The Power of the Cross

THE IMPORTANCE OF BAPTISM IN THE ETHIOPIAN ORTHODOX FAITH

The Christian celebration of Easter is a time when the origins of RASTA as a Bible-based religion come under severe examination. Though RASTA beliefs are heavily founded in the Psalms, the Gospels and the Book of Revelation, many RASTA reject the Bible story, yet on the other hand claim Emperor Haile Selassie as a modern-day manifestation of Christ.

The contradiction is further compounded by the fact that following his visit to Jamaica 50 years ago, the Emperor made a significant gift to the RASTA nation by sending his personal priest Abba Mandefro to open the first branch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Kingston and teach the prayers and liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Faith, and to baptize RASTA in the ancient Christian faith.

While some RASTA obeyed the Emperor’s wishes, few today are baptized members of the EOTC and the program of events celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Emperor’s visit does not include a memorial of this important gift from H.I.M.

The importance of Baptism in the Orthodox faith was underscored by Bob Marley’s baptism on his deathbed by Archbishop Yesehaq who reported in a 1984 interview I did with him in the Gleaner’s Sunday Magazine titled ‘Abuna Yesehaq Looks Back on 14 Years of Ministry in Jamaica‘ the following report about Bob Marley’s baptism:

“Bob was really a good brother, a child of God, regardless of how people looked at him. He had a desire to be baptized long ago, but there were people close to him who controlled him and who were aligned to a different aspect of Rastafari. But he came to Church regularly. I remember once while I was conducting the Mass, I looked at Bob and tears were streaming down his face…When he toured Los Angeles and New York and England, he preached the Orthodox faith, and many members in those cities came to the Church because of Bob. Many people think he was baptized because he knew he was dying, but that is not so…he did it when there was no longer any pressure on him, and when he was baptized, he hugged his family and wept, they all wept together for about half an hour.”   Today, 40 years after Bob’s passing, it may seem that Marley received the everlasting fame he holds around the world to the blessing of his EOTC baptism.

A book “The Power Of The Cross: Maskel of Lalibela” by Alfredo Johnson seeks to explain the importance of Baptism in the Orthodox faith.  I share excerpts from it here.

” The name Haile Selassie given to Ras Tafari on his Coronation means the Power of the Trinity, and that Trinity is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Before Christ left this earth after his ministry, he gave his disciples a command to baptize the nations in the name of this Holy Trinity.

“The name Haile Selassie is not just a name written on a piece of paper meaning nothing. The name means The Power of the Holy Trinity.  Haile Selassie then became the Defender of the Faith to uphold the gospel of the Cross which was preached by the same embodiment of the Holy Trinity.  When one gets baptized in the Name of the Holy Trinity, one becomes one with the living embodiment of Haile Selassie 1st. For this reason the name Haile Selassie MUST be praised.

“To the many who claim to be following Haile Selassie 1^st, but refuse to be re-born again (St. John 3: 3-21) through baptism in the name of the Holy Trinity, the name Haile Selassie 1^st will only be blasphemed by you, because one cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven in the body of sinful flesh, nor stand in the presence of the consuming fire of Kidus Selassie because Eyesus Krystos has already destroyed that body/temple (St. John 2: 19-22) of sin/flesh and there is only but one baptism (Ephesians 4: 4-7) in the name of the Holy Trinity!

“After baptism each person is given a new name after his re-birth, this in essence means the person is changed from one level to another because the old man is done away with and the new man is born. The flesh of sin is destroyed and replaced with the new Christ.

“So one cannot have one foot inside claiming to know and serve Yahweh God, while having one foot outside, disobeying His call to perfection, because He requires righteousness and not unrighteousness. As His name means Power of the Holy Trinity, perfection is the ultimate attainment and one cannot come short of this.

“When Abba Yesehaq came to the West it was with the power and authority of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie 1^st with the Maskel (Cross), sent as a Shepherd for the Rastafarians primarily to be re-born in the Orthodox faith of which Haile Selassie is the head. But to many they are still holding on to the flesh and as it was shown in the Book of Isaiah 6: 1-13, Yaweh of Host was never seen in the temple (Church) until the King Ussiah died, meaning the flesh was removed out of the way so ones and ones could see Haile Selassie 1^st in spirit and in truth in His embodiment of the Holy Trinity.

