Two Kinds of Confirmation
40 years ago today the Reverend Martin Luther King was assassinated and, at about the same time on this same day, I was confirmed as a member of the Episcopal Church and had my first communion. At about the same time the Bishop was placing that first wafer of the body of Christ in my mouth the great man (and he was a great man) was breathing his last. As I confirmed my belief in and acceptance of Christ as my saviour, we as a nation witnessed the act that confirmed our common rejection of racism.
Yes, I think that the assassination of the Reverend Martin Luther King forced Americans of all races to come together. You might not have realized it while standing in the light of the fires lit by rioters in major cities all around the country. You might have thought that those riots demonstrated the irreconciable differences that would tear apart our nation in the throes of violent racial conflict. But, it didn't happen. I think I know why, too. I think that we took his words to heart...
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
Many had the same dream. Their families came to this country to find the reality of that dream. They came from six continents and from every other nation to find a place where they weren't judged by their caste, or their color, or their religion, or their race, or their gender but were judged on the merit of their character and their ability and their actions. They came to the United States of America. And still they come...
I hope you'll take a few short minutes and watch and listen...
For us, the American ideal is personified in the concept of self-reliance, work ethic, honesty/forthrightness, decency, personal property rights, family, religion, an ability to defend oneself from criminals and crooked politicians, and personal responsibility.
