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The Arc of Truth: The Thinking of Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. said and wrote as much or more about the meaning, nature, and power of truth as any other prominent figure in the 1950s and '60s. King was not only vastly influential as an advocate for and defender of truth; he also did more than anyone in his time to organize truth into a movement for the liberation, uplift, and empowerment of humanity, efforts that ultimately resulted in the loss of his life. Drawing on King's published and unpublished sermons, speeches, and writings, The Arc of Truth explores King's lifelong pilgrimage in pursuit of truth. Lewis Baldwin explores King's quest for truth from his inquisitive childhood to the influence of family and church, to Morehouse College, Crozer Theological Seminary, Boston University, and other academic institutions in the Northeast. Continuing on, the book follows King's sense that he was involved in experiments of truth within the context of the struggle to liberate and empower humanity, to his understanding of the civil rights movement as unfolding truth, to his persistent challenge to America around its need to engage in a serious reckoning with truth regarding its history and heritage. Baldwin investigates King's determination to speak truth to power, and his untiring efforts to actualize what he envisioned as the truthful ends of the beloved community through the truthful means of nonviolent direct action. King believed, taught, and demonstrated by example that truth derives from a revolution in the heart, mind, and soul before it can be translated into institutions and structures that guarantee freedom, justice, human dignity, equality of opportunity, and peace. Ultimately, King's significance for humanity cannot be considered only his contributions as a preacher, pastor, civil rights leader, and world figure--he was and remains equally impactful as a theologian, philosopher, and ethicist whose life and thought evince an enduring search for and commitment to truth.
- GenresPhilosophy
384 pages, Hardcover
Published October 4, 2022
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December 26, 2022
Martin Luther King, Jr. is known to have spoken of the arc of the moral universe moving toward justice. He served as an important prophet and activist toward that goal, which we're still moving toward. That movement toward justice, however, is rooted in a commitment on King's part to the pursuit of truth. It was a commitment that began during his youth and continued throughout his life. That is the premise of Lewis Baldwin's book "The Arc of Truth." It is a message that is worth considering as we navigate what many call our post-truth era, an era exemplified by Donald Trump and his Big Lie.
Lewis Baldwin, professor emeritus of religious studies at Vanderbilt University has written several previous books about King and his work. This book adds another layer to his own work and that of others who have explored King's legacy. The focus here is both on ideas, especially King's biblical, theological, and philosophical ideas, and how King sought to put them into practical effect in his civil rights and social justice efforts. As Baldwin notes, he seeks to show how King "organized truth into a strategy and method to fight social evil and injustice, a point not sufficiently explored in the extant works of King's ethics, philosophy, and theology" (pp. xviii-xix). Thus, this is a book that looks not only at King's commitment to pursuing truth wherever it would lead but how he put that commitment into action.
One of the challenges of our era is that a commitment to truth often devolves into dogmatism, but King's commitment to truth was not rooted in fundamentalism. Thus, Baldwin offers us a book that focuses on how "King's life and thought must be understood largely in terms of an enduring search for and commitment to the truth" (p. 2). In this, Baldwin suggests that King followed in the footsteps of such figures as Mohandas Gandhi, whose own efforts influenced King's work. Baldwin traces this commitment to King's childhood and later education beginning at Morehouse College in the 1940s. This commitment to the pursuit of truth was coupled with a call to ministry so that he could serve God and humanity.
With the goal here of laying out King's life-long commitment to truth, Baldwin begins in chapter 1 by laying out the important developments in King's life that contributed to this search, beginning with how he was brought up by his family and by the church culture that formed him. Thus, the pursuit of truth was understood by him to be a spiritual quest. Part of this exploration involves King's struggle with the biblical fundamentalism that was part of his Black Baptist context. This led, early on to an embrace of liberal theology. That commitment, including questioning such fundamentals as the virgin birth, was reinforced during his college years at Morehouse, and then further developed during his years at Crozer Theological Seminary and Boston University. In these contexts, he encountered higher critical studies of the Bible as well as an introduction to liberal theology and philosophy. These years of education helped form his commitment to the search for truth. I found this chapter to be extremely helpful in understanding King's religious foundations.
From this introduction to King's educational formation and early engagements in social justice work, we move on in chapter 2 to further developments in his thinking, especially as he sought to bring into his thinking the convergence of religion and science. Here he wrestled with the questions of relative and absolute truth. While committed to absolute truth he came to understand the need to have an openness to new truth. This work on truth involved his training in philosophy, especially the personalism that dominated Boston University, where he did his Ph.D. work. All of this was combined with his pastoral and social activist commitments.
