Seminary Journal 2008 (August) - Virginia Theological Seminary

degree, but because they incarnate
the ministries to which our newest
graduates are called. What we celebrate
today is not only the individual
accomplishments of those of you who
will receive degrees, diplomas, and
certifi cates, but also the continuity of
ministry, both here and throughout
our Church, as one generation then
gives way to the next, each of a link in
the long unbroken chain of witnesses.
And now, a few words to the
class of 2007:
In 2002, one of my esteemed
colleagues, Dr. Stephen Cook, gave
this advice to the graduating students:
“Don’t go. Stop! Stay! Go back to your
rooms! Unpack!” His rationale for
this advice is that you would be better
ministers, and the world would be a
better place, if you had a few more
years of Hebrew and Greek under your
belts. There’s a great deal of wisdom in
that, of course, and while I hesitate to
challenge my colleague, I think it really
is time for you to go. As our former
Chaplain Churchill Gibson used to say,
“Yes, it’s sad to see you leave, but it
would be tragic for you to stay.”
Seminary was never meant
to be your fi nal destination—or
mine—and as much as we love you
and might like to keep you, you are
needed now in other places. So many
of God’s people have no voice and
little, if any, hope: they are victims of
poverty, famine, war, oppression, and
disease, and their name is legion. We
need you to speak out on their behalf,
to dismantle the structures of injustice
in this world, to speak truth to power,
and yes, to call us to account for our
participation in the injustice and evils
in our society.
Are you adequately prepared
and equipped for the challenges that
lie ahead? Well, no, of course not. One
of the curious, often confusing, but
VIRGINIA SEMINARY JOURNAL AUGUST 2007
always consistent things about God is
that God insists on calling people who
aren’t quite ready to go. It was so for
our patriarch Father Abraham, a senior
citizen comfortably ensconced in
his home town when God commanded
him to pick up and go to a strange
land. And there was Moses, who told
God in no uncertain terms that he did
not have what it took for the job and
“One of the curious,
often confusing, but
always consistent
things about God is
that God insists on
calling people who
aren’t quite
ready to go.”
he really did not want to go: “Oh, my
Lord, I am not eloquent, I am slow of
speech and tongue: send some other
person”—all to no avail.
And then there were those
bedraggled, despondent men and
women who had spent three years
following Jesus—three years! about
the time it took to earn the M.Div.
degree! There was so much that they
didn’t yet understand; so much more
to learn. But in a fl ash their teacher
was gone, and they were on their own,
left with a command to go into the
world and preach the gospel: the same
charge given to you today.
And they did it, those few
faithful disciples: with God’s continuing
help they did it, despite all their
faults and frailties and false starts. With
all the authority of heaven and earth,
Jesus said to them, “Go, therefore, and
make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe what I have commanded
you; and lo, I am with you always,
to the close of the age.” What they had
was enough: Jesus promised to be with
them always, and God blessed their efforts,
as inadequate as they were. And
the fl edgling Church prospered and
grew into more than they could possibly
have imagined.
But you must not let yourselves
become smug or complacent or
self-satisfi ed, believing that you know
more than you do. God also has a way
of bringing down those who think too
highly of themselves. The knowledge
and skills you take with you today
will not suffi ce for the work of tomorrow.
It is here that Professor Cook
and I have the same message for you:
Seminary has been just a beginning,
not an end; that is why we call this a
Commencement exercise. You have,
we hope, a foundation on which you
will continue to build—not for your
own self-glorifi cation, but for the sake
of the people entrusted to your care:
people who will look to you not only
for comfort, but also for words of wisdom
and eternal truth. You owe it to
them to give them meat and not milk.
Neither God nor the people of God
will be served by simplistic slogans or
sentimental platitudes. Do not insult
the people of God by giving them
insipid, lukewarm pablum.
We are proud of you, the Class
of 2007: you are big not only in size,
but also big in heart and spirit. Thank
you for allowing us to be part of your
journey. We look forward to watching
your ministries unfold during the
coming years. If you are feeling a little
sad about leaving, a little sentimental,
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