1 What Can We Learn From The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Rev. Dr. Jim Culver Sermon at UUSP on January 17, 2010 To the reader: This sermon was only part of a service of worship with many components working together, all of which were designed to be experienced in a community context. In our "free pulpit" tradition, its concepts are intended not as truths to receive, but as spurs to your own thought and faith. CALL TO WORSHIP (In loving memory of my former colleague & mentor, Rev. Dr. Duncan Littlefair) This is a day for us to live. Let s celebrate it and make a difference in the world. Let s be grateful for the incredible gift of life, And let us be especially grateful for the love which brings us together Giving dignity, meaning, worth and joy to all of our days. READINGS Our readings this morning speak to the lessons we may learn from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Of our 5 readings, the first 4 are printed in our programs. We covenant to affirm and promote: The inherent worth and dignity of every person. Justice, equity, compassion in human relations. - The first two of Seven Principles of the UUA No matter what we feel or know, no matter what our potential gifts or talents, only action brings them to life. Many of us understand concepts such as commitment, courage and love, but we truly know only when we can do. Doing leads to understanding, and action turns knowledge to wisdom. Dan Millman, The Laws of Spirit
2 Be the change you want to see in the world. - Mahatma Gandhi An individual has not started living until he or she can rise above the narrow confines of individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Our last reading, the one not printed in the program, is usually a joke. This morning s topic, though, warranted something a bit more serious, and so I offer this final quote in the hope that it might be fitting for a discussion of the work of Dr. King, yet hopefully still bring a wry smile to your faces. From a fundamentalist preacher in 1964, in reaction to the 1963 civil rights march on Washington D.C., denouncing the participation of a preacher, the Rev. Dr. King, in a political march. "Preachers are not called to be politicians but soul winners. Nowhere are we commissioned to reform the externals. The gospel does not clean up the outside but regenerates the inside. Ministers should stay in their pulpits and spread the Good News rather than attempt to influence the government." - The Rev. Jerry Falwell SERMON What can we learn from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? This morning, let s briefly explore this question together, which will require an examination of the values that served as the foundation of the messages of Dr. King, the separation of church and state, the religious right, and ourselves.
3 For our guests here today, please allow me a moment to provide you with a framework in which to listen to this sermon on a subject which at first glance does not sound like the stuff of religion. Here at UUSP, we don t tell you what you must believe. We don't ask you to check your mind at the door. Instead we invite you to join in a conversation about the meaning of life, love, and service. My sermons are intended not as truths to receive, but as spurs to your own thoughts. I only ask that you can embrace the concept that we are a faith community of shared values, not shared religious beliefs. Of deeds, not creeds. Religion gives us a way to make our lives, our values and our beliefs harmonize with one another, within the context of a loving community. Love binds us to one another. The true value of being a religion or looking at theological ideas is to see how they transform our character and guide our behaviors. In order to address this morning s topic with integrity, then, I ask us all to please remember to differentiate between shared values and shared beliefs. We Unitarian Universalists can and should proudly acknowledge the commonality of values between our religious community and our country s government. Yet we could not nor would not attempt to impose our beliefs upon others under that government. We can certainly acknowledge the shared values of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness while understanding that religious beliefs and patriotic values should be absolutely separate. So, with that, let s do the work of today and ask, what can we learn from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Although our message this morning is broader than any one issue, no matter how important an issue that is, it s impossible not to begin a discussion of the contributions of Dr. King without beginning with the issue of racism s predecessor, slavery. By the year 1800, approximately 15 million blacks had been transported as slaves
4 to the Americas, representing only about one third of those originally seized in Africa. The conditions of capture included marches to the coast, often up to 1,000 miles, with human beings shackled around the neck, under whip and gun. Once on the coast, people were kept in cages until they were picked and sold for transport. Then they were packed aboard slave ships in spaces not much bigger than coffins, chained together in the dark and wet slime from the ships, choking in the stench of their own excrement. It s roughly estimated that Africa lost 50 million human beings to death and slavery in those centuries historians term the beginnings of modern Western civilization, primarily at the hands of the countries deemed the most advanced in the world. This era began over 500 years ago in 1503 when the first Africans were brought into Hispaniola for the Spanish governor. 460 years later in 1963, this still young nation s capitol saw gathered the ancestors of slaves and slave owners to hear a Christian Baptist preacher speak of a dream. Forty two years have now passed since he died, a martyr to his dream. A bit of progress has been made. In civil rights today, this nation is truer to its origins, which Dr. King invoked so often, than it was back in 1963. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all are created equal. The original American ideal is at least a little closer to a reality for all Americans than it was forty seven ago. Yet today, Martin Luther King s dream remains only that, a dream. Though his birth is celebrated respectfully as a national holiday, it is noted only with patriotic tokenism. Though his name is seen on street signs in many cities and towns, those streets most often travel through the poorest of neighborhoods. Though his words are often repeated, his values that formed the foundation of those words are currently threatened from all sides, as much from the left as from the right. It is this threat that I wish to examine today the threat from us. The
