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Strength to Love

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Because of his inspiring leadership during the United States civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, and because he was assassinated while serving in that capacity, Martin Luther King, Jr., has become an iconic figure in popular culture. And I fear that King the "legend" has become so big that people may be paying insufficient attention to King the writer. If you want to experience King's insight and power as a writer, read "Strength to Love." This collection of sermons is an excellent summation of the philosophy he developed as a Christian clergyman, social critic, and advocate for the African-American community.

Most of the sermons in the book begin with a Bible verse which ties in to the theme of each sermon. One of the main themes of the collection as a whole is King's passionate denunciation of racial prejudice and of the tangible injustice that springs from that phenomenon.

King is also very critical of those sectors of the Christian world that have historically used the Bible and Christian theology as tools for promoting slavery, American racial segregation, and South African apartheid. Indeed, in the sermon entitled "A knock at midnight" he refers to the Christian churches' historic support of racism as one of "the shameful tragedies of history." And he is also critical of those Black churches that have reduced Christianity to either a frenzied form of "entertainment" or a snobbish social club. These are hard words that contemporary Christians need to hear and heed.

King's own vision of Christianity is bold and revolutionary. And this vision is firmly grounded in the person of Jesus, whom he describes as "the world's most dedicated nonconformist." While strongly Christian, King is nonetheless respectful of the truths found in other religious traditions.

One fascinating sermon includes King's balanced critique of Communism. In another sermon, he praises Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi, who greatly influenced King's philosophy of nonviolence. Ultimately, King's vision and compassion is vast: in "The man who was a fool," he writes, "All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality."

King's radicalism, his willingness to critique the failings of the Christian world, and his rejection of a rigidly fundamentalist style of Christianity have made him a target of ugly criticism from some more conservative Christians. (Consider, for example, author Paul McGlasson; in his 1994 book "Another Gospel" he condemns King as a "false prophet.") And I fear that others have tried to "sanitize" King's strong message. And that is why "Strength to Love" is such an important book. It is an important historical document of a critical era. And it is also a bold proposal of a Christian path that is compassionate, committed, and open to new truth.

In the popular eye, Martin Luther King, Jr. is best known for his work in the Civil Rights struggle during the 1950s and 1960s; his public speeches and public acts are part of the general pattern of American history. However, his ability at public speaking came largely from his experience as a preacher in Black church - the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. had a 'day job' as pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, and as part of this task, he regularly delivered sermons to his congregation. This is a collection of 15 sermons, illustrating major points of King's theology and sense of social justice.

This book has a foreword by King's daughter, Coretta Scott King, who speaks of this book as one that is most influential to others - the primary feature of King's theology and practice, nonviolence, is contained here. King's sense of justice, the love of the divine, the interconnectedness of all peoples in the human community, and King's ultimate sense of optimism come through the powerful words of these sermons.

King's words often take conventional phrases and ideas and bring out new meanings. King's ideas of the practical meaning of being a nonconformist, or of loving one's enemies, put new interpretations on these ideas. King talks of the difficulty of being a nonconformist, and the echoes of the Transcendentalists such as Emerson and Thoreau are present, as are theologians such as Niebuhr. King does not speak of the kind of simple nonconformity that typifies teen-age rebellion and angst (which is, in itself a very conformist kind of nonconformity), but rather a working against the prevailing norms of society toward a transformation in love and furtherance of the gospel message.

King states that of all Jesus' commands, the command to love one's enemies is the most difficult to follow in practice. King looks not only at the question of how, but also why should we love our enemies, concluding with the observation that 'love is the most durable power in the world.' Love, being a creative and transformative force, is the greatest hope for lasting and meaningful peace. Quoting Napoleon Bonaparte, who built a great empire, he observes that all empires and authorities that rest on force are destined to fail, but Jesus' empire built on love continues generation after generation.

King risked unpopularity among the dominant white culture of America; this is well known. However, he also risked unpopularity among his own community (and risked giving the powers that be further ammunition against him) by delivering sermons such as 'How should Christians view Communism?' and not giving a unilateral condemnation of the same. This was a perilous stand to take in Cold-War America. Admitting the problems with Communism, King was equally honest about the shortcomings of Capitalism, and wrote, 'We who cannot accept the creed of the Communists recognize their zeal and commitment to a cause which they believe will create a better world.' King takes both Communism and Capitalism to task for failing to appreciate the social aspect of humanity, concentrating more on the Enlightenment-generated individual.

This is no simple Baptist preaching - King's erudition shows through without being oppressive or condescending; he weaves in references from Greek and Roman classics, Shakespeare, English and Continental philosophers, the Declaration of Independence, and American writers with grace and ease, all the while maintaining a close attention to the primary biblical message. King doesn't engage in prooftexting, but does provide a new hermeneutic (for the time) that provides foundation for more recent liberation theologies of diverse strands.

