MLK, jr.

So, I did it again, I wrote another rap. The framework for this rap is derived from wanting to give credit to Martin Luther King, jr. for initiating the Reformation. October 31st is Reformation Day, so I decided to write a poetic/rap honoring the leader of the Reformation, MLK, jr. I know some would say that actually Martin Luther was the leader of the Reformation, but I have not seen how Luther's, "Justification by faith alone" creates a willingness to "bear the cross" and follow Jesus. It seems that justification by faith alone makes people rely upon a "belief in 'belief in God'", which is somewhat dangerous, since then I can believe that I am justified as long as I "believe in God" (whatever that means). Sanctification for Luther was somewhat non-existant, therefore, we need to rely upon others for the process of sanctification.
Hope you enjoy! Also, I am not finished, so it ends abruptly. Thanks.

Alabama, jim crow, why can't we know
Speakin’, preachin, walkin’ ridin’ comin’ all up on ya’
Wasn’t what we thinkin’ it was just too much for ya’
Holdin’ the torch, lightin’ the flame’ this ain’t Ellis isla’
Marchin’ on the capital, up town down town, does it matter to ya’

Blame game, no name, I know we ain’t the same
CIA who’s to say, I wouldn’t it past ‘em
Drinkin’ over there why they gotta’ stare?
What he was speakin’ they didn’t want to hear

In a non-violent protest he spoke of the injustice
Laid it out simply so we could comprehend it
Didn’t want to offend, but he couldn’t help it
Lyrical, beautiful, the man was a miracle
Lyrical, beautiful, the man was a miracle

Just as an outcast what he say come to pass?
Pushed aside marginalized, for redemption, pay the price
Civil Rights, civilized, beatin’ so unrecognized
Couldn’t walk couldn’t write snuffed out, prime of life

Proclamation to this nation, isn’t this God’s creation?
Holdin’ in the tension, livin’ the crucifixion
Incarnation for the mission; speakin’ of God’s whole vision
Segregation for the Christian, societial humiliation

Hearin' in that Southern drawl, we gonna' make you crawl
Stand tall, don't fall, in the South what gall
Usin' all that violence, law and order, Common Sense
Lovin’ on the people, white, black, it was the call

Hearin’ the oppressed, never did he dismiss
Articulate, communicate, why there so much hate?
Be for, not against, MLK crushed the fence
Holdin’ people in chains, walked with ‘em in their pain

This rhyme, no time, he paid the price for the climb
Up hill, slowly, white pride, apartheid
Speakin’ with confidence, trustin’ in intelligence
Callin’ people in the street, this cause is gonna’ defeat

Lookin’ at all the hate, who do they incarcerate?
Racialized, close your eyes, don't want to here their cries
Children of innocence staring through that prison fence
Make no sense, penniless, spiritualize my witness
Sit down, don' t rise, know your place, demonized
Liftin' up, head high, blood comin' out your side

Who cares, who’s there, projectin’ out, societies stare

The words are here, the marks we bare, why ain’t life fair?

Does God care, can’t you hear, what’s that, sirens blare

One more time, don’t resist, hatred collapsed in a brutal fist

Simply askin’ for the equity, promised in this democracy

Inalienable equality, who me? It Couldn't be that I'm free?

When will freedom ring? When will we "hear the people sing?"

Where, oh, where is our Martin Luther King?

Construction of Race in the U.S.

This academic quarter at Fuller Seminary has been very enjoyable. One of the classes which I am involved this quarter is a class entitled, Race and Identity in Paul. It is taught by an incredible professor, Dr. Love Sechrest. This class has facilitated my ability to research the issue of race within the context of the New Testament, where I have learned that the term "Race" is a social construct within the walls of this country, whereby the political society needed a term to determine who was white and who was not, for purposes of 'land rights', voting, etc. This gives new meaning to the Declaration of Independence, since it states that:
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. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed...
"Deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed?" Therefore, the governed have to agree to the power instituted within the structure of the Government, but if certain human beings are not considered equal, then the entire Declaration of Independence does not apply to them.
This started me thinking about Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson wrote another book which is not so well known, entitled Notes on the State of Virginia where he was seriously wrestling with the issues of slavery, but does not concede that Africans should in any way be considered equal to whites. It does not seem difficult to understand how Jefferson as a European white Enlightenment thinker would believe such a lie, yet many within modern Christianity look at Thomas Jefferson as the greatest Christian of all time, even though he was a Deist, not a Christian. He believed in God, but Jefferson's God does not involve himself in the affairs of humans, but allows humans to "run the earth". Jefferson has approximately 25o slaves by the early 1800's, and signed a bill to end the importing of slaves into the U.S., implicitly knowing that the value of slaves would rise, i.e. laws of supply and demand, then Jefferson sold his slaves to creditors to free himself from debt. Jefferson in his earlier career had wanted to end slavery, but his career as a politician would never have maintained such a bold move. Without actively moving towards justice, we as humans will become entrenched in the environment in which we live, which is what I believed happened to Jefferson.
Since this is now well known concerning the construction of race as a politio-social development of late modernity, how does this affect our theology concerning the engagement with God's creation? Should then integration, i.e. the church as another race of humans be something which we are pursuing, or should we merely let segregation continue?

Jesus to Luther or Luther to Jesus??

Reformation Day was on October 31 and if you are like me, you had no idea that Reformation Day fell on Halloween, nor did you know that there was a Reformation Day. I spent Halloween by handing out candy to children, not mulling over how Martin Luther "discovered" God's grace. How on earth did Jesus make it without Martin Luther? Anyways, I am definitely not against traditions and to think that someone does not possess traditions is simply silly. We are shaped by our traditions, whether formal, informal, or tacit, the traditions of our churches can not and must not be ignored. See that is the point of the Reformation; not ignoring traditions which place dogma upon humans shoulders which prohibit them from understanding, comprehending, or seeing God in his glory. Therefore, Reformation Day should be spent thinking of ways to "Reform" our culture, our world, and our relationships.

Martin Luther of course did not "discover" God's grace, he discovered that some traditions, i.e. religious society was prohibiting people from experiencing God's grace. The problem in my opinion has become that we somehow believe Martin Luther had a "pure" interpretation of Scripture and understood God more than others. This again is to ignore the earlier statements that no one is free from traditions and it shapes our thinking, our lives, and how we interpret the mission of God in the world. Luther was deeply flawed and ignorant (not knowledgeable) in his worldview concerning certain groups of people. I do not ignore these aspects of his life, but I seek to understand why Luther made the comments he made.

In one such discussion, someone stated that "Luther was a product of Europe at the time he lived." This is true, because we also can not separate our culture from how we think concerning culture, but if culture is racist and I follow the culture is that satisfactory with God? Jesus was so angry at the end of his life because he knew what God's truth was and the ones to whom he had extended grace, failed to see that he was also extending to them, an amazing opportunity for life. Jesus said, "I will die on a cross to display this life". In many ways this happened with Luther, whereby he extended God's grace to a group of people to whom he believed God wanted to give life, but when they rejected his offer, he took up his humanity and derided them. Luther was an amazing person, who failed as we do, but in his failure, we must learn to live the life of Jesus.