Standing in the Need of Prayer A Celebration of Black Prayer

Foreword Coretta Scott KingThroughout the epic freedom struggle of African Americans, our great sustainer of hope has been the power of prayer. We prayed for deliverance in a dozen African languages, chained to the holds of slave ships, on the auction block, in the fields of oppression, and under the lash. We prayed when we "followed the drinking gourd" on the Underground Railroad. We prayed when our families were torn asunder by the slave traders. We prayed when our homes and churches were burned and bombed and when our people were lynched by racist mobs. So many times it seemed our prayers went unanswered, but we kept faith that one day our unearned suffering would prove to be redemptive.This remarkable collection of prayers, accompanied by moving illustrations, includes many of the most poignant prayers uttered throughout the African diaspora and down through the centuries. It includes the spiritual "Precious Lord, Take My Hand," a favorite of my husband, Martin Luther King, Jr. The prayers in these pages come from gospel lyrics and popular song, literature and poetry, and sacred scriptures. There are prayers from myriad traditions, including Haitian Vodou, Buddhism, Yoruba, Coptic, and Islam, as well as Christian. And then there are the marvelous photographs of people praying in their homes; in churches, mosques, and temples; in prison and outdoor meetings. There is even a photo of my husband leading a Christian prayer at our dinner table, under a portrait of one of his mentors, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a Hindu.As a young child growing up in Marion, Alabama, I remember my pastor at Mt. Tabor Church responding to the racial abuse of one of our congregation by saying, "God loves us all, and people will reap what they sow... . So just keep on praying. Don't worry. God will straighten things out." I believed he was right then, and I believe it still.My parents made sure that prayer would be a regular part of my life, and it has been to this very day. Prayer is how we open our hearts to God, how we make that vital connection that empowers us to overcome overwhelming obstacles and become instruments of God's will. And despite the pain and suffering that I have experienced and that comes to all of our lives, I am more convinced than ever before that prayer gives us strength and hope, a sense of divine companionship, as we struggle for justice and righteousness.Prayer was a wellspring of strength and inspiration during the Civil Rights Movement. Throughout the movement, we prayed for greater human understanding. We prayed for the safety of our compatriots in the freedom struggle. We prayed for victory in our nonviolent protests, for brotherhood and sisterhood among people of all races, for reconciliation and the fulfillment of the Beloved Community.For my husband, Martin Luther King, Jr., prayer was a daily source of courage and strength that gave him the ability to carry on in even the darkest hours of our struggle. I remember one very difficult day when he came home bone-weary from the stress that came with his leadership of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. In the middle of that night, he was awakened by a threatening and abusive phone call, one of many we received throughout the movement. On this particular occasion, however, Martin had had enough.After the call, he got up from bed and made himself some coffee. He began to worry about his family, and all of the burdens that came with our movement weighed heavily on his soul. With his head in his hands, Martin bowed over the kitchen table and prayed aloud to God: "Lord, I am taking a stand for what I believe is right. The people are looking to me for leadership, and if I stand before them without strength and courage, they will falter. I am at the end of my powers. I have nothing left. I have come to the point where I can't face it alone."Later he told me, "At that moment, I experienced the presence of the Divine as I hadSchomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Staff is the author of 'Standing in the Need of Prayer A Celebration of Black Prayer', published 2003 under ISBN 9780743234665 and ISBN 0743234669.