DJ Black Adam's Blog!!

I knew Barak Obama’s affiliation with Jeremiah Wright would become a Liability…

(originally posted March 15, 2008, just seems relevent again)

…I just didn’t know how soon it would. Well, I know Jeremiah Wright, he was one of the main reasons I wasn't going to vote for Obama. In Chicago politicians often choose one of the "Black" big churches to claim a membership (though they hardly if ever attend) Barak made the mistake of picking Trinity (I am sure he wishes he had picked Salem Baptist or Bishop Brazier's Church now).

Best thing for Barak to do is to disassociate. Wright's theology is shaky at best, way to Afro-centric and not "Christ" centric enough for my taste. Though honestly, I thought it would be Wright’s pro gay marriage stance that the Republicans were going to use against Barak, I guess Hillary and Co couldn’t go that route so they went after his so-called “pro” Palestinian comments first.

Since there are Palestinian Christians whom Christians SHOULD support, they couldn’t make that a complete “anti-Semitic” overture, so they went with the patriotic “He said bad things about 9-11” move.

Obviously, the Clinton’s have been skimming through Wright’s messages looking for ammunition against Barak, which is expected, however Barak’s people should have been going through Wright’s statements first and SHOULD have told Barak to clean cut / disassociate with Wright.

I am still supporting Barak, but he needs to cut ties with Trinity. I knew it would become a liability, I just didn't know when. As for Wright’s so-called “hateful” statement in a Christian Theological context, (from here) :

“We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye," Wright said. "We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America's chickens are coming home to roost.”

Well, though I disagree with his delivery and the “State terrorism” part regarding Palestinians (I think the Palestinians bring a lot of unnecessary drama on themselves, but that’s another topic), looking at the statement in a biblical context, all he really was saying was (from the KJV):

"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." (Galatians 6.7 KJV) Jesus did say in Matthew 26.52: "Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.”

The fact is that American foreign policy has done A LOT of dirt, and people like Osama Bin Laden, who are just murderous maniacs, are able to use that dirt the US has done to motivate some simpletons into doing the unthinkable. Wright wasn’t being hateful per se, just waaayyy unsympathetic and very insensitive to those who lost loved ones. Basically, WRONG TIME TO SAY: “I Told ya so…” or “Karma”, etc. What do you folks think?

Denouncing, Denouncing...

What is this now, the Soviet Union?

Shesh...Denounce this, denounce that...whatever happened to just saying that you reject what someone is saying?

This weeks DJ Black Adam Theme: "Bostich" by Yello!

Yello is a Swiss electronica band consisting of Dieter Meier and Boris Blank. They are probably best known for their singles "The Race" and "Oh Yeah" (featured in the film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”), which feature a mix of electronic music and manipulated vocals.

However, for those of us from Chicago, who listened to the Hot Mix 5 on 102.7fm W.B.M.X. on Friday and Saturday nights in the 1980’s, they are best known for the track “Bostich”, a cult classic adopted by the Chicago House Music movement of the 1980’s. This song rocked the North, South and West sides and the burbs. Enjoy!

Daymon Wayans Thinks Violently Attacking Black Pregnant Girls is Funny: "Abortion Man"

Gina at “What About our Daughters” , has posted about this lunacy. All I can say is Damon Wayans is truly living up to his name. I’ll have more on this idiot later…

"One Diverse Comic Book Nation" blog writer and creator Loren Javier returns!!!

Loren Javier has returned to the blog world! Check out his blog, the guy is great (and he let me vent about the new Black "Spectre" a few months back! Hopefully he'll let me vent about Black Adam soon!)

Thanks for the heads up from Will at Bag End Underhill

Catholics, the Pope and Bill Maher…

Last week it appears that Bill Maher made a joke about the Pope and the Catholic Church, trying to compare the Catholic’s sex scandals and child sexual abuse to the FLDS church issues down in Texas. He went in the joke and said that the Pope was a “Nazi”. Seems like the Catholic Defense League responded to this very aggressively, and Mr. Maher gave somewhat of an apology.

Honestly, I like Bill Maher, however; I don’t like how he beats into the ground how religion is evil, fairy tales, etc. Not so much because I am a follower of Christ, more so because he hides behind rationality, logic and reason, and uses very little rationality, logic or reason when he evaluates religion. So, since I already have a bone to pick with the guy, I watched the show where he made the comments and the next show before I decided to write about this issue.

Overall, I can see where he was trying to go in the joke (i.e. the Catholic church BLEW it on how it handled the sexual scandals that happened and if it had of been anybody else some serious jail sentences would have followed for those who committed the crimes and those who covered them up), however; what we have now instead of people seeing the validity of what he was trying to say is people focusing on the “Nazi” statement.

Thus, Bill Maher becomes a victim of what HE in fact always does with the topic of religion, that being “focusing on the trees and missing the forest”.

People are focusing on Mr. Maher’s uses of the word Nazi and conveniently missing the VALID point regarding how negligently (criminally, ethically, morally AND Spiritually negligent in my opinion) the Catholic Church as an institution handled these many sexual abuse and assault cases that it had over the last 20 years.

If Catholics are in fact Christians first, they need to forgive Bill, take the valid criticism of their Church and correct a few things internally and move on.

As for Mr. Maher, I have this to say, in fact, I’ll put it in letter form, and will send it to him once I find his email address or someone gets his email address for me:

Mr. Bill Maher:

I love your show. Just wanted to say that I think you are getting roasted a bit too much about you recent comments about the Pope. Admittedly, though I am a Christian, I am not Catholic, so maybe I might be more sensitive if I were; however, I believe that you trying to make a valid point and it is sad that some people will miss that point (some willfully) and focus on your “Nazi” part of the joke.

I have been meaning to write you anyway. I have heard your many statements about religion and religious people over the years, some of those statements I can agree with, some I can understand even if I don’t agree, and sometimes I have to stop watching your show for a few weeks because you go beyond commentary and into purposed offense to people who choose to accept the existence of a God (or gods as it were).

