Register to join this year’s celebration of the life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. continues as a reminder that “trouble don’t last always.” In a speech, Dr. King stressed the need for continuous action despite the challenges when he said: “If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.”  Today, these words are significant as we digest the results of the recent presidential election which poses great challenges ahead for America’s marginalized communities. As these communities organize to move forward, the question arises; “What Now America? What Now?”

The theme for this year’s Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration explores the question and the answers to “What Now?” As a community, and as the body of Christ, how do we organize, strategize, and plan for the next four years? How do we respond to the implementation of Project 2025. “What Now?” And more importantly how do we heed Dr. Kings advice to “keep moving forward?”

The program will begin with a praise service featuring an ecumenical choir comprised of students, staff and faculty from the three co-sponsor schools, the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, McCormick Theological Seminary and the Catholic Theological Union. The choir will be led and directed by LSTC’s Cantor Dr. Keith “Doc” Hampton. Students will also read selected works written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The student readings will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by LSTC’s Dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Linda Thomas, who is also Director of the Pero Center for Intersectionality Studies and the Westberg Distinguished Professor of Theology andAnthropology. Panelists include Rev. Dr. Michael Pfleger, Senior Pastor of the Faith Community of St. Sabina,  Rev Dr. Maisha Handy, President of McCormick Theological Seminary, Dr. Syed Atif Rizwan,Assistant Professor and Director of the Catholic-Muslim Studies Program at CTU, and Rev. Dr. Robert Smith (Chickasaw), Assistant Professor of History at the University of North Texas, specializing in Indigenous studies, and critical race theory.

A reception will follow the panel discussion in the third-floor atrium.

If you are participating online, please join using the following Zoom link:

https://lstc-edu.zoom.us/j/81352173500?pwd=EtbQlDv5pQdDItalYeEBi4EO1Dn2Vc.1
Meeting ID: 813 5217 3500
Passcode: 749472

For questions related to this event, please contact:  Marvis Hardy, LSTC (marvis.hardy@lstc.edu) Kimberly Lymore, CTU (klymore@ctu.edu) Priscila Rodriguez, MTS (prodriquez@mccormick.edu)

Program

Panelists

Dr. Maisha Handy

A Chicago native, Rev. Dr. Maisha I. Handy is an administrator, academician, pastor, and activist committed to education, justice, and liberation. She began her higher education journey at Lincoln University (MO), receiving a Bachelor of Science in Criminology/Criminal Justice (1989). After relocating to Atlanta, Georgia, she received the Master of Divinity degree with honors from Candler School of Theology, Emory University (1994) and the Ph.D. degree in Religion (Theology & Personality) from Emory University (2002).
Prior to coming to McCormick,  Dr. Handy served as the Interim President and Professor of Religion and Education at the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) in Atlanta, Georgia, where she had been employed for 24 years. In July 2024, Dr. Handy was named President of McCormick Theological Seminary as the institution’s first African American president and second female leader. She is also the founding pastor of Rize Community Church in Atlanta, Ga., where she has served for 11 years.

Dr. Michael Pfleger

Rev. Dr. Michael Pfleger was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago on May 14, 1975. In 1981, at the age of 31, he became the youngest full pastor in the diocese when he was appointed Pastor of Saint Sabina Church.

Since 1968, Father Pfleger has lived and ministered in the African American community on both the west and south sides of Chicago. He spent two Summers working in a Native American community in Oklahoma.  Called a “pastor, preacher, parent, lecturer, activist and “errand boy,” in his ministry, Father Pfleger has sought to break down the walls of racism and denominationalism by building unity among all people founded on truth and based on Jesus’ command to love one another. This holy calling has led him to be parent, a preacher, a teacher, a lecturer, and an activist. However, he believes his most significant role is an errand boy for Jesus!

Father Pfleger has been recognized for his fight against alcohol and tobacco billboards, drugs and racism.  Throughout the course of his extensive and active ministry, Father Pfleger has been recognized for his commitment to equality and passionate stance against injustice.

Dr. Syed Rizwan

Dr. Syed Atif Rizwan grew up in New Jersey and completed his undergraduate studies at Rutgers University, where he majored in Economics and minored in Chemistry. After graduation, he spent 8 years in the financial services industry, during which time he worked in New Jersey, New York, and Los Angeles. In 2009, he matriculated in Claremont Graduate School’s Master’s in Islamic Studies program and in 2011 he enrolled in the Islamic studies doctoral program at the University of California, Los Angeles. Syed joined the CTU faculty in 2018 and became director of the Catholic-Muslim Studies Program in 2020, He also chairs the Department of Intercultural Studies and Ministry. Dr. Rizwan’s research interests include history of Islamic law; hadith studies; medieval and post-modern theories of punishment; and interreligious dialogue and studies.

Dr. Robert Smith

Rev. Dr. Robert O. Smith (Chickasaw) is Assistant Professor of History at the University of North Texas, specializing in religious history, Indigenous studies, and critical race studies. Smith, an enrolled citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, is ordained as a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). In addition to many academic articles, he is the author of More Desired than Our Own Salvation: The Roots of Christian Zionism (Oxford, 2013) and editor, with Göran Gunner, of Comprehending Christian Zionism: Perspectives in Comparison (Fortress, 2014).