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Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 16, 2012 by · Comments Off on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Although he was assassinated more than four decades ago, the nonviolent movement supported by slain civil rights leader, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., continues to have a profound impact on life in America,

“I have followed, and have been a part of the NAACP through my entire adult life,” Ellis Ray Williams, 90, of Welch said. Williams served in combat during World War II, and survived the Battle of the Bulge. When he returned home, he became an educator in McDowell County and served as principal of the vocational school that served African American students in the McDowell County public school system.

“Of course, I followed Dr. King’s career,” Williams said. “He was such a stirring speaker and a representative, not only of black people, but a representative of people of all races. I’ve been from one end of this country to the other, and can say that our minds were changed by the message Dr. King carried.”

Delegate John Frazier, D-Mercer, was serving in the U.S. Army and stationed at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas on April 4, 1968 when Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn.

“The entire base was put on alert,” Frazier said. “There was a fear that rioting might break out in the city, and I think that’s why we were on alert, although I don’t know what I could have done. All I had then was a typewriter.”

Frazier saw the profound impact that King’s death had on several of the black soldiers he was serving with. “I had grown up with young people whose parents were active in the civil rights movement,” Frazier said. “I knew that Martin Luther King had a great impact in the lives of many people. I think it’s great that we have a day set aside to remember him and celebrate his life.”

Dr. Tom Blevins, interim president of Bluefield State College, was a student when King died, and he studied his philosophy as a student would. “As a student, I looked to the philosophies of Dr. King and Bertrand Russell,” Blevins said. “Their words are so profound. In their own way, each has moved mountains.”

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr

January 13, 2012 by · Comments Off on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr 

Dr. Martin Luther King JrDr. Martin Luther King Jr, The list of so-called supporters of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will swell to questionable proportions this weekend. These individuals will quote small and select portions of Dr. King’s many sermons and speeches in an attempt to claim their religious, political or philosophical positions would be right in line with his. Some will even amass a small fortune and live in royal accommodations by going around the country telling crowds what Dr. King would be doing were he still living. At the same time, they will fail to do anything for Dr. King’s cause unless it brings them more fame and gain.

Dr. King delivered his last sermon on Sunday, March 31, 1968 at the National Cathedral here in Washington, D.C. He took as his sermon title, “Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution.” I have listened to it over and over since it was first brought to my attention by my mentor, Marian Wright Edelman, President and Founder of the Children’s Defense Fund. At the time of the speech, Dr. King and others were involved with putting together the Poor People’s Campaign.

In his sermon, Dr. King took inventory of our abundance of material and financial resources and warned about the consequences of overlooking the needs of the poor in our midst. “This is America’s opportunity to help bridge the gulf between the haves and the have-nots. The question is whether America will do it,” King said. “There is nothing new about poverty. What is new is that we now have the techniques and the resources to get rid of poverty. The real question is whether we have the will.”

I believe when it comes to our celebration of the life of the Dr. King we are prone to making an error suggested by the late Rev. Peter Gomes. During a lecture I attended at the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago, Rev. Gomes, then Pusey Minister at Harvard’s Memorial Church said too often we merely celebrate and highlight the life of Jesus of the Scripture and what he did, but fail to truly follow him. “We ought to go the text, depart from the text and never return to the text, because we should find ourselves headed in the direction that Jesus was going,” the Rev. Gomes said. I still owe him tuition for his words.

His lecture was one that has forever changed my approach to reading and interpreting the New Testament as well as my understanding of what it means to be a Christian.

Like many, who can recite large portions of Dr. King’s speeches from memory, I will attend various worship services and prayer breakfasts honoring him this weekend. And I will begin a tradition of visiting the newly erected Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. Still, this is not enough. This weekend is not about how we will celebrate his life. It is about whether we have the will to work to end poverty in the world in our lifetime.

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