Levell Crump from Mississippi
Current mood: pissed off

As both a member and youth director (in New York) for the National Action Network, I have seen and heard many insults leveled toward both the organization and our President, the Reverend Al Sharpton.  In the wake of the Don Imus case and the backlash from our Decency Initiative, many have voiced thier displeasure at Rev. Sharpton. Though Don Imus was dead wrong in what he said and though our Decency Initiative is headed by Tamika Mallory, more often than not, the backlash, the venom and the negative comments are pointed toward Rev. Al.  Is he abrasive?  Certainly.  I look at Rev. Sharpton like Comet.  You use Comet, an abrasive cleanser, to scrape off the toughest stains and soap scum from your sinks and bathtubs.  Rev. Sharpton is an abrasive cleanser for a world that does not respond to meek and mild, but will indeed take notice when one speaks truth to power in no uncertain terms.

This brings me to Levell (David Banner) Crump from Mississippi, who recently made some very disturbing comments about Rev. Sharpton -- doing everything from calling him a pimp to inviting him to perform a sexual act on him.  This is a good time to say something like this for Levell Crump as his new album drops in just a few weeks.  What disturbs me about this is that Levell has gone from the normal posturing, disrespect, mysogny and jackassery of psuedo-hip-hop and fallen to a new low of inviting a reverend to his genitals in public.  Levell says that he is from the hood.  Those are fighting words in the hood.  If he said that to somebodys face in the hood , he would get punched in his face, unless he had his entourage, homies, smoking buddies and security around to protect him.  Why did Levell make this asinine statement?  Because he wants to sell records. I am sure that his handlers told him that controvery sells, and who better to pick a fight with  than one of the most recognizable faces in American media?  This knucklehead wants to sell some records, so he tells Al Sharpton to suck his -----, never realizing that if he is going to try and pick a war of words with someone like  Al Sharpton, Levell is bringing a knife to a gunfight.. 

Well, I have a suggestion for Levell.  Try making some decent music.  Stop being a studio gangster and be a real man.  Act like your 34 years, and stop using the language of 11 year olds in the school yard, and if it is in you anywhere, say someting intelligent for once. Listen to this bonehead -- he said that Rev. Sharpton and Black leaders do not speak out against Bush.  Maybe if Levell read a newspaper or realized that BET does not have news anymore he would know that our Black leaders, especially Rev. Shaprton have held Bush's feet to the fire for his entire term about everything from stealing elections to the war in Iraq to the aftermath of Katrina.  That is more than Levell has done or will do in any forum at any time in his life.  As a matter of fact, I would rather spend money on a copy of Kanye West standing next to Mike Meyers saying "George Bush doesn't care about Black People" than recieve for free any record Levell makes for the rest of his career.  He does have a career, right?

5:15 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

On Steroids, Dog Fighting and What America Pays Attention to...
Current mood: Outraged
Category: Outraged News and Politics

I have been watching with great interest two very public witch hunts that have gone on over the past several months - particularly Barry Bonds and Michael Vick.  They not only share the fact that they both happen to be African American, but they both are at or near the top of their respective fields.  Bonds has been the best hitter in baseball for the last two decades, most of which he has played with the San Fransisco Giants, while Vick is an extremely talented passer and runner - starting quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons.  Bonds has been mired in the Major League Baseball steroids scandal for the better part of the last 3 years , and Vick has been suspended by the National Football League for his part in a dog fighting ring that was supposedly finaced by him and was housed on his property.  He has been vilified in the press, suspended from his team and seems poised to lose the $100 million cotract he signed a few years ago. I have read blogs, watched protests and even recieved e-mails in my role in the National Action Network - all calling for Vick's Suspension from the NFL and to have him jailed for the crime of dog-fighting.  While I do condemn the practice of dog-fighting as a life long dog lover, I cannot for the life of me understand how this country can react so strongly to dogfighting when hundreds of thousands of children are treated worse than the average family pet each day.  Scores of young men and women are treatred as collateral damage in  the education, foster care and juvenile justice system each day, and there are no protests, no 24 hour news coverage and no-one calling for anyone's head.  Why?  Because dogs are much more sympathetic in  the eyes of the American public than Black and Brown Children, which make up the Lions' Share of the foster care and juvenile justice systems.  Because it is easier to target a rich, Black Athlete than it is to target the politicians that we elected to protect the public interest and serve the people for their good.  And therein, as they say, lies the rub.  The public is much more interested in Michael Vick going to jail and  having an asterisk placed next to Barry Bonds' name in the record books than they are in changing our flawed and failing educational system.  I'm not mad at Oprah for buliding a school in Africa -- if she built it in Chicago, it would probably be mismanaged and run into the ground in a few years.

