#1 MLK was an evangelical

This weekend I sat down with my kids to watch Sesame Street’s new episode on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In the episode the children made a peace tree and drew pictures of how they intend to make the world a better place through kindness. Though peace and kindness are great things to be teaching our kids there was no mention of MLK being a pastor or a Christian for that matter. To me this is a major oversight at best or downright dishonest at worst. To a large degree progressives have inherited the mantle of MLK because of his focus on social justice and care for the vulnerable. Yet, as evidenced by the Sesame Street episode, there’s been a fair amount of whitewashing to better align him with progressive values.

The reality was not so simple. Dr. King’s life and work were animated by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. From scripture we read that humanity is one, and he protested the lie that somehow we are separate. He did this not through his own power, but through the spiritual power of the cross. The crucifixion invites us to die to ourselves and relinquish our power and privilege for the sake of others. The cross is the ultimate example of non-violent protest: an all powerful God brutally murdered willingly, forgiving his persecutors in the moment. The gospel is that love is the ultimate reality in the universe and in the end love will triumph. This is what drove his ministry of social justice.

While there is certainly a lot of overlap between progressive values and evangelical Christianity (especially in the areas of social justice), there are also some important distinctions. I have to think Dr. King was not naive about the evil that dwelt in people’s hearts and our own powerlessness over what the church calls “sin”. We are addicted to evil, self-preservation, pride, and violence. Humanity needs a savior but that savior is not us. In the 20th century there are many stark examples of societies that tried to create heaven on earth through their own power - it became a living hell.

Whether or not we subscribe to his theology, we still benefit from the results of his Christian beliefs. Yet the Jesus shaped arch to Dr. King’s life is left out of many tellings of his story. Why might this be?

#2 MLK’s theology is completely absent from most Evangelical churches in America today

The reason Sesame Street progressives are able to pick up MLKs mantle is because the evangelical church in America has largely dropped it on the ground. We have abandoned the power of the cross, the power of humility, the power of self-sacrificial love. This self-dying power was our brand, our birthright, really the only thing we had going for us. When we left it behind we gave up our identity and replaced it with a love of power.

Now we have aligned ourselves with forces that battle for cultural and political superiority. Jesus said “whatever you do for the least of these you do for me” and we are doing terrible things to the least of these. For many our name has become associated with a profound lack of compassion. It is anti-immigrant, anti-gay, anti-minority, anti-woman, these are all criticisms that we rightly deserve.

Author Roberta Bondi wrote almost 40 years ago that the goal of Christian life was love. She said in the book To Love as God Loves:

Many people reject Christianity precisely because they have only known some world repudiating version of it. So they associate being Christian with being insensitive to human suffering and need. They often feel they must choose between love and God and turning their backs on people, or doing what they can for people while turning their backs on God. …Human beings are made in the image of God, and this means we cannot love God without at the same time loving God's image.

If we are ever to honor Dr. King’s vision and legacy we must accept the death of ourselves and enter into the suffering of those in our midst.

Two Uncomfortable Truths about MLK Jr.