Search for "Martin Luther King Jr."

The Uses and Abuses of the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

By A. E. Brooks-Key

…ge (ISUPK), a Black Israelite group. Someone asked about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr since the holiday had just passed; without missing a beat, the speaker said to the person reading the Bible aloud to the audience, “Go to Deuteronomy: 13. Read!” In a booming voice several verses were read about a “prophet” and “dreamer of dreams” who “shall be put to death” because he turned away from God. The representative from the ISUPK interpreted these verses…

Martin Luther King in the Era of Occupy

By Paul Harvey

…negotiation, reframing, and, ultimately, mobilization, that Martin Luther King Jr. excelled. In post-WWII America, King was part of a new generation of Southern black ministers and congregants who played a pivotal role in “refocusing the cultural content” of African-American churches toward a theological framework capable of inspiring and sustaining mass protest. While blanket characterizations of early twentieth century black churches as heirs t…

Martin Luther King: Libertarian and Anti-Abortion Social Conservative

By Paul Harvey

The annual celebration of Martin Luther King Day started with controversies and misunderstandings of King and his legacy, mostly from conservatives who once despised and later just mistrusted King and his legacy. In the 1960s they had good reason to oppose the civil rights leader, and King had good reason to fire right back at them, as when he responded to Barry Goldwater’s opposition to the 1964 Civil Rights Bill: On social and economic issues,…

Reflections on an Ineffective Negro Leader

By Jonathan L. Walton

Since his assassination, the public image of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has benefited from a postmortem revival. Forty years after his murder, King is America’s racial symbol of choice. His name signifies progress, racial harmony, and, for many, the standard-bearer of African-American leadership. Within the American cultural imagination, Martin Luther King Jr. now sits comfortably among the pantheon of American male civic gods such as Christopher…

King as Inspiration, Not Guide

By William D. Hart

…nly observe the fortieth anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. We are invited to remember who King was: a prophetic Christian, a preacher who preached his most important sermons through the symbolic action of the protest march—what his colleague Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel called praying with your feet. Invariably, during discussions of racial relations (usually construed as relations between black and white people) or when c…

Rick Warren Gives Pre-Inauguration Sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church

By Michael A. Elliott

…formance the day before—as the keynote speaker at the annual Martin Luther King Jr. holiday celebration sponsored by the King Center in Atlanta. Less than twenty-four hours before he played a part in anointing our new head of state, in other words, Warren would step into one of the most historic and influential pulpits in the United States: Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King and his father once presided. I couldn’t swing the inauguration: My dean…

The Radical Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Left’s Challenge Today

By Peter Laarman

…support for the project; some of these leaders, like Rev. James M. Lawson, Jr., were close collaborators with King during his lifetime. What’s called the April 4 Project represents a “beloved community” collaboration among the National Council of Elders, the National Black Justice Coalition, and a host of other justice-oriented organizations. Due to ongoing Covid concerns the event will take place in the form of a webinar, during which a celebrity…

How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism — An Interview

By Bradley Onishi

…tianity Today, the lengths he went to in his crusade against Martin Luther King Jr, and of course his pivotal role in the construction of White Christian nationalism in the US. – eds *** The Gospel of J. Edgar Hoover: How the FBI Aided and Abetted the Rise of White Christian Nationalism Lerone A. Martin Princeton U. Press Feb, 2023 Bradley Onishi: J. Edgar Hoover is a name most Americans will be familiar with as the first leader of the FBI. He is…

Martin Luther & the Mass Media

By Svend White

…great 16th-century theologian and launcher of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther. In addition to being an engrossing drama and a thoughtful interpretation of the life of this pivotal figure in Christian history (and modernity itself), the film is an aesthetic feast that teems with stellar acting, gorgeous costumes, and breathtaking cinematography. Martin Luther’s story contains many lessons, even for the non-religious. Foremost among them,…

On Religion, Abortion, and Politics: Dr. George Tiller’s Christian Ethics

By Ed Knudson

…of absolute law or dead language, as we try to interpret the teachings of Martin Luther for our own times. Martin Luther came to believe that the Roman Catholic Church of his time was an oppressive religious system that terrified the consciences of the people. As a monk he experienced the terror of fear of hell, never finding a gracious God even though he tried with all his might to follow the beliefs and practices of the church at that time. Lut…