The American public has also been spending an inordinate amount of time trying to turn Barry Bonds into some sort of miscreant.  Whether he took steroids or not (he has been found guilty of nothing and has no positive drug tests on his record), nothing bought from Balco gives you the ability to hit a baseball.  I could pump myself up with steroids to live ling day and at 43 - the same age as Barry Bonds - would not be able to hit a major league fastball if I was coached by Reggie Jackson, Willie Mays and Pete Rose.  Steroids may help you to heal faster, but they give you no undue edge in the moment to moment facets of the game. 

Why, then does America hate Barry Bonds so?  Because he is a brother who did not like the media.  He was never "quotable" like Muhammad Ali, Reggie Jackson or Shaquille O'Neal.  He talked when he wanted to and did not coon or buckdance for the media as many of todays' athletes do. Mark McGwire, who all but admitted that he took steroids in a senate hearing was never vilified the way Bonds is.  Is the difference that McGwire is white and that he played the "media game" during his career?  Is the difference that he got out before the scandal hit?  I cannot say for sure, but here is what I know for sure:  if we would use half the energy that we use on Bonds, Vick, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears on straightening out our education system, fixing the foter care system and improving life in general for our citizens, we would be a lot closer to solving those problems than we will ever be to knowing if Michael Vick or Barry Bonds did "it".   As a matter of fact, I say let them play.  If there is any woringdoing, then punish them appropriately, but, let them play and then vilify the press for covering the wrong story.  I would much rather find out about what is being done to catch the murderer of those three young people in Newark than I am in finding out about the dog pens on Vick's Property or the actual contents of the creams that Barry Bonds rubbed on his sore joints after games.  Amen.

6:01 PM - 3 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Thoughts on Transition...
Current mood: contemplative
Category: Religion and Philosophy

I often say in my sermons that "there is a devil for every level".  I have found this to be true.  Whatever height you may attain in life, you will find something satanic there waiting for you.  It may be temptation, it may be avarice, greed or selfishness, but there is something lurking around the corner of every success for each of us.  I think that this is important to remember in this post modernist world.  Life has a balance; My Asian brothers and sisters call it the yin and the yang.  Scientists have called it the law of inertia - for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.  Karma, reciprocity- whatever you want to call it, there is a backlash for everything we do.  How many of us have gotten married and then have friends hate on us or be angry at us because we no longer have time for them?  How many of us have worked our tails off for a promotion and then have our family life suffer once we get it because we spend so much time working?  How many of us have told the truth to someone we care about only to have them spit venom at us because they were blissful in their ignorance?

Conversely, how many times have we withheld the truth to keep the peace or chosen not to step outside of our circle of friends because we are comfortable there or put up with something unspeakable because we are afraid of change?

I say all of this because we should not be afraid of the new level or the negative spirits that come along with it. The famous line from the Spider Man comic is that with great power also comes great responsibility. Therefore, we should take the plunge and get married if we are truly in love with the right person, and know that  the friends that walk away because we have gotten married were not truly friends.  We should work hard for the promotion and the responsibilities that go with it, but not be afaid to tell our bosses and ourselves that it is necessary to take time off for family, friends and frolicking (if frolicking s your thing -- you can just relax if you like).  We should not let the unforseen challenges of change stop us from reaching for the brass ring -- no matter what that brass ring is for you.  New relationship?  Take the bitter with the sweet.  New Job?  Take the pay increase and know that you are going to have to be a better manager of your time.  Want to have children but not sure if you and your spouse are ready?  Know that you will never be ready, but you will be blessed by your children if you bring them up with a mixture of love, guidance and discipline. 

Finally, don't be afarid to move on.  In any situation.  You may need to shed old relationships in order for your life to progress as God intends.  You may need to rethink old relationships before you enter into new ones.  And you might just have to take a leap into the unknown in order to experience your blessing.  In all of life's transitions, just remember the words of the prophet Jeremiah:  "I know the thoughts I think toward you, says the Lord - thoughts of good and not of evil to give you a future and a hope."

