We recently celebrated the life, faith and non-violence of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The moment triggers within us a host of emotions-thankfulness for heroes such as he, distress about the state of our country, anxiety about the future, and fear for the present.

The maga crowd has been stocking up on assault weapons and ammo for a long time, in plain view practicing on human silhouettes at the firing line. At the other end of the street, folks have been marching for all the rights one might hope for in a democracy-housing and health care, freedom to move about without fear. Although it was once feared that the Nation of Islam, led by Elijah Muhammad, might harbor intents to violence, it is now clear that it is the white minority at the firing line that sees its power threatened as people of color appear at the border- after centuries of colonial plunder of their homeland. The fear of losing control possesses the white nationalists like an evil spirit, a spirit evoked and stoked by the Leader and the Party, and they are readily turning to violence.

America is a nation founded on violence. Beginning with the Puritans and continuing through murder of natives, black slavery, and creation slaughter and rape, the United States is filled with violence against people and against the land. The black churches that were the wellspring of people like King were bombed. He and others were murdered by gun and by rope. Today we have death threats and bomb threats against those taking a stand against the Leader and the Party. It is at this point that we must hold the line, lest threat transform into actuality.

Peacelovers are the majority, those who want simply to live a good life. But it takes only a small minority to instigate violence. What we see is the tyranny of the majority by the minority, because those fewer in number are willing to use violence. Bomb threats, death threats, actual murder, not to mention the insurrection of Jan 6- all of this behavior is rejected by those of us who simply want to enjoy our democracy. It is heroes like Brother Martin who inspire us to hold the line and keep the faith.
 
Dr. Carl Krieg received his BA from Dartmouth College, MDiv from Union Theological Seminary in NYC, and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is the author of What to Believe? the Questions of Christian Faith,   The Void and the Vision and  The New Matrix: How the World We Live In Impacts Our Thinking About Self and God. As professor and pastor, Dr. Krieg has taught innumerable classes and led many discussion groups. He lives with his wife Margaret in Norwich, VT.