Recently, we celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
I grew up in California in the 80’s and I don’t remember much being said about his name or legacy in the public media. My parents talked more about MLK than either my teachers or the media did. Since MLK lived in their generation, it made sense that his influence would have a more meaningful effect on their lives.
Now, it is 2024, and I now live in Atlanta. I am not sure how the rest of the nation views MLK’s life and influence, but at least here in Atlanta, his name has somehow reached the status of legend. He is viewed as a larger than life figure, like some kind of Marvel superhero who valiantly went to battle against the oppression of racism. Yet, nothing could be further than the truth.
A few years ago, I read MLK’s book, Where Do We Go From Here?, a book that was published posthumously, a few years after his death. For people who want to know how the man thought about the world around him and wrestle with how they might continue his mission, read his book.
Martin Luther King was both a Christian, and a black man. As a black man, he both suffered, and saw the suffering of others. And it weighed on his heart, as it did with many of his contemporaries. But while he and other civil rights leaders of his time all agreed that change was badly needed, they all argued over how to go about bringing change into the spotlight. Many of his contemporaries desired a more drastic approach. Some advocated violence. Surely, there was a lot of rage that had been built up over time. And underneath that rage, was a mountain of hurt, sorrow, and anguish from suffering under the chains of cultural racism. MLK understood all this. He’d even sympathize. But he still refused to advocate an “eye for an eye” attitude. He says in his book that he was often criticized – by blacks, other civil rights leaders – for advocating a non-violent, non-forceful approach. While others advocated a “hate thy enemy” approach, he refused to give in. He’d be the only one in the room, all alone. No one took his side. But he said if all the world disagreed with him, it wouldn’t have mattered. As a determined Christian, a follower of Christ, a follower of the man Jesus who taught to “love thy enemy” and “bless those who curse you”, Martin Luther King was utterly resolute in making his stance against racism by some other means.
In his book Where Do We Go From Here? he notes that after civil rights laws had been passed, and civil rights was no longer in the media spotlight, volunteerism had plummeted. Everyone acted as if their cause had ended. And yet, he noted that at the time of his writing, a year after laws had been passed, only one school had been desegregated. He was dismayed that so many felt that the civil rights battle had been fought, and won, and now there’s nothing more to do. There was plenty to do! The battle was still ahead, he felt. There was still much that needed to change, if only people were willing to carry on the fight.
Where, then, is the battle of racism still going on today?
In his book, Just Mercy, published in 2014, Bryan Stevenson exposes the flagrant racism that still exists today within our criminal justice system. And I can attest, as a volunteer within the prison ministry, that there is a disturbing disproportionate number of inmates who are black versus any other race. Bryan Stevenson embodies what MLK stood for. He saw oppression and injustice and decided to do something about it. Bryan Stevenson also reminds us that racism still exists. It’s still a dark shadow of which we have yet to completely eliminate. It’s a stain that still remains in areas within our culture.
But I think it is unwise to consider MLK’s life as one who cared only about eliminating racism. While the remnants of racism still exist, MLK was more than a civil rights activist. He was a devout Christian man who was stirred with compassion for all those under oppression. His compassion was not just reserved for blacks only. He cared also for whites. It might surprise people that MLK considered his next mission in life as a crusade against poverty. Here is what he says in his book:
“The curse of poverty has no justification in our age. It is socially as cruel and blind as the practice of cannibalism at the dawn of civilization, when men ate each other because they had not yet learned to take food from the soil or to consume the abundant animal life around them. The time has come for us to civilize ourselves by the total, direct and immediate abolition of poverty.” [King Jr, Martin Luther. Where Do We Go from Here (King Legacy) (p. 176). Beacon Press. Kindle Edition.]
Why, then, do we honor the man merely for his crusade against racism? His crusade was not just for African Americans. It was for all Americans. All Americans who were subjected to oppression of any kind. Racism is just one form of oppression, and while racism is most certainly a vile form of oppression, there are many others.
As Christians, if we are to learn anything from MLK, it is to be sensitive to the oppressed within our society, whether they be black, white, or some other people group. It is also to be determined to take action, to not sit still and “pray” that someone else will lead the charge. It is also to be unwaveringly determined to instigate change using peaceful means. It is to show compassion, even onto those who are responsible for the oppression in society. It is to deliberately break those laws or standards which are unjust – and then heap grace upon grace on those who inflict harsh punishment.
It is to live a life we should all be demonstrating as believers in Christ: To seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God. To learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. To feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the prisoner. To show compassion on the foreigner and not turn them away. All these things are biblical. All these are within the calling of the Church, the spiritual Body of Christ. No one individual has a calling to do all these things, but the Body of Christ together works to do all of these.
Do we have the courage to walk in MLK’s shoes? We limit his example by saying it’s all about racism and nothing else. It’s about living up to our calling as Christians. Living up to our calling as followers of Christ. Living up to crusading in some manner on behalf of those who are “weak”, scorned, helpless, disabled, deprived, indigent, oppressed, hungry, naked, homeless, rejected, orphaned, abandoned, etc.
MLK would not appreciate people idolizing him. He would not want people putting him on a pedestal. He would want people to simply do what they already know they should be doing all along. And that is to love one another in action and not just in words. And God willing, we will do so.