Thesis advisor: Andrew L. Prevot / This dissertation addresses two critical areas of scholarship on Howard Thurman. Firstly, it aims to clarify Thurman’s theological anthropology, a facet often overshadowed by a focus on his ecclesiology and nonviolent social ethics. While existing treatments of Thurman’s anthropology are typically biographical and limited to his mystical consciousness, this project integrates insights from various aspects of Thurman’s work to offer a comprehensive account of his theological anthropology. Secondly, the dissertation critically examines the violence in Thurman’s historical context and the nuanced choice between violent and nonviolent resistance. Emphasizing Thurman’s nonviolent message directed at those who saw armed resistance as morally plausible, the study places Thurman in dialogue with contemporaries and subsequent Black scholars, elucidating how Christian nonviolent resistance contributes to an anthropology aligned with the imperative to resist all forms of oppression. The methodology involves correlating the revelatory responses of rebellious Black individuals with God’s revelation. Chapters also delve into Thurman’s theological anthropology and non-Chalcedonian Christology. The dissertation concludes by encouraging a nuanced integration of Thurman’s views into the Black Lives Matter Movement through a reflection on the parables of Jesus. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2024. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

This thesis examines the crucial role of spirituals and freedom songs during the American Civil Rights movement from 1955-1968. Singing this music and speaking their lyrics affirmed African Americans' humanity, inspired hope for justice, and nurtured community development. When they sang, activists experienced "egalitarian resonance"-- spontaneous community among singers and listeners crossing race, age, gender, and class differences. These moments modeled the ideal American, multiracial community. In the absence of a 24/7 news cycle, freedom songs instantly provided a grassroots history of the movement. Both artistic expression and vocal protest, spirituals testified to the resilience of the human spirit. Created by African American slaves, spirituals expressed human psychological, emotional, and physical suffering. During twentieth-century segregation, W.E.B. Du Bois, James Weldon Johnson, and Howard Thurman wrote about spirituals and racial oppression. They understood spirituals expressed hope for justice despite despair. During the Civil Rights Movement, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. quoted spirituals and freedom songs, linking past suffering with present persecution. Forming part of nonviolent protest, spirituals offered hope for an all-inclusive, "beloved community." Between 1955 and 1968, freedom songs chronicled events and persons, orally recording the movement as it happened. Protesters sang long-established spirituals and newly-created freedom songs composed while working to open public facilities and to expand the franchise to all persons. Singing together in mass meetings solidified the resolve of participants and community members. When the movement spread from a regional to national phenomenon, freedom songs began showing other music influences including blues, rock and roll, and folk rock.