Learning from Dr. King

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I borrowed the spot in Sunday’s CLOKC Clicks from Ananias to encourage each of you to set aside some time on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day  and read, or listen to, the Rev. Dr. King.

I took a course in my Senior year in seminary studying the Church’s role in the Civil Rights struggle. During that time, we spent a week at the Rev. Dr. King’s library and church in Atlanta. Since then, I regularly set aside time to read and/or listen to his writings, and I especially do so on the day we set aside near his birthday to honor him. You will not regret the time  you invest to hear his words and ideas, which help point the way forward especially now.

Here are  links to many of Rev. Dr. King’s most famous writings and sermons. Some will have audio, and a few video, recordings.

“Letter from a Birmingham Jail” IF YOU ONLY HAVE TIME OR ONLY WANT TO TAKE TIME FOR ONE OF REV. DR. KING’S WRITINGS, READ AND LISTEN TO THIS.
In response to the mistreatment of the citizens of Birmingham, Rev. Dr. King and others came to Birmingham to protest. During the protests, Dr. King was arrested. Several white clergy from Birmingham wrote an opinion piece in the local newspaper, calling Dr. King and others “outside agitators,” and calling on him and the Black citizens to bide their time. From his cell, Dr. King wrote a response.
Text (pdf) + Audio (Dr. King reading) + Video (a short film about the letter)

 

A pdf of several of Rev. Dr. King’s speeches, sermons and writings; including: Give Us the Ballot, Loving Your Enemies, Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Lincoln Memorial Address (I Have a Dream); Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Our God is Marching On, Beyond Vietnam, Three Dimensions of a Complete Life; Where Do We Go From Here; I’ve Been to the Mountaintop)

“I Have a Dream” Address Delivered at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom – August 28, 1963 – Text + Audio + Video

“Our God Is Marching On” Given at the end of the Montgomery to Selma March on March 25, 1965. Text

“The American Dream” In a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist in Atlanta on July 4, 1965, Rev. Dr. King describes how economic divisions are turning the American dream into a nightmare. Text

“Beyond Vietnam – A Time to Break the Silence” One of Rev. Dr. King’s most controversial speech, one many of his staff did not want him to give. Rev. Dr. King forcefully condemns the Vietnam War. April 4, 1967  Text with Audio enclosed
“Where Do We Go From Here” Rev. Dr. King addresses the 11th Annual Southern Christian Leadership Conference as to where the Civil Rights struggle is at, and where it needs to go.
Text + Audio (on YouTube)

“The Other America” Before an audience at Stanford University on April 14, 1967, Rev. Dr. King spoke about economic and social segregation and a growing wage gap.
Text + Video

“A Christmas Sermon on Peace” Rev. Dr. King had been working with the CBC on a series of lectures. The final lecture, on peace, was not a lecture, but his Christmas Eve sermon on December 24, 1967 at Ebenezer Baptist.

Text + Audio (on YouTube)

Links to YouTube audio of the other Massey Lectures are here:
#1 -The Impasse of Race Relations
#2 – Conscience and the War in Vietnam
#3 – Youth and Social Action
#4 – Non-Violence and Social Change

“The Drum Major Instinct” Sermon delivered on February 4, 1968 at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta in which Rev. Dr. King describes how he wants to be remembered
Info + Text + Audio

 

“Remaining Awake Through the Revolution” Rev. Dr. King addresses a Minister’s Conference. He reused material and a variation of the title from a 1966 Ware Lecture.
Text + Audio (from YouTube)

 

“I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” In his last speech, given the night before his assassination, Rev. Dr. King addresses striking sanitation workers in Memphis, encouraging them to remain unified and non-violent in the struggle that is to come. His final word are prophetic. Text + Audio

 

May You Enjoy Learning From Rev. Dr. King
May You Feel All of God’s Blessings, Pastor Brian Campbell

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