In Dr. King’s Own Words

On this great day, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday is wonderfully inspiring to behold. The ethos of the body King touches my spirit each January during the celebration of his day. As far as I’m concerned he was the most revered leader of our time.

Dr. King's legacy was to secure progress of civil rights for the American Negro and poor people in the United States, and for this reason he has become a human rights icon recognized as a martyr. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, a National Holiday, and will be honored with a monument on the Washington Mall in DC.

Although, his true story has been sanitized to where most view him as a dreamer. This characterization of his is not correct. Let us remember Dr. King as the revolutionary he was; he, like Moses, saw this country as the Egypt of our time. I would ask that you listen to “The King” in his own words. The attached video is, in my view, one of his most succinctly clearly spoken words concerning the American Myth.

LISTEN TO DR. KING IN HIS OWN WORDS

HAPPY KING DAY! And that’s my thought provoking perspective…

The Meaning Of Christmas

I read a very interesting article the other day that asked, in so many words, if we actually know what we believe, which caused me to think about that as we approach the Holiday Season. I’ll say from the on-set that regardless of your religious beliefs you’re probably familiar with the Christmas story; whether you’re a devout Christian, doubtful, unsure or an atheist. You know the story of what is said to be the greatest story ever told. Or do you? This story with its significance and traditions are sometimes misunderstood.

This day has been turned into a massive commercial holiday. If you count all the Nativity scenes displayed, you would think Christmas is the most important date on the Christian calendar. I don’t believe that it is. Easter is the day on which Christians believe Christ rose from the dead, which has more religious significance than does December 25th. In fact, science would have us believe that the savior was actually born in the spring. Whereas Easter, the day of Christ’s resurrection means not just that one man conquered death, nor was it simply proof of Jesus’ divinity to his followers; it holds out the promise of eternal life for all who believe in him.

The Christmas season lasts 12 days ending with the Epiphany, a feast day in early January commemorating the Wise Men’s visit to the infant Jesus. The Easter season, on the other hand, lasts 50 days. On Sundays during Easter, Christians hear dramatic stories of the post-resurrection appearances of Christ to his astonished followers. The overriding importance of Easter is simple: Anyone can be born, but not everyone can rise from the dead.

Let’s me talk about the written knowledge from a Christian source; the Bible, more particularly, the four Gospels. We believe that the journey of Mary on a donkey accompanied by Joseph, the child’s birth in a manger surrounded by animals, shepherds and angels, with the Wise Men appearing shortly afterward. But two of the Gospels say nothing about Jesus’ birth.

The Gospel of Mark the earliest of the Gospels, written roughly 30 years after Jesus’ crucifixion does not have a word about the Nativity. Instead, it begins with the story of John the Baptist, who announces the impending arrival of the adult Jesus of Nazareth. The Gospel of John is similarly silent about Jesus’ birth. The two Gospels that do mention what theologians call the “infancy narratives” differ on some significant details.

Matthew seems to describe Mary and Joseph as living in Bethlehem, fleeing to Egypt and then moving to Nazareth. The Gospel of Luke, on the other hand, has the two originally living in Nazareth, traveling to Bethlehem in time for the birth, and then returning home. Both Gospels do, however, place Jesus’ birthplace in Bethlehem. This much they all agree.

Then there is the idea that Jesus was an only child. Catholics, for example, believe Mary’s pregnancy came about miraculously as a “virgin birth.” They also believe that Mary remained a virgin her entire life, although many Protestants do not. For the purposes of this writing, I will not expand on the thinking of the thousands of religious philosophies.

Nonetheless, there are Gospel passages that speak of Jesus’ brothers and sisters which seem to confuse many. For example, in the Gospel of Luke, someone tells Jesus: “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” And in Mark’s Gospel, people from Nazareth exclaim: “Is not this the carpenter’s son? Are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us?” Saint Paul even calls James “the Lord’s brother.” Therefore, I agree with many scholars who maintain that Jesus indeed had brothers and sisters which might be explained perhaps through an earlier marriage of Joseph. Or not!

