The Howard Thurman Podcast

In this seventh sermon on the prophets, Thurman highlights two points found in the prophet Jeremiah. Firstly, Jeremiah presents us with the problem of history and responsibility. Often we think our actions as our own, set into motion by our own agency, but in truth we act as a result of processes unfathomable to us. What then is the place of responsibility when it seems we have no control? Thurman does not answer this question, but simply ponders. Secondly, Thurman says that Jeremiah spiritualizes religion in a groundbreaking way for his time. In Jeremiah we find that religion is not confined to a holy place, or people, or ritual – rather God is in the heart. God is found in the force that sustains our lives at the root, speaking to us through the voice of our own hearts, and the wisdom of our own bodies.

Part of the Collection, Religion of the Prophets (1952, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Religion of the Prophets: The Message of Jeremiah, Part 2, 1952 July 28,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/930.

In this sixth sermon on the prophets, Thurman turns to Jeremiah and the topic of mysticism. Some see mysticism as retreat from the world, whereas ethics and morality seeks to make a way in the traffic of life. Thurman rejects this binary. The life of ethics has to be supported by something. Thurman suggests that outer battles are not won in the events, but deep in the transformations of human spirit. Our ethical struggles and moral difficulties will overwhelm us if we do not find a way to keep the outside chaos from penetrating our inner world. Mysticism is a necessity, for we each must make a way in our lives for renewal and rebuilding of our spirits.

Part of the Collection, Religion of the Prophets (1952, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Religion of the Prophets: The Message of Jeremiah, Part 1, 1952 July 20,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/929.

"Thurman examines the pursuit of happiness. Life is both existence as well as the outreach of our human spirit and values and meanings. This outreach is so important that, in some cases, we may sacrifice our own existence to protect others. Happiness is something everybody wants. Thurman examines the wording of "pursuit of happiness." Note: the recording ends abruptly. " Description from Expanding Common Ground, Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University

Part of the Collection, Declaration of Independence (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Unknown

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Declaration of Independence: Pursuit of Happiness, 1951 August 26,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/928.

"Thurman examines the Declaration of Independence and the significance of Locke's thinking that government is linked to all people being free and equal. This spiritual equality and liberty help government exist. Freedom means having a sense of alternative to the options in one's life. " Description from Expanding Common Ground, Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University

Part of the Collection, Declaration of Independence (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Unknown

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Declaration of Independence: Liberty, 1951 August 19,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/927.

"For Thurman, life, as a natural and universal right, is a combination of the mind and spirit balanced together in the body. He discusses protecting life thru self-defense and the rationalizing that occurs in times of war. He states that the sacrifice of one's own life, done to aid wrongs and help others, ensures spirit and life continue to the next generation. As long as that spirit continues, the soul continues to exist even though physical life ends." Description from Expanding Common Ground, Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University

Part of the Collection, Declaration of Independence (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Unknown

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Declaration of Independence: Life, 1951 August 12,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/926.

"Thurman roots the idea of American equality in the historical and religious teaching of old Israel. He examines the temple tax as a symbolic tribute to all men being equal in the eyes of God before returning to the Declaration of Independence. He discusses how equality is weighted by each individual based on their understanding of their own worth." Description from Expanding Common Ground, Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center at Boston University

Part of the Collection, Declaration of Independence (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Unknown

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Declaration of Independence: Created Equal, 1951 July 29,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/925.

Thurman finishes his lectures on loyalty using Deutero-Isaiah to explore the relationship between privilege and responsibility. The privilege of being exposed to God instills one with a sense of ultimate responsibility. Equality of moral character is founded on equal responsibility to God. To finish, Thurman ponders the role of America which enjoys great privileges. Thurman asserts that we must relate our privileges to our responsibilities, for we are under the judgement of God and history "to make our days for mankind." Our loyalty is measured in self-conscious commitment to the well-being of all life.

Part of the Collection, The Meaning of Loyalty (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

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Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “The Meaning of Loyalty, Part 6: Deutero-Isaiah II, 1951 June 10,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/924.

In this fifth lecture on The Meaning of Loyalty, Thurman delves into Deutero-Isaiah. Isaiah, as prophet is dedicated to the restoration of Israel and Israel's ultimate destiny in God's plan. However, according to Thurman, Isaiah is disappointed by the people who do not seem to be sensitive to their divine duty. Thurman explains that through this disappointment, Isaiah comes to a great spiritual discovery: the significance of Israel is not measured in power or status, but rather "in humility of spirit and of mind."

Part of the Collection, The Meaning of Loyalty (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

Tags:

Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “The Meaning of Loyalty, Part 5: Deutero-Isaiah, 1951 June 3,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/923.

In this fourth lecture on loyalty, Thurman explores the story of Job. He wonders: How do we reconcile the logic of our minds and the loyalty of our hearts when it comes to God? The logic of the mind believes in order and justice – God being the arbiter of perfect reward and perfect punishment. However, we also find that the good and undeserving unnecessarily suffer, and thus God appears unjust. For Thurman, Job's answer to this dilemma is that Job's integrity to God and humanity remained firm, even when God's integrity to him seemed to fail.

Part of the Collection, The Meaning of Loyalty (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

Tags: suffering

Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “The Meaning of Loyalty, Part 4: Job's Dilemma, 1951 May 27,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/922.

In this first lecture on The Meaning of Loyalty, Thurman speaks to the ways in which individuals are involved in their social context. Loyalty represents the fusion of a person's inner will and an outside cause. This is not simply a social matter for Thurman, but also a fundamental structure of the universe. Loyal commitment brings all the disparate parts of the personality into a single whole. Thurman ends by describing what it means to be loyal to a person. "The thing that is primary is my devotion to the tie that unites me and you."

Part of the Collection, The Meaning of Loyalty (1951, Fellowship Church, San Francisco, CA)

Tags:

Description by Rodell Jefferson III.

Recorded in Fellowship Church, San Francisco, California

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “The Meaning of Loyalty, Part 1, 1951 May 6,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/921.