Mr. Maher, I think you are an intelligent man, but it is intellectually fraudulent to posit again and again that anyone who prescribes to any type of faith system that incorporates a deity is not a rational being, not only because such a statement is riducles at face value alone, but also such a statment implies that people who do not incorporate that belief are some how more “rational”? A cursory look at history shows that many crimes have been committed in the name of ideas and philosophies be they: religious ideas, secular ideas, fiscal ideas, political ideas, etc., many of these crimes committed by groups and individuals who claimed to be “rationalist” without any hint of religious overtones (i.e. Stalin).

My primary bone of contention with you is that you put the overwhelming burden on “religious ideas”. I’d be the first person to agree with you that religious ideas are often manipulated by people with POLITICAL AGENDAS to accomplish their goals, it happens here (i.e. the current administration) and elsewhere in the world. It has happened since our earliest empires in history. However; were you fail in your analysis is in not acknowledging that scientific ideas have been used to do the same damn thing (recently a noted noble laureate made statements that many will use to predicate hate ideology).

Look at things that were once “science”: Social Darwinism, Eugenics, etc, these all have been used as an excuse to do evil to people; however, as also with religion, undeniably science has also been used for great positive change as well. You fail to make that distinction when discussing faith; you also fail to make the distinction between "religion" the institutions and the faith and spirituality of the individual. You claim that Christians believe this, that or the other, when in fact there is a broad range of thought within the faith that you purposely ignore in assigning a specific thought or view that may apply to some to the complete spectrum of Christianity (or people of faith in general).

That is where you come off as no different than people who believe generalities about gays, or Blacks or Jews, etc. People who conveniently ignore any evidence to the contrary of the generality that they desire to forward. That is PREJUDICE.

I am a Christian, so you PREJUDGE that I lack rationality, you PREJUDGE that I believe every word in the Bible as “word for word” or that I use the Bible to tell me everything in life from how to tie my shoes to how often I pray. That is prejudice pure and simple. Anyway, I could go on, but I have learned in life that people either get your point or don't (hell, you argued with Cornell West, what chance do I have? lol).

Other than that, I just wanted to add, that I admire your courage to say what you feel is true, rather I agree with you or not.

Sincerely DJ Black Adam

http://djblackadam.typepad.com

I'm just saying...

This Weeks Black Adam Theme: "Feel the Drive" By: Doctor’s Cat

Doctor’s Cat was an Italo Disco group whose members are: Aldo Martinelli, Fabrizio Gatto, Simona Zanini.

This music was just fun, pre Chicago house and a regular on WBMX and with the Hot Mix 5, enjoy!

Bruce Springsteen endorses: “BARAK OBAMA”!

Here is a Link to Mr. Springsteen’s website And a link to the news story

Gotta love "The Boss"

"Dear Friends and Fans:

Like most of you, I've been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest. He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that's interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where "...nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone."

At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man's life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams of My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment.

After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans. Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President."

This Weeks Black Adam Theme: "Energy Flash" By: Joey Beltram

Energy Flash by Joey Beltram 

Joey Beltram (born November 6, 1971) is an American DJ and record producer, known best for the pioneering house music recordings "Energy Flash" and "Mentasm". "

It is one of my favorite post Chicago House jams, enjoy!.

Since the NAACP and AL have blown it yet again: DJ Black Adam for new default / self appointed / media backed / Leader of Black America! (Remix!)

Since the NAACP and AL have blown it yet again, and with all the controversies and problems affecting the African American community (and with Barak busy and all), I thought I would throw in my name in the hat for the spot of “new default / self appointed / media backed / Leader of Black America”! Why Black Adam you say? 

1st, I have no business interest that can conflict me, nor do I particular have a desire for camera time, as I need to be pretty low key since eventually I will invade Liberia and bring order to West Africa from my just rule and stable economy I will create there.

2nd I have no predisposed political loyalties that would hinder me, I am neither democrat nor republican, and have equal contempt for both parties! Enough contempt that I would actually make DEMANDS for the collective from whichever we should direct our vote to!

3rd, I would not let religious affiliations obstruct progress. Mutual respect for those of any faith and those who chose no faith.

4th, I would look very cool when I was “brooding” and plotting our next move!

5th, (This may cause me to loose support): I would outlaw ALL Crunk music, or any music that referred to women as b-words or h-words, or brothers or sisters as the N-word, sure people have freedom of speech, but once you put it on a record, I would have your record company destroyed and the radio stations that chose to defy my decree would be leveled!

6th, People who insult the African American community (be they Black, White or of any ethnic group) in any way would be dealt with, why waste time on a “protest” or “march” when we can just handle the perp “Black Adam Style”?

7th, It will keep me busy until I raise the capital and mercs to invade Liberia, which all African Americans can immigrate to save of course for the following people:

Folks who say things like “What IS you talking about?”, "Who IS you talking about?" or "Gurrl" or Guuhl" instead of "Girl" or those that use the word “Hur” to refer to “Hair” (and refuse any grammatical correction)!

Folks that think that Lil John or TI are musical geniuses

ANY BODY, and I do mean ANYBODY who says “Wellllll” in a church service for no other reason than to be seen!

ANY African American PARENT, who thinks owning (or financing) an: (Escalade, Navigator, furniture, Big Screen TV, etc., etc.) is more important than spending money on their child’s education or moving to a better neighborhood!

ANYBODY, who says anyone with loose curls or straight “hair or hur” has the good “hair or hur”! (You can stay here! Or move to Europe, which you may like a lot better)!

ANYBODY, who calls a sister or brother of light tone "Light Skinededed"!

ANYBODY, who goes up to a dark sister or brother and says: “You pretty / handsome / cute to be so dark” (Again, Europe may be a more viable option for you)

WHOEVER it was who wrote this season's finale (again) to the “L-Word” (you should be executed) as well as;

WHOEVER took Sharona OFF of Monk!

