Martin Luther King Jr. as Spiritual Leader
The following is a transcript of Dr. Carey’s remarks to the 2017 Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast in Lexington, Ky. Thank you Mr. Jackson, Chairman Everett, and the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity for this invitation. I am honored to be here. I have been asked to reflect on Dr. King as a spiritual leader. Initially, as a philosopher and person of faith, I welcomed the opportunity. But as I began to review Dr. King’s life and work, I found myself unexpectedly uneasy. I had studied Dr. King in the past, and I thought a brief review would be enough to clarify what I wanted to say. I quickly discovered, however, that Dr. King’s writings do not let us rest contentedly on how much we know, or how bravely we fought, or how sincerely we have embraced his message. And very soon, my smug familiarity dissolved into discomforting introspection. I found my disorientation particularly unexpected and unsettling for several reasons. First, I was forcefully reminded that, if we are paying attention, if we are serious about our lives, an encounter with Dr. King will shake us to our bones. If we are willing to pay attention, his work will remind us of how necessary work is never easy, of how short we often fall, and, if we are paying attention, of how staying the difficult path is our only choice.
