Quote from King’s “Last Christmas” Sermon

Except from King's "Last Christmas" Sermon

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Quick Facts

Location:

Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial

Designation:

National Park

Amenities

2 listed

Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Wheelchair Accessible

This sermon was given at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, GA on December 25, 1967. 

Over 12 years, King had evolved philosophically. From his initial involvement with the bus boycott in Montgomery, AL, he had expanded to a national view, and then to a global view on civil rights. 

“We have experimented with the meaning of nonviolence in our struggle for racial justice in the United States, but now the time has come for man to experiment with nonviolence in all areas of human conflict, and that means nonviolence on an international scale.” 

King pointed out that throughout the world’s history, war was often justified as being a means to achieve peace, but peace always seemed to be talked about as a distant goal. War needed to be removed from the equation. 

“We must pursue peaceful ends through peaceful means.” 

In the Christmas spirit, “Peace on Earth, Good Will toward Men.”