Dr. Luther died defending black liberation
In chapter three, Cone presents a dialectic opinion on two individuals who used the concept of theology in their work. These are;’ martin Luther king and Reinhold Niebuhr. The cross was symbolic of their actions and lives. He describes the character of Dr. Martin Luther as a selfless individual. The decisions he made put his life as well as his families at risk. They all knew the consequences of Dr. King’s action, but they moved on with it. Luther and Coretta families left a long lasting legacy in the black community. King connects his suffering to that of God when he suffered on the cross due to love for his people. Cone writes, “just as God was with Jesus in his suffering; black Christians believed that God is with us in our suffering too” (page 88) the cross was a source of faith to Luther “to bear the cross.” He was ready to die for the black liberation and see black treated with humanity just as the whites. In one of his sermons concerning the cross, Luther believed the cross is a price one pays for being a Christian. Dr. Martin Luther King says, “it is something you wear. It is something you bear, and ultimately you die on” (page 84). Cone summarizes this chapter by saying that, Niebuhr and Dr. Luther King Jr. used theoretical application in their work just as Jesus died on the cross from the love of his people, Dr. Luther died defending black liberation.
In chapter five, Cone says, “O Mary, Don’t you weep” Cone describes challenges colored women faced. He starts by explaining how difficult it was for a black woman and the immense difficulties they experienced, especially those from the south side. Men suffered the most since whites if the south felt intimidated by them. Lynching victims were mainly composed of black men. Cone however narrates the effects to women when a black man is killed. It means a woman will become a widow, a mother will lose a son and a sibling will lose a brother. They lose a person who provided economic means to them. Women were left with the responsibility of taking care of the children since it was not easy for them to escape the racial segregation as it was for men. Cones appreciates Ida B. wells who was a civil right leader who was not afraid of speaking the evils against white supremacy. She strongly disagreed with the claims of “the rape myth,” where black men were accused of raping white women. And this claim was used to justify the lynching of black men. She spoke out against white Christianity for failing to address lynching and mob violence. Due to her outspoken nature she received numerous death threats and this did not stop her from public speaking. Her strong Christian faith allowed her to fight injustice. Cone acknowledges a jazz singer Billie Holiday and his song’ strange fruit”. It “forced white listeners to wrestle with the violent truth of white supremacy” due to the songs’ powerful message it was banned in the south. The song reminded the Americans of the bitter truth they want to forget. Cone says black women were at the forefront championing behind black liberation
Cone talks about the suffering of black people under white supremacy. He says, “if Rosa Park had not sat down, Martin Luther King jr. would not have stood up.” The faith in black women empowered transformation of all American people. The two chapters talk about resilient leaders who lived by the vocation of the cross and were willing to sacrifice their own lives for the liberation of black people. he relates cross and the lynching tree and says suffering and death does not mean people should give up he writes “no gulf between blacks and whites is too great to overcome, for our beauty is more enduring than our brutality” (page 166)