Howard Thurman

Howard Thurman was one of the great theological minds of the twentieth century.  He grew up in an economically depressed household but, in a community infused with love and compassion.  Howard seems to have always been a spiritual, mystical and introspective boy.  In the spiritual autobiography we viewed in class he seems to have felt the stirring of mysticism at a very young age.  Perhaps this was due to his very nature; perhaps it was due to some of the formative influences he was exposed to at a very tender age.  I am of the belief that it was both.

He tells of his time spent with his back against the bark of a great old oak tree in his yard.  He describes it as great in stature and covered with mossy growth.  Howard would rest his back against the might tree and speak to it.  He also enjoyed watching the tree sway in the wind during great storms.  I imagine young Howard taking note of the tree’s swaying with the wind, rolling with the punches, yet never succumbing to outside forces due to the strength of its roots.

Another powerful influence on his life was certainly his grandmother who grew up as a slave.  One of her early memories was of a slaveholding woman beating her white child for teaching the alphabet to a Negro.  At that moment she knew that letters must contain some power.  She passed this belief on to her grandson who took her guidance to heart.  
He was determined to get to school and tells us a wonderful story of his efforts to get there.  He was in a train station on his way to college and discovered he did not have enough money to ship his trunk to his destination.  He was so frustrated that he broke down into tears right then and there.  As he was sitting there full of despair he met a kindly stranger who responded to his need.  This man walked over to the counter with Howard, purchased the necessary transportation voucher and handed it to Howard.  That unnamed man’s act of kindness enabled him to go forward and illuminate the world through his light. He tells us that while he was at school a wonderful teacher went out of her way to tutor him on the side.  He tells us a story about the establishment of his interfaith-intercultural church in San Francisco and despite the fact that there was little money and much risk, all things fell into place.

One of the most constant messages that resonate in the story is that God will provide.  If you follow the path that he lights before you anything is possible.  When I read the words of Howard Thurman or hear his heartfelt testimony I know that god will make a way for me.  I need only have confidence in myself and the faith in him and God will provide for me as well.