A Baptist Preacher’s Buddhist Teacher: How My Interfaith Journey With Daisaku Ikeda Made Me a Better Christian

In this soul-stirring memoir, Lawrence E. Carter Sr. shares his remarkable quest to experience King’s “beloved community” and his surprising discovery that King’s dream was being realized by the Japanese Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda. Coming of age on the cusp of the American Civil Rights Movement, Carter was personally mentored by Martin Luther King Jr. and followed in his footsteps—first to get an advanced degree in theology and then to teach a new generation at King’s alma mater, Morehouse College. Over the years, however, Carter was disheartened to see the radical cosmic vision at the heart of King’s message gradually diluted. Then he encountered Ikeda, president of the lay Buddhist association Soka Gakkai International. Carter knew that King had been inspired by Ghandi, a Hindu, and now Ikeda, a Buddhist, was showing him how King’s message of justice, equality, and the fundamental dignity of life could be carried to millions of people around the world. What ensued was not a conversion but a conversation—about the essential role of interfaith dialogue, the primacy of education, and the value of a living faith to realize King’s dream of truly global cooperation.