Must We Take Sides?

There are many heroic people in history who spoke against tyranny. Two come to mind.

One, Elie Wiesel. At age 15, he was a part of the holocaust which killed six million Jews in Auschwitz. Having survived that reprehensible genocide, he wrote his memoir in a book initially titled And the World Would Remain Silent. The abridged version became a bestseller and translated into many languages, and considered a groundbreaking work on the terrors of the Holocaust.

Wiesel’s personal suffering with the Jewish people has become a symbol of repressed people anywhere in the world.

In 1986, Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace prize as “one of the most spiritual leaders and guides in an age when violence, repression and racism continue to characterize the world.” These memorable lines were part of his acceptance speech:

Two, Martin Luther King. A third-generation pastor in the family, Martin Luther received his doctorate degree in Theology from Boston University.

Having experienced race segregation in school, Dr. King was a passionate worker for civil rights for the Negro race, and quickly became leader of the first great Negro non-violent demonstration of contemporary times in the US.  

He led the famous bus boycott (requiring segregation of Negroes and whites in buses) that lasted 382 days. The US Supreme Court eventually declared unconstitutional the laws requiring such segregation. During this boycott, Dr. King was arrested, his home was bombed, he was subjected to personal abuse, but he emerged as a nonpareil Negro leader.

Dr. King spoke over 2,500 times denouncing injustice in massive non-violent protests and peaceful marches.

At the age of 35, Dr. King was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. He donated his prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement. Three years later, an assassin ended his life.

Our voice may not be as loud as the two great men's, but we have a voice nonetheless. It is grace given to us so we may speak up against what is wrong.

We cannot remain neutral.

We cannot be bystanders forever watching the tyranny parade—of injustice, lies, murder, treason, blasphemy, slander, insult, and all manner of oppression—marching by. As Elie Wiesel and Martin Luther King showed the world, and as written in Scripture, we need to take the side of good.

We must take sides. 

“. . . hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.” 2 Thessalonians 4: 21-22 (NLT)