Greetings,
Iman would apprecilove hvaing some serious bredren and sistren check Iman works. This essay is a little long for a post, but I tried to be comprehensive in outlining the main theological narrative that connects InI with Selassie, Yeheshua, Moses, Melchesidek, Adam and JAH; while touching upon all the pertinent scriptural and oral traditions.
Did I leave something out? Did I get anything wrong?
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In the beginning Jah created the heaven and the earth”, so begins the great story. Having created the heaven and the earth, day and night, the waters and the dry land, Jah created man in His own image and likeness. Adam and Eve were the first man and woman. Jah made them to live in a wondrous place, Jah’s garden called Eden. Adam and Eve lived there in perfect accord with creation until, tempted by Satan, a fallen angel in the form of a serpent, they disobeyed Jah and ate of the fruit of “the tree of knowledge of good and evil” which He had forbidden them to do (Gen. 2:9).
As a result of this ‘original sin’, mankind was cast out of paradise to toil for survival; “And Jah said, Behold, man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever: Therefore Jah sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.”(Gen. 3:22-3).
And it came to pass that man began to multiply on the face of the earth. Methuselah, son of Enoch, patriarch of the eighth generation of Adam, brought forth his son Nir to the people. “Here is Nir” he said “He will be in front of your face from the present day as a guide of princes”, and then Methuselah died. The people accepted Nir as their priest before Jah, and he made sacrifice for Methuselah and glorified Jah. And the people of the earth prospered in the days of Nir for 200 years.
Then the people began to forget and turn away from Jah. Nir had grown old and his wife, Sopanim, was long past menopause and her womb had been ever barren. Yet Sopanim conceived in her womb in the time of her old age, though Nir had not slept with her nor any man touched her.
When Sopanim realized her pregnancy she became ashamed and hid it from her husband until one day very near the end of her pregnancy Nir summoned her. Nir saw her and he became ashamed and spoke harshly to her, saying “what hast thou done, wife, and hast shamed me before the face of these people” and “now depart from me” (The Book of the Secrets of Enoch 3:6). And it came to pass that when Nir did not believe his wife’s account and told her again to “depart from me” Sopanim fell to the floor at his feet and died.
Nir was confused and afraid, so he went to his brother Noah to confide in him all that had happened. The two decided to bury Sopanim secretly and cover up the scandal of shame. They wrapped the corpse with black garments and prepared it for burial and went out to dig the grave in secret.
Shut up alone in the house, the child came out of the dead Sopanim. The child was as physically developed as a three year old and he was sitting on the bed next to his mother’s corpse when Nir and Noah returned to collect the body for burial. They were very afraid. As they looked upon the child, they saw that the badge of priesthood was upon his chest and said “Behold, Jah is renewing the priesthood”. Noah and Nir then took the child and dressed him in garments of the priesthood and called his name Melchizedek.
In those days Jah saw that the wickedness of man had grown great and it vexed Him. Lawlessness, violence and corruption filled the earth. Jah said, “I shall destroy man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth”.
Jah granted an apparition unto Nir and told him of the great destruction He had planned for the earth. And Jah assured Nir that He would send His archangel Michael to take the child Melchizedek and put him in the paradise of Eden. Jah did not allow Melchizedek to perish but rather established him as the priest to all holy priests, head of the priests of the future. Jah had established a priesthood in Melchizedek superior to the subsequent Levitical priesthood.
Noah also found grace in the eyes of Jah. Jah spoke unto Noah and told him of the great flood that was to come and Jah instructed Noah in the construction of an ark, a giant boat, aboard which would be preserved Noah and his family and two of every living thing of all flesh; male and female. Then all the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened and every living substance was destroyed which was upon the ground.
After the water receded, Noah and his three sons Shem, Ham and Japhet and their wives re-peopled the earth. And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. It came to pass in the time of Nimrod, grandson of Ham, that the people conspired to build a brick tower “whose top may reach unto heaven”. Jah realized that having one language the people, acting as one, would have the power to do anything they could imagine and Jah saw that man was not yet ready to use this power wisely. So Jah confounded their language that they may not understand one another’s speech and He “scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of the earth; and they left off to build the city”.
