MLK Boston
The Rev. Gilbert H. Caldwell (right) stands with the Revs. Martin Luther King Jr. (left) and Virgil Wood on the roof of a Boston public school in 1965. Photo courtesy of the Rev. Gilbert H. Caldwell.
Feb. 11, 2022 | NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UM News)
Key points:
In his last book, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. posed the question, “where do we go from here: community or chaos?” The question is still relevant today.
Acting counter to love leads to racism, sexism, classism – chaos.
We are at a crossroads, and God gives us the power to choose community over chaos.
As we celebrate Black History Month, our news is filled with old conversations around race, voting, policing, books and bomb threats against historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
This is layered with rumors of wars, divisive conversations around masks and vaccines, inequitable access to health care and people trying to survive off jobs paying a minimum wage.
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s last book, “Where Do We Go from Here: Community or Chaos,” is a prophetic work that urged a Jim Crow America at a crossroads to make a decision: chaos or community.
Dr. King’s idea of community was the Beloved Community rooted in love, unity and compassion. Unfortunately, if Dr. King were here today, he would see America at another crossroads asking the same question: “Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?” The question is still relevant because we are still living in chaos, not just in America, but all over the world.
But there is good news: There is hope in the middle of chaos.
In the beginning, there was chaos. “In the beginning, the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” These are the words from Genesis describing how the heavens and the earth looked before God spoke. In reality, the scene was chaotic, out of control, formless, noisy, windy and filled with confusion.
Before God started to work on this formless void, God moved over it. God thought about it. Then, God created a community out of the chaos, the heavens and the earth. God’s presence in the beginning assures us of God’s presence right now and God’s desire for us to live in community, not chaos.
We cannot go from chaos to community unless we align ourselves with love. When we act counter to love, the results are divisive, noisy and confusing. When we do not love like God commands us to love, it results in chaos. Racism is chaos. Sexism is chaos. Classism is chaos.
Oppression is just not found in these isms, but it exists when we ignore truth and justice, we refuse to help the least of these, and we become conspirators in the very systems that we say we are against. This is why any form of oppression is wrong. Anything counter to community is not the will of God.
We are at a crossroads, at a breaking point, where we must decide where to go from here. Where do we go from COVID-19? Where do we go from Jan. 6? Where do we go from bomb threats against HBCUs? Where do we go from people losing their jobs and health insurance? Where do we go from here as a church? I hope we choose community.
Chaos thrives in environments promoting hate and disunity. It feeds off chaotic thinking — negative thoughts, worry, paranoia and conspiracies.
Chaos loves conflicts, such as over whether to wear a mask or not wear a mask, to vaccinate or not to vaccinate, to ordain or not to ordain, or who’s red or who’s blue, what we should read or not read, or who someone should love or shouldn’t love. Chaotic thoughts lead to hate and destruction. I still believe, amid these situations that seem void and out of control, that God is present and active.
God is present in the midst of chaos as long as there are people who are compassionate, demonstrate love and are willing to stand up for what’s right. No matter what is going on in our chaotic world, communities or even in our personal lives, God is there and prepared to bring about change. There is hope no matter how bad it looks. God is working it out for our good. Even though I may be in a state of chaos, God’s grace is moving all through it and speaks peace and tranquility.
God still speaks over chaos: let there be light, illumination, understanding, order and community. God has the power to make sense of it all and declare that it is all good. God can work incredible good out of situations, circumstances and even people in a state of chaos.
Where do we go from here, community or chaos? I believe community. There is always hope to go from chaos to community. God has given us power to speak over the chaos and bring about community. Let us stand up for truth, justice and the least of these.
What God did in the beginning was an act of love, and then when things became chaotic, God sent Jesus to show us the way back to community — love, forgiveness, service, redemption and healing. We can get there together. It is up to up to us. There is hope in the midst of chaos.
Read these words from Dr. King’s speech from April 3, 1968, the day before he was assassinated. In it, he refers to the attempt on his life in 1958, when his would-be killer stabbed him so close to his heart that the doctors said if King had sneezed he would have died.
“It came out in the New York Times the next morning, that if I had sneezed, I would have died. ... But there was another letter that came from a little girl, a young girl who was a student at the White Plains High School. And I looked at that letter, and I’ll never forget it. It said simply, ‘Dear Dr. King: I am a ninth-grade student at the White Plains High School.’ She said, ‘While it should not matter, I would like to mention that I am a white girl. I read in the paper of your misfortune, and of your suffering. And I read that if you had sneezed, you would have died. And I’m simply writing you to say that I’m so happy that you didn’t sneeze.’
“And I want to say tonight, I want to say that I am happy that I didn't sneeze. ... Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”
Dr. King’s words inspire us to know that there is hope amid chaos, and we are the hope.
Robin Kimbrough Hayes
The Rev. Robin Kimbrough Hayes
The Rev. Robin Kimbrough Hayes serves as chaplain and special adviser in higher education at United Methodist-related Meharry Medical College and she does volunteer work with the Legal Aid Society in Nashville. She is a former assistant state attorney general and also served as associate general counsel for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services. She is currently a candidate for general sessions judge in the Nashville area.