Blessed Martin

January 15, 2019 would have been Martin Luther King’s 90^th birthday.  It seems strange to think of such an icon as an old man, especially because he was killed before he was 40 years old. The irony is that his martyrdom made his legacy even more indelible than if he had lived a long life. What we missed was what else he could have accomplished, which I am sure is a great loss.

There is a song in the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing hymnal that we as a congregation haven’t sung (to my recollection) about Dr. King.  It is number 46 and I encourage you to look at all the words, but here is a sample:

Holy God, you raise up prophets; Praise and honor do we sing,

For your faithful, humble servant, Doctor Martin Luther King.

Refrain

Blessed Martin, pastor, prophet you the mountaintop did see;

Blessed Martin, holy martyr: Pray that we may all be free.

Champion of oppressed humanity Suff’ring throughout all the world;

He offered pride and dignity Let Christ’s banner be unfurled!               Refrain

Words: Harold T. Lewis (b. 1947)
Music: Martin’s Song by Carl Haywood (b. 1949), from Songs of Praise

Dr. King is remembered as a human rights leader, but we cannot forget that he was first and foremost a Christian pastor.  His moral convictions against blatant racism and for non-violent protesting of that injustice was founded and deeply rooted in his faith and dedication to Jesus Christ.  In the tradition of the great prophets, he reflected back to society what he saw from his point of view, which was very different from the Culture of Power.  He held up a spotlight on behavior and asked if this was the way God would want us to treat our siblings.  While some tried to justify such cruelty, others began to see a system created to ensure some would fail simply because they looked different.

We don’t know what Jesus looked like when he walked on the earth.  Unfortunately, he has been portrayed for many years as a dark blond- or light brown-haired,  blue-eyed light, skinned man, which is a blatant disregard for where he would have been born in Palestine.  More than likely, Jesus’s true skin color would insight those who believe in the supremacy of white skin to violence.  In fact, I am sure that Jesus would have looked more like Dr. King and he would me. It befuddles me that many of those who espouse such racial hatred can dare to belief in Jesus Christ when his teachings ask us to love, even love those whom we hate.

While we do need to continue to be vigilant toward all forms of racism and racist structures, what we can do daily is be aware of our own prejudices – what they are and how they are formed.  We all have prejudices based on life experience and exposure.  We are taught to avoid “bad” people, but how “bad” was defined for us may have been prejudicial.  We should re-evaluate those definitions with consideration of the prejudices we have, being mindful of how we are influenced through second-hand sources rather than personal interaction.  Most importantly, our faith should be brought to bear on our re-evaluation, remembering that Jesus taught us to love while being “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16).

Dr. King walked in the valley of the shadow of death and was killed for his willingness to challenge the assumptions of the day.  We too walk in that valley.  Are we willing to risk as much as he did? I pray, with God’s help, we are.

In Christ,

Rev. Valerie+