Meditation

I have a dream today.



I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and valley shall be made low, and the crooked place will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.



This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return.



With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.



With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.



With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. This will be the day when al of God’s children will be able to sing with a new meaning



My country, ‘tis of thee

Sweet land of liberty

Of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died,

Land of the pilgrim’s pride,

From every mountain side

Let freedom ring.



And if America is to be a great nation this must become true.

So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California.

Let freedom ring from Look-out Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.



When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city we will be able to speed up the day when all of God’s children. Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of eth old Negro spiritual, “Free at last! Thank God almighty, we are free at last”



– Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

March on Washington - Aug 28, 1963 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbUtL_0vAJk

14 min. 37 seconds into the video this portion is heard





Even if you weren’t there, even if this is just “history” for you… these words bring us back to a time where fear prevailed, where distrust was lurking behind the bushes, whispering words of discord, trying to destroy, to bring down. They bring us back to a time where many people were centered in the notion that justice was something to risk for, that love and unity could prevail over hatred.



America may not look like it did centuries ago, it may not look like it did when you grandparents were young. It doesn’t look like it did even a few decades ago. But it is still America, and we are all still Americans. Dr. King tried to bring out the “better angels of our nature” through words of Freedom and justice.



We still have fear among us, still have the specter of hatred looming over us. Maybe the objects of our hatred and fear are different, maybe not… but nonetheless… do not let it win! Stand strong and God will prevail… have faith!







In what part of our lives do we need to be free?