Howard Washington Thurman was an American author, philosopher, theologian, mystic, educator, and civil rights leader.
22 Facts About Howard Thurman
2.
Howard Thurman was born in 1899 in Florida in Daytona Beach.
3.
Howard Thurman spent most of his childhood in Daytona, Florida, where his family lived in Waycross, one of Daytona's three all-black communities.
4.
Howard Thurman was profoundly influenced by his maternal grandmother, Nancy Ambrose, who had been enslaved on a plantation in Madison County, Florida.
5.
Thurman's father, Saul Thurman, died of pneumonia when Howard Thurman was seven years old.
6.
Howard Thurman graduated from Rochester Theological Seminary in May 1926 as valedictorian in a class of twenty-nine students.
7.
From June 1926 until the fall of 1928, Howard Thurman served as pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Oberlin, Ohio.
8.
Howard Thurman enjoyed praying and going to church which provided him part of his education.
9.
Howard Thurman married Katie Kelley on June 11,1926, less than a month after graduating from seminary.
10.
On June 12,1932, Howard Thurman married Sue Bailey, whom he had met while at Morehouse, when Sue was a student at Spelman.
11.
Howard Thurman served on the faculty of the Howard University School of Divinity.
12.
Howard Thurman traveled broadly, heading Christian missions and meeting with world figures.
13.
In 1944, Thurman left his tenured position at Howard to help the Fellowship of Reconciliation establish the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples known as The Fellowship Church in San Francisco.
14.
Howard Thurman served as co-pastor with a white minister, Alfred Fisk.
15.
Howard Thurman was invited to Boston University in 1953, where he became the dean of Marsh Chapel.
16.
Howard Thurman was the first black dean of a chapel at a majority-white university or college in the United States.
17.
Howard Thurman was active and well known in the Boston community, where he influenced many leaders.
18.
Howard Thurman was a prolific author, writing twenty books on theology, religion, and philosophy.
19.
Howard Thurman had been a classmate and friend of King's father at Morehouse College.
20.
At Boston University, Howard Thurman taught Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, who cited Howard Thurman as among the teachers who first compelled him to explore mystical trends beyond Judaism.
21.
Howard Thurman died due to a lingering illness on April 10,1981, in San Francisco, California.
22.
Howard Thurman was named honorary Canon of the Cathedral of St John the Divine, New York City, in 1974.