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| (With one of my Payne Theological Seminary classes) |
(To understand this more deeply, I recommend two books by King scholar Lewis Baldwin: Never to Leave Us Alone: The Prayer Life of Martin Luther King Jr.; and Revives My Soul Again: The Spirituality of Martin Luther King Jr.
My working bibliography on African-American Christianity is HERE.
I'll teach my Spiritual Formation class at Payne Seminary Feb. 28-March3.)
In George Orwell's book 1984 the main character, Winston
Smith, has the job of eliminating politically unwanted ideas, documents, and
words, by throwing them down a "memory hole." To rewrite history is
to forget history. To do this is "Orwellian."
Sadly, we will see Orwellian unthinking in today's celebration of Dr. King's birthday. The true sources of his social activism, which were spiritual, are largely forgotten.
As our nation pauses to honor Dr. King, we celebrate his great civil and political influence. But we will hear little of his own understanding of the source of that influence.
Sadly, we will see Orwellian unthinking in today's celebration of Dr. King's birthday. The true sources of his social activism, which were spiritual, are largely forgotten.
As our nation pauses to honor Dr. King, we celebrate his great civil and political influence. But we will hear little of his own understanding of the source of that influence.
The fire burning deep in King’s soul was his
relationship with God, fanned by his constant prayer life. Few scholars have
attended to this, says King scholar Lewis Baldwin
of Vanderbilt University, in his book Never to Leave Us
Alone: The Prayer Life of Martin Luther King. Our secular media has thrown King's
spiritual life down the Orwellian memory hole.
I remember reading, for
the first time, King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” I knew King was a Christian, but his spiritual
life was never talked about in the media. We saw film and photos of King
praying in the city streets, but were not told how much this meant to him. His
“Letter” greatly moved me.
I saw that King was an
intellectual, a brilliant writer, and most importantly, a fundamentally
spiritual being. The social activism of Martin Luther King, Jr., was a function
of a life grounded in God and prayer, which he defined as “conversing with
God.”
Prayer was more than a
theory or some religious thing for King. King had an actual praying life. He
saw praying as necessary for changing his own life and the prevailing culture.
King never separated moral responsibility from a deep personal spirituality and
piety. Prayer, for King, was conversation with God.
Once King received a
phone call at midnight from a racist who called him a “n-------,” threatened to
kill him, and “blow up” his home This deeply disturbed him. He discovered that
all the intellectual things he learned in the university and seminary could not
help him overcome this.
King turned to God in
prayer, and had a face-to-face encounter with what was, in the tradition of his
forebears, called a “Waymaker.” This God-encounter exposed his fears,
insecurities, and vulnerablities. He found comfort as an “inner voice” spoke to
him, reminding him that he was not alone, commanding him to stand up for
righteousness, justice, and truth, and assuring him that “lo, I will be with
you, even to the end of the world.”
It is important to
understand King’s position on spiritual things if we want to grasp his societal
accomplishments. King, who earned a PhD at Boston University, knew
that intellectual accomplishments were not enough to transform self and
society. God was needed, and prayer was able to “invoke the supernatural.” Baldwin
writes that “King taught the people of Montgomery that the weapon of
prayer was ultimately more powerful and effective than any gun or bomb.”
King told students that,
if you don’t have a deep life of prayer, you have no business preaching to
others. King saw himself as essentially involved in a spiritual movement, not
simply a secular struggle for equal rights, social justice, and peace.
“King,” writes Baldwin, “was effective
because his praying and preaching were effective. True leadership in his case
made prayer and preaching indispensable.”
King knew,
existentially, that real, true prayer involves “a profound surrender of the
self to God, not prayer rooted in self-pride, self-righteousness, and
self-centeredness.” That becomes the kind of relationship with God that can
transform the fabric of reality.
The real source of King’s influence was his
soul-receptivity to the powerful, transforming influence of God.
Rev. John Piippo, PhD
Co-Pastor, Redeemer Fellowship Church
Monroe, MI
Adjunct Professor, Payne Theological Seminary, 2010-2017 (African Methodist Episcopal)
johnpiippo@msn.com
Author
Leading the Presence-Driven Church
Deconstructing Progressive Christianity
Encounters with the Holy Spirit (co-edited with Janice Trigg)
