Reflections
Sunday, January16th, 2011
Sunday, January16th, 2011
Tomorrow is a memorial holiday honoring the life and legacy of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. As a national holiday, banks will be closed,
mail will not be delivered, and most schools will be closed. One
cannot help but wonder what Dr. King would have thought about this
development in his legacy. After all his life's work was about others
not himself. It does not seem unreasonable to think Dr. King would be
amused. His legacy with regard to Peace and Justice, was about
furthering the cause of those oppressed not singing out individual
contributors. These issues are as old as the text of the Prophet
Isaiah, and as fresh as tomorrow's headline from CNN. He would say
from The Reverend Dr. Ralph Abernathy, Rosa Parks, Cesar Chavez, and
Harriet Tubman, the names of those who worked for justice is long,
with millions of names of people you will never know and whose words
and thoughts will not be reflected upon tomorrow. For Dr, King his
individual name and fame was only important in so much as it may help
further the cause of justice, born in his heart of faith, and built
upon a foundation of faith with eyes able to vision what a fair and
open society might look like.
I have a dear friend who works for a company that honors Dr. Martin
Luther King's memory with a day off. This year for reasons not fully
explained, the company is giving the day off but requesting employees
come in and work, at bonus pay of course, because of the holiday. The
person because of an inherent since of a possibility the wrong message
is being sent, spoke to the head of the company. The head of the
company echoed the same concern, but said the decision came from
'higher up's in the company. Though disappointed, with the seeming no-
decision for awareness, this friend will ask those who desire, to come
in, not penalize those who choose not to, and cover for those who do
not come in, without personal additional compensation.
We expect immediate change, and while at times this may be possible,
more often than not chance moves more like a glacier than the wind.
Is a lack of change a valid reason for not seeking the furtherance of
a fair and just society? "God drew me up from the desolate pit, out
of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock." Dr. King was a solid
biblical scholar and would have recognized those words from psalm
forty. The following quotes are from the heart of Dr. King's
philosophy. The first will be heard tomorrow , the second probably
not. Both are essential. "I have a dream that my four little
children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged
by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
"I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must
spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of nuclear
destruction. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will
have the final word in reality."
I was nineteen years old when Dr. King was assassinated. This
birthday would have been his eighty-second, yet his thoughts, dreams
and hopes seem so young and fresh. Which would seem to mean that the
foundation is still there, but there is much work left to do.
Martin Luther King, Jr. As a national holiday, banks will be closed,
mail will not be delivered, and most schools will be closed. One
cannot help but wonder what Dr. King would have thought about this
development in his legacy. After all his life's work was about others
not himself. It does not seem unreasonable to think Dr. King would be
amused. His legacy with regard to Peace and Justice, was about
furthering the cause of those oppressed not singing out individual
contributors. These issues are as old as the text of the Prophet
Isaiah, and as fresh as tomorrow's headline from CNN. He would say
from The Reverend Dr. Ralph Abernathy, Rosa Parks, Cesar Chavez, and
Harriet Tubman, the names of those who worked for justice is long,
with millions of names of people you will never know and whose words
and thoughts will not be reflected upon tomorrow. For Dr, King his
individual name and fame was only important in so much as it may help
further the cause of justice, born in his heart of faith, and built
upon a foundation of faith with eyes able to vision what a fair and
open society might look like.
I have a dear friend who works for a company that honors Dr. Martin
Luther King's memory with a day off. This year for reasons not fully
explained, the company is giving the day off but requesting employees
come in and work, at bonus pay of course, because of the holiday. The
person because of an inherent since of a possibility the wrong message
is being sent, spoke to the head of the company. The head of the
company echoed the same concern, but said the decision came from
'higher up's in the company. Though disappointed, with the seeming no-
decision for awareness, this friend will ask those who desire, to come
in, not penalize those who choose not to, and cover for those who do
not come in, without personal additional compensation.
We expect immediate change, and while at times this may be possible,
more often than not chance moves more like a glacier than the wind.
Is a lack of change a valid reason for not seeking the furtherance of
a fair and just society? "God drew me up from the desolate pit, out
of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock." Dr. King was a solid
biblical scholar and would have recognized those words from psalm
forty. The following quotes are from the heart of Dr. King's
philosophy. The first will be heard tomorrow , the second probably
not. Both are essential. "I have a dream that my four little
children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged
by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
"I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must
spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of nuclear
destruction. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will
have the final word in reality."
I was nineteen years old when Dr. King was assassinated. This
birthday would have been his eighty-second, yet his thoughts, dreams
and hopes seem so young and fresh. Which would seem to mean that the
foundation is still there, but there is much work left to do.
Dr. Joey K. McDonald
First United Methodist Church
4832 Tujunga Avenue, North Hollywood, CA, 91601
First United Methodist Church
4832 Tujunga Avenue, North Hollywood, CA, 91601
