I know this is an ongoing debate, and there is no true answer because not one person can speak for all rastas, and one persons opinion does not dictate the belief an entire religion or lifestyle (call it what you like), but what are the rasta's an hip forums views and opinions on homosexuality?
Ahoy Rev66 … I’ve replied to your post in the other thread, but thought I would try to clear things up here. Rasta do not acknowledge homosexuality as being in context to Creation. Rasta is not a movement or a religion, etc … Rasta is a Biblically based culture that acknowledge His Majesty as the King Of Kings. His Majesty studied and accepted the Biblical Teachings and Scriptures, which is why you will not find a Rasta that does not. If someone does not accept what His Majesty accepts, then that person is no Rasta. This is the basis of the understanding to various issues, such as homosexuality. Not accepting Rasta as being in context to Creation is Biblical, not political … it has nothing to do with phobias. If someone cannot accept what is written in the Biblical Scriptures and thus what is accepted by His Majesty, then that person is going to find difficulty being Rasta. One Love!
DonBK Thank you for clearling things up, much appreciated. Though I do not necessarily agree with what you have said in it's entirety, i do understand where you are coming from and I am able to stand in your shoes to see your view ( and the Rasta Movements as one) on the matter. As much as i feel drawn towards to culture of Ras Tafari (and not because its views on ganaja, as i do not smoke marijuana) if what you say is true then I would not be able to fully become one as I enjoy the freedom to have my own opinion and terms of acceptance on such matters, as well as to take guidance and inspiration from the words and thoughts of others. I agree with you saying One Love, however forgive me for finding it ironic when used at the end of a conersation in which you state your acceptance or lack there for of in the subject of homosexuals. if you care to explain that, if not it's all good. One Love.
Ahoy Rev666 ... Yes, Rasta can appear appealing to many different peeps at first, but there are few that accept it in its entirety. For Rasta, one is either committed or not, there is no in between. Many peeps have grown locks, smoked gamja, chanted His Majesty’s Name even, but not wanted to loose their connection to Babylon ways … many peeps even taken on the relative Tribe Name, but been reluctant to stay devoted to the Nazarene Vow. Although I have known, studied and moved with Rasta, I don’t refer to myself as Rasta, that would be a diss towards Rasta … I have my own path, as everyone else does, my priority above all is the continuation of The Works that His Majesty started … but that is another story. OK, the ‘One Love’ phrase can get a bit heavy. Most peeps that use or know of the phrase, think of it as meaning a universal love and respect for all peeps. Often peeps listen to Robert Nester Marley and think of His words ‘One Love’ as being synonymous with a kind of hippie euphoria. But, that’s not really what Rasta refers to when the phrase ‘One Love’ is used. Instead it refers to the Biblical Scriptures of Genesis relating to all the peeps that survived the Floods and who / whose descendents formed and developed a single culture with one language. It is from this ‘One’ Culture that all peeps today are descendents of … put bluntly, according to Biblical Scriptures the survivors of the Floods are the ancestors of all peeps on the Earth It is said that it was the humble and sacred characteristics of each of these survivors that saved them … the Floods were an act of Jah to rid the world of wickedness. Over the years this ‘One’ Culture embarked on several city construction projects. But it was under the ruler Nimrod and during the construction of the tower of the city of Babylon that what was a unified harmony among this ‘One’ culture, became a scattered disharmony. Nimrod was a King that was not satisfied with the humble path and sought to ‘overstand’ Jah … his attempt to do this was to construct the tower in Babylon to reach the Heavens. Many peeps within the ‘One’ Culture felt inspired by Nimrod and too started to turn their backs on the humble ways that originally spared their forefathers / mothers. When this happened, all the various peeps that made up the ‘One’ Culture became aware of their differences or the other way of looking at it is that they lost the ability to overcome their differences. The result was that they no longer could speak the single language that defined their unity and feuding began … and this is when all these peeps split up and spread apart. So, blab blab, I know, and honestly, this is the very, very, very shortened version … ‘One Love’ refers to how every person is a descendent of the ‘One Culture’, who while they lived a humble lifestyle, the righteous way, felt a feeling of ‘One Love’. Furthermore, it is the ways of Babylon that fragmented and continues to fragment unity among all peeps in the world and it is only by defeating Babylon and its ways that all peeps will once again be united, as a single culture with a single language. Therefore, when Rasta use the phrase ‘One Love’, it is not a way of accepting all peeps for what they have become through the ways of Babylon. Instead it refers to a struggle, a war that will only end when Babylon, and its agents and protectors are defeated … Essentially, ‘One Love’ refers to how ‘I and I’ should be living according to Biblical Scriptures … Praise H.I.M. ... One Love!
