Response To Martin Luther King's Letter From Birmingham Jail

Letter from Birmingham Jail Response Within “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King, Jr. positions himself as a tired man; tired of waiting, tired of fighting, yet perseveres relentlessly with great momentum. “My feets is tired, but my soul is rested” (“Letter from Birmingham Jail” 6), a message to those who oppose freedom of the black man that this is a battle which will not easily dissipate. Raised by the gospel, King sees everything wrong with what is taught by white Christianity and quickly corrects the error in their ways, drawing reference to the Bible throughout his letter. King shows an apparent dumbfounded-ness toward the South’s religious leaders, who issued a public statement condemning the actions of peaceful protests

He dances between an iron fist of retaliation and an admirable reassurance of the patience and peace his brothers and sisters have shown; this crafts the clear message that the fight of oppression will certainly be surmounted by justice. There is also a sense of apprehension for the future of the church, stating that,”the contemporary church is so often a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. It is so often the arch supporter of the status quo … I meet young people every day whose disappointment with the church has risen to outright disgust”(5). King’s stance unapologetically censures the message from the church, asking if it is the true will of God. At the end of his letter, he assures that he is willing to forgive the religious leaders for their misguidance and would happily work alongside them to abolish racial oppression. This served as one of the strongest points of his letter by allowing those who have wronged his people for so long to rectify their injustice. King’s use of religious knowledge gave him the tools he needed in order to not only castigate the stance of his opposition, but to show them that they lost the meaning of the religion they devoted their lives