Sermons on the Parables

Overview

"Sermons on the Parables is a rare gem, a distillation of the creative and intimate connections between the parables of Jesus and the spirit of a master storyteller and spiritual virtuoso. The themes found in Howard Thurman's lively imagination are rich and riveting; and they call us back to the primacy of religious experience and ethical accountability." --Walter Earl Fluker, Editor and Director, The Howard Thurman Papers Project

"Allows those new to Howard Thurman, and those of us already seized by Thurman's spirit and confession of faith, to listen and learn from him. Thurman says here of the parable of the Good Samaritan, 'Now let's work at it for a little.' Yes, let's do so! This fine, beautifully arranged and introduced collection gives us that golden opportunity." --The Rev. Dr. Robert Allan Hill Dean, Marsh Chapel, Boston University 

"The surest dose of what's needed in these fraught times: a clear, compelling voice that rises up from the page, illuminating a sacred way toward all that's good and just." --Barbara Mahany, in The Chicago Tribune

Howard Thurman (1899-1981) was one of the finest thinkers and most influential preachers of his era. Yet Thurman’s importance goes well beyond his influence on Martin Luther King, Jr. and oth­ers in the freedom struggle. His spiritual gifts and dreams, as well as his unique response to his troubled times, were as extraordinarily cre­ative as they were vast and far-reaching.

This collection of fifteen of Thurman’s unpub­lished sermons on the parables of Jesus captures the power of the parables to challenge, trans­form, and inspire us to declare or reaffirm our commitment to the reign of God and the hu­man community proclaimed by Jesus .

David B. Gowler holds a chair in religion at Emory University. His books include The Para­bles after Jesus (Baker) and What Are They Saying about the Parables? (Paulist Press).

Kipton E. Jensen is associate professor of phi­losophy at Morehouse College.