Alright well that cleared things up just nicely, you know your stuff it seems. One more question, in the other thread you talked about how people of today being more accepting of homosexuals, but that was just the influence of babylon. Would you consider the acceptance of blacks and other races besides white to be also Babylon influencing people as well? because I'm sure we both know the history of predjiduce and in-equality when it comes to the mis-treatment of other races at the hands of the white, and this all seems pretty familar except this time, it's at the hands of the straight.
Ahoy Rev66 … Irie, but I really cannot emphasise enough how the little that I have mentioned is just scratching the surface of the tip of the iceberg. Rasta is an experience, socially as Culture, spiritually as Mystic … and personal as Student. For Rasta, knowledge is food, on the one hand one cannot live and grow without it, and on the other hand, unhealthy food causes sickness. Sharing knowledge on a social level creates a healthy social structure, one based on understanding. If one is not learning, one is not living. This is why if one is to interact on an intellectual level with Rasta, one must at a minimum, comprehend the basics of the Biblical Teachings. And that is why I say that what I have mentioned is just the ‘surface of the tip of the iceberg’. Once these basics are comprehended, one will find that the specifics that follow are heavily debated over … not just by Rasta, but by all Biblical Scholars … but I cannot stress how futile it is to attempt to access these specifics before studying the basics. Before I really started to study the Biblical Scriptures, I had many questions and was always eager to engage in arguments concerning the Biblical Teachings. If anything, I was originally quite opposed to Biblical Scriptures … in my ignorance … but from experience I can guarantee anyone that the majority of their questions and arguments will be put to rest by studying the Bible … bit by bit, starting with the basics. PS. If you have a growing interest in Rasta or Biblical Scriptures or relating issues, I would suggest and encourage checking out the ‘Africa Speaks’ and ‘Rasta Ites’ sites and forums, they are sanctuaries of knowledge and host many debates / discussions: Africa Speaks http://www.africaspeaks.com/ http://www.africaspeaks.com/reasoning/ Rasta Ites http://rastaites.com/home.html Just to expand a bit more, in the previous post I gave a very quick rundown of the survivors of the Floods, and how they survived because they approached life in Context to Creation. Their Blessing was that they were able to form a single culture with a single language … put simply, they were able to easily overcome their differences because of what they had in common … which was the very reason for their survival, they were not of the wicked. In beginning of Genesis, Creation in the image of Jah is discussed and it reads in 1:27 (King James Version … for convenience): "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them" Here it indicates that Jah is both man and woman … the foundation of the Holy Trinity, which is ‘Father, Mother and Child’. This is the basis of Creation. Indeed, from this point numerous discussions and debates can branch off, but I am satisfied that Jah, as in Creator and Giver of Life, The Most High … is a Union between Man and Woman, and humans are the direct offspring of that very Union. The city of Babylon represents the turning of the descendents of the survivors of the Floods, from righteous to wicked … Babylon represents all things that are not in Context to Creation, which within the basic logic derived from the Biblical Scriptures, includes homosexuality. And just to reiterate, it is all things of Babylon that divide the world we live in. LOL … maybe it’s the other way around, as in: ‘Acceptance of whites by blacks and other races to be Babylon influencing people’ That was just a joke … Babylon and what it represents is a very good starting point for studying the basics of what Rasta is not, although this doesn’t mean that one should only read the relative scriptures in Genesis. As mentioned in the previous post, Babylon was built by the ‘One’ Culture that was formed by the survivors of the Floods, and the common foundation for their interaction was living in context to Creation. The various cultural and ethnic differences were surpassed by their connection to The Most High. In other words, racial, cultural and ethnic differences are an obstacle only when people disconnect themselves from The Most High. His Majesty reasoned in His address to the United Nations in October 1963: “On the question of racial discrimination, the Addis Ababa Conference taught, to those who will learn, this further lesson: That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned: That until there are no longer first-class and second class citizens of any nation; That until the colour of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained; And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed; Until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; Until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; Until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.” So would I consider the acceptance of blacks and other races besides white to be also Babylon influencing people as well? This is actually a heavy question