159 - The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Vol. 1: Called to Serve January 1929 - June 1951

The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Vol. 1: Called to Serve January 1929 - June 1951
By Clayborne Carson, Senior Editor
Berkeley, University of California Press, 1992. 484 pp. $35.00.

Volume I of the projected multivolumed collection of King's papers does much to locate King within early family, church, and academic contexts. The volume contains a rich selection of letters written to and received from family members. Many of these contain allusions to the life and routines of Ebenezer Baptist Church where King's father was pastor.

The letters and papers confirm King's deep roots in the African American congregation. One of the letters, "Kick Up the Dust," written by the 17-year old King to the Atlanta Constitution, reveals a young man who is already fed up with racial inequality. They also document King's course work and grades at Morehouse College in Atlanta and Crozer Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania. The many term papers and class assignments included may make for tedious reading, but overall they provide a fascinating reminder of the nature of liberal theological education just before mid-century. The Crozer papers, in particular, such as, "An Autobiography of Religious Development," written for his favorite professor, George Washington Davis, demonstrate how deeply King was schooled in the liberal tradition. They represent his first tentative attempts to distance himself from his own religious tradition and to find another language with which to express his hopes and ideals.

The volume is beautifully and accessibly designed. Its "Calendar of Documents" at the end and the lengthy historical introduction will be of particular value to King scholars.

Richard Lischer
Duke Divinity School
Durham, NC.