The secularization of Martin Luther King Jr.

At the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington earlier this month, the faithful met to worship the Almighty and discuss the latest battles for religious liberty in an increasingly secular culture.

When the Knights of Columbus’ Supreme Knight Carl Anderson spoke, he made a startling observation about the capital’s new Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. monument: Even though Dr. King was a Baptist minister and his history-altering speeches about civil liberties are saturated with references to natural rights and profound theological constructs, none of the 14 quotes carefully etched into his stone monument contain references to God.

Mr. Anderson mocked those in authority who were given the difficult task of carefully combing through Rev. King’s archives to find a few secular quotations.

In Dr. King’s famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” which is full of religious references, he relied on the Catholic natural law tradition by citing Saint Augustine of Hippo, who said in “On Free Choice of the Will” that “an unjust law is no law at all.” King went on to proclaim he and his peaceful supporters were “in reality standing up for what is best in the American dream and for the most sacred values in our Judeo-Christian heritage, thereby bringing our nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.”

There is no question about Rev. King’s adherence to scripture, and it was his fidelity to religious principles which lead him to a higher calling on this earth. Instead of excusing injustice, King fought oppression and inequality. And while he is no longer with us, his ability to look evil in the face and defend the inherent rights of all men is a model which all true Christians must follow.

Read More at The Daily Caller. By Ken Blackwell.

Photo Credit: afagen (Creative Commons)