Reggae is at its most revolutionary force when it is prophetic, emancipatory, raw, justice-oriented, anti-colonial, imbued with love and life-affirming.
And very much like Hip-Hop in this case, what a tragedy to see such powerful prophetic medium commercialized to enable awful, awful drunken dancing.
Happy Redemption, O Holy Bob.
Remember, Jesus didn’t become Christ till he was 30. Muhammad did not become the Prophet till he was 40. And you all are not any cooler than them.
It took Jesus and Muhammad a while to figure out who they were, and what they were going to “do.” If you haven’t figured it out by the time you’re 22, it’s alright. Be generous with your selves.
Yes, there is need for a liberatory form of criticism against every form of tyranny. And that critique has to be rooted in a deep and abiding love, even when the critique is rooted in a disappointment with how things are now (compared to how they should be). That combination of critique, love, and community is what is needed to bring about meaningful and lasting transformation.
The purpose is not (merely) to expose and ridicule—ok, maybe there is a touch of that—but rather to shine the light on areas of shortcoming that we, all of us, will have to deal with if we are to get to a more beautiful place than we are right now.
It’s not about Islam, or Chechnya. It’s about America. What happens now matters. How we as a nation move forward is critical. Do we turn our attention where it belongs, on comforting and healing the victims of Monday’s attacks, or do we turn into an angry mob accusing all Muslims of a crime that two men committed?
In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon, President Obama stated: “Any time bombs are used to target innocent civilians, it is an act of terror.”
Mr. President, I wonder if you realize how right you are.
Mr. President, I wonder if you realize what that means when we are the ones dropping bombs on civilians in Afghanistan, Yemen, and Pakistan.
Here was a lesson that Martin Richard, the wise 8-year old, had already learned:
If you can, bring joy and love to humanity.
If you cannot, and you can, at least cause no harm.
On days like this, many feel like giving up on humanity.
It is a natural urge, but do not. Don’t.
Some are using this story to perpetuate hatred against this ethnic group or that religious group.
Some are urging us to pray to the One for all of us.
Where do we stand?
While we are discussing these “scandals” related to Tiger Woods’ penalty, let’s not forget to talk about the Master Tournament host’s vicious history of sexism and racism.
Christ taught us: “Blessed are the Peace-Makers.” If Blessed are the Peace-Makers, what do we say about those who not only do not make peace, nor pray for peace, but actually pray for conflict and seek to extend war? These are the unblessed Peace-breakers, the War-makers.
