead go back to their graves. The fleet foot on the sill of shade, He was ordained in the Presbyterian church and later received ministerial standing in the United Church of Christ. Not because our diverse readership will agree with all of its theological underpinnings, but because I think it offers wise advice on what to say (and not say) when someone dies tragically, a poignant window on the human experience, and a lesson in the art of effective rhetoric(hence why we were discussing it in a communications class). But violent deaths, such as the one Alex died to understand those is a piece of cake. And decks the rays. We see acuter quite When she saw me, she shook her head, then headed for the kitchen, saying sadly over her shoulder, "I just don't understand the will of God." Because there are no rankling unanswered questions, and because Alex and I simply adored each other, the wound for me is deep, but clean. Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead, Actually, its even more worth a listen; its considerably more powerful inthe oral form in which it was delivered, and the audio can be accessed here. Something I wrestle with is the balance between pastoral presence and prophetic witness as a minister. But assuming they did, if they hadn't (it was supposed to be god's plan all along) there would be no Christian religion and no savior who died to save everyone else. The woman most in need of liberation is the woman in every man and the man in every woman. After the death of his wife, C.S. Actually, its even more worth a listen; its considerably more powerful inthe oral form in which it was delivered, and the audio can be accessed here. Hello Select your address Man and boy stood cheering by, Coffin's son, Alex, tragic death in an automobile accident. The answers quick and keen, the honest look, the laughter, the love, An Eulogy for Alex William Sloane Coffin, Jr. was born to considerable wealth and social position on June 1, 1924, in New York City. The prayers are presented in several multi-year collections. The Rev. SERMON: Alex's Death, by William Sloane Coffin, Jr. Posted on October 6, 2013. Lovers and thinkers into the earth with you. And round that early-laurelled head 25 You can purchase individual prayers for $1.34 (includes processing fees). O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. He was ordained in the Presbyterian Church, and later received ministerial standing in the United Church of Christ. Ten days after his son, Alex, was killed in a car accident, Reverend William Sloane Coffin delivered this sermon to his congregation at Riverside Church in New York City. This album is a collection of prayers from the end of the sermons; 1980-1981. Very on the point I think. Then, as I began to re-read it, I noticed that the guy's name is William Sloane Coffin. William Sloane Coffin served as chaplain of Yale University and Williams College, was senior minister of Riverside Church, and is President Emeritus of SANE/FREEZE: Campaign for Global Security. The reality of grief is the solitude of pain, the feeling that your heart is in pieces, your mind's a blank, that "there is no joy the world can give like that it takes away." Would it be abhorrent to find that intensely funny? When sorrow walked with me. Some of the very best, and easily the worst, knew their Bibles better than the human condition. tragic death of at least 26 Polish pilgrims, The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion, Jonathan Merritt and the ethics of "outing". Q: Your faith and the nature of God and God's love -- what is the bedrock there for you? Which is not to say that there are no nature-caused deaths I can think of many right here in this parish in the five years Ive been here deaths that are untimely and slow and pain-ridden, which for that reason raise unanswerable questions, and even the specter of a Cosmic Sadist yes, even an Eternal Vivisector. Read more. Editors note: Ten days after his son, Alex, drove off a bridgeand was killed in a car accident, Reverend William Sloane Coffin delivered the following sermon to his congregation at Riverside Church in New York City. "Hope arouses, as nothing else can arouse, a passion for the possible.". I was reminded today of this beautiful eulogy by the late William Sloane Coffin for his 24-year-old son, Alex, and I wanted to share it with you. John Wright #5 He was a cleric. God is dead set against all unnatural deaths. For. what do you say? If a week ago last Monday, a lamp went out, it was because, for him at least, the Dawn had come. Stories and Reflections on Service, Ram Dass and Paul Gorman, Knocking on Heavens Door: The Path to a Better Way of Death, Katy Butler, Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche. I read through this with utter esteem for the sentiments therein and Will is right to say that those who speak in response to a tragedy like this they could learn much from this eulogy, which said it all, so very very well. The Rev. William Sloane Coffin Jr. was an American Christian clergyman and long-time peace activist. The Theology of William Sloane Coffin Thursday, February 15, 2007 Moral lassitude Interview with Religion & Ethics Newsweekly August 27, 2004 Q: You have, in the course of your life, participated in a good many great causes and have done so with a lot of passion. William Sloane Coffin Jr. preached these Sunday sermons from the pulpit of the Riverside Church in New York City. Required fields are marked *. Itsjust one of those things I think is worth a read by all. So, I wrote the sermon about it. Why are they unhappy if they think he is in paradise with 72 virgins or are they just feeling sorry for themselves? After the death of his wife, C.S. Legendary William Sloane Coffin's years at the historic Riverside Church captured in new two-volume collection Louisville, KY-From 1977 through 1987 William Sloane Coffin was the Senior Minister at t . In 1983, Dr Coffin's son Alex was killed in a car accident. 20. When parents die, as my mother did last month, they take with them a large portion of the past. COFFIN: What this country needs, what I think God wants us to do, is not practice piecemeal charity but engage in wholesale justice. I know how lucky I am! We have to be forced down. William Sloane Coffin Jr., a Presbyterian minister and social activist who was an outspoken leader of the civil rights and antiwar movements of the 1960s and '70s, died Wednesday at his . The night after Alex died I was sitting in the living room of my sister's house outside of Boston, when the front door opened and in came a nice-looking, middle-aged woman, carrying about eighteen quiches. I'm sure there must be something somewhere in the Bible which says words to that effect. Your email address will not be published. RN: Why do you think most of the anti-war groups stopped their marches in 2004 and became quiescent compared to 2003? William Sloane Coffin. Cannot see the record cut, The Rev. Realist- I'm struggling to understand how what you said relates to anything I posted above whatsoever. But I also, couldnt think of anything else for the moment, but about Alex, and his death. Why would someone grieve for a loved one who is in heaven or in paradise. And thats what hundreds of you understood so beautifully. He attended Deerfield Academy and Phillips Academy Andover before beginning his studies at Yale University in 1942. And finally I know that when Alex beat me to the grave, the finish line was not Boston Harbor in the middle of the night. I am not resigned to the shutting away of loving hearts in the cold ground. This is the seventh year of the complete ten year collection of sermons. William Sloane Coffin, Jr. was born June 1, 1924, in New York City. In the fascinating documentary movie Mondo Cane' which was released in 1962, among the strange and seemingly depraved (to Western eyes) behavior is one segment about old people in China who wait around in the upper floor of a house to die while their families are downstairs at a party celebrating their deaths. To be one with the dull, indiscriminate dust. "Human unity is not something we are called on to create only something we are called on to recognize." No one meant it to happen. Thursday, February 15, 2007. I know all the "right" biblical passages, including "Blessed are those who mourn," and my faith is no house of rest, came from fellow reverends, a few of whom proved they knew their cards; these passages are true, I know. But if anyone dare speak in response to this tragic accident, they could learn much from William Sloane Coffin, the American justice activist who died last year, about what not to say to. There was a funny one on the Twilight Zone where as I recall, the story opens with people from all over a small Western town sitting around in a bar lamenting the loss of their beloved dearly departed. William Sloane Coffin Jr. preached these Sunday sermons from the pulpit of the Riverside Church in New York City. Fragrant is the blossom. For some reason, nothing so infuriates me as the incapacity of seemingly intelligent people to get it through their heads that God doesnt go around this world with his fingers on triggers, his fists around knives, his hands on steering wheels. 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