John Haynes Holmes
John Haynes Holmes | |
---|---|
President of the American Civil Liberties Union | |
In office 1940–1950 | |
Preceded by | Harry F. Ward |
Succeeded by | Ernest Angell |
Personal details | |
Born | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | November 29, 1879
Died | April 3, 1964 Manhattan, New York, U.S. | (aged 84)
Spouse |
Madeleine Baker
(after 1904) |
Relations | anti-war activism.
Early lifeHolmes was born in Colchester, Essex. That John Holmes was a Messenger of the General Court of Plymouth Colony and the executioner of Thomas Granger. Newland H. Holmes, President of the Massachusetts Senate , was his cousin.
He attended CareerIn 1907 Holmes was called to the Church of the Messiah ( Universalist churches merged; newly accepted again into AUA fellowship, he was then featured in the last AUA yearbook published before the merger.
On May 25, 1919, Holmes was one of the speakers at a rally held in White forces against the Red forces in Russia.[4]
Holmes engaged in interfaith efforts, working closely with Rabbi Gandhi, from his pulpit, and describes his meetings and interactions with the Mahatma in his book My Gandhi. Later, He was a recipient of the Gandhi Peace Award .
Although primarily a minister, Holmes helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) in 1909, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 1920, serving as its chairman from 1940 to 1950, after the resignation of Harry F. Ward.[8] He was succeeded as ACLU Chairman by Ernest Angell.[9]
His varied pursuits included authoring numerous books, hymns, and a play, If This Be Treason, which had a brief run on Broadway. The play crystalized his opposition to war, personifying the peaceful impulses of the majority of people on both sides of a conflict, (in the case of the play, between the USA and Japan). He was also a popular lecturer and debater.[10] For example, Holmes argued in favor of Prohibition in a public debate with Clarence Darrow.[11] Opposition from Dr. SeussThere was an outcry after a cartoon by Theodor Geisel (better known as Dr. Seuss) mocking Holmes was published in the New York newspaper PM on January 13, 1942. Geisel responded January 21, 1942 (ellipses in original):
Holmes' stand as a pacifist in both world wars was neither popular nor easy. He faced expulsion from his denomination during World War I if he did not disavow his pacifist views; he resigned his membership in the American Unitarian Association as a result, and the split was not healed for decades. Geisel's criticism is an example of the scorn and ridicule Holmes faced as a result of his strong views, which he vigorously defended.[citation needed] Holmes had announced his pacifism before America entered World War I. On April 3, 1917 he preached on A Statement to my People on the Eve of War, declaring: "Therefore would I make it plain that, so long as I am your minister, this Church will answer no military summons.... But so long as I am priest, this altar shall be consecrated to human brotherhood, and before it shall be offered worship only to that one God and Father of us all, ‘Who hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell together on the face of the earth."[13] Personal lifeIn 1904, Holmes married Madeleine Hosmer Baker. They had two children, Roger Holmes (who became a professor at Mount Holyoke College) and Frances Holmes (who married Morris L. Brown).[14] His wife died in 1961 and he died on April 3, 1964, aged eighty-four, at his home at 10 Park Avenue in New York City. Holmes' papers are held in a private collection in the U.S. Library of Congress, open to scholars and researchers.[14] His funeral, held at the Community Church at 40 East 35th Street, was conducted by his successor, the Rev. Dr. Donald S. Harrington, and attended by 1,200 "friends and admirers."[15] Works
References
External linksWikimedia Commons has media related to John Haynes Holmes. Wikisource has original text related to this article:
|