“Haile Selassie 1^st was the living embodiment of the Holy Trinity, Kidus Selassie. This name is Amharic as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the Name which all was commanded to be baptized in to be in one with the Holy Trinity Kidus Selassie.  One could enter the congregation of Holy Mount Zion, the city of the Living God, in the general assembly and Church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the judge of all, to the spirit of the just men made perfect of Kidus Selassie (Hebrew 12: 21-24).  This Mystery of Yaweh God has now been revealing, and all are called to Baptism in the Holy Trinity.

“There is a book called The Liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, English Translation of the Preparatory Service, 14 Anapahoras and Covenant Prayers.  Haile Selassie 1st set in order that these 14 ancient books be collected and printed at His own expense and produced from the ancient language, translated from Geez into English and printed by order of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I for use in the Church of which He is Head of: The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, and in the Anaphoras which outline the power of the Holy Trinity.

“In these 14 books are outlined the right and true order of Christ’s Church and the Divine Srvice to the people of which no man should alter or deny.  The fourteen books gave a strict revelation of Holy Mary with all her symbolism, with the Holy Trinidy coming together as One embodiment with the Holy Communion for the people who are baptized with its importance.

“Therefore, to my brothers and sisters who know nothing about these fourteen Anaphoras Books of Divine Service, one should go in search and find it, because it was commanded to production by Haile Selassie I, the embodiment of the Holy Trinity, whose ways is Baptism in the Church, who also is the Defender of the Faith for all in the name of the Holy Trinity which the Books outline to all, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit which exist before birth and man, Kidus Selassie.

“And if the uprisers were studying Yaweh’s words they would have seen that if they touch the rights of Haile Selassie 1^st they would be playing with fire which they are not able to quench, and so the written words of Yaweh sayings which link the seven spirits of Yaweh came to the Church and gave His warning of He who opens and no man shut, and shut and no man open, and there is only One who holds such title and rights, Our LORD GOD and Saviour Yesus Kristos in his embodiment of Kidus Selassie Haile Selassie 1^st.

“As the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, he came and stood in the Church who John also behold walking in the midst of the seven lamps which He reveals to John and the Church, and received all His titles and Honors and gave a warning:

“And to the angel of the Church in Philadelphia, write these things: He who is holy, He who is true, He who has the Key of David. He who opens and no one shuts and shuts and no one opens: I know your works. See I have set before you an open door and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength and have kept My word and have not denied My name.” (Revelation 3:7).

“It is therefore because the Holy Trinity name is denied by many and blasphemed every day by those who allow the diabolical war of Satan to poison their mind against the Holy Trinity Haile Selassie 1^st. Christ is coming again to His Church with His eyes as flame of fire to judge the wicked (Revelation 19: 11-16) in which Anaphoras it is also written in a chant to the Holy Trinity.

“Therefore to all Christians who are baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the name Haile Selassie 1^st is present and always will be.  The name Haile Selassie 1^st means the Power of the Holy Trinity, therefore He was there at the Annunciation, Baptism and Ascension, so how can one deny Haile Selassie 1st, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah? Glory and Honour are meet to the Holy Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit at all times, both now and ever and world without end. Amen.”

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.” (John 3:16-17)

(c) Barbara Makeda Blake-Hannah

 

RASTAFARI LIVES

 RASTAFARI LIVES     Read an excellent column this week in the OBSERVER by Everton Pryce, in which he urges his fellow middle-class Jamaicans to face up to the fact that Rastafari is here to stay, an integral and immovable part of the Jamaican landscape, social structure and population. Noting the movement’s growth and progression from scorned to RASpected, he states that “…. we have witnessed over these many decades where the Rastafarian movement has remained the clearest expression of native wisdom in the creation of our own destiny and the demonstration of the innate structures of sophisticated thought that reside among the real people in the land. Indeed, money matters in these hostile economic times, but Jah — like God, Mohammed, etc – lives!”