Yours In the Spirit of Positive Transition

Rev. Ferg

10:12 PM - 1 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Going Through The Process...
Current mood: contemplative

As I was preparing myself for my daughter's imminent graduation from high school this month, I found myself also preparing for an examination by the Ordination Council of the United Missionary Baptist Association in consideration for ordination.  Since my ministry credentials were granted by a chiurch that has since closed its' doors, this was extremely important to me.  It was also important because in one of the last "career" copnversations that I had with my late Dad before he made his transition in June '05, he told me that it was his desire that I be ordained at Abyssinian Baptist Church.  Now, today at 6 PM, my fathers' desire for me will be realized as I am ordained at one of the great churches of our city and country.  I really feel as though this entire process was preparing me for something.  I am not going to put a label on it, or even articulate what I hope the preparation will lead to, but I simply pray that God will have His way and that I will be in tume with the Spirit and see clearly where God desires for me to be.

Family, I want you all to know that God is leading you toward open doors, and we have to be careful not to make the mistake of believing that they are closed because they are only open a few inches.  God will lead us to the door, however slight the opening may be, knowing that all of the training, preparation, education, prayer, fasting and worship that have led us to to this moment have empowered us to open the door completely.  Not for ourselves alone, but for our families, our commiunities and our people.

Be prepared, but most of all, be blessed!!!

6:36 AM - 2 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

I Am Not A Barack Obama "Hater"
Category: News and Politics

While I am not going to jump on the bandwagon that many others have boarded and start "hating" on Barack Obama, in my mind, the jury is still out on whether or not he is "our" candidate.  I simply do not know enough.  Other than the fact that he just recently paid off some parking tickets that he accrued during his time at Harvard, I have no backdrop for the brother.  I mean, he is only a first or second term Senator from Illinois.

10:18 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

50 Shots -- the Response
Current mood: determined
Category: News and Politics

50 Shots – The Response

In the wake of the shootings of Trent Benefield and Joseph Guzman and the killing of Sean Bell around the corner from a Queens, NY strip club almost two weeks ago, there has been much rhetoric, many sound bytes and a lot of hypothesizing from the talking heads in the media.  In my extremely humble opinion, there needed to be a tangible response; comprehensive in scope, powerful in effect and reverberating in the long term.  Along with millions of other so-called minorities in this city I waited; impatiently, but I waited.  Finally, on yesterday, I saw and heard what I have been waiting for. In reality, this is something that I had longed to see for many years, before this incident sadly occurred. 

On Monday, December 4^th, 2006 at 5:30 PM in the penthouse of the 1199 building on West 42^nd street, I entered a room and saw the Rev. Al Sharpton, the  Rev. Dr. Calvin O. Butts, III, Charles Barron, the Rev. W. Franklyn Richardson and the Rev. Herbert Daughtry sitting unified around the same table with literally hundreds of community, religious and political leaders.  The leader of the famous Muhammad's Mosque #7, Kevin Muhammad, was in attendance as was the former leader of 100 Blacks in Law enforcement and now state legislator Eric Adams, also in attendance were the legendary Pastor and Civil Rights leader, Rev. John Scott, State Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV and many, many others whom I have seen speaking, politicking and schmoozing around this city that I love.  This was a moment in time, a moment for the archives.  Seeing all of these powerful folks sitting around the table, not in opposition with one another, not debating some issue or fact from opposing points of view, but sitting at a table of activism, commitment and solidarity was almost enough to make me shed a tear. There was no time for tears, however, as this was not a feel-good session, but a working fellowship.  There were discussions, opinions and short speeches, but everyone agreed on one thing: we must do everything in our individual and collective power to make sure that the likelihood of something like the Sean Bell Killing never happens again.  

          The media stood outside of the room, not allowed into the session, thus taking away the temptation for individuals to "sound byte" while we worked.  After about an hour, the media was allowed into certain parts of the room as shooting victim Trent Benefield entered, fresh out of a hospital bed, his shattered leg propped up by the wheelchair he was pushed in on. In a shaky, uneven voice, he thanked all of the leaders for their support, and then broke down sobbing, overwhelmed by the situation, his own brush with death and the weight of the moment.  The time for some tears had arrived.  When Trent left, the reporters were kept in the room to allow him to leave without being hounded by the press.  The session continued. 

