Sermon Library
“Coming of Age, Fortieth Anniversary”
Rev. Dr. Gregg R. Anderson
August 30, 2009
Service Theme: Pentecost XIII-2009
Pentecost XIII-2009 Fortieth Anniversary August 30, 2009
Coming of Age
Original Vision
During the ground breaking ceremony of the Aspen Chapel on June 8, 1968 it was printed and stated: “Take a setting provided by nature, offering the essence of spirituality in environment. Erect here architecture to evoke the functioning of the concept of engaging religious faith in conversation with the world. To this place gather, in lively encounter, leaders of religious thought to redefine spiritual values, to question, to seek relevant answers in a troubled world. Here create a national-global ecumenical center for seminars and dialogues on theological concerns of contemporary society. It is a testament to remind people in Aspen that there is foremost a spiritual dimension to our existence. It is a center for retreats, for meditation, for special worship services open to all, for musical presentations, for exhibits of art and literature and any other effort to seek paths leading to brotherhood and peace. This is the Aspen Chapel.” This is the vision of the Aspen Chapel.
Evolved Mission
Accompanying such a vision, there have been a few corresponding mission statements along the way. In 2006 we slightly updated the mission statement of the Aspen Chapel while keeping the essence and heart of the first two mission statements. It states, “The mission of the Aspen Chapel is to promote open and progressive theology, spiritual enrichment, and peace through interfaith engagement.”
The Dream of One
Today is the Aspen Chapel’s fortieth anniversary. Forty years ago the Aspen Chapel was born after a gestation of three years which, considering the magnanimous vision and the saintly stature of this stone and steepled edifice, was not a long time from a dream to a reality. The dream was from Bishop E. M. Yost and it became a reality through the generosity of Lyle Yost. There were many other planners and contributors, all of whom should be thanked, but like most other endeavors, it begins with the dream of one person and is made a reality primarily through the gift of one person. I suspect this is mostly true. If the one person with the idea has a good idea and it becomes attractive to others and another person believes in it so much that he or she is willing to financially invest in this idea, others will follow with their investment as well. Such synergy brings an idea into reality and if the purpose is good and genuine it begins to multiply and flourish.
Faith Of A Mustard Seed
Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” And Jesus also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can makes nests in its shade.” (Mark 4: 26 – 32)
From the seed of E. M. Yost and Lyle Yost, the Aspen Chapel was created and now after forty years the chapel has grown up and has become a shrub with large branches and thousands and thousands of people have found a place and a purpose within its branches and stone and wood and stained glass windows. The Aspen Chapel has become a spiritual home for many people. For some the Chapel is home, for others it is a home away from home, and for many more it has become a spiritual home for a very special and sacred day.
Mission Accomplished
I am not an objective observer, but I would like to believe that the Aspen Chapel, with the help of thousands of people and after forty years of its life, has met the goals of its founders. In my own subjectivity, I would go so far to say, based on what I understand about the hope of the founders and what the chapel has actually accomplished, the chapel has even exceeded the expectations of those who stood with their foot on the shovel in the groundbreaking ceremony in 1967 and those who spoke at the dedication of the Chapel on the last Sunday of August, 1969. Looking at the big and long picture from 1969 to 2009, hundreds of people pledging their faith and trust in the Chapel have fulfilled the vision of the founders.
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
Sometimes it has been two steps forward and one step back, but all in all we have progressed. We have had many planning and goal setting meetings with the Board of Trustees and Board of Administration. At each of these meetings we set goals and after a period of a year or so we evaluate and realize that many of our annual goals have been reached while others are still on hold. But we keep trying and even setting new goals, some of which we will meet and some we still have yet to meet. Even though we do not meet all of our goals, we still meet many of them with a little patience and perseverance. In the big picture, however, the Aspen Chapel has become the vision of E. M. Yost and Lyle Yost along with many others of the founding trustees.
In reading some very early minutes of the Board of Trustees in 1969 we can discover a debate as to whether there would be a dedicated community at the Aspen Chapel or whether it would just be a place or building to be utilized when called upon. Initially, their purpose was to be a neutral place and available to groups when they needed a sacred space. This approach however, met with limited usage and connection with the community. Today, we are very proactive in our programming.
The First Seven Years
The first seven years of the Chapel did not go as well as expected for various reasons, such as when the first director, Melvin Hull, contracted cancer during his first year. Paul Martin, a Mennonite minister, filled in for awhile, but there was concern that the Chapel was not being as open to the more ecumenical purposes as stated in 1969. Almira Snyder donated the organ from her home in Kennilworth, Illinois when she and her husband retired in Aspen with the condition that she could come and play it on occasion. She ended up, however, being the voluntary director of the Chapel for almost four years. When she left, the Trustees solicited Bob Longenecker, who initially came to Aspen to volunteer with the Mennonite Voluntary service, to watch over the Chapel until they could find a new director. Bob and I were good friends at the time and I can remember him telling me as he sat in the office at the Chapel that this was really hard for him because people thought he was the minister and that is the last thing he wanted to be or do. I told Bob that I would not want to be a minister either, but I would be interested in helping the Chapel in any way I could. Bob lined up a meeting for me with a couple of Chapel Trustees in the Denver airport. There names were John Eby and Laban Peachy. We met for about an hour or so. They said that there was no income at the Chapel, but would try to underwrite some sort of salary from the Mennonite Board of Missions which they did. I said that is okay and I would work for free to begin with, feeling confident that we could generate some income and contributions fairly soon. I said I would take the risk if they would take the risk with me. They were desperate and I was free – what a wonderful combination.
