The Letters of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Every year on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I read two letters. One letter is new every year; the other only seems new. Today, I encourage you to join me in this tradition and read these letters below. It is worth the time to read them.

Letter from a Birmingham Jail (Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.)

From "I Have a Dream: Writings & Speeches That Changed the World": Dr. King rarely took time to defend himself against his opponents. But eight prominent "liberal" Alabama clergymen published an open letter earlier in January that called on King to allow the battle for integration to continue in the local and federal courts. They warned that King's nonviolent resistance would have the effect of inciting civil disturbances. Dr. King wanted Christian ministers to see that the meaning of Christian discipleship was at the heart of the African American struggle for freedom, Justice, and Equality.

Perhaps Dr. King's most famous words are his "I Have a Dream" speech and his "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech. However, the words of Dr. King that speak most deeply to me are those he penned in 1963 from a Birmingham Jail cell. Although it was written over 50 years, ago, it was written to white liberal pastors who supported the movement, but hesitantly. I see myself in these pastors, wanting to support efforts for equality and justice but always hesitant to be on the front lines. So, Dr. King's words are an annual call to action for me, a challenging exhortation from a colleague that rouses me from my slumber.

A Letter to Martin (Bishop Woodie W. White)

From the United Methodist News Service: Each year, retired United Methodist Bishop Woodie W. White writes a "birthday letter" to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. about the progress of racial equality in the United States. White, now bishop-in-residence at Emory University in Atlanta, was the first chief executive of the General Commission on Religion and Race.

I doubt Bishop White knows this, but he has been and continues to be influential to me in my ministry. I never served with him or under his direction, but we became acquaintances at Candler School of Theology at Emory, where I attended from 2005-08. I heard him preach a few times, and took a class he taught called "The Methodist Church and Race." I found Bishop White to possess a kind and gentle spirit, but also prone to flashes of wit and humor that delight and amaze. But there was a seriousness about him as well, a prophetic voice shaped by his experiences in the civil rights movement. Such experience might leave some people bitter and hardened, but Bishop White had resolve - a holy determination to continue fighting injustice in a spirit of love and peace. Each year, Bishop White's "Letter to Martin" reminds me that the battle for racial equality is not over, so we must continue to work toward the goal.

Remembering 2013

Years help us mark the passage of time, but all years are not equal. I don’t remember anything particularly meaningful happening to me in, say, 1993 or 2009. Those years are not memorable years in my life. Other years will always be significant to me: years in which I moved (’92, ’95, ’01, ’05, ’08, ’12), and years of graduation (’01, ’05, ’08). I’ll never forget that I married Lisa in 2008, that my grandfathers died in 2002 and 2012, or that in 1996 the Steelers lost the Super Bowl for the first time in team history.

As 2013 comes to an end, I will remember this year as significant for two reasons:

1.      2013 is the year I fell back in love with running.

In January, Lisa began training for the Pittsburgh Marathon. To support her in this endeavor, I agreed to run a 6.5 mile leg of the Marathon Relay. Although I ran cross country in middle school and high school, and ran for fun in college, I had not run on a regular basis in 8 years. The last couple of years, I tried and quickly succumbed to injury. So, I began my training with much fear and trepidation.

Oh my goodness, I forgot how much I love running. It doesn’t matter what time, it doesn’t matter where, running is glorious. I feel so free, so relaxed, so much at peace when I run. Yet, it is more than just stress relief and fitness. Running also offers challenges worthy of my competitive nature – can I go faster, further, up steeper hills? Can I push myself to the limit?

When the year began, I thought I would push myself through the relay leg of the marathon and then call it quits. But by that time, I had become so enamored with running that, like Forrest Gump, I just kept running…

In 2013 I think I ran more miles than any single year in my life. I ran more races than any year since 2000. In all, I ran one 5K, three 10Ks, one 5 miler, and my first half marathon ever. And I am still running, already dreaming up challenges and setting goals for myself in 2014.

2.      2013 will always be the year the ignominy ended.

I am a fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Win or lose, they have always been my team. And for 20 straight years, they had a losing record, the longest in the history of U.S. professional sports (an ignominious streak, indeed). Yet I still cheered. I still wore my Pirates hat to temples of evil empires: Boston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Yankee Stadium. I don’t care that your team is better; I’m a Pirates fan. From 2009 to present I have been a season ticket holder with the Pirates. I love this team, but for 2 decades they didn’t love me back.

That all changed this year, as they became the darlings of Major League Baseball, winning 94 games and advancing to the divisional round of the playoffs with promising young stars, veterans who returned to form, and a ballpark that was rocking and rolling like I’ve never seen it before. I’ll always remember the 9 game winning streak in June, taking 4 of 5 from the Cardinals at the end of July, Gerrit Cole’s 1-0 win in September that got things back on track, and of course, I’ll always remember “Cueeeeeeee-to… Cueeeeeeee-to… Cueeeeeeee-to…”

            So, on the last day of 2013, I engage in the holy practice of reflection. 2013 challenged me, uplifted me, and brought me peace and joy that I never saw coming. In 2014, new challenges and new celebrations will surely come that I cannot anticipate. So I prepare myself to meet them with grace and joy, as we once again leave one year behind and strive towards a new one.