More than 50 years ago, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered what would be his final Christmas Eve sermon.
Titled “Peace on Earth,” the Dec. 24, 1967 address was somber yet hopeful, as King contemplated a world rattled by the threat of war. He challenged his flock to strive instead for peace and unity and to embrace a nonviolent approach to solving conflict.
“We must either learn to live together as brothers or we’re all going to perish together as fools,” he preached.
Less than four months later, King was fatally shot in Memphis.
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His daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, CEO of the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change Inc., shared the sermon on social media.
“52 years ago on Christmas Eve, my father preached this sermon,” she wrote. “Still relevant.”
You can listen here:
52 years ago on #ChristmasEve, my father preached this sermon.
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) December 25, 2019
Still relevant.
“This #Christmas season finds us a very bewildered human race...And yet, my friends, the Christmas hope for peace and goodwill toward all can no longer be dismissed.” #MLK https://t.co/7zbOC63XXe