Dear Friends,
This coming Monday, January 15, the nation will observe the birthday of The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He would have been 95 this year. He was only 39 when he was assassinated on April 4, 1968. It’s difficult to think of how young he was when he died.
Many churches, including Trinity, will mark Dr. King’s birthday a day earlier – on Sunday – with prayers, readings, and music that reflect his values and ideals: among them, the principle of non-violent resistance to racist oppression and the dream of Beloved Community.
The Episcopal Church, inspired by our own Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, is guided by the long-term commitment to Becoming Beloved Community in its work toward racial reconciliation, healing and justice. Our ministries are organized around four things:
• Truth-telling: Telling the Truth about Our Churches and Race
• Proclamation: Proclaiming the Dream of Beloved Community
• Formation: Practicing Jesus’ Way of Healing Love
• Justice: Repairing the Breach in Society and Institutions
None of these is easy. Just take the first – Truth-telling – and think about all the ways many people, including some political leaders, try to deny the truth about Black history in America and attempt to rewrite that history by requiring teachers to give – or stay away from – certain lessons, on penalty of possibly losing their jobs. In July, The Washington Post reported that “A 2022 law [in Florida] mandates students may not be made to ‘feel guilt, anguish, or other forms of psychological distress’ because they were forced to reflect on bad acts committed in the past by members of their race. And now, according to curriculum standards released last week, Florida students must learn that enslaved people ‘developed skills’ that ‘could be applied for their personal benefit.. . . ‘”
Trinity’s own recent unwelcome visit from an avowed white supremacist, who took issue with our Black Lives Matter banner, was a stark reminder of the persistence of racism in our society.
A dozen years ago, a parishioner in the parish where I was rector wanted to find a way to observe the King holiday that would involve the community. He had been part of the King Center in Atlanta in its early days, and had worked with Coretta Scott King, Dr. King’s widow. His goal was to make the holiday more than a day off. He decided to help the local food pantry network by organizing a food drive that would gather a ton of food on Dr. King’s birthday.
Since he was a marketing guy, he called it Feed the Dream. Feed the Dream’s slogan, “One Day, One Ton,” captured the simple idea – and the slogan became the URL for the drive’s website: onedayoneton.org. The idea caught on, and has subsequently received volunteer support from the local public schools, Denison University, service clubs, the local IGA grocery store, and others.
For whatever reason, the King holiday always seems to fall on the coldest day of the year. This year, January 15 is predicted to have temperatures down in the single digits. While we are all trying to stay warm, may I suggest we find a way to make this year’s King holiday more than a day off. I plan to attend the celebration at Glenwood Lutheran Church, 2545 Monroe St., this Sunday afternoon at 4:00 pm and then contribute to The Toledo NW Ohio Food Bank. I invite you to join me, or to find another way to help Dr. King’s dream of Beloved Community become a reality.
Blessings,
Stephen Applegate