Osler's Razor

To begin the Celebration of a New Baptist Covenant, Bill Underwood reminded the thousands of people there that Martin Luther King had said the following in his "I Have a Dream" speech 45 years ago:

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

If ever there was a table of brotherhood set before us, it was this week in Georgia. I hoped that, above all else, it would be a moment of racial reconciliation, and that turned out to be right. On the first night, I remember looking back at the crowd and seeing a world all jumbled up. Each day was a mix of worship styles, with black and white preachers and choirs and hymns. Some of the differences took people by surprise. For example, in many African-American congregations, men always wear dark suits, while in most white congregations it's not unusual to see people in jeans.

In my own presentation, most of the audience was African-American, and that changed things. People were saying "that's right, that's right" and "say it!" when I made a point, and when I told the story of coming out of the Supreme Court with Matt Acosta and Dustin Benham, they clapped and cheered.

I suppose this might have freaked me out (on top of Jimmy Carter being there), but it was wonderful. I never thought about this, but what that does is encourage the speaker, propel you on. I know I probably won't be getting that in my sentencing class this Spring, but maybe someday I'll have that kind of moment once again.