Rev66 … one that can and is being heavily debated. The world as we know it has come a great way since the fragmentation of the ‘One’ Culture mentioned in Genesis … there have been wars, controlling systems, exploitation, colonisation, many wicked things that have stemmed from Babylon. However, when we look at the world that we live in today and compare it to the world yesterday, there is a definite growing trend towards racial, cultural and ethnic tolerance. But is this growing trend towards tolerance a false gesture, a Babylonian gesture … is it an illusion to satisfy those determined to see the re-birth of a One Culture … is it perhaps a mechanism to fool people into believing that they can live as one, yet maintain a Babylon lifestyle? If we return to His Majesty’s reasoning and ask the question, ‘Does the African continent know peace?’ Clearly the answer is no … and there are many variables ranging from post-colonial structures to corrupt leaders, scarce resources to ongoing global agribusiness rape, civil war to genocide … etc, etc. For Rasta, His Majesty’s reasoning is the light, and in this case Africa is an indicator of racial, cultural and ethnic acceptance … and from this indicator once can see that the world we live in has not reached a point of acceptance at all. To be more precise, one can even argue that the world may well be moving further away from racial, cultural and ethnic acceptance, as one can see that Africa is moving further from peace Furthermore, all people can only come together as ‘One’ Culture when the ways of Babylon are irradiated from existence. As long as Babylon exists, all people will remain fragmented. If we, as a global people, are ever to receive the Blessings from the Most High that come with being in Context to Creation, Babylon, its agents and promoters must be defeated. OK ... that’s me for now Jah Guide … One Love!
It amazes me how much you know, I am starting to feel bad as I assumed my questiones were simple enough ones ( save one), I did not intened for you to write as much as you did, though I appreciate you doing so as you have cleared things up nicely, even if it is only the tip of the ice berg that I can see. I figured the questions regarding racial tolerance and acceptance was a pretty big issue, one that clearly could be debated for with strong arguments either way, but let's leave it at that for now, as i would like to do more research on the topic. I certainly recongnize that speech, though i know it from the a song which your probably familiar with by the name of " War/No More Trouble". Also thanks alot for the links, I will certainly look into those, as it is a topic for which my interest is rapidly growing. I know you said you were done, but i can't help myself from asking this final question. You don't have to asnwer right away, or ever really, as you have been more than helpful and kind enough as is, but here goes anyway: You seem to speak (or write) in a manner and way that had i not read your previous post would lead me to beleive you were Rasta, though you said you were not, and that it would be a diss towards Rasta. Is this because you are white, and feel that claiming yourself to be a rasta would insult them as they feel as though white people becoming rasta is just another way a Babylon infiltatring and poisoning their culture. Or is that not the reason, because Haile Selassie said : " The colour of a man's skin is of no more significance than the colour of his eye's", and mabey it has something to do with not being able to completely loose connection to the Babylon way. Anyways, that's all I've got, thanks again for taking the time to clearly explain yourself and being patient as I'm sure there is alot of misunderstanding with regards to Rasta. One.. Love
Irie Rev66 … sharing knowledge is a must, harbouring knowledge creates inequality. Nice … I agree. Yes … Robert Nester Marley used many of His Majesty’s reasoning’s, as well as Biblical Scriptures and Teachings when He created his music. While there are those that criticise Marley’s approach, no one can deny His devotion to His Majesty and Rasta. Here is the entire address His Majesty made to the UN, it, along with some other reasonings of His Majesty can be found on the ‘Africa Speaks’ site: “Haile Selassie's Address To The United Nations Oct, 1963 Mr. President, Distinguished Delegates: Twenty-seven years ago, as Emperor of Ethiopia, I mounted the rostrum in Geneva, Switzerland, to address the League of Nations and to appeal for relief from the destruction which had been unleashed against my defenseless nation, by the Fascist invader. I spoke then both to and for the conscience of the world. My words went unheeded, but history testifies to the accuracy of the warning that I gave in 1936. Today, I stand before the world organization which has succeeded to the mantle discarded by its discredited predecessor. In this body is enshrined the principle of collective security which I unsuccessfully invoked at Geneva. Here, in this Assembly, reposes the best - perhaps the last - hope for the peaceful survival of mankind. In 1936, I declared that it was not the Covenant of the League that was at stake, but international morality. Undertakings, I said then, are of little worth if the will to keep them is lacking. The Charter of the United Nations expresses the noblest aspirations of man: abjuration of force in the settlement