The current editor in chief of Marvel comics

The guy who wrote the last Black Adam miniseries (you better hope I don’t actually get the power of SHAZAM)

Any one who fits any of the above categories and still wants to come to Liberia after my benevolent take over, must undergo a MANDATORY re-education process for 6 weeks at an indoctrination center on a small Island off the Liberian Coast! This list could be longer (and will get longer as I meditate on this), but for now, I will digress. Anyway, If not me WHO? If not now WHEN?I’m available people, you know how to reach me!

The TRUTH about ending the war in Iraq…

Not gonna happen…Or at least not in the way we want it to end, that being “expeditiously”.

Politically, we have the democrats and the republicans, of which, neither is telling the American people the hard TRUTH. What is that TRUTH? Well let’s look at some of the facts.

Sure, we all know that the reasons given by the Bush administration to invade Iraq were shown not to be true. There were no weapons of mass destruction (not that Saddam wouldn’t try given the opportunity and ability) and no Al Qaida link. No matter how that is spun, it still comes out to a false predicate. So we went in, and that’s were the real problems began.

Fact is, Saddam was a human rights abuser, simple and plain. The world is better off without him. Sure, the US is hypocritical in regard to which “human rights” abusers we deal with and which ones we ignore, but let’s be real, we all know the main reason the U.S. gets involved in the Middle East is because of our dependency on oil and more forwardly, the people who make money off of that oil (Americans, Brits and Saudis).

Therein is where we find the reason that there will be no serious withdrawal from that region; OIL and the industrial corporate complex behind that oil. It’s like this, no one is making the auto industry make any real changes to fuel efficiency and they are still selling cars (i.e. Navigators, Hummers, Escalades, etc.) so they aren’t going to stop without motivation. The oil companies make record profits off of people fueling these vehicles, and the American people do not have the will to just say no and BUY cars that are more fuel efficient. This all compounded by the fact that our government is not seeking alternative fuel sources as aggressively as it should; and the American people are not compelling them to do so, as we should.

Basically, as long as we don’t eliminate the reasons why the Middle East is so critical to US geopolitical interest, we will have a strong troop presence in Iraq. Since the reality here is that we are NOT going to get off of Middle Eastern oil any time soon, we now we have a very serious military problem.

We invaded the country by the book for the most part, however; ignoring the Powell doctrine of “overwhelming force” has given us a big problem that will need to be fixed. Because Cheney, Rumsfeld & Co. decided to try to save a few bucks on the invasion, they went in weak; as such we won the war but were unprepared to keep the peace.

We did not prioritize securing the borders, and even more crucial, we did not make sure the standard of living for the general population was a priority. What should have happened was that utilities, hospitals, school, etc., should have been rebuilt and online as soon as possible after we invaded and occupied. Because these two things did not happen not only was Al Qaida able to capitalize on the chaos and get into a country they were pretty much not in before our invasion; we also allowed for Shi’ite militias to form (and recruit from jobless disenfranchised young men) and seek revenge on the Sunni’s who had oppressed them under Saddam, and for Sunni militias to form to try to hold the power they had.

Now we are stuck in Iraq with the problems we have created and / or unleashed. Again, if Americans would stop buying oversized vehicles with horrible fuel efficiency we could walk away from this mess (even though we created it), and let them have their inevitable civil war, however; we aren’t changing our auto buying habits, and the auto companies are in no rush for us to kill their golden goose, so we will not allow that region to go up in flames.

Here is the hard truth. If we leave Iraq now, the Iranians will get a foothold in Iraq, which is a situation that is unacceptable to the US, Europe and the Saudis and others in the region. Ultimately we end up with a regional conflict that will be WWIII. If and when this WWIII happens, we will lose a lot more than the already too many 4,000 lives we have lost of our service men and women. I can assure you, that the draft will have to be reinstated, and the major players of the world will all be involved.

This is an avoidable situation, if we develop alternative fuel sources and demand better vehicles from the auto industry, while simultaneously keeping our troops in the region until those goals are attained. Sadly, I don’t see that happening.

What I see happening is we will either do a hasty withdrawel as we did in Vietnam, but more likely, we will stay there pinned for many years to come not willing to partition the country, and the country itself not willing to become even a loose confederation.

Either way, the minute we leave, Civil war will jump off, not just between the Shi’ites and the Sunnis (and the Kurds to a lesser extent), but within the Shi’ites. The question is, will we still be dependent on the oil of the region and have to redeploy a much larger force for a much bigger war?

I’m just saying…

This Weeks Black Adam Theme: "I Want It To Be Real" By: John Rocca

John Rocca was a member of the group FREEZE whom you all may or may not remember made the cult dance classic of the 80's "I.O U."

Anyway, "I Want It To Be Real" is one of the songs that carried over to the House Music dance floors of Chicago (circa 1985-1989). It is one of my favorite jams, enjoy!.

O.K., I’ve had it, MEDIA: Stop de-feminizing and animalizing SERENA WILLIAMS!!!

O.K., I am about to go Super Saiyan 5 on media outlets. People, Serena Williams is a damn good tennis player, when she beats people, it is because SHE IS BETTER than they are, SIMPLE AS THAT. She is NOT some ferocious monster!

I read this article amongst many that ticked me off, here is a quote:

“But the Serb added that when Williams gets up a head of steam - complete with assorted primal screams in the heat of battle - it's not a pretty sight.

"I'm glad she was calmer, and she didn't scream too much," Jankovic said of Williams, who denied that she smashed a racket on national television and earned a warning after being broken for 5-3 in the final set.”

This is too much. The article was title: “Williams fury fuels fear for Jankovic” Main stream media, please stop de-feminizing and animalizing Serena Williams. I have heard all those female tennis player grunt and groan as they strike the ball, why is it all of sudden “scary” when a Black woman does it? I’m just saying…

Jesus: Yeshuyah HaMoshiach Adonai Shekinu

Strolling threw the internet the other day; I found a few articles about the historic Christian faith that touted the “pagan” nature of some of the dogma and tradition of some of the Christian traditions.