Dr. Ben, the noted African historian, points to a story thousands of years before Christ that is very similar that occurred in Upper Africa to Isis, the mother of Horace. If this is true, then the greatest story ever told is a recent phenomenon. For sure, the way it’s practiced today is a phenomenon that is not consistent with the true meaning of Christmas. However, worries about diluting Christmas’s meaning go much further back than recent memory.

Gift-giving, for example, was seen as problematic as early as the Middle Ages, when the church frowned on the practice for its supposed pagan origins. The holiday season has become so distorted that our children now think that Jesus was born at Wal-Mart.

This recounting of these few recorded facts is in no way intended to steal your joy or deter your faith. As we all know, faith is, believing to be true that which is unseen. No one really knows the truth of this miraculous event that resulted in a poor peasant boy changing the lives of mankind since his birth two thousand years ago. The point is this: in the midst of our joy and celebration lest not forget the true meaning of Jesus’ birth which is to love one another and humanity. After all, the purpose of our existence is to continue the species – mankind – which is what Jesus preached!

I am looking forward to the blessings and opportunities that the New Year can bring us all and wish you and yours a Happy Holiday Season, Abundance, Prosperity and an Extraordinary 2014! Therefore, I give the gift of love and empowerment. And that’s my Thought Provoking Perspective…

A Slave’s Christmas

African American, arguably, are the most religious people on this little rock called earth and have always been since arriving in this place the slaves called “merica”. With that said, I am sure many have wondered, in spite of the wretched system of slavery, how was it celebrated by the slave population?

The American slaves experienced the Christmas holidays in many different ways. Joy, hope, and celebration were naturally a part of the season for many. For other slaves, this holiday conjured up visions of freedom and even the opportunity to bring about that freedom. Still others saw it as yet another burden to be endured.

I suppose the enslaved African Americans; if there was ever any joy, it might well have been during the Christmas. At least their capturers, in the spirit of Jesus’ birth allowed them to have a day free from drudgery. The prosperity and relaxed discipline associated with Christmas often enabled slaves to interact in ways that they could not during the rest of the year.

They may well have received material goods from their masters: perhaps the slave’s yearly allotment of clothing, an edible delicacy, or a present above and beyond what he or she needed to survive. For this reason, among others, slaves frequently married during the Christmas season – that is if it was allowed. More than any other time of year, Christmas provided slaves with the latitude and prosperity that made a formal wedding possible.

This ironic annual inversion of power occasionally allowed slaves to acquire real power. Henry, a slave whose tragic life and death is recounted in Martha Griffith Browne’s Autobiography of a Female Slave, saved “Christmas gifts in money” to buy his freedom. Some slaves saw Christmas as an opportunity to escape. They took advantage of a relaxed work schedules and the holiday travels of slaveholders, who were too far away to stop them.

While some slaveholders presumably treated the holiday as any other workday, numerous authors record a variety of holiday traditions, including the suspension of work for celebration and family visits. Because many slaves had spouses, children, and family who were owned by different masters and who lived on other properties to which slaves often requested passes to travel and visit family during this time. Some slaves used the passes to explain their presence on the road and delay the discovery of their escape through their masters’ expectation that they would soon return from their “family visit.”

Jermain Loguen plotted a Christmas escape, stockpiling supplies and waiting for travel passes, knowing the cover of the holidays was essential for success: “Lord speed the day!–freedom begins with the holidays!” These plans turned out to be wise, as Loguen and his companions were almost caught crossing a river into Ohio, but were left alone because the white men thought they were free men “who have been to Kentucky to spend the Holidays with their friends”.

It was during Christmas that Harriet Tubman helped her brothers escape. Their master intended to sell them after Christmas but was delayed by the holiday. The brothers were expected to spend the day with their elderly mother but met Tubman in secret. She helped them travel north, gaining a head start on the master who did not discover their disappearance until the end of the holidays. Likewise, William and Ellen Crafts escaped together at Christmastime. They took advantage of passes that were clearly meant for temporary use.