of disputes between states; the assurance of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion; the safeguarding of international peace and security. But these, too, as were the phrases of the Covenant, are only words; their value depends wholly on our will to observe and honor them and give them content and meaning. The preservation of peace and the guaranteeing of man's basic freedoms and rights require courage and eternal vigilance: courage to speak and act - and if necessary, to suffer and die - for truth and justice; eternal vigilance, that the least transgression of international morality shall not go undetected and unremedied. These lessons must be learned anew by each succeeding generation, and that generation is fortunate indeed which learns from other than its own bitter experience. This Organization and each of its members bear a crushing and awesome responsibility: to absorb the wisdom of history and to apply it to the problems of the present, in order that future generations may be born, and live, and die, in peace. The record of the United Nations during the few short years of its life affords mankind a solid basis for encouragement and hope for the future. The United Nations has dared to act, when the League dared not in Palestine, in Korea, in Suez, in the Congo. There is not one among us today who does not conjecture upon the reaction of this body when motives and actions are called into question. The opinion of this Organization today acts as a powerful influence upon the decisions of its members. The spotlight of world opinion, focused by the United Nations upon the transgressions of the renegades of human society, has thus far proved an effective safeguard against unchecked aggression and unrestricted violation of human rights. The United Nations continues to sense as the forum where nations whose interests clash may lay their cases before world opinion. It still provides the essential escape valve without which the slow build-up of pressures would have long since resulted in catastrophic explosion. Its actions and decisions have speeded the achievement of freedom by many peoples on the continents of Africa and Asia. Its efforts have contributed to the advancement of the standard of living of peoples in all corners of the world. For this, all men must give thanks. As I stand here today, how faint, how remote are the memories of 1936.How different in 1963 are the attitudes of men. We then existed in an atmosphere of suffocating pessimism. Today, cautious yet buoyant optimism is the prevailing spirit. But each one of us here knows that what has been accomplished is not enough. The United Nations judgments have been and continue to be subject to frustration, as individual member-states have ignored its pronouncements and disregarded its recommendations. The Organization's sinews have been weakened, as member-states have shirked their obligations to it. The authority of the Organization has been mocked, as individual member-states have proceeded, in violation of its commands, to pursue their own aims and ends. The troubles which continue to plague us virtually all arise among member states of the Organization, but the Organization remains impotent to enforce acceptable solutions. As the maker and enforcer of the international law, what the United Nations has achieved still falls regrettably short of our goal of an international community of nations. This does not mean that the United Nations has failed. I have lived too long to cherish many illusions about the essential highmindedness of men when brought into stark confrontation with the issue of control over their security, and their property interests. Not even now, when so much is at hazard would many nations willingly entrust their destinies to other hands. Yet, this is the ultimatum presented to us: secure the conditions whereby men will entrust their security to a larger entity, or risk annihilation; persuade men that their salvation rests in the subordination of national and local interests to the interests of humanity, or endanger man's future. These are the objectives, yesterday unobtainable, today essential, which we must labor to achieve. Until this is accomplished, mankind's future remains hazardous and permanent peace a matter for speculation. There is no single magic formula, no one simple step, no words, whether written into the Organization's Charter or into a treaty between states, which can automatically guarantee to us what we seek. Peace is a day-to-day problem, the product of a multitude of events and judgments. Peace is not an "is", it is a "becoming." We cannot escape the dreadful possibility of catastrophe by miscalculation. But we can reach the right decisions on the myriad subordinate problems which each new day poses, and we can thereby make our contribution and perhaps the most that can be reasonably expected of us in 1963 to the preservation of peace. It is here that the United Nations has served us - not perfectly, but well. And in enhancing the possibilities that the Organization may serve us better, we serve and bring closer our most cherished goals. I would mention briefly today two particular issues which are of deep concern to all men: disarmament and the establishment of true equality among men. Disarmament has become the urgent imperative of our time. I do not say this because I equate the absence of arms to