John Lewis Civil Rights Movement Summary

Social Gospel, Civil Rights Movement, and John Lewis
Can you imagine a world free of hate, poverty, starving children, where no race would be more superior than another, where no race would live in oppression? What kind of world would that be? It would be the world the Social Gospel strived to teach; a world full of love. March, the graphic novel written by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and illustrated by Nate Powell, tells the story of how a young John Lewis grows up on a chicken farm in Alabama to finding himself marching on the streets of Washington DC with other prominent Civil Rights Leaders. Respectively, various theologies were adapted by the Civil Rights Movement the Social Gospel being the most significant. Lewis made the Social
Jim Lawson taught impressionable Black college students at the First Baptist Church in Nashville, TN Social Gospel idea’s. Lawson’s sermons would include, “The evil of racism, the evil of poverty, the evil of war.” (Lewis et al pg. 77). Moreover, Lawson was calling the college students into action by speaking of the inequitable treatment his people endured. Action that included sit-ins and non-violent protests. According to King, “Love is one of the pinnacle parts of the Christian faith. There is another side called justice, and justice is really love in calculation.” The essence of Kings statement is that segregation, unfair working conditions, poor education for Black children, poverty, illiteracy, hate-based crime, and deaths were some of the discriminatory treatments the African Americans faced. In the face of diversity, the Social Gospel fought injustice treatment with love, that is how justice is really love in calculation. One could ask himself how could I contend they challenged injustice with love? Because, the golden rule of Christianity tells us to “Love thy neighbor.” (KJV Mark 12: 30-31). Leaders of the early Civil Rights Movement became mentors to impressionable college
The first-time Lewis heard King preach, he didn’t even know who he was. “Then one Sunday morning in early 1955, I was listening to WRMA out of Montgomery when I heard a sermon…. Dr. King’s message hit me like a bolt of lightning. He applied the Principles of the church to what was happening now, today. It was called The Social Gospel…. And I felt like he was preaching directly to me.” (Lewis et al pg. 55-56). Lewis explains to us that it was at an early age that King made an immense impression on him. Additionally, Lewis’ clarifies to us precisely how he was inspired by King. “Dr. Kings example showed me that it was possible to do more as a minister than what I had witnessed in my own church. I was inspired.” (Lewis et al pg. 59). Lewis’ point is that from that moment, King became a paramount mentor in his life. See figure one. A few years later in 1958 Lewis’ was attending church at the First Baptist Church in Nashville, TN. That is where he first encountered Preacher Jim Lawson. “Jim talked about the Montgomery Bus Boycott, about war resistance, about nonviolence…. Jim Lawson conveyed the urgency of developing our philosophy, our discipline, our understanding. His words liberated me. I thought, this is it… this is the way out.” (Lewis et al pg. 77-78). Lewis points out clearly that Jim Lawson