Our President & CEO Rev. Patrick J. McDevitt, CM, PhD, offers the following reflection for this year’s celebration of the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Greetings to all of you, and Happy New Year. As we commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today, I want to take a moment—on behalf of all of us at Saint Luke Institute—to honor his life, celebrate his legacy, and share where we stand as an institute in light of all that is happening in our nation and in our world.
Few phrases in American history are as well-known as Dr. King’s words: “I have a dream.” Those words have endured because they represent hope—hope that looks beyond the present moment into a future that can be better for everyone. And that kind of hope matters right now.
Dr. King’s dream was not simply a political dream. It was a moral dream. A spiritual dream. A dream rooted in the Gospel values of love, justice, and nonviolence. Like the prophets of old—and like Jesus Himself—Dr. King believed that love and justice are the most powerful forces for real social transformation. He envisioned what he called the Beloved Community—a community where people treat one another with dignity, take responsibility for one another, and seek reconciliation rather than division. He also spoke with urgency. He called people of conscience not merely to reflect, but to act.
At Saint Luke Institute, we feel that call deeply.
We remain committed to confronting the realities that still burden our society: racial inequality, economic injustice, barriers to human rights, and too often, limited access to medical and mental health care. And we cannot ignore the polarization and dehumanization that has become so widespread in our public life. These are troubling times.
But in every generation, the voices of faith and wisdom call us forward—to make a difference. I am reminded of the words of Saint Pope Paul VI, who said: “If you want peace, work for justice.” Peace is not possible without justice. And justice begins close to home—in how we treat one another each day. Just last November, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a rare and urgent pastoral statement about escalating tensions and even violence impacting immigrants in the United States. They reminded us that this is a matter of human dignity and Gospel truth. The bishops said: “We feel compelled… to raise our voices in defense of God-given human dignity.” And they offered a powerful word directly to immigrants: “You are not alone.” That message matters—because how we treat the most vulnerable among us reveals who we are.
So today, as we remember Dr. King, I invite each of us to pause and reflect: Where do I stand? How am I being called to respond? And what can I do—today—to build a more just and compassionate world?
At Saint Luke Institute, we want to be on the forefront of healing—helping to restore hearts, strengthen lives, and promote human dignity through compassionate, evidence-based mental health care grounded in our Catholic mission. I encourage you to learn more about our mental health services through our website, our educational programs, including SLIconnect, and the many ways we serve the Church. Thank you for taking this moment of remembrance with us. And as we move forward together, let us pray for peace.
Let us pray and work for justice.