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Martin Luther King, Jr. Quotes - Page 9

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The greatness of our God lies in the fact that [He] is both tough minded and tender hearted.

The greatness of our God lies in the fact that [He] is both tough minded and tender hearted.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspirational, Lying, Greatness

Don't let anybody make you think that God chose America as his divine, messianic force to be a sort of policeman of the whole world.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thinking, America, Make You Think
"In time of war, King's message of peace should be heeded" by Starita Smith, progressive.org. May 3, 2005.

I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Independent, Our World, Way
"Keep Moving From This Mountain". Sermon at Temple Israel of Hollywood, February 25, 1965.

Voting is the foundation stone for political action.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Political, Voting, Foundation
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (1968). “I Have a Dream: The Quotations of Martin Luther King, Jr”

There are two types of laws: there are just laws and there are unjust laws... What is the difference between the two?...An unjust law is a man-made code that is out of harmony with the moral law.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Peace, War, Men

Curtailment of free speech is rationalized on grounds that a more compelling American tradition forbids criticism of the government when the nation is at war... Nothing can be more destructive of our fundamental democratic traditions than the vicious effort to silence dissenters.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
War, Government, Effort

Call it democracy, or call it democratic socialism, but there must be a better distribution of wealth within this country for all God's children.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Wisdom, Country, Children
Thomas F. Jackson, Martin Luther King (Jr.) (2007). “From Civil Rights to Human Rights: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Struggle for Economic Justice”, p.230, University of Pennsylvania Press

The first principle of value that we need to rediscover is this: that all reality hinges on moral foundations. In other words, that this is a moral universe, and that there are moral laws of the universe just as abiding as the physical laws.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspiring, Reality, Law
Sermon delivered at Detroit's Second Baptist Church. YouTube Channel "nicholasflyer"/"Martin Luther King Jr. 'Rediscovering Lost Values' February 28, 1954", www.youtube.com. September 24, 2015.

The time has come for an all-out war against poverty. The rich nations must use their vast resources of wealth to develop the underdeveloped, school the unschooled, and feed the unfed. Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation. No individual or nation can be great if it does not have a concern for "the least of these".

Martin Luther King, Jr.
War, School, Doe
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “"In a Single Garment of Destiny": A Global Vision of Justice”, p.84, Beacon Press

There is nothing more dangerous than to build a society with a large segment of people in that society who feel that they have no stake in it; who feel that that have nothing to lose. People who have stake in their society, protect that society, but when they don't have it, they unconsciously want to destroy it.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
People, Want, Nothing To Lose

And one day we must ask the question, "Why are there forty million poor people in America?" And when you begin to ask that question, you are raising questions about the economic system, about a broader distribution of wealth. When you ask that question, you begin to question the capitalistic economy.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
America, People, One Day
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “The Essential Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have a Dream" and Other Great Writings”, p.205, Beacon Press

The potential beauty of human life is constantly made ugly by man's ever-recurring song of retaliation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Song, Men, Ugly
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (2007). “Dream: The Words and Inspiration of Martin Luther King, Jr”, p.91, Blue Mountain Arts, Inc.

The day we see the truth and cease to speak is the day we begin to die

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspirational, Civil Rights, Speak

Forgiveness does not mean ignoring what has been done or putting a false label on an evil act. It means, rather, that the evil act no longer remains as a barrier to the relationship. Forgiveness is a catalyst creating the atmosphere necessary for a fresh start and a new beginning.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Forgiveness, New Beginnings, Mean
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2012). “A Gift of Love: Sermons from Strength to Love and Other Preachings”, p.65, Beacon Press

Jesus Christ was an extremist for love, truth and goodness.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Jesus, Christ, Goodness
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “The Essential Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have a Dream" and Other Great Writings”, p.99, Beacon Press

The problem of racism, the problem of economic exploitation, and the problem of war are all tied together. These are the triple evils that are interrelated.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
War, Racism, Evil
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2015). “The Radical King”, p.103, Beacon Press

Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Education, Real, Fiction
Martin Luther King (1992). “The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr”, p.124, Univ of California Press

I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Love, Being Strong, Peace
Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Oslo, Norway, 10 Dec. 1964

It is hardly a moral act to encourage others patiently to accept injustice which he himself does not endure.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Doe, Moral, Injustice
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “The Essential Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have a Dream" and Other Great Writings”, p.17, Beacon Press

We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
March, I Have A Dream Speech, Walks
I Have a Dream, delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.

We have no honorable intentions in Vietnam. Our minimal expectation is to occupy it as an American colony and maintain social stability for our investments. This tells why American helicopters are being used against guerrillas in Colombia and Peru. Increasingly the role our nation has taken is the role of those who refuse to give up the privileges and pleasures that come from the immense profits of overseas investment.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Giving Up, Taken, America

An individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Motivational, Respect, Kings
"Letter from Birmingham Jail," 16 Apr. 1963

Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Kings, Ill Will, People
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2011). “Why We Can't Wait”, p.62, Beacon Press

Let us be those creative dissenters who will call our beloved nation to a higher destiny. To a new plateau of compassion, to a more noble expression of humanness.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Destiny, Compassion, Humanness Is

A true revolution of values will soon cause us to question the fairness and justice of many of our present policies... True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. A true revolution of values will soon look on uneasily upon the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth with righteous indignation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Compassion, Justice, Coins
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “"In a Single Garment of Destiny": A Global Vision of Justice”, p.119, Beacon Press

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