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.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the belief that people have the capacity to transcend their current moral limitations and strive for a higher ethical standard.
In this quote, Martin Luther King, Jr. argues against the notion that human beings are bound by their present nature and are therefore unable to aspire to a higher moral standard or 'oughtness.' He insists that individuals possess the potential to rise above their circumstances and strive for eternal truth and justice, inspiring hope and a call to action towards moral improvement.
In practice
In a motivational speech about personal growth and change.
This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of peoples normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love.
Music is the best consolation for a despaired man
We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love.
We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now.
Israel... is one of the great outpost of democracy in the world
One of the greatest casualties of the war in Vietnam is the Great Society... shot down on the battlefield of Vietnam.
We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race.
Society really seems to have developed an unquestioning obedience towards spooky types… Did we get to where we are today via a slippery slope that was entirely within our control to stop? Or was it a relatively instantaneous sea change that sneaked in undetected because of pervasive government secrecy?
How easy it is to see your brother's faults, How hard it is to face your own. You winnow his in the wind like chaff, But yours you hide, Like a cheat covering up an unlucky throw. Dwelling on your brother's faults Multiplies your own. You are far from the end of your journey. The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart. See how you love.
There is a very fine line between loving life and being greedy for it.
A man of humanity is one who, in seeking to establish himself, finds a foothold for others and who, in desiring attaining himself, helps others to attain.
I don't believe in men waiting until they are ready to die before using any of their money for helpful purposes.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.