Tomorrow, we will celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. But today would’ve been his 94th birthday. Every year around this time, as I reflect on his life and legacy, I’m taken aback by the fact that it is plausible that Dr. King could still be alive today. I’m sure every one of us know at least one person who has lived into their nineties. I’ve met several ninety-plus year-olds in my life. So, it is not a farfetched idea, that the man who seems like such a distant figure of history, could very well still be with us today. However, the harsh reality is that he is not. This year will make 55 years since his life was tragically cut short on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN.
As a student of his life and work, one of my fears is that we are moving closer and closer to becoming a generation who will forget the legacy and life King lived. We celebrate MLK day, but there’s a generation coming up who isn’t familiar with his life and legacy. I remember a few years ago I was teaching a Sunday School class and I asked a group of high school students what they knew about MLK. I was shocked by the responses or lack thereof. There were one or two brief responses, but that quickly faded and gave way to silence and confused looks. How could a group of black high school students not know about MLK? Didn’t they at least learn a little about him in school? Then, I remembered…school didn’t teach me much about MLK either. If it wasn’t for my parents and the church community I grew up in, I likely would not know as much as I know now about Dr. King. It was that day I realized that if we keep going at this rate, MLK day will become just another holiday that we observe and not really grasp the significance as to why we celebrate. For a man who lived such an impactful, sacrificial, and meaningful life, it would be tragic for us to forget what he accomplished and more importantly what he stood for. His life is one we must continue to study and learn from.
There are many aspects of King's life that could be highlighted, here are 7 things you should know about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
1. He was born Michael, not Martin.
On January 15, 1929, the man we know as MLK was born Michael King Jr. In 1934, his father traveled to Germany and was inspired by the life of the great Reformer, Martin Luther. He was impacted so much that he decided to change his name and his son’s also. Thus, given us the name we know and celebrate today.
2. He graduated high school and enrolled in college at age 15.
King was a brilliant man. He skipped 9th and 12th grade and finished high school early at age 15. He graduated from Morehouse College at 19 and went on to complete his PhD at age 26.
3. He had a PhD in Systematic Theology.
There’s a misconception out there about the lack of scholarship and study amongst black clergy. This is a myth. Black preachers who have fully understood the God-given assignment have always valued scholarship and study. There have just been barriers that kept many of us from the academic world. Dr. King was indeed a black Baptist preacher. He was formed and shaped by the Baptist faith he grew up in under his father’s leadership. However, King was a trained scholar and theologian. The training he received heavily impacted his work and ministry going forward.
4. He chose a life of service instead of a life of ease and prestige.
With his education, King likely had several opportunities to live a more quiet, less stressful, out of the spotlight lifestyle. He could’ve chosen the path of being a professor at a university or seminary or pastoring a church. Though he did indeed pastor in Montgomery after graduation, he found himself thrust into leadership of the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955. As a result of this, he became the leader of the Civil Rights movement as whole and led it until his death.
5. He was arrested and jailed nearly 30 time
King was jailed almost 30 times over his life. Many of these arrests were from acts of protests and civil disobedience. Some of them were also a result of being who he was. As the leader of the movement, he undoubtedly developed many enemies who went to great lengths to see him fail. Despite all of this, King didn’t stop. He kept serving, kept leading, and kept fighting for the cause he was fighting for.
6. He was nearly killed 10 years before his death.
In his final speech the night before his death, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”, King details the incident where he was stabbed in his chest by a deranged lady during a book signing in Harlem. After surgery to remove the blade, doctors said that the blade was so close to the aorta of his heart that if he had sneezed, he would have died.
7. He was only 39 years old when he was killed.
I remember going to see the movie “Selma” when it came out a few years ago. At the end of the movie, the final scene faded to black and said that Martin Luther King was later killed in Memphis and then it faded in “He was only 39.” There was an audible gasp in the theater. People were shocked to realize that this man who had accomplished so much did it in such little time. Friends and acquaintances of King often talk about how he lived every day of his later years with the possibility of death in mind. They say he would often joke about his death as a way of coping with the harsh reality of it. He lived with constant death threats and threats to his family. Yet, he didn’t stop. He kept going.
And not only did he die a young man. He died essentially a poor man. King didn’t die with a lot of wealth and riches to his name. I’m sure he had countless opportunities to attain wealth and live an “easier” life. After all, he was one of the most well-known men in the nation during his day. He was a sough after speaker and teacher. There’s no doubt that he could have passed the baton and faded off the scene to rest awhile. After all he had endured, no one could have blamed him for it. But he chose to give that up for the sake of the movement he believed in.
King’s life was an amazing one. He wasn’t a perfect man by any standard, but I would argue that he’s one of, if not the single most, important American to ever live. I believe that more than any one person he pushed America to be a better version of itself – to live up to the ideals and truths that it claimed to hold dearly. Therefore, let us continue to teach our children and educate ourselves on the life of this great man. Let us be inspired by the life of service he lived and strive to serve our communities in the same way.
"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'"
– Martin Luther King Jr.
Be encouraged.
Comments