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Posted: January 20 2026 at 03:35 PM
Author: Victoria Rebeck
Our times are dangerous, Rev. Dr. Charles Woolery Sr. observes, and this requires a dangerous religion.
Over 300 people gathered at Trinity United Methodist Church in Mount Prospect on Jan. 18 for the Northern Illinois Conference’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration, where they heard Rev. Woolery preach about how King’s words and life are still relevant to our Christian witness today.
National government leaders are motivated by greed and use lies and violence to get their way. The chief executive seems to have an unquenchable desire for adoration and approbation, Woolery said.
The Rev. Dr. Charles Woolery Sr. tells worshipers to practice a ''dangerous religion'' that cares for the dispossessed before the prestigious.
What Jesus wants from us is to change the world, Woolery said.
John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism, taught this as well; that religion requires acts of love and justice as much as acts of piety.
And being a disciple of Jesus requires that we take the side of Jesus. In these times of oppression and disregard for human rights and dignity, “You cannot be neutral and be on the side of Jesus,” Woolery said.
“A dangerous religion sees Jesus in disguise. He appears in the faces of the dispossessed, not in the places of power and prestige.”
“What are we waiting for?” Woolery asked the worshipers. “We need a sense of urgency.
“We need to be involved in transforming people and transforming the world.”
The celebration was led by a diversity of presentations and cultures. Three youth—Naylah Handley, Cooper Matyja, and Christopher Smith Jr.—performed a reader’s theatre piece that imagined how King may have struggled with God’s call on his life, particularly the risks of speaking truth to power.
With enthusiasm and heart, the Northern Illinois Conference Filipino-American Choir sang Mark Miller’s song, “Justice Will Rise.” Miller is a United Methodist musician and songwriter. Trinity’s choir encouraged worshipers in their work for Jesus’s love and justice through the song, “We’ve Come This Far by Faith.”
Referring to King's sermon "The Drum Major Instinct," Bishop Dan Schwerin sent the worshipers out with exhortation to "be a drum major for love."
Watch a Facebook Live recording of the service here.