Everton Pryce

Citing Rastafari’s growth from mountain hermit to university scholars, he continues: “In any event, the movement’s ideological fractiousness notwithstanding, it is doubtful whether we can refer to it any longer as a predominantly “Jamaican poor people protest social movement”. Many of today’s Rastas command wealth and star status; and there are more ‘baldhead’ committed Rastas now than ever before.” So true!

“With this mounting body of evidence of the unique affection carried by many thousands of Jamaicans at home and abroad — and an even greater number of global citizens — for the Rastafarian movement, what weight is a Jamaican Government in the 21st Century willing to place on such loyalties to Jah, Ethiopia and to Haile Selassie in particular? …Are thorough-going orthodox Christian Cabinet ministers willing to facilitate the accommodation of the brethren and sistren, once and for all, over those issues of lingering concerns to the movement?” (Such as Coral Gardens, Pinnacle, Back-O-Wall, and repealing the ganja ‘records’?)

Pryce concludes: “ … The issue really boils down to one of tolerance, and we should not wait until the wrath of the Rastafarians surfaces again to seriously put into practice the message of our national motto. Jah lives! And there is nothing we can do to stop this.”  READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/Jah-Rastafari-lives—but-the-tension-remains_16205127

Ras Miguel Lorne, Ras Iyah V

WESTMORELAND HEMP & GANJA FARMERS ASSOCIATION FORMED     News this week of formation of a group of Rastafari ganja farmers from Westmoreland, the part of Jamaica long famous for growing the sweetest ganja. Led by Ras Iyah V – one of the stalwarts, leaders and Elders of the movement — and Rasta lawyer Miguel Lorne (who pops up everywhere these days), they made some strong statements at the Negril launch. According to the GLEANER report:

“ Members of the newly formed Westmoreland Hemp and Ganja Farmers’ Association (WHGFA) say the official licence to grow and sell marijuana, upon legalisation, should be restricted to members of the Rastafari faith and lower socio-economic groups, who have been victimised for decades for cultivating the herb.

“We will not stand by and watch anybody outside of Rastafari and grass-roots people take over this product. And we make no apology,” association President Ras Iyah V declared during his address at the launch of the organisation at the MXIII Lawn in Negril on Sunday night.  “We are saying this loud and clear to the Government, we are saying it to society, and we are saying it to the international community. Otherwise, we will take to the streets and turn Jamaica upside down – and we make no apology,” he said. “Because we not going take baton lick and brutality and all of a sudden now when the legalisation aspect come, a some rich people come tek it ova – people who used to scoff and scorn at the very mention of the herb name ganja,” he added.

“The WHGFA’s objectives are to make sure that those who have paid the price – who have been going to jail, going to prison, getting the baton licks, who have been planting the herb and it get cut down by police and soldiers, and yet have been persistent with this product – that the rights of these individuals are protected.” READ THE FULL REPORT HERE: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20140315/western/western1.html#.UyRR-nVCyio.facebook

ROYAL ORDER OF RASTAFARI?        A Rasta in Italy wrote me suggesting that Rastafari could claim itself a Nation just as members of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta do. According to Wikipedia, this group was founded in Jerusalem 1050 as a hospital to provide care for poor and sick pilgrims to the Holy Land. After the conquest of Jerusalem in 1099 during the First Crusade, it became a military order under its own charter. Following the loss of Christian held territories of the Holy Land to Muslims, the Order operated from Rhodes (1310–1523), and later from Malta (1530–1798), over which it was sovereign.

Although this state came to an end with the ejection of the Order from Malta by Napoleon Bonaparte, the Order as such survived. It retains its claims of sovereignty under international law and has been granted permanent observer status at the United Nations. The order is notable for issuing its own international passports for travel, postal stamps, along with its formal insignia, often portrayed as a white or gold Maltese cross. The order nominally invokes the Blessed Virgin Mary under the venerated Marian title of “Our Lady of Mount Philermos” as its patroness and spiritual intercessor. Today the order has about 13,000 members; 80,000 permanent volunteers; and 20,000 medical personnel including doctors, nurses, auxiliaries and paramedics in more than 120 countries to assist the elderly, handicapped, refugeed, children, homeless, those with terminal illness and also engaged to aid victims of natural disasters, epidemics and armed conflicts.