I found it very interesting the lengths that were gone to with the object of trying to minimize the faith of the followers of Jesus as some sort of amalgam of other religious traditions; further I found humorous the assertion by some of the authors that most Christians are unaware of such traditions and dogma and even funnier that most Christian’s faith being predicated on that “ignorance”.

So, I thought I would “for the record” a few things, as generally the folks who accuse people of being ignorant, are in fact themselves just that.

1. Even though there are many Christian traditions that borrow from the indigenous beliefs of the areas where the Churches were founded, overall there is a central theme to the faith that is apart from such traditions, overarching ideas as it were: Essential Christian doctrines;

2. These essential doctrines are predicated on the faith of the Nazarenes, the Jewish followers of Christ and the later gentile converts to the faith. These earliest believers accepted Jesus as being the Hebrew Moshiach (Messiah) that was prophesied in the books of what we now call the Old Testament, believed his teachings and started a WAY OF LIFE that has been adopted by some religions, this way of life is: "The Gospel of the Kingdom of God"; and

3. The religions themselves are of man, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God is from God through Christ Jesus.

I put this for the record, so that when someone is searching the net regarding all of these faux comparisons to Jesus to the stories of Osirus, Mithra, or whomever, perhaps some one could find this, and look at those faux comparisons in proper historical, theological and spiritual context.

I'm just saying...

This Week's Black Adam Theme: “Hip Hop – Be Bop” by Man Parrish

Lately I have been getting emails requesting the names of some of the tracks I have been alternating as my “Theme”. So I have decided to give some back ground on the songs I play.

Generally I play what mimics my mood, this week’s track is by one of my most serious influences “Man Parrish”.

I love music, especially electronic music, and Man Parrish is one of the forefathers. Hip Hop Be Bop reminds me of what Hip Hop IS about in essence, much more than the commercial gangsta pimp misogynistic fairy tales we here on popular radio. But more than that, this song was part of the electronic music revolution from which Chicago House music and Detroit Techno came from. Enjoy!

“Anti CHRISTiest” - giving "atheist" a bad name...

You all may have wondered why I posted that exegetical paper regarding “Wisdom”, well it was because I had to remind myself of wisdom of God and when to share it and when not to “throw stones to swine” as it were.

Not that I am calling any person “swine” per se, but the analogy is that to wasting that which is valuable to those who would not value it; and that is what happened the other day. I learned a valuable lesson in sharing (or knowing when not to share) information. Folks, I have been a bit sheltered lately, most of the folks I converse with about “spiritual” matters are atheist and people of other faiths. And you know what? Most of those conversations go very well, even in our disagreement.

Why? Well simply, because those conversations are had with mutual respect. Respect goes far beyond this new political construct of “tolerance”, it is much more. With mutual respect, people can agree to disagree and learn from each other by understanding one another. A recent conversation I had (with someone I shall not converse with again) taught me a lesson. The difference between an “Atheist” (One who does not believe in any gods) and something I’d like to call an “Anti-Christiest”. An “Anti-Christiest” is one who pretends to be an atheist, but in fact, just has a problem with Jesus and the Gospel and by extension Christians.

Generally, I can talk to “atheist”, I disagree with their position, but, most I have come across usually intelligently present their position. An “Anti-Christiest” on the other hand, usually is full of emotion and lacks reason, they are generally angry at some aspect of the Christian religion OR more often angry at the Christian God ALONE, the God they once believed in because He let them down or did not meet a need of theirs at some point in life.

You find these type at the most extreme side have perhaps had a tragedy befall them or lost a loved one; or in less extreme cases feel rejected by some group of Christians for whatever reason, and as such reject all Christians and Christ because of that. Now in the Spirit of Christ, we should extend love to these people and compassion, showing the Gospel by our actions, and sharing words when necessary; however, there can be a point where you just have to dust your feet of the ground you walked with them and move on.

This point, is when it becomes apparent, the person does not respect you or your faith, as they try to denounce Jesus, not just as being the “son of God”, but to the degree that they deny he historically existed at all. You see, that is when we leave the realm of belief and faith, and go into historical facts, and when you have someone who isn’t happy just not believing that Jesus is the Messiah, Son of God in the “Christian” sense, BUT who has to DENY That he ever existed, that is when it's time to shake the dust off and move on.

This type of thing is intellectually fraudulent and disingenuous at best, ANTI - CHRIST at worst. You see, “Anti-Christ” isn’t so much an individual person with 666 on their head, no; it is a spirit, a way of thought, which is against the very idea of Christ. Again, this is not a general thing that applies to non-believers, not at all, this is specifically for the “Anti-Christiest”, these can be of any faith (even professing Christrians) or of no faith, people who hate the very idea of Jesus (not those who disagree with it). Nonetheless, I learned my lesson. I’m just saying…

“Wisdom of the Spirit of God” An Exegesis of 1st Corinthians 1-2

“It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err” Mohandas K. Gandhi: 1865-1948 (Chang 750).

The Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines Wisdom as: “An accumulated philosophic or scientific learning: knowledge b: ability to discern inner qualities and relationships: insight c: good sense: judgment” The concept of wisdom is a significant one, in particular to our modern technological society, because we place a strong emphasis on knowledge.

A cursory look at the Bible shows that wisdom is a very significant concept in the Old and New Testaments because it concerns how we live or lives. The Bible is clear that only when our life is oriented to God and when we apply God’s standards to our day to day lives are we truly wise.

The wisdom that the Bible speaks of is “spiritual or divine wisdom”, as it comes from God, this is the wisdom to follow His precepts as revealed to us through Christ Jesus (Richards “Wisdom”).

Apostle Paul’s use of wisdom in 1st Corinthians 1-3 defines spiritual or divine wisdom from God more specifically, in relation to his own rabbinical idea of what wisdom is and also in contrast with the common Greek philosophical view. Since the term “spiritual or divine wisdom” is a term utilized by many esoteric practices, philosophies, and religions, we must be clear in what the Apostle was communicating. Apostle Paul is clear in demonstrating this “wisdom” as wisdom which comes from God, by His Spirit, the Holy Ghost (1st Corinthians 2.12).

