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306
& 307 I am sitting
in an airplane bound for Atlanta, Georgia.
Deep in thought, two numbers “pop up” in my head, specifically
306 and 307. More than a
concept of quantity or quality, both numbers represent location, place and
history, regarding a disciple of Jesus Christ who transformed the world.
This disciple of Jesus Christ is a native son of Atlanta, Georgia. Consider
the following with regard to 306 and 307.
In our lives, special moments take place.
Some of them occur in or near hotels.
To make it plain, we use hotels for business seminars and
vacations, wedding and funeral gatherings, sporting events and church
meetings. Conversely, hotels
provide a context for its occupants to be participant observers when
history occurs in their environs. Are we not aware that people were watching from their hotel
rooms as bombs fell on Baghdad – as two jumbo jets pierced the side of
New York’s Twin Towers – as jet propelled tsunamis decimated life and
land in Sri Lanka, Thailand and parts of Africa? You
probably have guessed that 306 and 307 are hotel room numbers connected
with some historic event. With
one exception, you are right. 306
and 307 were room numbers in the now defunct Lorraine Motel in Memphis,
Tennessee where Dr. Mart Luther King, Jr. and his aides resided.
Dr. King had come to Memphis to help spearhead a march for 1300
garbage workers. They were
protesting, “low wages and working conditions.”
As Dr. King stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel requesting
that the late Mahalia Jackson sing “Precious Lord’” during the mass
meeting that night, he was crucified by gunshot.
The Dreamer died, but not the dream. In the 2005 January Ebony Magazine, four civil rights leaders answer the question, “What would King do now?” An excerpted quote from each respondent demonstrates that King’s Dream is very much alive. “Dr. King would preach sermons asking his fellow leaders in the faith community to get involved and to encourage their congregations to focus on children’s needs.” (Marian Wright Edelman, President of Children’s Defense Fund) “Dr. King protested the war in Vietnam, so he would protest the way in Iraq.” He would again quote Gandhi, “the choice is nonviolence or nonexistence.” (U.S. Representative John Lewis, D-GA) “My dad envisioned a new America and a worldwide Beloved Community, in which all people could have a decent life and live together in peace and security.” (Martin Luther King, III, President and CEO, of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-violent Social Change) Responding to those who called him subversive, King responded, “I didn’t get my inspiration from Karl Marx. I got it from a man named Jesus, a Galilean saint who said he was anointed to heal the broken-hearted…anointed to deal with problems of the poor.” (Clayborne Carson, Director of Martin Luther King Jr. Papers Project) See Luke 4:17-19 and Matthew 25. Martin Luther King’s prophetic words, ideas, life and ministry are still transforming the world long after his untimely demise on April 4, 1968. If you’re ever in Memphis, Tennessee, go see the National Civil Rights Museum. Both rooms are preserved, just as they were that fateful day. A huge white wreath – layered with red flowers top and bottom – marks the spot where the Dreamer was slain just outside Rooms 306 and 307. |
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