God of all, who, in calling us each by name, offers respect both to the names we are given and those we choose: On this date in 1964, we remember that a brilliant 22-year-old boxer from Louisville, already an Olympic champion, changed his name to Muhammad Ali to denote his conversion to Islam. Boldly repudiating racism and risking imprisonment for refusing to be inducted into the military during the Vietnam war were two ways he leveraged his fame to glorify you. “Black men would go over there and fight,” he said, “but when they came home, they couldn’t even be served a hamburger.” By your grace, may history remember Muhammad Ali’s as a prophetic voice inviting a nation to amendment of life. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Photo: Stanley Weston/Getty Images)