Black History Month

As many of you know, February is black history month. This Saturday is the Opening Ceremonies of our city's first African American museum. It is an old house located in what used to be the black section of town back in the early 19oo's. I am currently reading Martin Luther King Jr's Autobiography, which is fascinating by the way. I have heard it said several times over the past month that Martin Luther King Jr. was quite possibly not a Christian because he revered and followed closely the teachings of Ghandi. This bothers me. If you read about him, you will find that he was raised in the church and came from a long family line of pastors. He received his seminary degree in theology and honorary degrees in Divinity from several colleges. He accepted a pastorate position at his family's Baptist church, where he was still the pastor when he was killed. If you read his thoughts and speeches, you will find that they are heavily influenced by the Bible. He had an active prayer life that sustained him as he sat in jail, having been arrested over 30 times. I have taken it to be that his fascination with Ghandi is based solely on his peaceful resistance methods, his influence over social policy and change, and the way he led his life- not on any of his religious or spiritual beliefs. MLK Jr was a very learned man, he read everything! There are pictures of him at his home in Atlanta, and in the background you will see portraits of Ghandi. This could lead one to wonder where portraits of Jesus were in his house if he was a Christian. I don't know if he had these portraits, although they would have just been an artists rendition- not an actual photo, and keep in mind any picture of Jesus in the 60's would have been a very white man...not Jewish or middle eastern in appearance at all...this being during the time of segregation. Something to think about. Here is a small bio written about Martin Luther King Jr. I recommend that you read up on his life. He accomplished ALOT in a short amount of time.

http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html

Sorry I don't know how to make it a cool link with one word- anyone out there that knows how to do that on blogger, I'd love the advice!!

Isaac and I have enjoyed reading his little board book on Rosa Parks and I show him the pictures in his Ruby Bridges book, although he is too young to understand the story. On a side note we we were at Mardel's getting his Boz Valentine's for school and he grabbed up a HUGE picture of MLK Jr. and said "We have to get this for Daddy!" I thought that was funny and wondered why he thought Daddy needed that picture. I assured him when he is old enough to know who that is, we will get it for Daddy. :)

Likewise, it will be important to us to teach him about how there were many whites who stood behind desegregation, who marched alongside Martin Luther King Jr, and sat at lunch counters refusing to be served until their fellow black citizens were given equal treatment; and there were white men and women who drove their black neighbors and friends around town during the bus boycotts. It is important for him to not see it as a black and white issue, but more of an issue of human dignity and respect- that God desires all that are created in His image to be given. People fear those who are different from them and across history discriminate against those differences, whether they be race, gender, or class. We hope to raise our children to take on these challenges to make their communities a better place to live in.