The day before Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, he concluded his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech with these astounding words:
Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And so I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man! Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!
This lesson completes Vergil’s epic classic the Aeneid, with books eleven and twelve. These books are battle filled page turners, with gripping side tales and a satisfying conclusion. The side tales are sometimes tragic, as when King Evander mourns the loss of Pallas: “I, in living, have undone the fate of fathers: I survive my son”; maddeningly frustrating, as when Diomedes’ suggestion of a truce is received by all but Turnus: “I shall go bold against Aeneas”; or adventurous fun, as the story of Camilla, the warrior maiden: “At the center of the struggle, like an Amazon…”