Of course, this is not a matter of supplanting scholarship or study; and it is more than a matter of supplement, it is a tool that can be utilized for greater spiritual growth within the faith. This is also not to suggest secret revelation to the believer or extra-biblical revelation; spiritual or divine wisdom that comes from God is a tool to demonstrate God’s Kingdom more effectively by showing Christ in the day to day walk. In Apostle Paul’s 1st Epistle to the Church at Corinth, this topic is addressed in a detail that can be readily applied to the church of it’s time as well as our own. In order to better understand how Paul contrasted spiritual or divine wisdom from his own rabbinical ideas, we must take a look at the most likely source of his rabbinical understanding of “wisdom”.

Before Paul was an Apostle, according to Acts 22.3, he studied in Jerusalem under the Rabbi Gamaliel. We are not told either the nature or the extent of the influence which Gamaliel exercised upon Paul of the Gentiles, however; it is known that Gamaliel did occupy a leading position in the great council of Jerusalem, and as his grandfather Hillel, received the nickname "Ha-Zaḳen” (The “Elder”) (“Gamaliel” Brittanica 434).

Gamaliel taught in the school of Hillel; Hillel’s teachings were known and authoritative 50 years before Jesus was born. These rabbinical interpretations of the Hebrew scriptures were accepted gradually permitting the adaptation of inherited laws rather than literal interpretation, which began to dominate pre and post 70 AD Judaism (Von Deshen & Harris 87).

The Mishnah at this time however; had not yet developed any contrary view regarding “wisdom” from the Old Testament, therefore we may presuppose that the rabbinical view at that time in Hillel’s school was more Tanakh based (specifically based on the books of Wisdom). In the Old Testament, the basic word group expressing the concept of wisdom includes hakam (Strong’s #2449, Hebrew) and its cognates hokmah (Strong’s #2451, Hebrew) and hakam (Strong’s #2450, Hebrew). Together these words occur over three hundred times in the Old Testament and the closest words in meaning to this group of words are cognates of bin, or buna which mean "understanding." (Strong’s, #8394, Hebrew “Buna”).

The Hebrew view is very practical in its focus, as wisdom is expressed in godly living (Pr 2.6, 9-10, 12). Wisdom literature in the Old Testament includes Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job, and many psalms, this type of literature does don’t express itself in a legalistic form, not even in clarification of the Mosaic Law, wisdom literature deals with lifestyle, contrasting the wisdom and foolishness in the choices that people make (Scott et al “1st Corinthians”). In addition to the Rabbinical view, Paul may have become familiar with concepts of wisdom from other parts of Jewish scholarship of that time, particularly the teachings of Philo of Alexandria (20 BCE - 50 CE) on regard to the logos.

Philo’s method of interpretation was partially influenced by the Mishnah, yet he in turn influenced the Mishnah as well; for many of his ideas were adopted by Palestinian scholars, and are still found scattered throughout the Talmud and the Midrashim yet that influence had not yet manifested during Paul’s time under Gamaliel in Hillel’s school (Runia 215). Philo of Alexandria (20 BCE - 50 CE), a Hellenized Jew, followed the Platonic distinction between imperfect matter and perfect idea. The logos was necessary, he taught, because God cannot come into contact with matter. Philo sometimes identified logos as “divine wisdom”.

Philo connected his doctrine of the Logos with the Hebrew Scriptures, partially predicated on Genesis 1.27. He translates the passage as follows: "He made man after the image of God,"; he posited that this image of God was the type for all other things (the "Archetypal Idea" of Plato). The “Logos” in his philosophical view is a shadow cast by God, having the outlines but not the blinding light of the Divine Being (New Jewish Encyclopedia, Philo Judaeus).

It must be specified, that though Philo was a Jew, and that perhaps Paul was familiar with his philosophy, Philo's conception of the matter out of which the world was created is not Biblical; he is here at one with Plato and the Stoics. Following the Stoics, he designates God as "the efficient cause," and matter as "the affected cause." (New Jewish Encyclopedia, Philo Judaeus) yet he also refers to this concept from the Bible (Genesis 1.2), as the Spirit of God hovered above the waters during creation, so Philo was staunchly in the Greek view, but still related to the Hebrew viewpoint. In contrast to Apostle Paul’s influences, the congregation at Corinth’s being from the mostly Roman and Greek population had their influence primarily from Greco-Roman philosophical thought and Hellenistic mystery religious thought, which were prominent amongst the Corinthian congregation (Witherington 177).

The Corinthian church was said to have the distinction of being “the most confused congregation, or group of congregations, that Paul addressed”. The main problem was that the Corinthian congregation was being torn apart by quarreling (1st Cor 1.11). Paul’s opponents at Corinth were Jews, proto-Gnostics, libertines, ascetics, ecstatics, realized eschatologists, anti-resurrectionists, etc. (1 Corinthians 1.10-17). In addressing this problem of division, Paul implies that their division may be the result of heeding human wisdom rather than divine wisdom (1 Cor 1.18-31) (Elwell & Yarbrough 288-289).

In Greco-Roman culture, "wisdom" represented an unusual attribute or ability, philosophic or speculative knowledge. These types of words in this group are used rarely in the Gospels, however when used, they are utilized in the OT sense. The greatest number of uses of "wise" and "wisdom" are in 1st Cor 1-3. It can be assumed that the educated in the Corinthian congregation had a Platonic view of “wisdom” or “sophia”.

Prior to Plato, the Greek word “Sophia” had the same wide connotation as the Hebrew hakma. Wisdom in a practical sense, learning. Whereas, Plato saw “philosophia” as a transcendent form of wisdom, an "aspiration to a Sophia”. Basicaly, Plato thought that true wisdom could not be attained but that it could be aspired to. Contrary to this, Paul taught that wisdom to understand that which transcends man, which is God, comes from God and is given to those who have received the Gospel of the Kingdom through Christ Jesus. Paul taught that this “wisdom” that he spoke of could be apprehended by believers. In 1 Corintians 1.18-31, Paul makes clears that the philosophers “philosophia” did not bring knowledge of God. Platonic worldview did not leave room to recognize Christ as the power and wisdom of God (1 Co 1.24), so Paul put the subject in proper context for them.

