Yesterday as part of the worship service, we watched 14 minutes of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech from 1963. Since we have two services, I watched it twice. And loved it. An incredible speech! A father and daughter gave some reflections on King–history, quotes, etc. And Pastor Tim talked about issues of racism, injustice, and prejudice.

It was a neat service. I can’t imagine many United Brethren churches doing anything like that. We’re a traditionally Republican denomination, and while we Republicans are not necessarily racists, we’ve never been known as civil rights activists, either. We leave that to Democrats.

In the churches of my childhood, if you asked people about Martin Luther King, the typical comment would have been, “He’s a Communist,” and maybe a reference to J. Edgar Hoover’s alleged file on King. Something like that. I didn’t grow up in churches with a social conscience. In fact, until now, I would say I’ve never attended a church with a social conscience. But hey, we sure believe the Bible!

Anyway, hearing King’s speech as part of a worship service was, to me, a very cool thing. It was also cool, as part of the prelude, playing Buffalo Springfield’s “It’s Worth It” (better known by the lines, “There’s something happening here, what it is ain’t exactly clear…It’s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound, everybody look what’s going down”). You wouldn’t hear that in many evangelical churches, either. I’m glad it’s okay at Anchor.