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Question from a white man...

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Time Zone: EST (New York, Toronto)
Messenger: Syras Sent: 11/27/2006 10:25:29 AM
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OK...Just a question or debate as you may put it. I have read and read about the Rasta religion. I would like to ask a couple of questions to people about this religion. Some of this comes from a personal dispute at work by someone claiming to be rastafarian (and I know they are just using this as an excuse which gives the religion a bad name). First question - Do Rastafarians recognize certain days of the week as their holy days/weekend? Secondly - How does someone that is white interpret this statement from your religion - "Rasta feel that blacks are still held down through poverty, illiteracy, inequality, and trickery by the white man."

I am not racist by any means whatsoever but you could see how that might sound horrible to someone that is, perhaps confirming their racist beliefs. I believe to make a united people, you have to be able to get past any past transgressions by any race.

As a sidenote: From what I know of history, the English bought slaves in Africa from post warring tribes? These were people that were to be killed after the tribal wars and instead of killing them, the leaders sold them to the English who sold them to the Americans. Part of this story was given to me by a black historian when I was in Florida. Oddly as it sounds, he was actually Johova's Witness.

At any rate, I seek knowledge as a guide to help me learn more about the world, not just a race. Thanks for any help or input!




Messenger: Bro Dominiq Yehyah Anbesa Sent: 11/27/2006 12:38:16 PM
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Blessed Love My Lord

First of all Honorable, to get the fullnes, the I should try to approach it from a whole different direction.

There are many different religions on this earth. all created by man. religion is a set of rules and regulations, created by man to help them to grow spiritualy. RastafarI is what we only call now in this Time, it is the Highest Himself Creation Order, it is Spirituality itself. That is why I n I do not deal with man made conceptions, but only bow to the Almighty himself and his Wise Order of Things.

You see Rasta is from Creation. I n I is the Fullness of Israelite Culture, identity and History. For I n I trod on from Creation through Melchezidek passing on to Abraham.
What you read in the Bible (those unpolluted things), you read about I n I. This is the answer already to your first question. Yes my Lord I n I do observe the Hola Sabbatical Creation Day to Iditate pon all and everything. The man needs a day of Rest to get his mind in Order. this is just natural. This is why you know Rasta is deeper than any man made religion. coz we do not follow no made up doctrine. I n I believe and knowledge is just natural and logical. Man has to rest from time to time, to relax, meditate, concentrate, get down, get smooth, get rid of agression, stress, hate etc. That is why I n I trod the Sabbatical order, just natural! Rest in Righteousness and you will have nuff positive energies to get over all obstacles.

"this statement from your religion - "Rasta feel that blacks are still held down through poverty, illiteracy, inequality, and trickery by the white man.""
Is this statement really only from "our religion", and does really only Rasta feel like this? If this is true, then the world is more wicked then I ever thought. No brethren, in fact everyman with an open eye, willl testify proof to this statement. It is no secret. And it is also a well known fact, that all non white people are victimized by the White Man world order. This is no secret nor any funny conspiracy theory. look into the world, look at your own gvmt wherever you may live. The white man is getting rich on the backs of all non white people. this is a simple and plain fact. and this is true since hundred of years. you do not need any anti-white ideology to understand that this is just an observed truth.

What you say about Africans selling Africans in the slave trade is historically believed to be true, yes. But my Lord, remember this: the man who feels to have to justify, is the one who really needs to. Does this historical fact change the cruelities of the european trans atlantic slave trade? Do they change the racist intention behind it? Or the whole white-supremacy ideology built up on it?
No brethren, it does not change nothing. It is only to help your conscience. Before you care about the small wood in the eye of your brother, care about the bigger one in your own. We all should do that.

One Black Love One Black Heart
to all Peoples of all Colours
Truth and Justice and Righteousness over Sympathy!
Selah


Messenger: Dreadnut Sent: 11/27/2006 3:08:06 PM
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I'm going to comment on the "Africans selling Africans as slaves" bit.

First this is not really true. First we have to define the word slave and what it means, and why the slavery imposed by whites is far worse then slavery impossed on other peoples.

Where the Africans really slaves to each other?

No. During times of discontent between tribes or lands within Africa wars were fought, just like any other place, and there had to be war rules and "If I win you get this, if you win you get this". So when two opposing peoples went to war, both tribes or peoples etc. accepted that whoever was the victor of the battle would inherit the losing sides men as "indentured servants" not slaves. After such battles, towns and crops.... would all be destroyed, so the losing team would have to help in the rebuilding of the winners town and homeland. Both parties of people were quite aware of this rule and it was not slavery. And even during this period of indentured servitude, the servants had the ability to move up in rank and even a few became kings or important figures.

So how did the white man become involved in this process?

When the winning "team" took the losing "team" as indentured servents, quite often there were more indentured servants than what was actually needed in the process of rebuilding and constucting. So those servants still needed to serve their time that they agreed upon before battle. The Africans then would ship, literally ship like a boat, these other indentured servants to other lands in Africa where the service could be used.

