We hold space in solidarity with the community of Charleston, and especially the congregation of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.
Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Us Around
-A prayer offered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Almighty God, Thou has called us to walk for freedom, even as Thou did the Children of Israel. We pray, dear God, as we go through a wilderness of State Troopers that Thou will hold our hand. We pray, dear God, as we must go through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, that Thou will go with us and strengthen us for the task. Keep us strong. Keep us calm. Help us to love our enemy. And above all, keep the fires of freedom burning in our hearts, so that no matter what happens, ain’t gonna let nobody turn us around. Because Thou, dear God, has sent us into this place. Thou has sent us to fight, not just for ourselves, but to fight for this nation so that democracy might exist here for the whole world. Keep this vision in our hearts, and may we one day wake up and find the state of Alabama, where all men might vote, where all children might get a decent education, where every man and woman might have a job according to his (or her) abilities, and where every man and woman might live together as brothers, and violence and bloodshed and hatred and prejudice shall be no more. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.”
