Biden Invokes King's Legacy in Historic Sunday Sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church

President Joe Biden called on Americans to "choose democracy over autocracy, a beloved community over chaos" as he marked Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday on Sunday, January 15, 2023.

Biden spoke from the pulpit of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, the congregation King once served. In doing so, he became the first sitting president to give a Sunday morning sermon there. He said King's life and legacy can help the country defend its democracy against threats he described as "racism, extremism, insurrection" and others.

"At our best, the American promise wins out," Biden said, before acknowledging the nation's shortcomings. "But I don't need to tell you that we're not always at our best. We're fallible. We fail and fall."

He framed the country's path forward as a shared one. "My message to this nation on this day is we go forward, we go together, when we choose democracy over autocracy, a beloved community over chaos," he said, adding a call to be "doers," to be "unafraid, always keeping the faith."

Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat who serves as the church's senior pastor, introduced the president to a congregation of dignitaries, worshippers and members of King's family. Warnock, who recently defeated Republican Herschel Walker in a runoff, joked that Biden, "a devout Catholic," might find the Baptist service "a little bit rambunctious and animated." He then added, "But I saw him over there clapping his hands."

King served as co-pastor of the historic church from 1960 until he was assassinated in 1968.

The setting carries political weight. Georgia is expected to be a major battleground in the next presidential election, when Biden is expected to seek a second term. He carried Georgia in 2020, along with Michigan and Pennsylvania, states where Black voters make up a sizable share of the Democratic electorate. Their support is expected to be key in the 2024 contest.

The administration has sought to highlight Biden's record on racial justice, including his appointment of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman on the Supreme Court and the confirmation of 11 Black women as federal appeals court judges.

Biden described the fight over the nation's direction as an enduring one. "The battle for the soul of this nation is perennial," he said. "It's a constant struggle … between hope and fear, kindness and cruelty, justice and injustice."

"Progress is never easy, but it's always possible and things do get better in our march to a more perfect union," he told the congregation. He said much work remains on economic justice, civil rights, voting rights and protecting democracy, adding: "I'm remembering our job is to redeem the soul of America."