ARCHDIOCESE OF PHILADELPHIA

Dear Friends,

We gather this afternoon to recall once again the life of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We gather as Jews, Christians and Muslims. We gather as people of various races, cultures and languages. We gather as people of different ages and states of life. But most importantly, we gather as children of the one God who calls us to be people of compassion and peace.

A wise person once said, “to remember is to give life, to forget is to let die.” We indeed remember Dr. King as a man of justice, peace and love. We remember all the good he did, most especially how he taught us to strive for equality in a non-violent way. How much do we need to be reminded today that violence, revenge and war are not the answers to our problems.

In accepting the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1964, Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke these words: I believe that wounded justice, lying prostrate on the blood-flowing streets of our nation, can be lifted from the dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men. I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture in their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, men other-centered can build up. I still believe that one day mankind will bow before the altars of God and be crowned triumphant over war and bloodshed, and nonviolent redemptive goodwill proclaimed the rule of the land, And the lion and the lamb shall lie down together, and every man shall sit down together, and every man shall sit together under his own vine and fig tree, and none shall be afraid. I still believe that we shall overcome.

That message was a message of hope, and that message came from Dr. King’s deep belief in Jesus Christ. As a Baptist Minister, Martin Luther King, Jr. was convinced that the Eternal Word of God became flesh to give the world hope. Even in the midst of so much violence and hatred that he endured, together with many others who stood with him, Dr. King never gave up. He never stopped loving and forgiving. He never stopped preaching the truth. He never stopped marching for justice. Why? Precisely because Dr. King placed his hope in Jesus Christ.

At our prayer service this afternoon, we have heard sacred readings from different traditions, and we respect those traditions. They all have a common theme of peace and justice. A few moments ago we heard the very beginning of the Gospel according to John, a text so important to Dr. King. Specifically, we heard: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life and this life was the light of the human race.... And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

Dr. King knew that passage well but, most importantly, Dr. King gave witness to that passage. He believed that our Heavenly Father loved the world so much that He gave us His only Son, Jesus Christ, to dwell among us and to give the world hope.

We gather in the first days of this new year. A new year brings joy and great expectations. We pray for a good year and a holy year. We pray especially for an end to all violence and war. We pray for justice and peace to reign. We pray for deeper respect, dialogue and understanding among all people. We pray that all the children of Abraham and all the children of God will live in peace.

How good it is that we can sing and believe “We shall overcome.” Let us honor and remember Dr. King not just in word and song, but with a recommitment to do our part, with God’s help, to bring hope to our world. Amen.