I never think about whether or not what I am about to say is inflammatory (unless I am in close quarters on a regular basis, then I am more careful).
The other day, Martin Luther King’s name came up while I was talking to Orthodox Jewish friend. One railed against King as a degenerate (for his widespread womanizing, his plagiarizing of his PhD thesis, his socialism). The other friend was pro King.
So I posted today on my FB: “How are you celebrating Martin Luther King? Not a big day for most of my Orthodox friends.”
And a friend responded by saying I was inflammatory.
That never crossed my mind. What concerns me is truth, not whether or not somebody is going to be offended by what I say.
Modern Orthodox Jews generally wish to be a part of the wider culture and for many of them, Martin Luther King Day has significance. For traditional Orthodox Jews, the wider society doesn’t matter much to them and they don’t care about Martin Luther King.
