A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
by Martin Luther King Jr.
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Book Summary Information
Author: Martin Luther King Jr.Editor: Peter Holloran
Editor: Clayborne Carson
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2000-01-01
ISBN: 0446675547
Number of pages: 234
Publisher: Warner Books
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780446675543
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
Book Review: Dr. King was a preacher of the gospel before he was a civil rights leader
Summary: 5 Stars
Some people may only be familiar with a handful of Dr. King's justly well-known civil rights speeches, and might be surprised to hear his clarification: "Before I was a civil rights leader, I was a preacher of the gospel. This was my first calling and it still remains my greatest commitment."
Or again: "I am many things to many people; Civil Rights leader, agitator, trouble-maker and orator, but in the quiet recesses of my heart, I am fundamentally a clergyman, a Baptist preacher. This is my being and my heritage for I am also the son of a Baptist preacher, the grandson of a Baptist preacher and the great-grandson of a Baptist preacher. The Church is my life and I have given my life to the Church..."
This becomes evident as we read (or better, listen to) his transcribed sermon from 1957 (chapter 3 in this collection), as he exposits Jesus' challenge in Matthew 5 to "Love Your Enemies."
Listen as Dr. King illuminates "these very arresting words flowing from the lips of our Lord and Master":
"I think the first reason that we should love our enemies, and I think this was at the very center of Jesus' thinking, is this: that hate for hate only intensifies the existence of hate and evil in the universe. If I hit you and you hit me and I hit you back and you hit me back and go on, you see, that goes on ad infinitum. [tapping on pulpit] It just never ends. Somewhere somebody must have a little sense, and that's the strong person. The strong person is the person who can cut off the chain of hate, the chain of evil. And that is the tragedy of hate, that it doesn't cut it off. It only intensifies the existence of hate and evil in the universe. Somebody must have religion enough and morality enough to cut it off and inject within the very structure of the universe that strong and powerful element of love."
He concludes his message with these powerful words: "There is a little tree planted on a little hill and on that tree hangs the most influential character that ever came in this world. But never feel that that tree is a meaningless drama that took place on the stages of history. Oh no, it is a telescope through which we look out into the long vista of eternity, and see the love of God breaking forth into time. It is an eternal reminder to a power-drunk generation that love is the only way. It is an eternal reminder to a generation depending on nuclear and atomic energy, a generation depending on physical violence, that love is the only creative, redemptive, transforming power in the universe.
"So this morning, as I look into your eyes, and into the eyes of all of my brothers in Alabama and all over America and over the world, I say to you, 'I love you. I would rather die than hate you.' "
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Table of Contents
Introduction by Clayborne Carson & Peter Holloran
Rediscovering Lost Values (28 February 1954)
Introduction by Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker
Paul's Letter to American Christians (4 November 1956)
Introduction by Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian
Loving Your Enemies (17 November 1957)
Introduction by Reverend Dr. Joan Brown Campbell
A Knock at Midnight (1963)
Introduction by Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr.
The American Dream (4 July 1965)
Introduction by Bishop T.D. Jakes, Sr.
Guidelines for a Constructive Church (5 June 1966)
Introduction by Reverend Floyd H. Flake
The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life (9 April 1967)
Introduction by Father Theodore Hesburgh
Why Jesus Called a Man a Fool (27 August 1967)
Introduction by Reverend Billy Graham
The Drum Major Instinct (4 February 1968)
Introduction by Reverend Robert M. Franklin
Unfulfilled Dreams (3 March 1968)
Introduction by Dr. Vincent Harding
Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution (31 March 1968)
Introduction by Archbiship Desmond Tutu
Material Omitted from the Sermons
Acknowledgments
More A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. reviews:
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Summary of A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
With fiery words of wisdom and a passion for justice, Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., inspired people everywhere to perform extraordinary acts of courage and ignited one of the most influential movements of the twentieth century. This is the definitive collection of eleven of his most powerful sermons, from his earliest known audio recording to his last sermon, delivered days before his assassination. With introductions by renowned theologians and ministers including Reverend Billy Graham and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, filled with moving personal reflections and firsthand accounts of the events surrounding each sermon, A KNOCK AT MIDNIGHT is Dr. King's living voice today -- an irresistible call that resonates and inspires the greatness in us all.These 11 historic sermons--some complete recordings of entire addresses, others reconstructed from various church services--make plain why Martin Luther King Jr. considered his "first calling and greatest commitment" to be a preacher of the gospel. As an orator he is second to none, drawing his audience in with an urgency that resonates through every soaring cadence of his familiar, powerful voice. Using insights from psychology, philosophy, and the Bible, he appeals to the heads as well as the hearts of his congregations, explaining that personal and social change can only be effected by adopting a morality of love in service of God and humankind. While King's concern for social justice is a common theme throughout, each sermon is a jewel of literary artistry, as it presents a simple problem, examines its complications, and offers a startling and often challenging resolution. Topics range from "Rediscovering Lost Values," a caution that scientific progress without moral progress can result only in a step backward for humanity, to "An American Dream," a wake-up call to the "self-evident truth" of equality proclaimed in the Constitution.
Brief introductions to the sermons from spiritual leaders and friends, including Dr. Joan Campbell, Billy Graham, Dr. Robert Franklin, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, offer personal insights into King's life, work, and legacy. An interesting note from the producers explains how the recordings of the sermons (published in a hardcover companion of the same name) were pieced together. In word and in voice, these are masterpieces of theological literature from one of the world's great orators, who Robert Franklin rightly says may well be "the greatest religious intellectual of the twentieth century." (Running time: 8 hours, 6 cassettes) --Uma Kukathas
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