The final analysis was that a Black Woman, Adriene Holder - Attorney-in-Charge for the Legal Aid Society's Harlem Community Law Offices, was placed in charge of the Policy Committee, while Rev. Sharpton will head the Mobilization Committee.  Finally, the group decided that it would call for a March on December 16, 2006, titled "Shopping for Justice", when the people of our city will be called to March from 59^th street and 5^th Avenue to Macy's Herald Square, interrupting the commerce of the city that never sleeps, but unfortunately, slept hard on Sean Bell, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield.   This march should only be a springboard for the new levels of community activism, awareness and consciousness that should awake the people of this city from a dangerous slumber.  This march is not the end, but a beginning of the people of this city standing up and stating emphatically that we will not be pushed into the mental and spiritual oppression created by "plantation policing" and institutional racism.  This is the day that the Lord has made for us to stand up and  let our voices be heard and demand justice across gender lines, denominations, religious or party affiliations and economic barriers. We must emphatically send a message to the city of New York.  That message is simple in its pronunciation, but profound in it's demand: "No Justice, No Peace!!!!"

4:22 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

50 Shots... Back to the Plantation or a Cry for Justice?
Current mood: angry
Category: News and Politics

I was almost in shock when I first heard about the case of 23 year old Sean Bell, murdered by police in the wee hours of the morning of Saturday, November 26th, 2006.  Police officers shot into the Nissan Altima that he was driving, hitting Bell 3 times, and killing him, while the two passengers in the car, Trent Benefield and Joseph Guzman were hit 3 times and 17 times, respectively. Sean was to wed his longtime sweetheart, Nicole Paultre, the mother of his two beautiful children just a few hours later.  A young black man in his early 20's, doing the right thing, marrying the mother of his children.  An Unarmed young black man coming out of a club where he celebrated his last night as a single man. It turned out to be his last night on earth.  The outrage is palpable, the leadership and desire for justice evident -- and the anger in the Black Community is clear and justified.  Mayor Bloomberg was even critical in his press conference, using words like "excessive" and "tragedy."  Unlike his mayoral predecessor, he did not immediately side with the shooters.  I can go on ad nauseam about the details, from the news coverage to the leadership displayed by the Rev. Al Sharpton, Charles Barron and others in the Black Community.  However, I have a more unpleasant task at hand --  I need to ask my brothers and sisters, my sons and daughters, my mothers and fathers out there a question --  when is enough enough?  A few sound bytes are not enough.  The use of the word "excessive" by the mayor, the leadership and the outcry from our leaders is NOT ENOUGH.  I want more this time.  More than Michael Stewart got. More than Eleanor Bumpers got, more than Zongo got, and more than Louima and Diallo got.  I do want the family to file a law suit and take enough money from the city to ensure that those children and Sister Nicole Paultre will never worry about anything financially again.  But I want more. I want the other two victims in this crime, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, to be compensated royally for being shot like dogs in a car with no way of defending or protecting themselves. But, I want more. I want the police officers that were involved in this murder, and that's what it was; murder, to go to jail to pay for their crimes just like millions of other young black men have. Just like Sean Bell would have if had been guilty of something, no matter how petty.  But, I still want more.  I want the Police Department to sit down with community leaders, ministers, activists and forward thinkers within the Black community to come up with trainings, seminars and classes for both police and citizens to reduce the likelihood of this ever happening again.  Still, I want more.   I want Black folks to stand up -- if there is no justice in this case, I want there to be NO PEACE in this city until justice is served; I want Black Folks to cripple this city economically by holding back our dollars, our service and our support if the courts, the police department and the mayor fail to do what needs to be done. I want this city to feel the wrath of our people if this case is not handled properly and brought to a swift and just conclusion.  But, I am still wanting more.  I want our people to understand that Sean Bell was the fiancée to not just Nicole Paultre, he was the betrothed of a generation, a young black man fulfilling the promise that was born in the bottom of slave ships in the middle passages and nurtured on plantations all over this country as our people were used to create wealth for our oppressors.  A Promise hinted at by the emancipation proclamation, peeked at by Brown vs. The Board of Education and embodied in Adam Powell Jr, Martin King, Malcolm Little, Marcus Garvey and Medgar Evers.  A promise that Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have been trying to remind us of, even though they were almost drowned out by Little John, 50 Cent and The Chicken Noodle Soup.  A promise that was given us in Paul's Epistle to the Galatians when he told us that "there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, but you are all one in Christ Jesus".  This promise, this promissory note has been held onto by our people for hundreds of tear-jerking years in this country, though time and time again, as Dr. King said, it has been "returned marked insufficient funds".  Now we must stand, united once again by tragedy, united once again by the blood of a young Black Man watering the streets of our city.  We must stand and realize that we have been waiting for someone else to make the necessary deposit to make good on this promissory note.  We must stand and realize that we ourselves must make the deposit that turns this dream into reality.  We ourselves must fight the good fight and demand of ourselves the greatness of which our ancestors dreamt.  If we are not willing to do this, we should just go to the leaders of this country, resign from every lofty position, elected office and high paying job and ask them to put us back onto the plantation.  Because, if we allow Sean Bell's death to go by without a fight, that is exactly where we belong.  