Many generations later, we have Abram, who as a young man worked for his father selling icons and statues of household gods. One day, alone on the road carrying a bag full of his father’s wares, he was struck by the wonder and beauty of the setting sun and stopped to rest. He took the idols out of the bag and lined them up on the road and demanded of each that it prove itself. As each god failed to answer him Abram kicked it over in the dust. And when none were left standing, Abram looked up at the wonder of the sunset and the grandeur of All and cried out for Jah. Jah heard Abram and answered him, “Now Jah had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee”. (Gen. 12: 1)
Living where Jah had directed him, in the plain of Mamre, some years later, Abram received word that his brother Nahor was taken captive in war. He armed his household and trained servants and pursued his brother’s captors. Abram vanquished Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, and the kings that were with him. He returned triumphant to Jerusalem with his all of his brother’s household and the spoils he had won.
Upon his return to the city Abram was blessed by Melchizedek, King of Jerusalem and priest of Jah. And in return Abram awarded Melchizedek one tenth of all he had as tithe. It was this blessing from Melchizedek which prepared Abram to become Abraham, the father of a multitude of nations. Then Jah made His Covenant with Abraham and his seed after him; that He will be their God and they His people.
Abraham’s son Isaac bore twin sons called Esau and Jacob. Jah had informed Isaac’s wife that she would bear the twins and that they shall be two nations and that the elder shall serve the younger. The firstborn, Esau, came out red and hairy with his brother firmly grasping his heel. Esau grew to be a hunter, a man of the field while Jacob was a plain man. One day Esau came in from the field feeling faint and wanting food, thinking quickly, Jacob offered to buy Esau’s birthright for some bread and lentils – Esau foolishly accepted the terms.
When Isaac was upon his deathbed he asked Esau to go out and hunt a deer and to prepare his favorite venison dish saying that after eating it he would give Esau his blessings. Isaac’s wife Rebekah overheard their conversation and while Esau was out hunting she quickly prepared the dish with meat from a goat. She disguised her favored son Jacob so that he would appear as his brother to the aged and dying Isaac and sent him to deceive his father and receive the blessings Isaac had intended for Esau. Jah allowed Rebekah’s scheme to succeed so that Jacob did receive the blessings.
Jacob was later visited by Jah in a dream and Jah renewed the covenant He had made with Abraham with Jacob and his seed. Jacob went on to sire twelve sons; Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad and Asher. Jah told Jacob, “thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name” and his twelve sons became the patriarchs of the “Twelve Tribes of Israel”.
Of all his sons, Israel loved Joseph the youngest best of all and this made his brothers jealous. Making matters worse were the visions Joseph had which seemed to imply that his eleven brothers would bow down before him; visions which Joseph shared aloud with Israel in earshot of his brothers. Consequently, acting more or less of one accord, his eleven brothers conspired to leave Joseph for dead in a hole in the ground. They spattered his clothes with animal blood and brought them to Israel as ‘proof’ of Joseph’s demise at the claws of a wild animal. Israel was deceived and moved by a great grief.
Joseph was rescued from the pit by merchants who sold him to slave traders who in turn sold him into bondage in Africa. Joseph had the gift of interpretation of dreams and, because Jah was with him, whatsoever Joseph became involved in prospered. This remarkable slave soon came to the attention of Pharaoh, who made Joseph ruler of all the land of Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh himself.
Then a great famine swept across all the lands, for which Egypt alone was prepared because of Joseph’s wisdom. Canaan was sorely afflicted and Israel sent his sons to go and ask for famine relief from Pharaoh. When they arrived in Egypt they brought their petition before Joseph as Pharaoh’s representative and they did not recognize their own brother whom they had betrayed. Joseph forgave his brothers, as Esau had forgiven Jacob, and Israel moved to Africa where they survived the famine and prospered.