Christmas could represent not only physical freedom, but spiritual freedom, as well as the hope for better things to come. The main protagonist of Martha Griffin Browne’s Autobiography of a Female Slave, Ann, found little positive value in the slaveholder’s version of Christmas equating it with “all sorts of culinary preparations” and extensive house cleaning rituals but she saw the possibility for a better future in the story of the life of Christ.

“This same Jesus, whom the civilized world now worship as their Lord, was once lowly, outcast, and despised; born of the most hated people of the world . . . laid in the manger of a stable at Bethlehem . . . this Jesus is worshiped now”. For Ann, Christmas symbolized the birth of the very hope she used to survive her captivity. Not all enslaved African Americans viewed the holidays as a time of celebration and hope. Rather, Christmas served only to highlight their lack of freedom.

Frederick Douglass described the period of respite that was granted to slaves every year between Christmas and New Year’s Day as a psychological tool of the oppressor. In his 1845 Narrative, Douglass wrote that slaves celebrated the winter holidays by engaging in activities such as “playing ball, wrestling, running foot-races, fiddling, dancing, and drinking whiskey”. He took particular umbrage at the latter practice, which was often encouraged by slave owners through various tactics.

In My Bondage and My Freedom, Douglass concluded that “the license allowed [during the holidays] appears to have no other object than to disgust the slaves with their temporary freedom, and to make them as glad to return to their work, as they were to leave it”. While there is no doubt that many enjoyed these holidays, Douglass acutely discerned that they were granted not merely in a spirit of charity or conviviality, but also to appease those who yearned for freedom, ultimately serving the ulterior motives of slave owners.

Now we know! And that is my Thought Provoking Perspective!

Make these books the gift that keeps on giving.

http://johntwills.com

Legacy – A New Season 

AMAZON

Just a Season

Fourth of July

Today we celebrate the 236th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in a nation that is as divided now as it was then on just about every level. By revisiting our history helps to remind us how far we've come; just remember that 236 years ago slavery was the law of the land with all or just about all of the so-called founding fathers owning human beings as chattel. I guess you could say that this speaks to the character of these men.

The idea of Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July and a national holiday, which America commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from England or Great Britain. As was suggested at the time, Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, family gatherings, political speeches and ceremonies. Oh, and a lot of flag waving!

It was during the Revolution, the legal separation of the Thirteen Colonies from Great Britain on July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve a resolution of independence declaring the United States independent from Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson the principal author of the document that congress debated and revised the wording and finally approving it on July 4.

Historians have long disputed whether Congress actually signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, even though Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin all later wrote that they had signed it on that day. Most historians have concluded that the Declaration was signed nearly a month after its adoption, on August 2, 1776, and not on July 4 as is commonly believed.

As we all know these famous words taken from the document: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. This makes one wonder what men they were talking about because by owning men they surely did not consider Africa American people as men. Or was it ever supposed to relate to blacks or women. NOT!!! So who was left? I think we know!

Although this is a glorious day, there actually was not anything close to independence for most of the populous. Now, I like a good party as much as anyone but this was not a party designed for anyone of color. In fact, I am positive that my ancestors who made that long captive journey in the belly of the beast across the Atlantic as a day of independence.

It is worth mentioning that not all the colonialists were keen on this whole independence thing either and by some accounts about a half-million were Loyalists to the British crown, and hung on to their royal connections. Now the author’s of His-Story, which is that written by the victory, left out much of what really happened.

I will close with what is a remarkable coincidence, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, the only signers of the Declaration of Independence later to serve as Presidents, died on the same day: July 4, 1826, which was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration. Just a little piece of history another so-called Founding Father, who became a President James Monroe, died on July 4, 1831, thus becoming the third president in a row who died on this memorable day.

