When any of us uses the Holy Book of our religion as a cudgel to whip others who we disagree with because we have determined that they are sinners, we become present-day persecutors and deny both the humanity of our brothers and sisters and the existence and power of grace. When we do that, we actually suggest by our deeds that others are unworthy of love, liberty or even life because we are perfect and they are not like us. No human has the authority to assume the mantle of authority and judgment, which belongs in the exclusive domain of the Almighty. No man has the authority to be judge, jury and executioner over a fellow man. Everyone of us who now lives in freedom owes his/her life and freedom to many giants who fought, suffered and/or died to make us free. Our job is to use their gift to make others free and the best way to do that is not through conflict and hatred but by turning our societies into communities of love and peace. We are not truly free until we stand against the implicit and explicit suppression of those who may not look like us, love like us or worship like us. I am conscious of the fact that my freedom is a product of the work of others who fought and died that I might have freedom. They did so without even knowing me, my religion or my race. I am therefore propelled by a desire keep running the race that I run in the hope that one day when my time in this body is fully spent, it will be said of me that I also fought the good fight. To all who currently face persecution for any reason, I say this: If history is anything to go by, please remain strong and hopeful. It will get better.
INEXPLICABLE FREEDOM: RIDING ON THE SACRIFICIAL SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
I am quite conscious of my thoughts. That would not be news to some people who know me well. I think this is probably the reason why I decided from a young age that I would be a teetotaler – because it was important to me that I always maintain cognizance of my thoughts, and consciousness of my environment. Something is different now, however. If thoughts are ever categorized in layers, I am now much more conscious of those layers and the categories into which my thoughts fall. As a cautionary note, this is not to be taken as an introduction to, or an invitation to engage in an exploration or speculations about the workings of my mind. Believe me, such an effort would be tantamount to a royal waste of time. Indeed, it would be akin to the proverbial chasing of shadows.
As I have been thinking and writing lately about love, hate and my relationship with God, I have also found myself wondering why I am a free man. Why, for example, am I not in prison when through much of my life I have lived in violation of behaviors and rules that were considered normative at various points in my lifetime? Why am I not being persecuted for anything when so many people in the same world in which I live are being persecuted and even killed for their religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and/or political affiliation? Why am I even alive when so many die even before they get to experience life to its optimal extent? I am content with the fact that I may never know the answers to these and similar questions. I am also sufficiently self-aware that the reason why I am not in prison or even under arrest is not because I am perfect or because I am a better man than most who have faced persecution and/or are either in prison or dead. Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Fela Kuti, Nelson Mandela and Muhammad Ali had records of arrest in their lifetimes but each of them left imprints of an oversized life that was magnified by the fact that he, like all in that group, rose to take up a cause greater than himself. Even among the living, we know of men and women like Wole Soyinka of Nigeria, Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar (to name a few) – all individuals who experienced arrests as they stood up against powerful forces and fought for social justice.
There are many reasons why I could be arrested, imprisoned or dead – but I am not. In a world in which being black in a racially heterogeneous society can be the impetus for an arrest or even death, I am guilty of the “offence” of being black. Yet, I am a free man. At the same time, it is impossible to wipe off my memory the images of people like me being chased by dogs and beaten by the police; or of Dr. Martin Luther King and other civil rights leaders getting arrested, humiliated and in many cases killed just so that people like me could be where I am today. In a world in which many people still regard interracial marriages as the wrong thing to do, and where many churches still refuse to marry interracial couples or do so grudgingly, I cannot forget the persecution and struggle of Mr. and Mrs. Lovingwhose plight was taken up by Robert F. Kennedy, leading the United States Supreme Court to legalize interracial marriages in 1967. That was not a very long time ago. Thanks to that important piece of history, interracial couples in the United States no longer live under the threat of legal arrest and/or prosecution. Any honest Christian knows that many portions of the Bible support slavery but there is widespread agreement that abolishing slavery in our society was the right thing to do. Yet, I am concerned that so many of us use the same Bible now to condemn others who do not do exactly what we do – just in the same way that the Bible was used to justify slavery and opposition to interracial marriages. Perhaps I should wonder how many people of my faith ever ask themselves how we came about this Bible that we read and believe in. How many know that many people were killed between the 12th and 16thCenturies just for trying to translate the Bible before the first translation of the Bible was authorized? Now, there are myriad translations of the Bible and I am free to read any of my choice without fear of persecution, arrest or imprisonment. Yet, in this same world, people are being persecuted daily for their religion, and even members of the same family or community persecute one another because they are members of different denominations of the same religion.
I personally never saw or imagined you as a teetotaler, but as an intelligent man who from youth has used his GOD-given talents very well. You have always been a blessiing!!
My heart and prayers go for many individuals and families who have been victims of violence through history, police officers, whites, brown or blacks alike. We all need to learn to see each other with the eyes of the love of GOD!!!
Love conquers all hate and fears!
Freedom is a gift that we all take for granted. I woke up this morning knowing that I have things I want to accomplish. Without restrictions I have proceeded to go about my business. We stand up from the bed every day in the hope that that the ground will remain firm under us. Thank God, for His mercy on assures us that we can safely plant our feet and begin the walk and the work that we were predestined for. Yes, many are responsible for this assurance and have paid the price for us— as the good book and history has told us. Many however have not understood that we stand on the ground soaked with the blood of "Giants and Littles" before us and so do not recognize the true magnificence and significance of that sacrifice. We instead buy into the notion that we must persecute others in order to feel better about ourselves. Persecution is a peverted sense of justice that ensures that we keep others in captivity wholistically and ensure that they remain afraid of being who they truly are. Humility has become a lost art, for we are sure that the voice inside our head is the only true "voice of God". We therefore seek unmerited dominance of both our truth and beliefs. It has led to many ills especially the recent increasing violence against others who may be different from us. Somehow, I like you hope that we can take a breather and understand that violence begets violence. None of us is truly right despite our beliefs. We are wayfarers looking for shelter in the midst of storms. Only God decides and judges. Our job is to just live–like the brothers and sisters we are. To all who are persecuted–in the lexicon of my fathers land, "it is well".