As generations passed and Pharaohs came and went, Israel thrived and increased in Egypt. This did not escape the notice of the native Egyptians who responded by putting Israel into bondage.
It was after many generations in slavery that Jah caused a deliverer to be born to Israel. Moses was born during a time when the Egyptians were attempting to further weaken Israel by killing all of their sons at birth. Moses was spared because his mother hid him for three months and then set him afloat in the Nile wherefrom he was plucked by the daughter of Pharaoh. She made Moses her own son and he was raised in the house of Pharaoh; educated by the best teachers and initiated by the high priests.
When Moses was grown he came to know of his true heritage and he looked upon the bondage of his brethren. One day he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew and Moses killed the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand. But soon the story of Moses’ deed started spreading and he left Egypt.
Moses took an Ethiopian wife and settled down keeping his father-in-law’s flocks. Until Jah responded to the cries of His people and He answered. Jah spoke to Moses from out of a bush consumed by fire yet not burned. And Jah charged Moses with the responsibility of presenting His ultimatum to Pharaoh, “Set my people free”. Moses protested that he was unequal to the task and certainly not a gifted speaker. Jah insisted that Moses act and granted that his brother Aaron may accompany him and even speak for him.
Jah worked many wonders and miracles through His servant Moses. After numerous confrontations, threats and plagues, Pharaoh acquiesced to let Israel go free. But soon Pharaoh had second thoughts and set out to cut down Israel even after giving them leave. Jah granted Moses the power to drown the armies of Egypt in the Red Sea. Thus was Israel liberated from bondage and free to go now to Promised Land, the land ‘flowing with milk and honey’ where they would establish themselves as a nation.
It was during their exodus through the desert that Moses received the Law. Moses left the encampment to go alone upon Mount Sinai and to commune with Jah. Jah said, “Come up to me into the mount, and there I will give thee tablets of stone, and a law and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them” (Exodus 24:12). Moses received much instruction from Jah, including the ‘ten commandments’, many laws of conduct, both secular and religious, and directions for the construction of the ‘Ark of the Covenant’. Also called Zion, this was to be the earthly habitation of Jah, to be housed in a tabernacle and to be ministered to by a high priest.
The people of Israel grew impatient waiting for Moses to return. They forgot Jah and all He had done for them and they doubted Him. “When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, ‘Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him” (Ex 32:1). Hence they caused Aaron to construct false gods of his own design and he made offering upon their altars. Jah grew angry with Israel and threatened to wipe them from off the face of the earth and to establish His nation anew through Moses, but Moses interceded. He prevailed upon Jah to remember Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to forgive the weakness of their children. Moses then returned to the peoples hot with anger and rebuked them soundly, destroying their golden calf god and teaching the laws of Jah.
Obeying the word of Jah, Moses caused an ark (an elaborate chest) to be built to very exact specifications. Jah told Moses, “thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee”. Also constructed according to the exact instructions given by Jah was the tent, or tabernacle, in which the ark would reside and all of the furnishings thereof, as well as the complete set of garments and vestments to be worn by Aaron and his sons who shall serve as priests unto the Ark.
When all of the preparations were correct and complete, Moses erected the tabernacle tent with all of its furnishings and accoutrements. Then he placed two stone tablets bearing the Ten Commandments which he had received from Jah in the Ark of the Covenant and moved its lid into place. This lid was itself a wonder to behold; a slab of gold measuring approximately four feet by one and one half feet, with a winged cherub at either end facing center, all cast as one piece. The space between the winged angels, or cherubim, was called the “mercy seat” or “seat of mercy”; it was from here that Jah spoke unto the priests of Israel. “And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.” (Ex 25: 22). Moses then covered the Ark with a veil and installed it in the Holy of Holies, the inner sanctum of the tabernacle.
When all of the work was done according to the will of Jah, a cloud covered over the tent and the glory of Jah filled the tabernacle. “When the cloud lifted from the tabernacle, the Israelites would set out on their various journeys but if the cloud did not lift, they would not set out until such time as it did lift. For over the tabernacle a cloud of Jah rested by day, and a fire would appear in it by night, in the view of all the house of Israel throughout their journeys.” (Ex 40:36-8).