Well when the Portugese saw the Africans shipping off these servents to other parts of Africa, they thought that was slave trade. So the Spanish, Portugese, and even the white jews, helped to fund the ships that would be used to carry their 'slaves' back and forth. The portugese among others, were already sailing along the Guniea Coast, or the Gold Coast of Africa, for GOLD! They traded the African leaders guns and rum and this was started to cause division amongst African people.

Why did the Africans get shipped to America?

When Christobel Colon,(Christopher Columbus), came to America the first people he set into servatude was WHITES! Then the indigionus American, or native american. But before long, the white man killed off many of the Natives with gunshot and diseases. So Christobel Colon said, "well we'll just ship over some Africans to be slaves" which is what they did. This was the beggining of spiritual slavery in the west.

What made this european slavery model any worse than the Africans indentured servant idea?

Lets start by saying that the worst thing ever colonized was the image of God. The white man took away the Africans belief systems in replace for a dead white jezus. They destroyed his holy temples and all those things which were spiriually dear to him and became the salve master of his soul and spirituallity. Thats why they had to paint Jezus white, because you would never had enslaved no Africans with a Black Jesus.

This theft of spiritual concpet, family structure, and cultural practice and knowledge, was all new in the slavery world. When Asia went into Kemet or Egypt, they owned slaves, but they never took away the Kemetic peoples God or spirituallity or culture, those things always remained. And that is why these other enslavements didn't last so long, becuase they unity and spirituallity amongst the people remained strong, even in slavery, but the white man knew this so to complete his efforts he had to slave the black mans spirit.

Where does the word Slave come from?

The first slaves were in fact the "slav's" that were attacked by Rome. Thats were the word slave comes from, the Slav's.


There is so much that needs to be talked about in this subject and I have hardly done the subject justice by this post, but really its unrealistic that I spend the next two weeks typing this post.

If you really would like the answer read

Christopher Columbus and the Afrikan Holocaust by John Henrik(Henry) Clark. This will help seal the confusion around Africans and their involvment in slave trade.

Peace, Rastafari


Messenger: White dread Sent: 11/27/2006 4:52:18 PM
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Greetings.

Question 1:
Do Rastafarians recognize certain days of the week as their holy days/weekend?

I can't speak for all Rasta's, But I do recognize certain days of the week as our holy day


Question 2:
How does someone that is white interpret this statement from your religion - "Rasta feel that blacks are still held down through poverty, illiteracy, inequality, and trickery by the white man."

Again, I can't speak for all. But I feel that a person that is not white, is seen by some white man, as a weaker link in their babylon system. And I know that poverty, illiteracy, inequality, and trickery is used to hold the non-white down. But there a white and black dowpressers. But still they both have white mentality.

One




Messenger: Ras KebreAB Sent: 11/27/2006 11:43:16 PM
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I am beginning to think it is pointless to keep quoting the Emperor. I hear I Fathers Name mentioned in every sentence but how many are Living by HIS Words and Teachings?

White dread said "I can't speak for all Rasta's, But I do recognize certain days of the week as our holy day"

Now dont get i wrong, one of the reasons i love Rasta Livity is because Rasta is Free. Rasta exercises his God given right of Free Will to seek his own path. In that sense ofcourse differences in opinions is only natural. However i think that it is very sad if InI cant even agree on such a basic principle.
Our Father, God and King told us to Fulfill the Ten Commandments. Is that not clear enough? where is the room for debate in this?


Messenger: FarI-Sight Sent: 11/28/2006 3:41:17 AM
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The Sabbath is One of the Commandments that most have ceased to obey.
The Father say Keep it Holy for it is a sign between us and HIM.
He HIMSelf kept it holy, many Ethiopians can tell you that.




Messenger: Bro Dominiq Yehyah Anbesa Sent: 11/28/2006 8:45:41 AM
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Blessed

Yes My Lord, and the King didn't just speak about it, he actually lived up to this words. Everybody can go into that history and read it for onesself in HIM Autobio concerning the Sabbath Laws.

Yes Dreadnut, but still I do not think, that all Africa, a whole continent containing so many different onederful cultures, customs, tribes, can be put into one bucket so easily.
I would not say, that in the whole of Africa there hadn't happened any crualities before the europeans set foot there. No I don't think so. But yes.... ALL IN ALL.... we could summerize it like this. From the simple fact of african-eastern customs. Like in the Bible in Israel, or in Ethiopia, history also tells about Slaves. But still we know, this can't be compared to european slavery. The Bible and Ethiopia spoke of Servants and Servitude. And still the King fought it to the upmost.

Selah


Messenger: Dreadnut Sent: 11/28/2006 2:39:54 PM
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True bredren. Thats why I said in the post:
There is so much that needs to be talked about in this subject and I have hardly done the subject justice by this post, but really its unrealistic that I spend the next two weeks typing this post.

Hotep


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