Smith: Honor King's respect and love

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is welcomed with a kiss by his wife, Coretta, after leaving court in Montgomery, Ala., March 22, 1956.
The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is welcomed with a kiss by his wife, Coretta, after leaving court in Montgomery, Ala., March 22, 1956.
photo Robin Smith

I was 4 years old when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the American icon, was assassinated by an escaped prisoner who rejected a truth. That truth is supported in sacred Scripture and the Declaration of Independence - "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Approaching 54 years of age, I made the time last week to listen to several sermons archived by the Stanford University Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. What a blessing to listen to a great man, not a perfect man but a passionate preacher of the gospel of Christ and a fighter for equality based on his standing as a creation of God and as an American.

The homily delivered on Feb. 4, 1968, at his home church, Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, was one identified by King's wife as most reflective of her husband's life. So much so, the sermon - "The Drum Major Instinct" - was played at his funeral. Its message pierced hearts during the Civil Rights movement in the fight against despicable discrimination through racial segregation and inhuman mistreatment.

The key points of the sermon were simple: The instinct of everyone is to lead the parade and be the drum major. While Dr. King eloquently pointed out the positives of this self-confidence and ambition in leadership, his caution about the mindset focused on timeless truths.

The 1964 Nobel Peace Prize winner, who had passed the Morehouse College entrance exam at 15 years of age, also noted the drum major instinct's destructive potential.

Appreciate the timeline of events.

When King delivered this sermon, it had been 105 years since Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation making slavery illegal and 100 years since the U.S. Constitution had been amended with the 14th Amendment defining voting rights. Yet, just three days before that Sunday's sermon, 22 black sanitation workers in Memphis were sent home - due to inclement weather - and only paid for two hours' work. The white workers sent home were paid a full day's wage.

This was only one example of the prejudice and corrupt behavior toward people who raised their families, went to work, prayed to God and were law-abiding. Yet, they were born with darker skin.

But back to King's teaching. The dangers of the drum major instinct, he said, caused folks to pursue the status of living beyond their means. Some who "don't feel that they are getting enough attention through the normal channels of social behavior turn to anti-social behavior in order to get attention to feel important" and commit crimes and violence. Finally, Dr. King spoke of the desire for superiority that drove many to lie and "push others down in order to push himself up."

Dr. King employed the Scripture in the Gospel of Mark where James and John, disciples of Jesus, asked Christ if one could sit to his right, the other to his left, both positions of honor. Dr. King spoke to the "new definition of greatness" in paraphrasing Jesus' response: "Now brethren, I can't give you greatness. And really, I can't make you first. You must earn it. True greatness comes not by favoritism, but by fitness. And the right hand and the left are not mine to give; they belong to those who are prepared." King's conclusion: "Whoever wants to become great among you must serve."

The civil rights leader and outspoken preacher served his God, his nation, his family and the world by teaching respect and love in an example we should honor.

Robin Smith, a former chairwoman of the Tennessee Republican Party, owns Rivers Edge Alliance.

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