January 20, 2008

The Greatness of Men

Some men are great, others we call great to massage the false facades of our culture so that our dreams and interests don't seem as vain as they truly are. Some might call Tom Brady of the NE Patriots legendary, a success story, a man of greatness. Why? Maybe because he has 3 SuperBowl Rings, along with many cultural accolades (Esquire- Best Dressed Celeb; People- "Top 50 Most Beautiful"), while dating supermodel Gisele Bundchen. Yet, as the video below, in a moment of transparency in an interview with "60 Minutes" Brady admits that he's not fulfilled. "There's gotta be something more to life.
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Of course today, we celebrate the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize: Martin Luther King Jr. In celebrating the birth of Dr. King, we in turn are celebrating the cause for his dreams, the catalyst for change in a world filled with segregated hate: the crucified and resurrected Christ. It was this hope that gave MLK Jr. the imagination and audacity to proclaim these words in his Nobel Peace Prize,
"I accept this award today with an abiding faith in America and an audacious faith in the future of mankind. I refuse to accept despair as the final response to the ambiguities of history. I refuse to accept the idea that the "isness" of man's present nature makes him morally incapable of reaching up for the eternal "oughtness" that forever confronts him. I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsam and jetsam in the river of life, unable to influence the unfolding events which surround him. I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality. I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of thermonuclear destruction. 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."
These are the words of a truly great man, inspired by a truly great God.

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