When we come to chapter 3, Baldwin draws on the dialectical nature of King's thinking about truth This chapter should prove helpful to our own efforts to navigate the current context, where we experience the contradictions of living in a country that lifts up the equality of all humans, and the reality that this vision has yet to be reached. Thus, King wrestled with these contradictions, seeking to make sense of them while challenging those who he engaged to live up to these ideals. To do this he drew upon Hegel's analysis of the dialectical process of history and Reinhold Niebuhr's insights as to the nature of humanity. King wrestled with his belief in the goodness of humanity and Niebuhr's insights as to humanity's fallenness. He built upon both, which contributed to his engagement with the founding documents of American life -- the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution along with Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Here he called for Americans to commit themselves to live into these principles.
In chapter 4 Baldwin continues to build on what he shared in chapter 3, focusing here on his calling to be an ethical prophet, as we look at how he engaged in pastoral ministry while becoming a civil rights leader in Montgomery and beyond. Then in chapter 5, Baldwin examines more fully King's engagement in civil rights leadership. This includes a discussion of the myths embraced by white southerners, along with King's refutation of the myth that north and south were two nations. Thus, here we look at King's dealings with the overt segregation of the south and the more covert segregation of the north. He also examines King's encounters with those who suggested that a new south was emerging. This is a look at King's use of nonviolent action as an expression of truth.
Finally in chapter 6 Baldwin looks at King's legacy in light of our current post-truth era epitomized by Donald Trump. In looking at his legacy, Baldwin notes the attempts by those on the right to use King to support their own agendas, agendas that run contrary to King's vision. One of those uses involves the use of the 1963 dream speech, suggesting that what King was talking about wasn't race but the content of one's character to undermine the gains of the civil rights movement. All of this runs counter to his commitment to truth-telling. Because this book is about King's commitment to truth, Baldwin addresses the revelations of King's extramarital affairs and charges of plagiarism. He notes that King was a deeply flawed human being, though he cautions us to be careful in taking everything we are told at face value as most of these allegations rest on FBI reports that were designed to discredit him. Whatever the case, though flawed as a human being, his commitment to truth remains a core dimension of King's life and legacy. Ultimately, King's commitment to truth continues to march on, even in a post-truth era. So, Baldwin closes with these words regarding the truth that "marches on with those who honor and celebrate King's legacy not simply with words but also with deeds that change lives, structures, and institutions for the better. Truth marches on because only truth can have the last word in history" (p. 317).
Much has been written about Martin Luther King. His message still resonates. His efforts still speak loudly. Though some would try to hijack his legacy and thus undermine his work, truth will persist. In this deeply detailed book, Lewis Baldwin helps us understand more fully that commitment to truth, calling us to commit ourselves to the truth even in a post-truth era.
Lewis Baldwin, professor emeritus of religious studies at Vanderbilt University has written several previous books about King and his work. This book adds another layer to his own work and that of others who have explored King's legacy. The focus here is both on ideas, especially King's biblical, theological, and philosophical ideas, and how King sought to put them into practical effect in his civil rights and social justice efforts. As Baldwin notes, he seeks to show how King "organized truth into a strategy and method to fight social evil and injustice, a point not sufficiently explored in the extant works of King's ethics, philosophy, and theology" (pp. xviii-xix). Thus, this is a book that looks not only at King's commitment to pursuing truth wherever it would lead but how he put that commitment into action.
One of the challenges of our era is that a commitment to truth often devolves into dogmatism, but King's commitment to truth was not rooted in fundamentalism. Thus, Baldwin offers us a book that focuses on how "King's life and thought must be understood largely in terms of an enduring search for and commitment to the truth" (p. 2). In this, Baldwin suggests that King followed in the footsteps of such figures as Mohandas Gandhi, whose own efforts influenced King's work. Baldwin traces this commitment to King's childhood and later education beginning at Morehouse College in the 1940s. This commitment to the pursuit of truth was coupled with a call to ministry so that he could serve God and humanity.
With the goal here of laying out King's life-long commitment to truth, Baldwin begins in chapter 1 by laying out the important developments in King's life that contributed to this search, beginning with how he was brought up by his family and by the church culture that formed him. Thus, the pursuit of truth was understood by him to be a spiritual quest. Part of this exploration involves King's struggle with the biblical fundamentalism that was part of his Black Baptist context. This led, early on to an embrace of liberal theology. That commitment, including questioning such fundamentals as the virgin birth, was reinforced during his college years at Morehouse, and then further developed during his years at Crozer Theological Seminary and Boston University. In these contexts, he encountered higher critical studies of the Bible as well as an introduction to liberal theology and philosophy. These years of education helped form his commitment to the search for truth. I found this chapter to be extremely helpful in understanding King's religious foundations.
