Below is the Pledge of
Nonviolence that Martin Luther King, Jr. asked those who believed in
his message to abide by as well as his core principles of nonviolence.
Tea Party Protesters
should make this same commitment to nonviolence and each should pledge accordingly.
1. As you prepare to
march meditate on the life and teachings of Jesus
2. Remember the
nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation - not victory.
3. Walk and talk in the
manner of love; for God is love.
4. Pray daily to be used
by God that all men and women might be free.
5. Sacrifice personal
wishes that all might be free.
6. Observe with friend
and foes the ordinary rules of courtesy.
7. Perform regular
service for others and the world.
8. Refrain from violence
of fist, tongue and heart.
9. Strive to be in good
spiritual and bodily health.
10. Follow the directions
of the movement leaders and of the captains on demonstrations.
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The Five Principles of
Non-Violence
1. Non-violent resistance
is not a method for cowards. It does resist. The nonviolent resister is just
as strongly opposed to the evil against which he protests, as is the person
who uses violence. His method is passive or nonaggressive in the sense that
he is not physically aggressive toward his opponent, but his mind and
emotions are always active, constantly seeking to persuade the opponent that
he is mistaken. This method is passive physically but strongly active
spiritually; it is nonaggressive physically but dynamically aggressive
spiritually.
2. Nonviolent resistance
does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent, but to win his friendship
and understanding. The nonviolent resister must often express his protest
through noncooperation or boycotts, but he realizes that noncooperation and
boycotts are not ends themselves; they are merely means to awaken a sense of
moral shame in the opponent.
3. The attack is directed
against forces of evil rather than against persons who are caught in those
forces. It is a struggle between justice and injustice, between the forces
of light and the forces of darkness.
4. Nonviolent resistance
avoids not only external physical violence, but also internal violence of
spirit. At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.
5. Nonviolence is based
on the conviction that the universe is on the side of justice. It is the
deep faith in the future that allows a nonviolent resister to accept
suffering without retaliation. The nonviolent resister knows that in his
struggle for justice, he has a cosmic companionship.