In time, as promised, the Israelites were led to the land of Canaan, but not before the death of Moses. Because of the golden calf incident, Jah made Israel to wander for forty years in the desert so that none of those who belonged to that generation would live to see the Promised Land. Jah blessed Israel and soon they became a great nation in that land. And again the people turned aside and forgot their Covenant with Jah, they corrupted themselves with foreign gods and evil dwelt in their hearts. Jah rebuked them by delivering them into the hands the Philistines for forty years.
During the Philistine occupation Samson was born and the Spirit of
Jah was with him from the beginning. “And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bore not. And the angel of Jah appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive and bear a son. Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing: For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a nazarite unto Jah from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” (Jud 13:2-5).
Samson was a mighty warrior for Israel, single-handedly killing a thousand Philistines once with the jaw bone of an ass. Jah had hidden Samson’s strength in his dreadlocks; a secret which he foolishly divulged to his unworthy Philistine wife Delilah. She betrayed him and caused the Philistines to “cut off the seven locks of his head; thus she weakened him and made him helpless” (Jud 16:19). Samson was captured, but Jah still granted Samson his great strength one last time, allowing him to topple the two center columns of the temple of Dagon where the Philistines had tethered him. “Samson cried, ‘Let me die with the Philistines!’, and he pulled with all his might. The temple came crashing down on the lords and all the people in it. Those who were slain by him as he died outnumbered those who had been slain by him when he lived.” (Jud 16:30).
Later, in the time of the prophet Samuel, the Israelites began to petition Jah through Samuel that He should establish a monarch for Israel. Now Samuel also was a nazarite since the time before his conception when his mother Hannah prayed, “O Jah of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but will give unto thy handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto Jah all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.” (I Sam 1:11). “The word of Jah was rare in those days; visions were not widespread”, yet Jah spoke to Samuel from the ‘mercy seat’ on the Ark of the Covenant. The people of Israel prevailed upon the prophet to petition Jah for a king to rule over them. And Jah warned the people through His prophet that a king would take their sons for war and their daughters for cooks and tax their fields and orchards and livestock, “And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye have chosen you; and Jah will not hear you in that day”. Still the people insisted they wanted a king to rule over them such as the other nations had, and Jah relented, saying to Samuel, “Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king”.
Samuel took a flask of oil and poured some on the head of Saul, kissed him and said, “Jah herewith anoints you ruler over His own people”. King Saul led Israel in their fight for independence from Philistine rule, and it came to be then that the Philistines had amongst them a giant warrior named Goliath before whom all of Israel was afraid; all but one meek shepherd boy who was steadfast in Jah and said, “Who is that uncircumcised Philistine that he dares defy the ranks of the Living God, Jah?” (I Sam 17:26).
With only a sling and a stone, the shepherd boy David challenged Goliath, “Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of Jah, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.” (I Sam 17:45). David slew Goliath and as a result the Philistines were routed.
David became famous and beloved of the people of Israel and this vexed Saul sorely. When Saul died David was made King of Israel. He was a good king and led his people in many victories. When David took Jerusalem he brought the Ark of the Covenant into his new capitol and consolidated his authority. “Thus David and all the house of Israel brought up the Ark of Jah with shouts and with blasts of the horn.” (II Sam 6:15).
Before David died Jah spoke to him through the prophet Nathan saying, “When your days are done and you lie with your fathers, I will raise up your seed after you, one of your own issue, and I will establish his kingship. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish his royal throne forever.” (II Sam 7:12). Thus Jah founded the Throne of David upon the earth for all time.
In the fortieth year of his reign David had his youngest son Solomon anointed King of Israel and then died. Solomon was a great king; he was blessed by Jah with unsurpassed wisdom. Solomon built a magnificent temple to enshrine the Ark. He was beloved of all his people and his reputation reached across the whole land.
