author
A. J. (Abraham John) Muste
1885–1967
A lifelong minister-turned-activist, this Dutch-born American became one of the clearest voices for peace, labor justice, and nonviolent change in the United States. His life moved from the pulpit to picket lines, civil rights work, and outspoken opposition to war.
1 Audiobook
Of holy disobedience
by A. J. (Abraham John) Muste
About the author
Born in Zierikzee in the Netherlands on January 8, 1885, Abraham Johannes Muste immigrated to the United States as a child and grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He trained for the ministry and was ordained in the Dutch Reformed Church, but his religious convictions kept pushing him toward public action as well as preaching.
Muste became widely known through his work in labor struggles in the 1920s and 1930s, and later as a central figure in American pacifism. He was active in groups including the Fellowship of Reconciliation and the War Resisters League, and he became especially influential as a teacher and organizer for nonviolent social change.
Over time, his moral leadership reached beyond the peace movement into civil rights and opposition to the Vietnam War. Remembered for combining deep faith with practical activism, he spent decades urging Americans to resist injustice without giving up on compassion or human dignity. He died in New York in 1967.