5 threat not of what we re doing, but of what we re not doing. So, what can and should religious liberals of the 21 st century do to make a political difference in our nation s government? To insist on the recognition of the inherent worth and dignity of every person? To ensure justice, equity, and compassion in human relations? To bring about equality for blacks, Hispanics, gays and lesbians, women, physically or emotionally challenged persons, and all the disenfranchised of society? To make a difference in all aspects of our daily reality? Preachers are not called to be politicians but soul winners," said the Rev. Jerry Falwell didn t you love that quote? The founder of the Moral Majority and thousands of Right Wing Christian pastors led their congregations into the political wars of the late 70s and 80s, during which the United States took a hard right turn. Rev. Falwell called the local church "the organized army equipped for battle, ready to charge the enemy. The Sunday School is the attacking squad. The church should be a disciplined, charging army. Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions." Some 30 years later that fundamentalist mentality has evolved into the type of appalling rhetoric we heard this week following the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh said that the earthquake played in President Obama s hands, allowing the president to look compassionate and humanitarian. Televangelist Pat Robertson stated that the earthquake hit Haiti because it is cursed. Rev. Robertson said that the Haitians swore a pact with the devil to serve Satan if he would set them free from the French, and that this pact has cursed the island nation. This from the same minister who, immediately after the tragedy of September 11, 2001, insisted that the planes that flew into New York city s twin towers did so because the passengers on board were sinners
6 upon whom God took his wrath. And what has been our response? For years now, religious liberals have been crying foul, even as Rev. Falwell did in the 60 s. We invoke the founders opinions regarding the seperation of church and state, yet almost never admit, as Dr. King constantly did, to the founders equally valid opinions that the nation was created on what was construed in mid 18th century language as a sacred principle: or as we know it today, that value named in the Declaration as that all "are created equal and endowed by their creator with inalienable rights." In Unitarian Universalist language, the inherent dignity and worth of every person. However, rather than continuing to consistently advance our values, religious liberals today are defensively crying foul in hopes of riding out the tide of today s prevailing fundamentalist faith. We have forgotten the lessons learned from Dr. King and Mahatma Gandhi, from Jesus and from the Buddha and from Mohammed, and it is time to remember, and reenter the political arena to work for justice, equality and dignity. I see Don and Jack sitting in the choir scratching their heads saying didn t Jim just rabble rouse about keeping the church and state separate a few weeks ago? OK, you got me. So the question now is how do we reconcile our responsibility to make a difference in the world (and in our own government) with our equally adamant adherence to a separation of church and state? One lesson to be remembered from Dr. King is that there is a difference between the separation of church and state and the separation of religion and politics. Martin Luther King, Jr. boldly integrated his faith s values with his political convictions. The moral values upon which an individual s faith is established cannot be separated from his or her politics. On the other hand, to be faithful to the
7 principles on which the nation was founded, while citizens can and should influence their government according to their values, they must always be prevented from shaping that same government according to their personal religious beliefs. * Both the yin and the yang of this discussion, the interrelationship of religion and politics and the separation of church and state, have been around since the beginning of our experiment in democracy. The founders goal was to establish a moral government, one grounded in the laws of nature and, in 18 th century understanding and language, nature s God that would offer liberty and equality to all its citizens. To ensure such liberty and equality, the founders insisted upon a separation between church and state. Freedom of religion, including freedom from religion, is the centerpiece of American democracy. For this very reason, the United States is not and cannot be a Christian nation. To remain true to the founders vision, however, we must work to be a moral nation and for this, active spiritual values are not only appropriate but necessary. Today in 2010, those Fundamentalist Christians who base their moral values and understandings on the Christian Bible cannot be expected to divorce their faith from their politics. But neither should we sit on the sidelines crying foul and allow them to believe that they will one day be able to impose upon this nation their specific beliefs and religious will. According to our founders vision, such an imposition is and will always be un-american. This, then is a crucial lesson from Dr. King that we must remember. This lesson also highlights the difference between Dr. King and Rev. Falwell. Dr. King sought to infuse spiritual values into a set of laws that would be more just to all regardless of their faith, while Rev. Falwell sought to impose his religious beliefs upon a nation.
