On this date (Aug 28), in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his I Have a Dream speech to more than 200,000 civil rights supporters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
The speech was a masterpiece. He referenced the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, the Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address, the hymn America, Shakespeare’s Richard III, and the books of Psalms and Isaiah from the Bible… and no one with a brain would dream of accusing him of plagiarism!
And although there were several early drafts and versions, the most memorable section of the speech happens near the end, when Dr. King left his prepared speech and started preaching.
Mahalia Jackson, a very popular gospel singer, shouted at him from the crowd: “Tell them about the dream, Martin.” At that point, he did.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
I realize that I might be stepping on a toe or two here, but just take a moment and compare Dr. King’s preaching with some of the improvised preaching we’ve heard just in the last few years.
Rocket scientist Mark Driscoll said that there wasn’t even one good Bible teacher in Great Britain. “You don’t have one – that’s the problem. There are a bunch of cowards who aren’t telling the truth.”
Brain surgeon Jesse Lee Peterson said that it was a mistake to allow women to vote. “…these women are voting in the wrong people.”
Curtis Knapp and Charles Worley say that the government should kill gay people.
Sean Harris says that parents should punch kids who don’t seem manly enough.
Don’t forget our old buddy Pat Robertson, who said that if Manning gets injured, the Broncos would deserve it because they traded Tim Tebow. He advised a man whose wife was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease to “divorce her and start all over again.” Of course, he also called for the legalization of marijuana, which means he does have layers…
And of course, there’s anything that’s ever come out of the mouth of Fred Phelps – the space monkey of preachers that leads the Westboro Baptist Church.
Clearly, there’s preaching – and then there’s preaching!
Anyway, rock on, Dr. King! Thanks for having that dream – and for doing your part to move us ever closer to it!