The ‘permanent observer status at the UN’ and ability to issue its own passport, stamps and insignia, lead me to invite discussion on the suggestion that Rastafari could qualify to identify similarly as a Nation, with similar benefits. It’s a thought, eh!

WOMAN OF DISTINCTION       Those who know the US reggae music scene know of Makeda Dread Cheatam, also called Makeda Makossa-– the legendary Rastawoman who has for 30 years hosted the best annual reggae show in San Diego– the California city that LOVES reggae. So it will come as no surprise that she has been voted one of the 25 Most Influential Women in San Diego’s history. Here’s what they had to say about Sister Makeda.

“Makeda Dread Cheatom founded the World Beat Cultural Center in Balboa Park in 1985 where she has preserved the history of African and Indigenous cultures. She later created the Adams Avenue Theatre and serves as a DJ for 92.5 FM and 91X FM. Inducted into San Diego County’s Women’s Hall of Fame in 2012, she was recognized for being a “bridge builder.”

Here’s what she had to say about the distinction: “ Wow I received this honor from the people of San Diego. This award is for my mother, a maid for many years for this town San Diego and for my father who shined the service men’s shoes downtown and for all the San Diegans that had to leave the city because it was too conservative and unjust. But most of all this award is dedicated to you my brothers and sisters who stood by me and believed in me. When I pass to the realm of the ancestors I’ll feel blessed to leave you one of the most dynamic cultural centers in the US and a tribute to all the reggae legends that always live within us. RastafarI. Ashe.

Jamaica celebration

TPDCo NEGLECTING ITS DUTY!        The Daily GLEANER Editorial said it, so I cannot be criticized for bringing this up. The Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) is not doing its work of developing Jamaica’s tourism product. “It is inconceivable,” says the GLEANER, “that of the approximately J$616 million budgeted for projects for the 2013-2014 financial year, only JM$94 million has been spent, while more than J$350 million has been spent on TPDCo salaries. Salaries for what? According to TVJ’s Prime Time News report aired on March 12, 2014, only $4.6m of $39m; $3.7m of $101m, and $13m of $114 million was spent on TPDCo projects in Kingston, Montego Bay, and Negril, respectively. Those in charge have been receiving salaries under false pretences and seem only to have a bunch of excuses to offer to the Public.”

I can’t agree more. Looking at the massive sums allocated for TPDCo to spend on making Jamica’s tourism more attractive and how little they have spent, I can only speak as one of the many event organizers dying for lack of support from government to develop interesting sustainable events to attract tourists. I am shocked to see that TPDCo had JA$500 million to spend in 2013 that was just sittng unclaimed in its bank account, while projects like the Jamaica International Reggae Film Festival searched unsuccessfully for financial support to provide the international promotion to position the event as another major summer event and a development of the tourism ‘product’.

THURSDAY LUNCH CLUB AT PINNACLE                 As the Pinnacle development continues to attract interest and supporters, a Thursday Lunch Club has been happening for the past 3 weeks that follows a tradition started by Mr. Howell for speakers and cultural persons to interact with the community. Visitors, local and foreign, authors, film makers and other media expand the experience. Here are some pics.

Meanwhile, the individual posting on FaceBook under the title of ‘the Rastafari Millenium Council’ should seek unity with the OCCUPY PINNACLE movement which is doing good for Rastafari, despite all of I&I previous mistakes, blunders and errors of action, inaction and ego that have brought so much disunity and lack of achievement to the movement’s progress.

Donisha Prendergast is a brave youth with the warrior spirit of Nanny. May JAH continue to grant her the strength and wisdom to continue her blessed work.

All is done by the inspiration, example, guidance and BLESSING of His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Haile Selassie I.  PRAISE H.I.M.