The Corinthians had a view that in many ways transcended simple earthly scholarship as wisdom, yet the were not yet seeing that wisdom that was beyond man was available to them. This is further clarified in 1 Corinthians 1.19: “It is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of those who are wise. I will do away with the cleverness of those who think they are so smart.” (NIV). Here the Apostle references one of the books of the Nevi’im (Isaiah 29.14) to illustrate that the wisdom he is speaking of is not intellect or human knowledge, or simply an unattainable transcendent wisdom, but a gift that is given of God. This would also speak to the Jews of the audience who may have been familiar with this scripture, and Philo of Alexandria’s philosophy, but not yet clear in having access to the Spirit of God in a more relationship style manner.

The rabbinical view did deal with that following God’s written precepts was ideal, however, it did not deal with the spiritual component of spiritual truth being revealed to the Christian, as Paul expanded upon. Apostle Paul continues in verses 20-21, specifically asking “Where is the educated person? Where are the great thinkers of this world? Hasn’t God made the wisdom of the world foolish?”. This further referencing the power of the Christ the Wisdom of God (v24), clearly stating that God is wiser than men (v25). Connecting God’s greater wisdom to accessibility by the believer was part of what Paul was communicating and he did so by demonstration as well as words. Even though Paul was educated, Paul was clear in indicating that the “wisdom” he spoke of was beyond his scholarship or simply keeping what was written in the Tanakh and more importantly, that this wisdom was attainable because of the cross to those who believed.

1 Corinthians 2.1-5 addresses that topic, Apostle Paul specifies that when he came to the church of Corinth, he didn’t profess his own wisdom, but declared “The Testimony of God”. Not with enticing words but in demonstration of the Spirit. The scripture is emphasizing that our faith should not be in the “Wisdom of Men” but in the POWER of GOD.

Apostle Paul continues to put the subject of wisdom in its spiritual context in 1st Corinthians 2.12: “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” As Jesus stated in John 14, the Spirit we have received (which is the Holy Ghost) is of God and that we can know the things that are freely given to us by God from the Spirit. In verses 13 and 14 Paul speaks about how spiritual things are spiritually discerned. Clearly stating that the natural mind does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, in fact they are foolishness to a natural minded person.

True wisdom, the wisdom which comes from God, can be known only by believers (2.6-10), and fully grasped only by mature believers (2.11-16). The unbeliever, because of his volition, is not at all able to grasp the wisdom of God (2.14). This foundation can be found in the Gospels as well, specifically in John 14.26. “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”, further, in that same chapter Jesus makes clear that the Holy Ghost (Spirit of God) is for believers only. In 1st Corinthians 3.16, Paul reminds that Corinthians of the fact that the Holy Ghost is in them, therefore; they need to mature and be able to be led by Him, above their allegiances to individual leaders. However, the divisions among the Corinthians was evidence that they were still operating in worldly wisdom; and did not have a grasp on the actuality of what was their in Christ (3.1-4).

Apostle Paul has been able to bring light on what constituted true wisdom by showing that true wisdom comes by way of revelation, not reason. Since the Corinthians had put too much of an emphasis on the messengers of the Christian message as opposed to the Christian message itself, divisions were inevitable. In this manner also we find a problem that would plague Christian even until this day. Just as the Corinthian church dealt with their separations in following Paul or Apollos, so did we see the pattern continue as heresies and divisions formed during Christian history, as well we see this today. Paul posited that he and Apollos were merely farmers and builders, but that only God caused growth. What was to be grown and built was mature Christians, and Paul appeals to them to regard him and Apollos as mere servants of Christ (4.1-5).

Paul came humbly, showing them by example of what he was communicating with them. Paul answers there divisions and philosophies not with an apologetic argument, but with demonstration and proclamation in which he shows that the wisdom of men is of no avail in regard to spiritual truth. He expresses the lack of spiritual wisdom, the wisdom of God; which the lack of is the root of their problems. That they can never get to the root of their problems by trying to pursue the insights of their individual philosophies predicated on secular philosophers.

That is still true today; the Christian community will never solve its problems relying solely on scholarship and wisdom neither of today’s philosophies; nor by following specific Christian leaders or ideologies without focus being on what God gives us by His Spirit through Christ Jesus. Paul answers these schisms and factions and divisions by confronting them with the word of the cross -- the word that presents the cross the Christ as that instrument by which God cuts off all human wisdom, not as being worthless in its own narrow realm, but as being useless in solving the major problems of man. When we understand this, we realize that we will never begin to learn until we first learn that we do not know anything.

When we come to appreciate the word of the cross, we understand that in the cross of Jesus Christ, God took his own Son, now become man like us, identified with us in every way, and nailed him up to die as being useless as far as solving any of the problems of mankind is concerned. The wisdom of God looks so foolish to the natural man; because proceeds on a totally different principle than the wisdom of the world.

Paul posits that when we accept this, we can then discover that true, secret. Most importantly we understand ourselves, and then can apprehend the world around us. Paul’s answer is mighty, and resonates to this day in answer to the worship of the intellectualism that has constantly hounded the church, and attempts to undermine it, “a false intellectualism.” The word of God never attempts to disregard the pursuit of knowledge, God intends for people to learn things, however; for the Christian, knowledge and wisdom should be predicated upon a right beginning and we are called back to the principle set forth in the Old Testament, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 9.10 RSV) (Stedham).

Bibliography:

Bridger, David. The New Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Behrman House, 1962. Chang, Larry. Wisdom for the Soul Five Millennia of Prescriptions for Spiritual Healing. Washington, D.C.: Gnosophia, 2006.

Chisholm, Hugh. The Encyclopædia Britannica; A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature and General Information. Cambridge, Eng: At the University Press, 1910.

Elwell, Walter A., and Robert W. Yarbrough. Encountering the New Testament A Historical and Theological Survey. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Books, 1998.