In Ethiopia, the Queen of Sheba, Makeda, heard of Solomon’s wisdom. Like many other rulers, Makeda wanted to meet Solomon, witness his kingdom and learn from him. She made the journey to Jerusalem and did meet King Solomon.
Sheba was greatly impressed by what she saw and she devoted herself and her kingdom Ethiopia unto Jah, the God of Israel. Solomon was smitten by Makeda’s radiant and majestic beauty and he cunningly seduced her. Makeda, the Queen of Sheba, returned to Ethiopia with Jah in her heart and the son of the King of Israel in her belly.
Makeda carried the child to term and bore Solomon a son in Ethiopia, he was called Bayna-Lehkem which means “son of the wise man”. When he was grown Bayna-Lehkem journeyed to Jerusalem to meet his father and receive his blessing. Solomon not only gave his blessing, but anointed Bayna-Lehkem King of Ethiopia with the name King David II; he was also called Menyelek I in Ethiopia. “Then his father Solomon the King also said unto Zadok the priest: Make him to know and tell him concerning the judgment and decree of Jah which he shall observe in Ethiopia.” (Kebra Negast).
When Menyelek departed Israel he took with him a new royal court composed of the children of Israel’s priests, officers and councilors. “And then they prepared their children to send them into the country of Ethiopia, so that they might reign there and dwell there forever, they and their seed from generation to generation.” (Kebra Negast). Menyelek and the sons of the nobles departing for Ethiopia did also take with them the Ark of the Covenant. “And now Jah hath chosen thee to be the servant of the holy and heavenly Zion, the Tabernacle of the Law of Jah; and it shall be a guide to thee forever, to thee and to thy seed after thee. For thou wilt not be able to take it back even if thou wishest, and thy father cannot seize it, for it goeth of its own free will.” (K.N.).
After the tragedy of having lost the Ark, Solomon fell from grace. Overly distracted by his sexual appetite, his wisdom dissipated. His sons who ruled after him proved to be inept and soon the children of Israel were scattered over the earth and their ‘promised land’ was occupied by various invaders over the centuries.
In the first century of the Common Era, Rome occupied Palestine. The Jews there had a precarious relationship with the Romans, who were somewhat more tolerant of the Jews than other regimes had been. Within the Hebrew community, two groups were vying for dominance over the religious life of Jews; the Pharisees and the Sadducees. And it was into this setting that Yeheshua was born in Nazareth, his mother was called Mary and she was blessed by Jah and her husband Joseph was of the lineage of David. Yeheshua was also a nazarite, as was his cousin, John the Baptist, who prepared his way among the people.
Yeheshua, called Jesus in Latin, had the Spirit of Jah with him. He was a great teacher and healer; he worked miracles to emancipate mankind from the mental slavery of sin. Despite what was said of him, all available documentary evidence indicates that Jesus considered his own mission to be the spreading of the ‘good news’ of salvation. He transformed himself that we may be transformed; he showed the way.
It is difficult to discuss Jesus in strictly rational terms without crossing the line between reason and mystery. And to present any one interpretation of Jesus as objectively authoritative is presumptuous, divisive and sometimes dangerous.
The Christian myth contains elements which are of the highest order of mystical truth; capable of leading the individual to a richer life experience. Unfortunately however, it also has woven into it elements which are repressive, guilt based and life-denying and have yielded hatred and perversion in Christendom. (The Rastafari shall never forget that the bombs with which Mussolini massacred defenseless Ethiopians were blessed by the Roman Catholic pope.)
During the first centuries after the death of Jesus, many different sects of Christianity sprang up, each with a different interpretation of Jesus. There were most notably the Ebionites, the Marcionites, various Gnostic congregations and the Pauline sect which attached itself to Rome. It was this Pauline sect which used its affiliation with Rome to become the ‘orthodox’ religion from which all of our modern denominations of Christianity derive. The Roman Catholic Church is a relic of the Roman Empire and has been administrated under the same authoritarian model. Once a certain interpretation of Jesus was adopted by the Roman cult, all other interpretations were pronounced heretical, viciously suppressed and ultimately eradicated. Consequently, most of what modern Christians consider to be the unshakable tenets of their faith were interjected by men long after Jesus’ death. Dogma such as the virginity of Mary, the authority of the priesthood, the denial of reincarnation, Jesus’ role as the one and only mediator between man and Jah and even the very divinity of Jesus are among the many tenets that were injected into the Christian faith by those who dominated it many generations after the crucifixion.
