“A Prayer”
Author: King, Martin Luther, Jr.
Date: May 4, 1962
Location: Atlanta, Ga.?
Genre: Sermon
Topic: Martin Luther King, Jr. - Career in Ministry
Details
King contributes an intercessory prayer for a book of devotions being assembled by Reverend Frank Madison Reid, pastor of St. James AME Church in St. Louis. The book was intended to be a guide for Reid’s congregation during a hundred-hour prayer vigil.1
Eternal God, our Father, out of whose mind this great cosmic universe has been created; before whose face the generations rise and fall; toward whom men of all ages turn for consolation, we thank Thee for the many blessings of life. We are grateful to Thee for the challenging opportunities that lie before us. We are not unmindful of our sins and shortcomings. All too often, we have chosen injustice rather than justice, hate rather than love, the low road rather than the high road. Forgive us for yielding to our low impulses. Help us to realize that we are made for the stars and created for eternity. In these days of emotional tension, when the problems of the world are gigantic in extent and chotic in detail, give us broad understanding, penetrating vision, and power of endurance. Save us from the paralysis of crippling fears. May we commit ourselves to the task of working with renewed vigor for a warless world, for a better distribution of wealth, and for a brotherhood that transcends race or color. In the name and spirit of Jesus, we pray.
Amen.
1. In a 1 May 1962 letter, Reid asked King to write a prayer for “all those who must suffer in the social upheaval for which we strive.” For a similar prayer, see King, “Prayers,” 5 July–6 September 1953, in Papers 6:138.
Source: MLKJP-GAMK, Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers (Series I–IV), Martin Luther King, Jr., Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc., Atlanta, Ga.