1/19/11
I was a young mother when Dr. King was murdered, but I will never forget the speeches, the marches and the letters that he wrote. Some were read by famous actors and news commentators attesting his legacy as an advocate for civil rights, equal justice, and non violence. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter to his fellow clergymen from the Birmingham, Alabama jail shortly after he had been arrested for leading a civil rights march.
There are some similarities in that letter that I wish to address to my fellow Christian brothers and sisters in the African American Church.A little over a year ago, I wrote a letter to the pastors of eight Christian churches which included four African American churches of Modesto who all received copies. In the letter, I asked that pastors and their congregations would pray that my family and I would receive justice for the senseless murder of my son. I explained what was done to Craig, the lies told by the sheriff and the DA as to the cause of Craig's death.
I pointed out the numerous inconsistent details of what the sheriff claimed about his deputies and how he believed they did their jobs by the book when evidence did not support his claims. I did receive a couple of positive responses to my letter. One from my former pastor who prayed with me and graciously assured me that my family and I would be in his thoughts and prayers. I also heard from an assistant pastor of another church who called to encourage me and prayed with me. However, I NEVER received any kind of a response from anyone representing either of the four African American churches. I
did not consider their silence as a negative response, but I did see it as an attitude of indifference.When I saw the photo on the front page of the Bee depicting the sheriff attending a church service held at Christian Love Baptist Church which happened to have been one of the African American churches to have received my letter, I was stunned. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an advocate for justice, civil rights and non-violence.
He believed and practiced the opposite of the what is practiced by the sheriff of Stanislaus County who seems to advocate corruption, injustice, violating the civil rights of others and the promotion of violence.As King wrote in his Birmingham letter addressing his fellow clergymen, I want to say to my African American brothers, "You are more devoted to 'order' than to 'justice'.
You prefer negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice. You say, "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action." Frankly, I am ashamed of your lack of wisdom and understanding of what Jesus Christ taught and lived.
The following words of Jesus is taken from Matthew chapter 23: beginning with verse 23."Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices, mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of law--justice, mercy, and faithfulness."
I SAY SHAME ON YOU FOR NOT TAKING A STAND FOR JUSTICE, FOR CONSORTING WITH AN EVIL LAWMAN, AND FOR YOUR DELIBERATE INDIFFERENCE TOWARD THOSE WHO SEEK JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS FOR THE POOR, DEFENSELESS AND POWERLESS.
Marilyn Prescott