By using brutal methods which were in direct and obvious contradiction with the teachings of Jesus, Christianity spread itself across the western hemisphere with atrocious violence. Over the subsequent centuries many offshoots from the original Roman cult have taken root; remnants of pre-Roman Christianity, however, are sparse.
In Ethiopia, “Between the 10th Century B.C. and the 4th Century A.D. there was the merging of SEMITIC immigrants with the Cushite (Black African) inhabitants which produced a new culture and civilization known as the AKSUMITE Empire, and a new language called GE’EZ evolved. The Aksumite Kingdom reached its zenith in the 4th Century during the reign of King EZANA.”
“KING EZANA was the 4th Century King of Aksum during whose reign Christianity was introduced to Ethiopia. He conquered the Nile Valley Realm of Kush (Meroe) and extended the frontiers of his Kingdom. He ascended the Throne between 320-325 A.D. and introduced the title of ‘KING OF KINGS’.”
“King Ezana received a Greek and Christian education from a Syrian Christian named FRUMENTIUS, who was employed by his father, King ELLA AMEDA, and who also became co-regent. Around 333 A.D., Frumentius was allowed to go to Alexandria in Egypt to obtain a Bishop for Ethiopia. The Patriarch of Egypt, named Athanasius, consecrated Frumentius himself as the first Bishop of Ethiopia, under the name of ABBASALAMAI (Father of Peace). First to be converted, King Ezana became Protector of the new religion.” (The Rastafari Ible, Jahson Atiba Alemu. 1994. p.3-4). The Solomonic line of kings remained on the throne of David in Ethiopia, with few interruptions, until the reign of Haile Selassie I, the 225th descendant from King Solomon.
It was on the 23rd of July, 1892, in the region of Ethiopia called Harar, amidst a terrible drought that Tafari Makonnen was born and the heavens opened up and poured forth life giving water and the earth was satisfied. “Thou, O Jah, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary.”(Ps. 68:9). The Spirit of Jah was with Tafari from birth. He was ordained a deacon at age eight, at eighteen he became governor of Harar and at twenty-four Ras Tafari was appointed regent and heir to the throne. In 1930 he was coronated Emperor Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Root of David, Seed of Solomon, Elect of God, Light of the World. He is also called Power of the Holy Trinity, Earth’s Rightful Ruler, Wonderful Counselor, King Alpha and Queen Omega, Ancient of Days, Abbabajanoi and The Almighty I, JAH RASTAFARI.
The accomplishments of this noble and exalted man are far too numerous to mention them all; here is a brief list of some of them: he gave Ethiopia its first written constitution, its first printing press, its first airplane and airline, its first domestic modern hospital and its first university, he abolished slavery, he co-founded the Organization of African Unity, he traveled the world and received many degrees from prestigious institutions of learning around the globe, and he held Ethiopia together through Mussolini’s vicious invasion and brief occupation of Ethiopian territory. He was a venerable man, a great leader and a teacher by example; a selfless and enlightened man of Jah.
The Rastafarian faith is still in its initial, formative phase with Selassie having lived less than 40 years ago. Like Christianity, Rastafari has more power and importance as mystical truth than as accurate historical fact, though both faiths do have historical elements. Perhaps this is because, like Jesus, Selassie represents a Mystery of the highest order with significance too great to be comprehended by the human mind at this time.
For the Rastafari, Selassie is a manifestation of the Most High Jah; the manifestation for InI in this time. He is InI spiritual focal point – JAH RASTAFARI. And InI are His chosen people, the modern day Israelites who inherit and stay true to the spirit of the Covenant that Jah made with Abraham, Moses, David and Solomon.
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