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Of all the biblical references that Martin Luther King, Jr. makes in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” the most powerful is his use of the Apostle Paul as a kind of spiritual symbol for his work in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. His critics have described him as an “outsider” who has come to Birmingham to make trouble with his civil rights protests; in response, King draws a parallel with the Apostle Paul, noting that he too was obliged to travel beyond his homeland to enlighten others. He models himself after the Apostle, spreading an unpopular truth: just as Paul “carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco-Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town.” His critics also call King an extremist, and again he responds with the image of Paul, whom he calls “an extremist for the Christian gospel.” This comparison is personally meaningful for King—he clearly sees the Apostle Paul as a guiding spirit—but it is also a way of equating the fight for racial equality with the work of spreading the word of Jesus Christ, and segregation laws throughout the South with “certain unjust laws of the Roman Empire.” By placing the protesters in such a biblical context, he tries to convince his critics that racial equality, like the Christian gospel, is a morally superior philosophy, despite being preached by outsiders and extremists.
Apostle Paul Quotes in Letter from Birmingham Jail
The Letter from Birmingham Jail quotes below all refer to the symbol of Apostle Paul. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Letter from Birmingham Jail Quotes
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
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King makes this statement—one of his most famous and quoted—in response to being deemed an “outsider” by his critics, because he and other members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference have traveled to Birmingham, Alabama to protest segregation in the city. In response to this criticism, King notes that like the early Christians, he and his fellow activists must travel to spread their gospel of racial equality and integration. Like the Apostle Paul, he must answer the call for aid—in this case, support for a city-wide protest against segregation in local shops. This statement establishes King’s sense of community and Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Op
Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice, or will we be extremists for the cause of justice?
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King now changes his mind about the term “extremist,” and decides to embrace a redefined version of the word. While his critics have meant it to have negative connotations, King sees the value in extreme actions, especially those that are morally right despite conflicting with man-made laws. He returns to the idea that the laws of segregation are unjust, and that he and his fellow protesters are obligated to break those laws to bring attention to their injustice. If fighting for the cause of racial justice is extreme, King will embrace that term publicly. King also places himself within a Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta.
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Apostle Paul Symbol Timeline in Letter from Birmingham Jail
The timeline below shows where the symbol Apostle Paul appears in Letter from Birmingham Jail. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Letter from Birmingham Jail
...finds it. He compares his work to that of the early Christians, especially the Apostle Paul, who traveled beyond his homeland to spread the Christian gospel. Finally, he questions the idea...
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...context of Christianity and American history. He notes that Jesus was an extremist for love, Paul for the Christian gospel, and Martin Luther for Reformation. Likewise, Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson...
(full context)
