... that related Christian theology to the struggles of oppressed people and King also often read and heard the sermons of white protestant ministers who preached against racism.1 Benjamin E. Mays, leader in the national community of racially liberal clergymen has frequently been described as being especially important in shaping King's theological development.2 The influence of the Church and religion was also influential in Bayard Rustin's involvement in civil rights, a fact confirmed by Rustin himself, "My activism did not spring from being black, it is rooted fundamentally in my Quaker upbringing"3. The Church also proved crucial in Fred Shuttleswoth's later involvement with civil rights as in June 1943 Shuttlesworth became a Baptist by joining the Corinthian Baptist Church, and within ten years this would bring him to beginning a pastorate of Bethel Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. This was especially significant, given the future civil rights activities of Shuttlesworth in Birmingham; ...

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