Saturday marks the 47th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. Delivered from the steps of Washington DC’s Lincoln Memorial, King spoke of a world in which his children would be judged by the content of their character vs. the color of their skin.
Tomorrow, Fox News host Glenn Beck will hold a rally where an estimated 100,000 people will attend. Billed as a rally to honor the troops, both Beck and Sarah Palin will speak. This rally, in this place, on this day has caused some controversy and criticism.
Not sure that it is deserved or not, but it is interesting that we still tend to define ourselves by what divides us–instead of that which unites us.
The essence of “I have a dream” was unity, equality, and love. Something that may be lost on both sides of the debate about Beck’s “Honor Rally.”
King’s dream is a gospel dream, a dream where everyday Americans across the land live a “red letters life” in the service of others.
I have that dream too.
I dream of millions of Christians opening their hearts and homes to orphans here in the US and around the world who need families. Adoption, as John Piper termed it, is the “visible Gospel.” I long for the day when a multi-racial families are the rule–not the exception.
I dream of freedom for girls trapped in slavery much worse than we could ever really imagine. A slavery where they are raped for profit day after day. Will we meet that challenge as King’s generation met theirs?
The challenge of injustice did not end on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. King new that justice was active–a verb–something you did with your life. If you are to “bring justice” to something, you must act against injustice.
posted August 28, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Amen! Amen! Thank you Tom, for being a voice of reason.
posted August 28, 2010 at 9:05 pm
I hope you watched Glenn Beck’s rally. It was definitely all about unity, equality and love…faith, hope and charity. I have watched his show for more than a year and he is the ONLY well-known media voice who I have heard, time and again, calling us to our knees to God in prayer, asking for His blessing upon our nation.
posted August 30, 2010 at 9:44 am
I would respectifully disagree with you. I don’t see any LOVE in anything that Glenn Back says or does. There is no mention of the sacrificial love of Jesus Christ. There is no mention of grace and mercy or the redeeming power of Christ. Christians are called to more than just prayer and praise/blessings for the United States, its founding founders, its military, and its government systems. We are called to love and pray for the world and even people who disagree with us and hate us. We are called to live a life worthy of Christ and win souls for Him, not Glenn Back. Glenn Beck engages in routine character assassination on his show for ratings and entertainment. He quotes no Scripture and because he is Mormon, he should not be serving as a spiritual prophet for any Christians. The Bible tells us to beware of false prophets. Enough with the God talk and religiousity. Follow Christ, not Glenn Beck.
posted August 30, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Jules, not sure what you’re disagreeing with. I didn’t say anything about Glenn Beck being the rallying call for love. I was merely making a correlation between the two events – even saying that King’s message will likely be lost.
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