Enjoy the party’s and celebrate the freedoms we have left. And that’s my Thought Provoking Perspective…

http://johntwills.com

For Men Only

Today is a very special day, although one that I personally don’t enjoy because I only had one son who was called home far too soon. My memories are wonderful and lasting. I am honored and proud to have been chosen to be his Dad. I know he now belongs to the ages and when I see him again it will be a joyful occasion. I am looking forward to walking around heaven rejoicing in what will be eternity. REST IN PEACE SON!

TEARS… So to all the men who are dad’s – embrace the gift of life you are given. And that’s my Thought Provoking Perspective… 

http://johntwills.com

The Meaning of Christmas

I read a very interesting article the other day that asked, in so many words, if we know what we believe, which caused me to think about that as we approach the Holiday Season. I’ll say from the on-set that regardless of your religious beliefs you’re probably familiar with the Christmas story; whether you’re a devout Christian, doubtful, unsure or an atheist. You know the story of what is said to be the greatest story ever told. Or do you? This story with its significance and traditions are sometimes misunderstood.

This day has been turned into a massive commercial holiday. If you count all the Nativity scenes displayed you would think Christmas is the most important date on the Christian calendar. I don’t believe that it is. Easter is the day on which Christians believe Christ rose from the dead, which has more religious significance than does Dec. 25. In fact, science would have us believe that the savior was actually born in the spring. Whereas Easter, the day of Christ’s resurrection means not just that one man conquered death, nor was it simply proof of Jesus’ divinity to his followers; it holds out the promise of eternal life for all who believe in him.

The Christmas season lasts 12 days ending with the Epiphany, a feast day in early January commemorating the Wise Men’s visit to the infant Jesus. The Easter season, on the other hand, lasts 50 days. On Sundays during Easter, Christians hear dramatic stories of the post-resurrection appearances of Christ to his astonished followers. The overriding importance of Easter is simple: Anyone can be born, but not everyone can rise from the dead.

Let’s me talk about the written knowledge from a Christian source; the Bible, more particularly, the four Gospels. We believe that the journey of Mary on a donkey accompanied by Joseph, the child’s birth in a manger surrounded by animals, shepherds and angels, with the Wise Men appearing shortly afterward. But two of the Gospels say nothing about Jesus’ birth.

The Gospel of Mark the earliest of the Gospels, written roughly 30 years after Jesus’ crucifixion does not have a word about the Nativity. Instead, it begins with the story of John the Baptist, who announces the impending arrival of the adult Jesus of Nazareth. The Gospel of John is similarly silent about Jesus’ birth. The two Gospels that do mention what theologians call the “infancy narratives” differ on some significant details.

Matthew seems to describe Mary and Joseph as living in Bethlehem, fleeing to Egypt and then moving to Nazareth. The Gospel of Luke, on the other hand, has the two originally living in Nazareth, traveling to Bethlehem in time for the birth, and then returning home. Both Gospels do however place Jesus’ birthplace in Bethlehem. This much they all agree.

Then there is the idea that Jesus was an only child. Catholics, for example, believe Mary’s pregnancy came about miraculously as a “virgin birth.” They also believe that Mary remained a virgin her entire life, although many Protestants do not. For the purposes of this writing I will not expand on the thinking of the thousands of religious philosophies.

Nonetheless, there are Gospel passages that speak of Jesus’ brothers and sisters which seem to confuse many. For example, in the Gospel of Luke, someone tells Jesus: “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” And in Mark’s Gospel, people from Nazareth exclaim: “Is not this the carpenter’s son? Are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us?” Saint Paul even calls James “the Lord’s brother.” Therefore, I agree with many scholars who maintain that Jesus indeed had brothers and sisters which might be explained perhaps through an earlier marriage of Joseph. Or not!

Dr. Ben, the noted African historian, points to a story thousands of years before Christ that is very similar that occurred in Upper Africa to Isis, the mother of Horace. If this is true, then the greatest story ever told is a recent phenomenon. For sure, the way it’s practiced today is a phenomenon that is not consistent with the true meaning of Christmas. However, worries about diluting Christmas’s meaning go much further back than recent memory.