8 As a sidebar to this sermon, it s amazing how often loving, caring liberal congregations leave a service dedicated to Dr. King with a quest to be more racially and culturally diverse. In a genuine yet awkward attempt to encourage members to invite people of color to their churches, they bring minority guests, mob them when they walk in the door and greet them with that underlying tone of yes, we are welcoming of people like you, without thinking about how that feels if you are that person being put in such a position. No black, no gay, no lesbian, no minority of any color or orientation will be attracted to a congregation that is more interested in their uniqueness than in their character. From my youth spent making money as an organist and piano player in 7 different church denominations, including Roman Catholic and Baptist, I believe that the reason many other religions enjoy a higher level of racial and cultural diversity is that they have an authoritative center around which the church operates. Authority comes from the church leaders and not from the church members. Their statements of faith are not democratically created. The common agreement and conformance to those statements, the acceptance of authority and teachings overcome any differences. Add to this a missionary orientation that demands that all people must be saved and made members of their church, and it s easy to see that those congregations actively embrace anyone who believes as they do, while offering the seductive path of eternal life to those of any race or creed seeking answers to life s questions. Unfortunately for UU s in the arena of cultural diversity, we are the church of individualism. Supremely democratic, we lack an authoritative center as well as a statement of beliefs that must be conformed to for membership. We can only continue to love and serve, offering our rich brand of religious community to those whose values and character harmonize with us, regardless
9 of their beliefs, their orientation, or their color. * So, what can we learn from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Perhaps, that we UU s in this 2 nd decade of the 21 st century should not and can not remove religion from politics. As we continue to insist on the continuation of our founders creation of a separation between church and state, we must infuse our political efforts with our Unitarian Universalist values. I have a vision for this special place and its amazingly loving and compassionate people. Being extraordinary is what this religious community in Saint Petersburg is all about. We are called to fully live out the privilege and responsibility that comes with being among the most creative, world-changing, liberal religious communities on the planet. This center for spiritual growth and development needs you. This city, this state and this country need you to wed your religious values to your strong political voices with the knowledge that only action can bring values to life. It s time once again to ask of ourselves, as many of us did back in the 1960 s, IF NOT US, WHO? IF NOT NOW, WHEN? During our earlier readings, we heard Dr. King s quote that an individual has not started living until he or she can rise above the narrow confines of individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. As our choir so wonderfully sang this morning, our sense of urgency both as a religious community and as a nation must be so strong that we feel we ain t got time to die. Our sense of joy to do the work of infusing our values into our daily reality must be so inspiring that we all join in singing when we re feeding the poor, when we re healing the sick, when we re aiding the Haitians, when we re collecting food and clothing for migrant workers, when we re marching for those without equal rights, when we re giving our all, we ain t got time to die. We ain t
10 got time because we re too busy bringing Dignity, Meaning, Worth and Joy to all our days. Waves of love.