8:37 PM - 4 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

Nigg(a) (er)?
Current mood: determined
Category: News and Politics

Have any of you watched "Seinfeld"?  I am sure that even if you were not a fan or regular watcher, you have at least turned on the television and found it coming at you across your TV screen, a result of too many cable channels and cross-country syndication.  Michael Richards, who played Jerry Seinfeld's crazy neighbor, "Kramer",  was on the national news today (11/20) as he went on a racial epithet-laced tirade at a comedy club in Los Angeles on last Friday.  A heckler told Mr. Richards that he wasn't funny, and Richards responded by telling the man, a Black Man, that "50 years ago, we would have  had you hanging upside down with a fork up your a--!!!"  There were some MF's in there, but that was the gist of it.  After the heckler told him that his comment was uncalled for, he replied,  "throw his a-- out of here, he's a Nigger!!!" The tirade continued, with Richards calling the man the foul name several times. He even had the audacity to say "That's what you get for interrupting the man" in response to the brothers' anger.  When they showed the public reaction to this on NY's Eyewitness News this evening, one young white male said that he felt that Richards was trying to be funny, and did not see the incident as racially charged.  This was after the owners of the comedy club denounced Richards' actions (one of the owners is a Latino comic, Paul Rodriguez) and refunded everyone's money who paid to see the show. It is also important to note that many of the patrons of the club got up and walked out during the tirade, and that most of them were white. 

My question is this: Why don't we get up and walk out when Chris Rock, Cedric the Entertainer, Mike Epps and the many, many comedians that we watch on "Def Comedy Jam", "Bad Boys of Comedy" and "Comic View" use the same vile and horrible word?  DOn't give me the "er" versus "a" crap, either.  Don't try to justify it by trying to get me to believe that this is a term of endearment.  Don't try to use the silly argument that "we" can use the word, while "they" can't.  The young white male who said that he didn't see much of anything wrong with what Richards did watches Def Comedy Jam and Black Comedy Shows as well. He  does not see the problem, because "if it's alright with you it's alright with me", and we have shown that it is "sho' nuff alright wit us, suh!!"

Why the double standard?  I can pretty much guarantee you that anyone who uses the above arguments to justify his or her use of the "N" word has never been called "Nigger" to their face by a state trooper on a Texas highway late in the night, while traveling with a white friend who was treated with the utmost respect by the same officers.  The  people who think that it is cute or fashionable to call one another "nigga" have never seen racist correction officers in NY state with tatoos on their arms of black babies with nooses around their necks; unable to say anything about it for fear of being beaten into submission.  Those who believe that they have redefined this abomination of a word have never smelled racism on the breath of a white woman on a flight to North Carolina, snarling because of the indignity of having to sit next to "one of them".

All Richards was doing was acting on what we have, by default, told everyone that it is alright to do.  Degrade us, we are nothing but minstrels, call us out of our name, we find it funny!!!  We have, by our own actions, inactivity and passive assent, created what happened at that comedy club.  You would have never heard that from any white comic anywhere 15 years ago, unless he was performing at a KKK convention, and they probably had better thngs to do. So the question is this:  How long will we allow this to go on?  How long will we stifle ourselves and embarrass ourselves on a national scale with some of the drivel that we are assaulted with by comedians, rappers, and knuckleheads standing on streetcorners, sitting in nail salons and barbershops across the country?

