His ideals shall reign forever

Today, is a Monday. It is January 15th. It is cold outside. And it is the day to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.

Let's work backwards: MLK day. “A fine man. A great man, really, wouldn’t you say? Yes, yes, his ideals shall reign forever, in my heart at least.” Cries the aristocrat from our day. Corporation-leaders and drug-dealers alike vow, on this day, to serve the community in the name of someone who they themselves have lost the meaning of. And yet, racism, ghettos, segregation (to name a few) all still exist. Some physically, some implicitly – but all still exist. At the same time that we’ve made leaps and bounds, we’re still the same poor excuse of a creation that always has been.

“In that day the Lord Almighty will be a glorious crown, a beautiful wreath for the remnant of his people. He will be a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment, a source of strength to those who turn back the battle at his gate.” Isaiah 28:5-6.

It is cold outside. 29 degrees Fahrenheit to be exact (28.6, really exact). Wind chills to the bone, and ravages a poor, black, ghetto-dwellers already tattered coat. But this is not the only cold, no. The rich man – rich off of the blood of others without recompense – sitting in his warm office, house, car, or private jet is experiencing an even worse cold: a coldness in his heart that he has learned to ignore. The chilling winds of bootstrap-ideology prove ineffective to people in power who say that our public clinics don’t need a rise in expenditure income. Who say that people who live in the ghetto are all lazy or addicted to drugs. Who say that everyone can get out if they really wanted to.

“The earth is defiled by its people, they have disobeyed the laws; violated the statutes. Therefore a curse consuming the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earths inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.” Isaiah 24:5-6.

It is January 15th. We are more than two weeks into a new year. In his great Christmas/anti-war song, John Lennon demands: “And so this is Christmas/and what have you done?/Another year over/and a new one just begun.” More than two weeks have passed us by! What have we done? Or nearer to the point (my condolences to John – you were stricken from this earth far too early, brother, live on) what is ours to do? All that we can, in our humane power, if it ends there, is daunting at best. Terrifying, really, if we understand that humans are the source of the problem; terrifying more, if we realize that we aren’t. We were created imago dei; our P’u is to be good and right. If this disease of racism were solely a human issue, that would be a good thing – we can remedy our human actions with other actions. The act and actions of racism can be attacked. We – by our human selves alone – cannot destroy something that is spirit in nature. The metaphor – the ideology – of racism is evil. And we – by our human selves alone – are no match for it.

“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed. I will make justice a measuring line and righteousness the plumb line, hail will sweep away your refuge, the lie, and water will overflow your hiding place.” Isaiah 28:16-17.

Lastly, firstly, it is Monday. A brand new day. A brand new week. A fresh start. Hardly a sure-shot, but another go to say the least. Another try – another attempt – to cling to the ideals of brotherhood, sisterhood, love, kindness, peace, gentleness, self-control, understanding, equality, humility, fairness, acceptance, tolerance, and, ultimately, Christ: the cornerstone. The firm foundation to this spiritual battle, will be not only the recognition of the living Christ within ourselves; but, moreover, within the other.

“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men were created equal.’

“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough plains will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”

I, too, have a dream. A dream of fair-trade economy. Of earth-loving ecology. Of person-loving equality. Of child-loving politics. Of God-loving fear.

I, too, have a dream today.