peace, or because I believe that bringing an end to the nuclear arms race automatically guarantees the peace, or because the elimination of nuclear warheads from the arsenals of the world will bring in its wake that change in attitude requisite to the peaceful settlement of disputes between nations. Disarmament is vital today, quite simply, because of the immense destructive capacity of which men dispose. Ethiopia supports the atmospheric nuclear test ban treaty as a step towards this goal, even though only a partial step. Nations can still perfect weapons of mass destruction by underground testing. There is no guarantee against the sudden, unannounced resumption of testing in the atmosphere. The real significance of the treaty is that it admits of a tacit stalemate between the nations which negotiated it, a stalemate which recognizes the blunt, unavoidable fact that none would emerge from the total destruction which would be the lot of all in a nuclear war, a stalemate which affords us and the United Nations a breathing space in which to act. Here is our opportunity and our challenge. If the nuclear powers are prepared to declare a truce, let us seize the moment to strengthen the institutions and procedures which will serve as the means for the pacific settlement of disputes among men. Conflicts between nations will continue to arise. The real issue is whether they are to be resolved by force, or by resort to peaceful methods and procedures, administered by impartial institutions. This very Organization itself is the greatest such institution, and it is in a more powerful United Nations that we seek, and it is here that we shall find, the assurance of a peaceful future. Were a real and effective disarmament achieved and the funds now spent in the arms race devoted to the amelioration of man's state; were we to concentrate only on the peaceful uses of nuclear knowledge, how vastly and in how short a time might we change the conditions of mankind. This should be our goal. When we talk of the equality of man, we find, also, a challenge and an opportunity; a challenge to breathe new life into the ideals enshrined in the Charter, an opportunity to bring men closer to freedom and true equality. and thus, closer to a love of peace. The goal of the equality of man which we seek is the antithesis of the exploitation of one people by another with which the pages of history and in particular those written of the African and Asian continents, speak at such length. Exploitation, thus viewed, has many faces. But whatever guise it assumes, this evil is to be shunned where it does not exist and crushed where it does. It is the sacred duty of this Organization to ensure that the dream of equality is finally realized for all men to whom it is still denied, to guarantee that exploitation is not reincarnated in other forms in places whence it has already been banished. As a free Africa has emerged during the past decade, a fresh attack has been launched against exploitation, wherever it still exists. And in that interaction so common to history, this in turn, has stimulated and encouraged the remaining dependent peoples to renewed efforts to throw off the yoke which has oppressed them and its claim as their birthright the twin ideals of liberty and equality. This very struggle is a struggle to establish peace, and until victory is assured, that brotherhood and understanding which nourish and give life to peace can be but partial and incomplete. In the United States of America, the administration of President Kennedy is leading a vigorous attack to eradicate the remaining vestige of racial discrimination from this country. We know that this conflict will be won and that right will triumph. In this time of trial, these efforts should be encouraged and assisted, and we should lend our sympathy and support to the American Government today. Last May, in Addis Ababa, I convened a meeting of Heads of African States and Governments. In three days, the thirty-two nations represented at that Conference demonstrated to the world that when the will and the determination exist, nations and peoples of diverse backgrounds can and will work together. in unity, to the achievement of common goals and the assurance of that equality and brotherhood which we desire. On the question of racial discrimination, the Addis Ababa Conference taught, to those who will learn, this further lesson: That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned: That until there are no longer first-class and second class citizens of any nation; That until the colour of a man's skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained; And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed; Until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; Until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; Until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil. The United Nations has done much, both directly and indirectly to speed the disappearance of discrimination and oppression from the earth. Without the opportunity to focus world opinion on Africa and Asia which this Organization provides, the goal, for many, might still lie ahead, and the struggle would have taken far longer. For this, we are truly grateful. But more can be done. The basis of racial discrimination and colonialism has been economic, and it is with economic weapons that these evils have been and