My other question is what is going to happen to Michael Richards?  Will he face the same scorn and revulsion from the entertainment community that was leveled against Mel Gibson after his drunken anti-semitic tirade a few months back?  Will he be out of work (he probably already was out of work - he hasn't had a hit show or movie since "Seinfeld")?  He should be vilified the same way that Gibson was, but  I don't think he will be showing up at a rally for the NAACP, National Action Network and Urban League to apologize anytime soon. 

This is ironic, as there will be Public Service Announcements appearing in the near future from Russell Simmons and Jay-Z, denouncing anti-semitism.  What a crock!!!  How can either one of them sleep at night defending the rights of jews not to be called names while selling, promoting and performing on records that call their own people the most foul of names. 

Have we lost our minds?  Have we taken leave of our senses?  I bet this will go by in our community without so much as a whisper...

So Black Woman, Whatcha gonna do?  Black Man, are you going to stand up? Can you be woman or man enough to just admit that we need to change the way we address one another?  Can we just stand up and say that we need some attitude adjustment?  The alternative is to allow idiots like Michael Richards to call as many of us Nigger as he wants to.  Why not?  After all, that's what we call ourselves...right?

10:02 PM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Rev. Ted Haggard is Not God!!!
Category: Religion and Philosophy

      I think that every minister of the Gospel cringes in some way when allegations against a minister come forth, especially when they are the Pastor of one of our country's mega-churches.  The Rev. Ted Haggard, Pastor of the 14,000+ member - New Life Church in Colorado Springs has been accused of having gay sex with a male prostitute and asking this prostitute to score methanphetamines  during these encounters to heighten the sexual experience.  Interestingly, these allegations hit the airwaves less than a week before several states vote on same sex marriage in the upcoming mid-term elections. Haggard  has been an outspoken opponent of same sex marriage. Rev. Haggard is also the president of the National Association of Evangelicals, which represents over 60 denominations and millions of Christian Evangelicals across the nation.

11:12 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

DA Church and Our Youth
Current mood: contemplative
Category: Religion and Philosophy

I was blessed on last Friday to go, along with the young folks of The Soldiers of Praise and Hell's Most Wanted, to St. Matthews Baptist Church in Harlem to be a part of a youth and young adult service.  What a blessing!!!  HMDub ministeres in rap, the choir sang, and I had the blessed opportunity to break the Bread of Life with the folks... 

I know that the Lord showed up and showed out last Friday because there was a huge altar call, and as the service was closing, there were several young people who just came to me, sobbing, and really crying out to the Lord... 

This is nothing new, this happens almost everywhere we go...  every single service.  We also get a lot of comments from people, saying things like "We never get to worship like this", or "I wish that church was like this all the time".  While I do love traditional worship, we, as members of the traditional church, have a lot of work to do to create ministry that is inclusive of everyone who needs a touch from the Lord, and desires to be touched in the place where they need to be touched, not just where the church leaders  believe they need to be touched.  I say that to mean that the traditional church believes that our young people (and the unchurched) need to be touched in a way that separates them from their culture (which generally is hip hop), removes them from their comfort zone and indoctrinates them into "church culture", which may or may not be God centered.  For many in the traditional church, bringing hip hop into the worship experience is tantamount to allowing the world to dictate the move of the church, when it should be vice-versa.  This is so far from the truth and so removed from the history of World Christianity that it is ridiculous.  Anywhere in the world that you find Christians, you find that the culture of the people of that land has been incorporated into their worship.  If this were not true, the entire church would still be speaking Greek or Latin, even today.  Language, culture and music are integral to a total worship experience for everyone in the church.  This has been the strength of Chirstianity, because Jesus Christ is accepting of all cultures, races, genders, etc. No-one should ever feel like an outsider when the head of the Christian Church (Jesus of Nazareth) was the ultimate outsider, the ultimate radical, and constantly accused of fraternizing with those who did not fit within the accepted paradigms of religious tradition.  How can we pray in the name of a radical and not be radical?  How can we worship a homeless man and ignore the homeless of our home cities and states?  How can we say that we accept the stone that the builders rejected while rejecting, or worse, persecuting the stones that are out there that are needed to help rebuild scores of dying churches?  

I am truly praying, asking God for guidance as I feel a love for the traditional church, but a call toward creating a newer, truer paradigm for worship and Godliness that may diametrically oppose the institutional churches of our time.  Pray for me as I pray for you...

8:16 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment