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A Huffington Post article about Dr. Martin Luther King Junior tells the story of how King got his name. In full disclosure and attribution, much of what I quote here comes from that article, a link to which is provided at the end of this Truth in Two. Martin Luther King Jr. was given the birthname Michael King Jr. named after his preacher father. King was known as "Little Mike" throughout his childhood, but the name did not last long. Historians tracing this story, believe King’s father changed both their names after the elder King’s 1934 trip to Europe. The trip inspired the name change and forever changed history.
As the story goes, King Sr. joined a group of Baptist ministers on a tour of the Holy Land with stops in Europe. The trip culminated in a weeklong conference in Berlin, during which time the reverend visited many of the historical religious sites where Martin Luther defied the Catholic Church centuries earlier. Luther was a Catholic priest and theologian in the 16th century, at a time when the church went largely unchallenged in Germany. Martin Luther became more and more critical of his own institution, particularly the sale of indulgences. Luther’s "Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences," later known as The Ninety-Five Theses, began what came to be known as The Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther was excommunicated for his heresy. King Sr. returned home from the trip so inspired by what he had learned, he decided to change both his and his son's names to Martin Luther in honor of the German reformer.
Christians can remember a number of name-changes throughout biblical history beginning with Abram to Abraham ending with Saul becoming the apostle Paul. Name changes in God’s Word announced a new beginning in God’s eternal plan. As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday, we ought also to remember the Reformational origin of his name. For Truth in Two, this is Dr. Mark Eckel, personally seeking truth wherever it’s found. [First published at MarkEckel.com]
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Great article.
To all: If you want to know more about the original Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, look up the movie "Martin Luther, the Idea That Changed the World."
MLK Jr changed the US, Martin Luther changed the world ushering in the modern era.
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I just wanted to be clear on if that's where you meant to put the comma.