Gift-giving, for example, was seen as problematic as early as the Middle Ages, when the church frowned on the practice for its supposed pagan origins. The holiday season has become so distorted that our children now think that Jesus was born at Wal-Mart.

This recounting of these few recorded facts is in no way intended to steal your joy or deter your faith. As we all know, faith is, believing to be true that which is unseen. No one really knows the truth of this miraculous event that resulted in a poor peasant boy changing the lives of mankind since his birth two thousand years ago. The point is this: in the mist of our joy and celebration lest not forget the true meaning of Jesus’ birth which is to love one another and humanity. After all, the purpose of our existence is to continue the species – mankind – which is what Jesus preached!

I am looking forward to the blessings and opportunities that the New Year can bring us all and wish you and yours a Happy Holiday Season, Abundance, Prosperity and an Extraordinary 2012! Therefore, I give the gift of love and empowerment. And that’s my Thought Provoking Perspective…



Remember - Legacy - A New Season is Coming Soon!!!
To find out more about my novels visit:

http:johntwills.com

This Holiday Season

I am one who believes - we are our bothers keeper. Therefore, I offer this Thought Provoking Perspective with all due respect for the coming holiday season with the wish that each of us to consider our follow man during these times of distress. As we approach and celebrate the blessed day dedicated to the birth of Jesus, it would be appropriate, I think, if we practiced his most basic principle, which is to “do unto thee as you would do unto me”. I am sure you know someone in distress, maybe you; therefore I would ask that all of us reach into our hearts and share some of the goodness contained within it to help another soul, or as Jesus said “the least of thee”.

The world in which we live is a place full of turmoil and strife, and it’s more than likely been that way since the days Jesus walked the earth. I’ve often wondered; if Jesus were alive today what would he do? Maybe he would do as he did in the temple with the money changers or he might bring a few loafs of bread and a couple of fish to feed the hungry. He might also calm the turbulent seas as the world is filled with war and violence. Nonetheless, if I had one wish, it would be that all men were free.

We have all bought into the story, or at least lied to our children, about the myth of Santa Claus. We also know that the Christmas story is said to be the greatest story ever told; considering it was written generations after the birth of Christ that would be a fair statement. To be honest, no one really knows for sure because there are differing accounts of the event within the holy text. Further, the story of the Immaculate Conception was taken from African folklore told, and historically evident, ten thousand years before the coming of Jesus. Do not misunderstand my words because I believe in a higher power, who I chose to call God, and I believe he is the creator of all things.

I also know that there was no such word G-O-D in ANY African language before the coming of Europeans. While I’m on that point, it is true that the visual representation of Jesus is that of a blonde haired blue eyed man obviously of European decent. We know this is not factual because no one had a camera or painted his picture during the time in which he lived. The picture embedded in our consciousness was paint by Michael Angelo in the 1600’s; centuries after the fact. Now, if you think differently, history tells us that there were three peoples in the region during that period. 1) Romans, 2) Greeks, 3) Others (African). Therefore, if Jesus was NOT a Roman or Greek, he was other which means African.

It is not my intent to dissect the story. It is just to say that we believe it because someone said it was true. My point is; as it says in Corinthians “we walk by Faith not by sight”. Faith is that which is unseen and we know it to be true. In other words, having a firm belief in something for which there is no proof. It is the adherence to your religious duty, belief in the tradition, sincerity of intentions, and loyalty to God without question that is the reason we believe.

If that is our belief and conviction, it is incumbent upon us as human beings and people of Faith to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. We should not get caught up in the commercial aspects or fallacies that man has created and give of yourself to the benefit of others. This is the true meaning and spirit of the holiday season, and why we celebrate this glorious day.

I simply suggest that we forget the past, pray for the future, and appreciate today for it is a present which is why it is a gift; it is the day the Lord made for us and it must be cherished. I pray that during this season of giving that you will share, give love, and care.

Have blessed and wonderful holiday. God Bless you one and all.

JOHN T. WILLS CHRONICLES
JUST A SEASON

Listen to internet radio with John T Willschronicles on Blog Talk Radio