This weekend we mark Martin Luther King, Jr. Day one of only four federal holidays that commemorate an individual person. The day signed into law not that many years ago has quickly evolved into a day of national service. The photograph displayed is of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel walking arm in arm with Martin Luther King, Jr., in the front row of marchers in Selma Alabama. It has become an icon of American Jewish life, and of Black-Jewish relations. The relationship between the two men began in January 1963, and was a genuine friendship as well as a relationship of two colleagues working together for Social Justice on a number of causes.

On March 25th 1968, just ten days before he was assassinated, King delivered the keynote address at a birthday celebration honoring Heschel. In his introduction of King to the audience, Heschel asked, "Where in America today do we hear a voice like the voice of the prophets of Israel? Martin Luther King is a sign that God has not forsaken the United States of America. God has sent him to us. His presence is the hope of America. His mission is sacred, his leadership of supreme importance to every one of us."

Shortly after returning from the march in Selma, Heschel wrote to King: "The day we marched together out of Selma was a day of sanctification. That day I hope will never be past to me - that day will continue to be this day...."

For Heschel, the march had spiritual significance. He wrote, "For many of us the march from Selma to Montgomery was about protest and prayer. Legs are not lips and walking is not kneeling. And yet our legs uttered songs. Even without words, our march was worship. I felt my legs were praying."

Like many I am inspired by Heschel's words and use them to define what I feel is the essence of Judaism. We are a people of the book and at the same time strive to make a difference in the world around us. How can we change the world for the better? Judaism is not simply about the words that we find on the pages of our Prayer book or in our Torah but about transforming our ideals into action. On this weekend of service in memory of Martin Luther King Jr. let us find a way to move our legs toward action.
On this shabbat we pray for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. We are in the process of starting a fundraising effort for the victims and I will post more information later today.