Rediscovering Lost Values

Here is an excerpt from a speech of Martin Luther King Jr. which seems rather timely. He preaches that there are moral laws in this universe just like there are physical laws, and that you should no more lie and cheat and act disreputably than you should throw yourself off the tallest building in Detroit for fun.

I searched for free audio and wasn't able to find any. That is too bad because the power of Martin Luther's speech, not just his words, ought to be considered a gift to humanity and proclaimed free to all.

In any event you can read his powerful words and reflect on them.

This universe hinges on moral foundations. (Yeah) There is something in this universe that justifies Carlyle in saying, "No lie can live forever." There is something in this universe that justifies William Cullen Bryant in saying, "Truth, crushed to earth, will rise again." (My Lord, Amen) There is something in this universe that justifies James Russell Lowell in saying,

Truth forever on the scaffold,

Wrong forever on the throne.

Yet that scaffold sways the future. (Lord help him)

Behind the dim unknown stands God,

Within the shadow keeping watch above his own. (Amen)

There is something in this universe that justifies the biblical writer in saying, "You shall reap what you sow." (Amen) This is a law-abiding universe. (Amen) This is a moral universe. It hinges on moral foundations. (Lord help him) If we are to make of this a better world, we've got to go back and rediscover that precious value that we've left behind. (Yes)

Source


These values, these virtues, seem missing from our modern lives. If there really are moral laws governing the universe, if it is truly wrong to hate, then what are the consequences of breaking the moral laws?

Should I fill my bathtub with water and stock up on duct tape?