Part 2 of Jesus and the Disinherited. He quotes from Russell Gordon Smith from "Fugitive Papers." Thurman argues that the Jews had a sense of destiny, which was hindered by the fact of Roman rule and created a constant turmoil and sense of danger. What made Jesus, then, different? The common belief was that anyone who upends that which blocks destiny, becomes a righteous arm of God as the enemy is destroyed. The Zealots want to appear Roman, then kill it from the inside. The Essenes wanted to withdraw completely, feeling the Roman Empire to be totally polluted, and hoping that through shear naked spirituality God would overthrow Rome without anyone having to resort to violence. In the religion of Jesus, each person is responsible for their own actions in response to the environment they find themselves. Education can make God less personal and, ironically, we become more pessimistic about our destiny. God used that Jewish/Roman/Greek environment in which to shape Jesus and his community.

Part of the Collection, Jesus and the Disinherited (1959, Marsh Chapel, Boston University, Boston, MA)

Tags: Essenes, Fugitive Papers, Jews and Rome, Le Roy, Little Rock, Psalm 91, Russell Gordon Smith, seminary, Sepphoris, Temptations of Christ, World Student Volunteer Movement, Zealots

Description by Ken Owens

Recorded in Marsh Chapel, Boston University, Boston, Massachussetts

Citation: Thurman, Howard, “Jesus and the Disinherited, Part 2, January 18, 1959,” The Howard Thurman Digital Archive, accessed July 9, 2024, https://thurman.pitts.emory.edu/items/show/1018.