Homer A. Jack
Encyclopedia
Homer A. Jack was an American
Unitarian Universalist clergyman pacifist and social activist who helped found the Congress of Racial Equality
and National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy
(SANE).
parents. His grandparents had immigrated from central and eastern Europe
to escape oppression and poverty. Like his parents, the child Jack was a radicalist nature-worshiper who distrusted organized religion. He met Esther Rhys Williams at Munroe High School, in the early 1930s, and the two married in 1939. The marriage would produce two children and end in divorce in the early 1970s.
Though in 1940 Jack received a Ph.D. in biology
from Cornell University
, he decided to enter the Unitarian
ministry. In 1944, he graduated from Meadville Theological School in Chicago
.
and fought racial segregation
. He was active in the publication of Rochester's No-War News and the Fellowship of Reconciliation
and helped organize the anti-war 1942 Chicago sit-in and the anti-segregation Journey of Reconciliation
.
From 1942 to 1943, he served as a Unitarian
minister in Lawrence
, Kansas
, where he spoke out against Lawrence's "violently anti-Negro and anti-labor" stance. He was the executive secretary of Chicago Council Against Racial and Religious Discrimination from 1943 to 1948, and from 1948 to 1959 served as the minister of the Unitarian Church of Evanston, Illinois.
Jack co-founded and was the associate director of the American Committee on Africa from 1959 to 1960, co-founded and served as executive director to the Congress of Racial Equality
and National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy
(SANE) from 1960 to 1964, and directed the Social Responsibility Department of the Unitarian Universalist Association
in Boston from 1964 to 1970. From 1970 to 1983, he was the secretary general of the World Conference of Religions for Peace in New York. Simultaneously, from 1973 to 1984, he chaired the Non-Governmental Organization Committee on Disarmament at United Nations
Headquarters. He also remarried, to German Quaker Ingebord Belk.
In 1984, he served as a minister once again in Winnetka
, Illinois
, a position he would hold until 1989. That same year, he was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize
.
, where he authored two books and continued to be active in various peace and human rights organizations. He died of cancer in Swarthmore in 1993. Jack's autobiography was published posthumously in 1996 as Homer's Odyssey: My Quest for Peace and Justice.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Unitarian Universalist clergyman pacifist and social activist who helped found the Congress of Racial Equality
Congress of Racial Equality
The Congress of Racial Equality or CORE was a U.S. civil rights organization that originally played a pivotal role for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Movement...
and National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy
Peace Action
Peace Action is a peace organization formed through the merger of The Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy and the Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign...
(SANE).
Early life and education
Jack was an only child to active socialist and freethinkerFreethought
Freethought is a philosophical viewpoint that holds that opinions should be formed on the basis of science, logic, and reason, and should not be influenced by authority, tradition, or other dogmas...
parents. His grandparents had immigrated from central and eastern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to escape oppression and poverty. Like his parents, the child Jack was a radicalist nature-worshiper who distrusted organized religion. He met Esther Rhys Williams at Munroe High School, in the early 1930s, and the two married in 1939. The marriage would produce two children and end in divorce in the early 1970s.
Though in 1940 Jack received a Ph.D. in biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, he decided to enter the Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
ministry. In 1944, he graduated from Meadville Theological School in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
Career
While in Chicago, Jack led efforts and rallies to prevent the United States' entry into World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and fought racial segregation
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
. He was active in the publication of Rochester's No-War News and the Fellowship of Reconciliation
Fellowship of Reconciliation
The Fellowship of Reconciliation is the name used by a number of religious nonviolent organizations, particularly in English-speaking countries...
and helped organize the anti-war 1942 Chicago sit-in and the anti-segregation Journey of Reconciliation
Journey of Reconciliation
The Journey of Reconciliation was a form of non-violent direct action to challenge segregation laws on interstate buses in the Southern United States....
.
From 1942 to 1943, he served as a Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
minister in Lawrence
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, where he spoke out against Lawrence's "violently anti-Negro and anti-labor" stance. He was the executive secretary of Chicago Council Against Racial and Religious Discrimination from 1943 to 1948, and from 1948 to 1959 served as the minister of the Unitarian Church of Evanston, Illinois.
Jack co-founded and was the associate director of the American Committee on Africa from 1959 to 1960, co-founded and served as executive director to the Congress of Racial Equality
Congress of Racial Equality
The Congress of Racial Equality or CORE was a U.S. civil rights organization that originally played a pivotal role for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Movement...
and National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy
Peace Action
Peace Action is a peace organization formed through the merger of The Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy and the Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign...
(SANE) from 1960 to 1964, and directed the Social Responsibility Department of the Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalist Association , in full the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in North America, is a liberal religious association of Unitarian Universalist congregations formed by the consolidation in 1961 of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of...
in Boston from 1964 to 1970. From 1970 to 1983, he was the secretary general of the World Conference of Religions for Peace in New York. Simultaneously, from 1973 to 1984, he chaired the Non-Governmental Organization Committee on Disarmament at United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Headquarters. He also remarried, to German Quaker Ingebord Belk.
In 1984, he served as a minister once again in Winnetka
Winnetka, Illinois
Winnetka is an affluent North Shore village located approximately north of downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois. Winnetka was featured on the list of America's 25 top-earning towns and "one of the best places to live" by CNN Money in 2011...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, a position he would hold until 1989. That same year, he was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize
Niwano Peace Prize
Niwano Peace Prize is given to honor and encourage those who are devoting themselves to interreligious cooperation in the cause of peace,and to make their achievements known...
.
Later life
In the late 1980s, Jack retired from official positions and moved to Swarthmore, PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, where he authored two books and continued to be active in various peace and human rights organizations. He died of cancer in Swarthmore in 1993. Jack's autobiography was published posthumously in 1996 as Homer's Odyssey: My Quest for Peace and Justice.
Published works
- The Wit and Wisdom of Gandhi (editor) (1951)
- The Gandhi Reader: A Sourcebook of His Life and Writings (editor) (1956)
- Religion and Peace, Papers from the National Inter-Religious Conference on Peace (editor) (1956)
- Disarmament Workbook (1978)
- Disarm - or Die: The Second U.N. Special Session on Disarmament (1983)
- Mature Spirit: Religion Without Supernatural Hopes (co-authors Vincent Harding and Philip F. Mayer) (1987)
- World Conference on Religion and Peace (1993)
- Homer's Odyssey: My Quest for Peace and Justice (autobiography) (1996)
- Swarthmore College Peace Collection: Homer A. Jack Papers (1930–1995)