Gigot, Francis E. “Gamaliel” The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI. Published 1909. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Nihil Obstat, September 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor. Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York

Merriam-Webster, Inc. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Springfield, Mass: Merriam-Webster, Inc, 2003.

Richards, Larry. New International Encyclopedia of Bible Words Based on the NIV and the NASB. Zondervan's understand the Bible reference series. Grand Rapids, Mich: ZondervanPublishingHouse, 1999.

Scott, Thomas, Matthew Henry, and William Jenks. The Comprehensive Commentary on the Holy Bible Containing the Text According to the Authorized Version; Scott's Marginal References; Matthew Henry's Commentary, Condensed ... the Practical Observations of Rev. Thomas Scott, D.D. with Extensive Explanatory, Critical, and Philological Notes. Making of America. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co, 1865.

Stedman, Ray C. THE MESSAGE OF FIRST CORINTHIANS, Discovery Publishing, 1967 < http://www.pbc.org/files/messages/3202/0247.html> accessed 5 Feb 2008

Von Dehsen, Christian D., and Scott L. Harris. Philosophers and Religious Leaders. Lives and legacies. Phoenix, Ariz: Oryx Press, 1999.

Witherington, Ben. Conflict and Community in Corinth A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on 1 and 2 Corinthians. Grand Rapids, Mich: W.B. Eerdmans, 1995.

Runia, David T. Exegesis and Philosophy Studies on Philo of Alexandria. Collected studies, CS332. Aldershot, Hampshire, Great Britain: Variorum, 1990. 

Want to get rid of your kids? Just call them “witches” and kick them out on the streets!!

…At least that is what they do in Kinshasa.

Part of the benefits of my membership with the Royal African Society, is that I get journals with stories about many things that are happening in the continent my ancestors hail from, things that are less important to report by news media here in the United States (you know, gotta have time and room to talk about REAL earth shattering news, like Paris Hilton’s new boyfriend or who got kicked off American Idol…)…ANYWAY, this is an older story, but still a current reality, here is an excerpt:

“Naomi is 15 but looks 10. A horrible burn scar shrivels the skin across her chest and shoulder. She had a broken leg, now reset. But her face is calm; she speaks clearly. The physical scars are nothing compared with the trauma she has been through. She is one of the so-called child witches of Kinshasa, rejected by her family and community at six years old and left to survive on the streets. Once she had four siblings and lived with her parents across the river in Brazzaville.

Her father died and then her mother. She had to live with her grandfather and aunt, who did not want her. 'Grandfather become sick and my aunt accused me of being a witch. She said, "Why is everyone around sick? They are suffering because of you." Grandfather gave me special water to drink, but it made no difference. 'My aunt said I must leave.

The neighbours beat me and burnt me. They said either you must admit to being a witch or we will kill you. There is no place for you here. I went to the church, but they gave me water to drink that made me sick. I said to neighbours, let me sleep somewhere, even in your toilet, but they refused. I was caught by some soldiers and they said, you are a witch - we saw you flying with birds. They said they were going to kill me, but I escaped.' Naomi gives a smile as she recounts how she found another church which took her in and sent her to Kinshasa. She has ended up in a hostel run by War Child. She is lucky.

Tens of thousands of children live in the cemeteries, markets and streets of Kinshasa feeding on rubbish, begging and stealing. Most are there because of witchcraft accusations - mostly from their own families. The phenomenon is spreading, with recent cases of child abuse motivated by the belief that the child is possessed by evil spirits, showing up in London, Paris and Amsterdam.”

Man, in this day and age? What can we do about this? Honestly, not much, however, this organization “Save the Children”, in the United Kingdom is dedicated to doing things to help change laws and deal with governments about human rights abuses against children. Click the link, donate money and / or time. I know there are many, many evils like this that go on in the world, let us pray for all of these atrocities to cease and do what we can to help make that happen sooner than later.

I’m just saying…

The SHAZAM award goes to: SHECODES!!

Shecodes over at the blog “Black Women Vote”, led a campaign along with several other bloggers I know (and some I don’t) against the reported comments from Al Sharpton regarding the Dunbar Village tragedy.

Apparently, Al & the NAACP felt it necessary to somehow vindicate the CRIMINALS who raped and humiliated a young Haitian mother and her son. Look, I know that the criminal justice system can be unfair to African American males, however, I believe that our concern in this case needs to be for the VICTIM, a BLACK WOMAN. SImple as that.

I myself felt that Al and Co needed to be dealt with in proper Black Adam fashion for such inane indifference (I am sure all of my DC Comic readers KNOW what I mean, I will not expand upon proper “Black Adam” fashion to avoid legal ramifications), however; Shecodes handled the matter in a less…confrontational (and more effective) manner.

Here is a link to her story and details on what she did regarding the issue All I can say to Shecodes is, Job Well Done!

I’m just saying…

Black anger and the White resentment it spawns? Hmmm...back that up and flip that...

I was reading this article and this quote I found most interesting:

“Barack Obama unsparingly criticized his longtime pastor's words while strongly defending the man himself Tuesday in a politically risky speech that appealed to the country to overcome racism and the black anger and white resentment it spawns.”

Specifically “Black Anger and the White Resentment it spawns”, I posit the opposite is what we are actually dealing with here: “Black Resentment and White Anger”.

The fact is that many if not most of the problems currently faced within the African American community are internal and require internal solutions, yet many of these problems are in similar to problems that other minority communities have and are a micro representation of problems within the greater American community as well.

It is also true that people of all colors and creeds have greater access to the tools of success here in the United States, however; I believe on some level there is some White Anger about the playing field being somewhat equalized, which leads me to speculate on what we actually are dealing with: “Black Resentment and White Anger”. This actuality may be uncomfortable for some Whites to accept, yet it is the truth, let me give you some examples.

I am Black, and I resent a few things:

I resent the fact, that even though I have three honorable discharges and have served in the Marine Corps and the Air Force that I always have to justify my RIGHT to criticize America at risk of being called anti-American. Further;

I resent the fact, that somehow, even though Blacks have served in every war in this country (even on both sides of the Civil war) and currently an average of 19% of the Military is African American in contrast to being roughly 12% of the general population, that we are always assumed to be less patriotic and by implication less American.