We Have Gone On
We have gone on to add a regular worship service, a great variety of worship leaders, a local administrative board, a local board of Trustees, performed thousands of weddings, baptisms and memorial services. We have a Jewish congregation, an interfaith institute, a wisdom school, a children’s Sunday and Tuesday school, an art gallery, a choir and concert series, a book store and library, a church for those who attend regularly and a chapel for those who need us situationally. We have truly gained the reputation of being a chapel for everyone and a church for anyone. I am so appreciative of those who have supported the chapel as a church for those who need a church and a chapel. The Chapel was the creation of E. M. Yost and Lyle Yost, but has now been fully adopted by local residents and the broader community of Aspen.
The Purpose
The ultimate purpose of the Chapel is to connect people to a greater ideal, a greater purpose and to God. This is, after all, the ultimate purpose of any individual and society. We have affirmed a faith in God and broadened the life and purpose of Jesus. We have supported thousands and thousands of people in their own spiritual journey in various ways. Rabbi Rami Shapiro came up with a spontaneous phrase this week at our Spiritual Paths Institute and seminar which could be a slogan for the Aspen Chapel as well. The phrase is “Your Way to Yahweh.”
This was not meant to be a feeble statement of anything goes, but a respectful consideration that everyone is different and unique, especially in their spiritual pursuits and we all need to be understanding, compassionate and supportive. We need to understand that all people are children of God and we also need to see the spirit of Christ within all people. Jesus said, “If you care for the least of these my brethren, you care for me.”
A Unique Goal and Purpose
This Chapel in Aspen is a unique place in a unique community. The goal of the Aspen Chapel is to relate to the broader community of Aspen and beyond. At forty years of age, I think we have been doing what we are supposed to be doing. We have experienced successes and failures and there is much more to do. We can build on our foundations for our future. When I think of where the Chapel was forty years ago and where the Chapel is today, I can only imagine and fantasize where the Chapel can be forty years from today, in the year 2049. It can become a spiritual center embodying the spiritual values not only for Aspen, but far beyond.
I have wanted the Chapel to make a difference in Aspen and after forty years, I think it has. Just think for a moment that the Aspen Chapel could make a difference far beyond Aspen. I have been told over the years by hundreds of people who have appreciated the Chapel in many different ways and have concluded that they wish such a church or chapel existed in their home town. I have greatly appreciated such comments, but have never known or even thought of how to respond to such a request. Who knows?
Staff Longevity
One thing I do know is that I am not only grateful to this Chapel, but am personally most grateful to the people who are here running the day to day details of the Chapel – the staff. Harriette was hanging out at the Chapel a year before I started. She would come in to play the piano. I arrived in the spring of 1978 and in the early summer of that year Harriette came into the Chapel and asked me who I was. I told her, she played the piano and we have been friends ever since. Tom was the next to come along and he was one of the first “staff,” so to speak. He was the director or administrator to help me. Now he is the co-chair of the Trustees and I work for him. Jeannie was next. We got together via their wedding and became friends. Just a couple months after their wedding, I went to the dentist office where she was working and stole her away. We had been searching for an organist for many years. Susan and I corresponded by mail a few times between New York and Aspen. When she arrived in 1986, she thought she had to audition for me. She very quickly realized that was not the case and was hired before she got here. Elaine had a great reputation as a teacher in the Aspen School District. When she had a child she needed a part time position and we have been so grateful that she has brought her excellent teaching skills to our youth program here. Nelson is the newcomer on the block and he has fulfilled a position at the Chapel that I have always wanted, but never knew we could find. But we did and he has been our latest asset. I cannot express my appreciation adequately for how grateful I am that the “staff” has hung in there for all these years. This is practically unheard of in Aspen. We are a unique Chapel with unique people, wonderful people.
Need for a New Nest
One big goal we need to accomplish is not just to put forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade, but a very specific nest for the next chaplain. When I came to the Chapel I happened to own my own nest and was willing to begin with very little birdseed. I am pretty certain, however, that the next big bird is not going to do this and is going to need its own nest and more birdseed. We are the only church in town without a parsonage. If anyone has a home they do not know what to do with please see me right after the service. This is going to be our new goal.
I did not push this goal too much in the past because I always thought that if the Chapel did obtain a parsonage, then they could go ahead a hire a real minister and I would be out of a job. But now that the Chapel is forty years old and I am sixty years old and have been here over thirty years – it is about time we find a parsonage. If the Chapel will still have me, I won’t leave until we do, but now is when we really need to begin to build this nest and a store room of birdseed, a parsonage and a chaplain endowment.
Meanwhile, let us all continue to do our best “to promote open and progressive theology, spiritual enrichment, and peace through interfaith engagement.” Right on! May God go with us. Amen.
Rev. Dr. Gregg R. Anderson
Aspen Chapel
0077 Meadowood Drive
Aspen, Colorado 81611
http://www.aspenchapel.org