Perhaps pride of place goes to the final sermon in this collection ('and the last shall be first'), which is King's 'Pilgrimage to Nonviolence'. King gives a brief spiritual and intellectual autobiography, talking of his quest for understanding from fundamentalism to liberalism to neo-orthodoxy and beyond; he gives credit to examples such as Gandhi and the people of bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama as proof that nonviolent action can have dramatic, lasting and beneficial power for the whole community. The sermon ends with hope for the future, a future we are called to continue to build.

This is a text to be read again and again, as the words remain fresh and powerful even as nearly half a century has passed since their first utterance. There is inspiration for our time as well as a glimpse of times past in King's sermons. It is worthy of a place in history, and deserves a place in the future.

This is a wonderful collection of Dr. King's sermons. The sermons function well independently; however, together they present a comprehensive view of Dr. King's nonviolent philosophy and his understanding of the Gospel's imperative for peaceful resistance. This book is a must read for anyone trying to understand Dr. King, the Civil Rights Movement, nonviolent philosophy, or true love!

Until you read this book you will not understand the spitirual dynamics of the civil rights movement. I guarantee that the chapter on tough minds/tender hearts will change anyone who reads it. This text MUST become required reading for everyone. Dr. King teaches that it truly takes strength to love. He also explains that God does not leave it all up to us to do but he will give us the strength to love if we submit to his will. He explains as it does in the Holy Bible that anyone can love and do good to those who do good to them but it truly takes strength to love your enemy. In the non-violent revolution Dr. King demonstrates how love(Truth) will always defeat hate(UnTruth). Truth crushed to the earth will always RISE.

This book of sermons reveals how King used the pulpit as a podium of moral philosophy, reconstructing the traditional commitments of faith by means of patient reasoning. Thus, the first passage of this book pleads for a "tough mind." Although we are prepared to appreciate King's faith, this book is also a lasting testament to his intellect.--Greg Moses

"Strength to Love" woke me up.

It made Dr. King so much more real. It contains some of the most powerful teachings on how to love in situations where it is difficult to. Not love -in the romantic sense - but rather, in a much deeper way - as in love of humankind. Of Christ-love. Just read his sermon on "Loving your enemies": he starts with the difficulty of reconciling this commandment, and finishes with a flury of passion exhorting us to make this commandment real when he starts with the words "To our most bitter opponents, we say...". It's not just the banter and broad strokes which he uses so magnificently to generate his passion. He also gathers support from folks such as Emerson, Napolean, Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche and the Bible of course. All of this to convey a sense of urgency to show how low we all have come, and at the same time to inspire us to a place where we can go.

While you may not agree with what he says, you must admire and respect what he says. Dr. King's messages aren't easy to digest- but he says the right thing - which is not always, the easy thing. Even though these teachings were written over 40 years ago now, his messages in "Strength" are no less relevant and more important than ever.

This book really taps into alot moral,social, racial issues of today. Furthermore this book challenges Christians to really look deep into our faith and reason, and depend upon God. This book truly eliminated any myths I had about MLK.

i first picked this up in college, and got it again this year because it couldn't possibly have been as great as i remembered it to be, but lo! it actually is.

i'm a committed secular humanist who has done a great deal of bible study, and who likes narrative jesus 'the guy who turned over tables and said what he meant', without buying into the 'resurrected son of man' part. king in these speeches talks more clearly, honestly, truthfully, and eloquently about the jesus I like than anyone i have ever read or heard. it's about jesus the temperate, jesus the considerate, jesus the revolutionary, jesus the useful and applicable to all people, not just christians. it's an amazing thing, what king does here.

this is not to say that he's not talking about the other jesus, too -- he is. but in most of these sermons, the qualities that king highlights are the ones that are pragmatic and applicable to his particular struggles, things like pacifism, steadfastness, and courage to speak truth to power. these are all christian values, too, i suppose, but they're really just human values, i think.

so, no offense jesus people, but i think that this is a book of sermons from a guy who knew that jesus was bigger than just being the annointed. as he exists in the gospel narratives, king draws jesus as a model *human*, independent of his messianic qualities. this is an *amazing* book.

Timeless. As relevant now as what it was when it was written. Addresses the issues of hate and indifference and argues that the solution is love. Love does sound all too simplistic but it is one of the hardest things to face but its rewards are beyond words.

I have bought and given this book away to friends because it clarifies Christ's stand on civil rights and the role of race. The book also eliminates many public misrepresentations of my Lord. It does this by simple demonstration of how King applied Christ's understanding, the wisdom of the ancients, and the prophets, in the practical matter of getting along; a way of seeing. The book is the history of a beginning, practical, and timeless. Finding these three attributes simultaneously is a sure sign that we should pay attention. This is a book worthy of your attention. Read it in prayer.