MLK a modern prophet
Letter to the editor
On Sunday, Jan. 16, the eve of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, we read the story of young Samuel being called by the Lord to deliver a message to the elder Eli. At that time, Samuel was not familiar with the Lord because the Lord had not revealed anything to Samuel yet. He was young. Then one day the Lord called him. "Samuel, Samuel." Samuel ran to Eli and said, "Here I am. You called me." Eli said, "I didn't call you. Go back to sleep." The Lord called a second time. "Samuel, Samuel." Samuel ran to Eli again and said, "Here I am. You called me." Eli realized what was happening and said, "The Lord is trying to talk to you. Go back to sleep, and the next time you hear the Lord's voice say, `Speak Lord, I am listening.' Finally, on the third try, Samuel heard the Lord's call and obeyed. He went to Eli and told him everything he heard from the Lord. "At that moment, he caught a glimpse of himself. He grew up, and the Lord was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect. He became known as a prophet of the Lord."
While the young Martin Luther King Jr. completed his graduate school requirements, the voices of Rauschenbusch, Niebuhr and Tillich inundated his thoughts. Should he follow their example and become a working minister first or should he take the advice of many and begin teaching in the academy? While Martin completed his dissertation, there were several churches in the South looking for a pastor. Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., decided to "audition" the young graduate student to see if he could preach. On Jan. 10, 1954, the 25-year-old King ascended the pulpit of Dexter and gazed out over a packed sanctuary of inquiring faces. He thought to himself, Later, he said he thought "Keep Martin Luther King in the background and God in the foreground and everything will be all right. Remember, you're a channel of the gospel, not the source." He preached on "The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life," Revelation 21:16. The sermon was a success. Martin, like Eli standing before God, "caught a glimpse of himself. He grew up, and the Lord was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect. He became known as a prophet of the Lord."
Since September, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee has met each Thursday at 8 a.m. in Greenfields Restaurant. As administrators, getting up early is no great sacrifice. For students, it's quite the opposite. Walking to the south end of campus at 8 in the morning for anything other than class is unheard of in the Free World. Yet, every Thursday morning for three months, it happened. As the planning began, the force and impetus behind the entire celebration derived from the ideas and vision of students. Your peers are young adults who respond to the call to participate in what we believe each year to be a worthy endeavor. To each meeting they bring their ideas, energy, passion, insight and commitment, and they put together three days of thought-provoking events. Even though their knowledge of Dr. King has been formed by oral tradition, history assignments and annual news clips, somehow the spirit of the man ignites something within them. Like Samuel and Martin, their youth, vigor and faith in God are the very things which keep us hopeful. As administrators, we relish this ambition and delight in the witness of God's presence in them.
Tonight at 7 p.m. in Keenan-Stanford Chapel, we will conclude our celebration with the prayer service "Walk in the Light of Christ." Your peers invite you to gather and listen for God's call. Join them and respond by saying, "Speak Lord, I am listening." Like them, examine and act on the depth and breath of your word. As a University community, we will test the tenacity of our convictions and listen to the story which defines the truth of our present reality. Collectively, we will dispel the darkness which challenges us and walk in the light which will forever unite us.
May the days to come provide moments of reflection and introspection, as we share this light. Then, one day, we may proclaim, "At that moment, we caught a glimpse of ourselves. We grew up, and the Lord was with us, not permitting any word of ours to be without effect. We became known as prophets of the Lord."
Chandra Johnson and
Priscilla Wong
Campus Ministry
January 26, 2000
All Viewpoint Stories for Thursday, January 27, 2000
