October 19 | Moments Almanac | Seat

Welcome to Moments Almanac for October 19th. Sometimes the greatest turning points of history begin with remarkably small requests. A glass of water, a loaf of bread, or a place to sit down. On October 19th, 1960, in Atlanta, Georgia, inside Rich's department store, you could purchase a new suit or buy a pair of shoes or perhaps browse through the latest fashions, but there was one thing you couldn't do if you were black. You couldn't sit down and enjoy a meal inside the store's elegant magnolia room. Your money was welcome, your presence at the table was not. And on this particular Wednesday, a group of young college students decided that something needed to change. They weren't carrying weapons, they weren't threatening anyone, they simply wanted to be treated like everyone else. The Atlanta student movement had been organizing demonstrations against segregation for months. Among its leaders was a young man named Lonnie King. He wanted another King to join them, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. By 1960, Martin Luther King was already becoming one of America's most recognizable voices for civil rights. But here's something you might not know. On this occasion, King wasn't the leader of the demonstration. The students were. In fact, King would later describe his participation as that of a follower rather than a leader. The students had asked him to come, and he came. On October 19th, King and the demonstrators entered Rich's department store. They first sought service at the snack bar and they were turned away. Then they went to the Magnolia Room. Again, they were refused. And then came the police. King and dozens of others were arrested. Imagine that. A man who declared and dedicated his life to the preaching of the gospel of Christ is now being taken away to jail because he dared to sit beside young people asking for a meal. But the story was far from over. King and the other demonstrators refused to post bail. Eventually the sit-in charges were dropped, but King wasn't released. You see, months earlier he had been cited for driving in Georgia with an Alabama driver's license. That minor traffic offense had resulted in probation, and now a judge decided his arrest at Riches violated that probation. King was sentenced to four months of hard labor, four months for a traffic violation brought back into play after he had tried to eat lunch at a department store. He was transferred to Georgia's State Prison in Reedsville. His wife Coretta was pregnant, his family was frightened, and the entire nation was watching. Then something extraordinary happened. John F. Kennedy, campaigning for president, called Coretta Scott King to express his concern. His brother Robert intervened with officials in Georgia. And on the 27th of October, Martin Luther King Jr. was released on bond. Just twelve days later, America elected a new president. Historians would continue debating how much that telephone call and King's imprisonment influenced the election, but the significance of that October day extended far beyond the presidential politics. Because this was never just about lunch. It was about dignity, it was about equality. It was about whether the worth of a human being could be determined by the color of his skin. In the second chapter of James, the church is warned about showing favoritism. James describes a gathering where one person is offered a place of honor while the other one is told to stand aside. Imagine that. Two thousand years ago, the church was already being confronted with the question of who gets a good seat and who doesn't. And maybe that's why this story still matters, because the gospel of Jesus Christ has never been about determining who is worthy of a place at the table. It's about remembering that everybody at the table bears the image of God. And I find something else beautiful about the story. One of America's most famous preachers didn't change history that day by delivering a magnificent sermon. He changed it by joining a group of students, by listening to a younger generation, by accepting the consequences of standing with them, or in this case, sitting with them. And that's a lesson for us all. Sometimes courage doesn't look like a raised fist. Sometimes it doesn't look like a thunderous speech. Sometimes courage is simply taking your place besides someone who has been told they don't belong, and refusing to leave them sitting alone. On October 19th, 1960, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested for taking a seat. But the young people who sat beside him were helping make room for generations yet to come. And to be honest, that's what Grace always asks us to do: to make room, to pull up another chair, to remember that at God's table, human dignity is never reserved for a privileged few. That's Moments Almanac for October 19th. I hope you'll join me tomorrow. Until then, take heart. Notice the scattered moments, and share the grace.