Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King: As Martin Luther King did, let us bend toward peace: by Travis Norvell

"On this extended weekend America will pause and celebrate in songs, marches, meditations and sermons on the life and work of the US's 20th century prophet: the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 

If he had not been assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., in 1968 there would be 82 candles on his cake on Monday. Instead we will all mourn a life taken from us, from the world, at 39.

It was Thurman's book, "Jesus and the Disinherited," that inspired his life's work. Thurman's book was written for those with their backs against the wall -- the poor, the disinherited, the dispossessed -- because it was to them that Jesus' message was directed. This book grounded, centered and nudged King forward on his pilgrimage toward nonviolence; it was with him when he died. 
 
While King delivered what is now his most famous speech/sermon, "I Have A Dream," it might not have been, if another person had not nudged his message forward. As you listen to the speech this weekend notice the change in cadence and power, notice how the crowd coalesces and preaches with him. The shift in the speech from the valley to the mountaintop was not planned. The shift took place when a woman, none other than Mahalia Jackson, shouted from the front of the crowd, "Tell them about the dream, Martin."

King was a theological, homiletical and political genius, but the King we know in our memories and consciences would not exist if it were not for the influence and nudges others gave him throughout his life.

This weekend let us celebrate, let us be inspired, and let us nudge one another toward a more loving, peace-filled and reconciling city, more toward the beloved community King sought. It is a community both within and just out of our reach. Whether we accomplish an approximation or full realization of the beloved community, the journey and transformation together toward it is worth it as we become more loving, forgiving and peace-filled citizens."

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