From this introduction to King's educational formation and early engagements in social justice work, we move on in chapter 2 to further developments in his thinking, especially as he sought to bring into his thinking the convergence of religion and science. Here he wrestled with the questions of relative and absolute truth. While committed to absolute truth he came to understand the need to have an openness to new truth. This work on truth involved his training in philosophy, especially the personalism that dominated Boston University, where he did his Ph.D. work. All of this was combined with his pastoral and social activist commitments.
When we come to chapter 3, Baldwin draws on the dialectical nature of King's thinking about truth This chapter should prove helpful to our own efforts to navigate the current context, where we experience the contradictions of living in a country that lifts up the equality of all humans, and the reality that this vision has yet to be reached. Thus, King wrestled with these contradictions, seeking to make sense of them while challenging those who he engaged to live up to these ideals. To do this he drew upon Hegel's analysis of the dialectical process of history and Reinhold Niebuhr's insights as to the nature of humanity. King wrestled with his belief in the goodness of humanity and Niebuhr's insights as to humanity's fallenness. He built upon both, which contributed to his engagement with the founding documents of American life -- the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution along with Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Here he called for Americans to commit themselves to live into these principles.
In chapter 4 Baldwin continues to build on what he shared in chapter 3, focusing here on his calling to be an ethical prophet, as we look at how he engaged in pastoral ministry while becoming a civil rights leader in Montgomery and beyond. Then in chapter 5, Baldwin examines more fully King's engagement in civil rights leadership. This includes a discussion of the myths embraced by white southerners, along with King's refutation of the myth that north and south were two nations. Thus, here we look at King's dealings with the overt segregation of the south and the more covert segregation of the north. He also examines King's encounters with those who suggested that a new south was emerging. This is a look at King's use of nonviolent action as an expression of truth.
Finally in chapter 6 Baldwin looks at King's legacy in light of our current post-truth era epitomized by Donald Trump. In looking at his legacy, Baldwin notes the attempts by those on the right to use King to support their own agendas, agendas that run contrary to King's vision. One of those uses involves the use of the 1963 dream speech, suggesting that what King was talking about wasn't race but the content of one's character to undermine the gains of the civil rights movement. All of this runs counter to his commitment to truth-telling. Because this book is about King's commitment to truth, Baldwin addresses the revelations of King's extramarital affairs and charges of plagiarism. He notes that King was a deeply flawed human being, though he cautions us to be careful in taking everything we are told at face value as most of these allegations rest on FBI reports that were designed to discredit him. Whatever the case, though flawed as a human being, his commitment to truth remains a core dimension of King's life and legacy. Ultimately, King's commitment to truth continues to march on, even in a post-truth era. So, Baldwin closes with these words regarding the truth that "marches on with those who honor and celebrate King's legacy not simply with words but also with deeds that change lives, structures, and institutions for the better. Truth marches on because only truth can have the last word in history" (p. 317).
Much has been written about Martin Luther King. His message still resonates. His efforts still speak loudly. Though some would try to hijack his legacy and thus undermine his work, truth will persist. In this deeply detailed book, Lewis Baldwin helps us understand more fully that commitment to truth, calling us to commit ourselves to the truth even in a post-truth era.
January 22, 2023
This is such a timely book
In this era when some activists are arguing that truth is relative, usually for their own selfish ends, the veteran King scholar Dr. Lewis Baldwin, emeritus professor of religious studies at Vanderbilt University, offers a tour de force exploration of the nature of truth throughout King's life. He concludes with a final chapter that is must-read analysis of how King's memory is often being misinterpreted today in the service of conservatives.
What is most remarkable about the book is that Baldwin shows us how Truth was one of the deepest values in King's life, because he saw it as connected with God's ultimate Truth about how this world should be. I highly recommend this book to others interested in King's legacy and, then, you also may want to check out other titles by Baldwin as well.
I also wrote more about Dr. Baldwin's work and this new book in Read the Spirit online magazine.
In this era when some activists are arguing that truth is relative, usually for their own selfish ends, the veteran King scholar Dr. Lewis Baldwin, emeritus professor of religious studies at Vanderbilt University, offers a tour de force exploration of the nature of truth throughout King's life. He concludes with a final chapter that is must-read analysis of how King's memory is often being misinterpreted today in the service of conservatives.
What is most remarkable about the book is that Baldwin shows us how Truth was one of the deepest values in King's life, because he saw it as connected with God's ultimate Truth about how this world should be. I highly recommend this book to others interested in King's legacy and, then, you also may want to check out other titles by Baldwin as well.
I also wrote more about Dr. Baldwin's work and this new book in Read the Spirit online magazine.
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