I resent the fact, that even though I have student loans up the yin-yang, that there are university classmates I have who actually believe that I am somehow going to school on some special “free college” Black scholarship (however; if there is such a scholarship, somebody please email me an application, I'm going broke here!).

I resent the fact, that demagogues like Rush Limbaugh, Pat Buchannan, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, etc., etc., have been able to play to White fears of Black people with hateful and borderline racist commentary for the last 20 years of so, and that this was all conveniently ignored, no political capital lost to the people they support or themselves, yet when a person with brown skin walks that same tightrope, some WHITE and BLACK people all of a sudden are speaking with outrage.

It appears that some Whites are angry that because of the nature of the African American experience we are inclined to be able to see the other side of things often a bit more clearly. Things like the Tuskegee Experiments, give us a mindset were we are not so ready to assume that our government is always doing the right things in all situations.

Bottom line, some Whites are angry that Blacks resent the fact that after all these years we still have to PROVE we are Americans, PROVE that we have a right to disagree, PROVE that we have a right to criticize our country and that in doing so show we actually love it.

What Jeremiah Wright said was inciteful, and insensitive, but hardly "racist" or worse "hatred" in my observation. However; it appears that after this, perhaps everyone will take a long look and an honest look, at how far we have come in race relations in America, and where we need to go forward to have an America, where all Americans, regardless of color, religion (or lack of), sexual orientation or gender can be seen as first, AMERICANS. I’m just saying…

O.K., I have seen comments that were just plain STUPID, but; What exactly did Pastor Wright say that was “racist”?

"At the risk of sounding uninformed, what exactly did Pastor Wright say that was “racist”? I heard his very insensitive remarks about 9/11, but what did he say that was “racist” per se?"

I keep reading right wing blog after right wing blog of people saying he said something racist, yet I have searched Yahoo, Google and MSN and only come up with his insensaitive post 9-11 statements and his "conspiracy" theory statements (which we talked about in the preceding post), however; I have not seen any quote that I would consider racist (though I have seen many that were just plain stupid).

I was told that Wright gave Farrakhan an award, that definately crosses the line in a few categories as far as I am concerned, however, I am truly interested in anything the man actually said that is "racist" because that is what the right wing bloggers are saying yet offering no direct quote.

Help a brother out here people, though I have the SHAZAM given wisdom of Zehuti, I am a bit preoccupied working on a documentary and Liberian invasion strategies, so if someone could give me a quote with a link, I'd like to see the statements that are racist.

I'm Just ASKING...

The real question isn’t if people are voting for Barak because he is Black, but if people are NOT voting for him because he is Black…

Simple as that, the onus is on them. I am tired of African Americans having to justify their choice in Barak, the guy is as qualified as anyone else running, simple as that.

I don't see White people being asked if they are voting for Hillary and / or McCain because they are White...I'm Just Saying...

The Clintons step up the evil, and Hillary breathes a sigh of relief…

So, it appears that the American people (especially in Ohio) are easily manipulated.

I guess I should have learned after listening to how George W. beat Kerry in the debates back in the 2004 election, that people don’t require the candidate to talk about what they will do, rather; people respond to whatever smear campaign the other guy is receiving.

Case in point, Hillary all but has come out and said Barak is a Muslim extremist, I am surprised her campaign hasn't released a photo shopped picture of Barak with Osama Bin Laden at Hooters eating Buffalo WIngs while watching the Silva - Henderson UFC fight.

Bottom line, I am voting for Barak now because of what his positions are on the issues I am concerned about; however, I was going to vote for Hillary until it became apparent that she was really Tracy Flick from the movie “Election” . 

I’m just saying, she gets behind in the polls then the attacks begin, I am sick of this crap. Honestly, if Hillary wins the democratic nomination, I am voting for McCain.

Barak Obama is NOT a Muslim…

And if he was, don’t we have freedom of religion in this country?

Anyway, Barak has been a member of Trinity United Church of Christ for going on 20 years.

I’m just saying…

My assesment of the Enough is Enough Campaign...

Gina at WOAD made me think regarding the “Enough is Enough” Campaign. Gina at “What About our Daughters” had made a post a few days back questioning what specific BET programming that was offensive to the folks at the “Enough is Enough” campaign.

Well, as the conversation went on, it made me want to take a gander at what these folks are doing. I went to there website and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they have been going after the Viacom CEO as well.

Further, their demands seemed very reasonable, here is their list:

1. We want media and music companies to develop universal creative standards for the music and videos they produce, market and distribute. These standards should include prohibitions against lyrical and visual content that (a) objectifies, degrades, or promotes violence against women; (b) promotes illegal activity; (c) portrays Black and Latino men as "gangsters, pimps, thugs, and players," and (d) celebrates the usage of the word "nigga" (and it's derivatives), "hoe" (and it's derivatives), and "bitch" (in reference to women),

2. We want companies that advertise on television and radio stations to develop the same universal standards for the networks on which they place advertising,

3. We want the Federal Communications Commission to enforce its congressional mandate to regulate indecency on the public airwaves (television, radio, cable, satellite, etc...) between 6AM-10PM,

4. We want the Federal Communications Commission to investigate allegations of "payola" in the entertainment industry,

5. We want Congress to pass legislation in support of consumer choice in the cable industry; i.e. "a la carte" cable. This would enable consumers to not choose undesirable networks as a part of their cable packages. According to a recent FCC study, "a la carte" cable would also reduce customer cable bills up to 13%,

6. We want local, state, and federal governments to divest public tax dollars and contracts from corporations that refuse to end their sponsorship of offensive lyrical content. (We have examples of such contracts and government relationships with such corporations.), and

7. We want mutual fund and pension fund managers to divest funds from investments in publicly traded companies that promote, sponsor, and market material that does not conform to the universal creative standards referenced above.

So now the questio