1/17/10
As reported by The Christian Post, leaders from Christian Churches Together in the U.S.A. have issued a clergy response to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” the “first and only” response of its kind, says the group. The response lamented that churches have “failed to go beyond spoken commitments” against racism and that “some of us have not progressed far enough beyond the initial message of the Birmingham clergy. The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was issued in 1963 by Dr. King while he was being held in Birmingham for leading a non-violent protest in that city. His letter responded to a group of white Alabama church leaders who had denounced the black demonstrations as “unwise and untimely,” despite their agreement with the cause. Dr. King had called the demonstrations “unfortunate,” but he also said the black community was given no alternative since the community refused to discuss the issue. Leaders from the CCT said they would renew their interest in ending racism; they also urge churches to read King’s letter today as a token of their similar renewal, as well.
