Living the Legacy
Amos 5:21-24, 1 Samuel 3:1-10
University Christian Church, Seattle, WA
January 15, 2006 (Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday)
Rev. Sandy Messick

• I have a dream…
• Can any of us hear those words and not recall Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s famous speech.
• I have a dream…" 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 are created equal." I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi , a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four 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. I have a dream today.”
• Dr. King had a dream. Only it’s my dream too. And it’s your dream too. And even more, it’s God’s dream. Way before young Martin was a twinkle in anybody’s eye, God had a dream. The prophet Amos spoke the words of that dream when he said on God’s behalf, “I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies…But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
• The dream which Dr. King proclaimed was not his alone, or even that of all justice loving people of the 20 th century. It was a dream proclaimed by God throughout all time, and a dream which God still puts before us today. God has a dream...

• Sadly, we must confess, that even now, some 40 years after the passage of civil-rights legislation, the dream still waits for fulfillment.
• This week, Seattle schools were once again chastised when a study revealed that African-American students are suspended or expelled at higher rates than other populations.
• Hurricane Katrina pointed out the glaring inequities among races and economic classes when such a vast majority of the city’s poor and black citizens founds themselves without food, water, shelter, or assistance.
• The very fact that we as a region and as a denomination need to make anti-racism, pro-reconciliation training an emphasis and a priority underscores the fact that though we have made some progress, we have a long way to go in living out God’s dream.
• And that doesn’t even begin to account for racism and discrimination among other populations. Arab-Americans being “randomly” searched, and profiled, and questioned, especially since 9/11. Suspicion against our Muslim brothers and sisters, equating all Muslims with those radical, suicidal fundamentalists. Stereotypes that continue to persist about other groups, newly-arrived immigrants, Latinos and Latinas, Native Americans.
• No, the dream is still out there, it is not yet. There is work yet to be done.

• This morning, as we celebrate Dr. King’s birthday, his life and his work. As we come together to recognize and remember God’s dream expressed through Amos and the other prophets, it’s appropriate to wonder, how do we best honor a man’s life, and a man’s dream. How do we best live out God’s dream?
• Ecumenical celebrations are good. National holidays are fine. But as one writer wrote, there is a danger. “While designating an official holiday in King’s honor is an appropriate way to finally ‘claim’ him as part of our national vision, it has at the same time the unfortunate effect of distancing us from his challenge. Movements have a way of becoming museums. The dream which once threatened the privilege of the powerful is itself now threatened with domestication. ‘We Shall Overcome’ grows stale and lifeless if sung only from the carpeted and cushioned comfort of air-conditioned churches.” (Ken Sehested, forward to Dreaming God’s Dream)
• Amos’ words come back again to haunt us. Worship is fine. Offerings are fine. But what God really wants is justice.
• How do we best live out God’s dream? How do we best honor King’s dream? The answer is simple, and oh so difficult. As Kenneth Smith, former president of Chicago Theological Seminary wrote, “The most lasting memorials are those etched in the hearts and minds of people who have captured his dreams and who have made the decision to live radical lives, lives for others.” In other words, the best way to honor the legacy is to live out the dream.

• Ah but we know all that don’t we. Preaching racial equality and social justice in this congregation is literally like preaching to the choir. You don’t need me to convince you that racism is wrong and contrary to God’s will. You don’t need me to tell you that torturing prisoners at Abu Ghraib or Guantanamo Bay or some undisclosed location in another country is wrong and contrary to God’s will. You don’t need me to tell you that the dream is still a dream and still in need of dreamers. You know all that. And yet, still, it’s easy to become complacent. When we’re in here. Comfortable in our inclusivity, even at times smugly proud of our bent towards peace. We still need to hear the words of Amos. Still need to be reminded that the tributes God desires, the offering God wants us to bring, isn’t our music as fine as it is, or our preaching words, or our overflowing offering plates (emphasize overflowing). It’s the speaking out against injustice, and the working towards righteousness, and the living out of God’s dreams. The voice God most wants to hear is our voices raised on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves, and raised in solidarity with those screaming to be heard. These are the gifts that give glory to God. This is what it means to honor the legacy left for us. How’re we doing with that?

• Many of you have heard the quote from Lutheran Pastor Martin Niemoeller written during Hitler’s reign. Although there are variations, it generally goes something like this:

In Germany , the Nazis first came for the communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, but I didn't speak up because I was a protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak for me.

• Powerful enough, even 60 years later. But in 2002, shortly after the passage of the Patriot Act, Stephen Rohde wrote a new version, one that I think speaks directly to us:
• First they came for the Muslims, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Muslim.
   
  Then they came for the immigrants, detaining them indefinitely solely on the certification of the attorney general, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't an immigrant.
   
  Then they came to eavesdrop on suspects consulting with their attorneys, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a suspect.
   
  Then they came to prosecute noncitizens before secret military commissions, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a noncitizen.
   
  Then they came to enter homes and office s for unannounced "sneak and peak" searches, and I didn't speak up because I had nothing to hide.
   
  Then they came to resume the infiltration and surveillance of domestic religious and political groups, and I didn't speak up because I no longer participated in any groups.
   
  Then they came to arrest American citizens and hold them indefinitely without any charges and without access to lawyers, and I didn't speak up because I would never be arrested.
   
  Then they came to institute TIPS (Terrorism Information and Prevention System) recruiting citizens to spy on other citizens and I didn't speak up because I was afraid.
   
  Then they came for anyone who objected to government policy because it only aided the terrorists and gave ammunition to America 's enemies, and I didn't speak up...because I didn't speak up.
   
  Then they came for me, and by that time, no one was left to speak up.

• God called to Samuel yet another time, “Samuel, Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Here I am, Lord. Speak, for your servant hears.”