can be overcome. In pursuance of resolutions adopted at the Addis Ababa Summit Conference, African States have undertaken certain measures in the economic field which, if adopted by all member states of the United Nations, would soon reduce intransigence to reason. I ask, today, for adherence to these measures by every nation represented here which is truly devoted to the principles enunciated in the Charter. I do not believe that Portugal and South Africa are prepared to commit economic or physical suicide if honourable and reasonable alternatives exist. I believe that such alternatives can be found. But I also know that unless peaceful solutions are devised, counsels of moderation and temperance will avail for naught; and another blow will have been dealt to this Organization which will hamper and weaken still further its usefulness in the struggle to ensure the victory of peace and liberty over the forces of strife and oppression. Here, then, is the opportunity presented to us. We must act while we can, while the occasion exists to exert those legitimate pressures available to us, lest time run out and resort be had to less happy means. Does this Organization today possess the authority and the will to act? And if it does not, are we prepared to clothe it with the power to create and enforce the rule of law? Or is the Charter a mere collection of words, without content and substance, because the essential spirit is lacking? The time in which to ponder these questions is all too short. The pages of history are full of instances in which the unwanted and the shunned nonetheless occurred because men waited to act until too late. We can brook no such delay. If we are to survive, this Organization must survive. To survive, it must be strengthened. Its executive must be vested with great authority. The means for the enforcement of its decisions must be fortified, and, if they do not exist, they must be devised. Procedures must be established to protect the small and the weak when threatened by the strong and the mighty. All nations which fulfil the conditions of membership must be admitted and allowed to sit in this assemblage. Equality of representation must be assured in each of its organs. The possibilities which exist in the United Nations to provide the medium whereby the hungry may be fed, the naked clothed, the ignorant instructed, must be seized on and exploited for the flower of peace is not sustained by poverty and want. To achieve this requires courage and confidence. The courage, I believe, we possess. The confidence must be created, and to create confidence we must act courageously. The great nations of the world would do well to remember that in the modern age even their own fates are not wholly in their hands. Peace demands the united efforts of us all. Who can foresee what spark might ignite the fuse? It is not only the small and the weak who must scrupulously observe their obligations to the United Nations and to each other. Unless the smaller nations are accorded their proper voice in the settlement of the world's problems, unless the equality which Africa and Asia have struggled to attain is reflected in expanded membership in the institutions which make up the United Nations, confidence will come just that much harder. Unless the rights of the least of men are as assiduously protected as those of the greatest, the seeds of confidence will fall on barren soil. The stake of each one of us is identical - life or death. We all wish to live. We all seek a world in which men are freed of the burdens of ignorance, poverty, hunger and disease. And we shall all be hard-pressed to escape the deadly rain of nuclear fall-out should catastrophe overtake us. When I spoke at Geneva in 1936, there was no precedent for a head of state addressing the League of Nations. I am neither the first, nor will I be the last head of state to address the United Nations, but only I have addressed both the League and this Organization in this capacity. The problems which confront us today are, equally, unprecedented. They have no counterparts in human experience. Men search the pages of history for solutions, for precedents, but there are none. This, then, is the ultimate challenge. Where are we to look for our survival, for the answers to the questions which have never before been posed? We must look, first, to Almighty God, Who has raised man above the animals and endowed him with intelligence and reason. We must put our faith in Him, that He will not desert us or permit us to destroy humanity which He created in His image. And we must look into ourselves, into the depth of our souls. We must become something we have never been and for which our education and experience and environment have ill-prepared us. We must become bigger than we have been: more courageous, greater in spirit, larger in outlook. We must become members of a new race, overcoming petty prejudice, owing our ultimate allegiance not to nations but to our fellow men within the human community.” ...
Cool, they are good sources of information and discussion / debate, and a good starting point for Biblical Scholars. There are documents and texts that one will learn about and that one can ask questions about on the forums. Something that you may want to read is The Holy Piby, which was written by Sheppard Robert Athlyi Rogers. Although The Holy Piby was written in the 1920s, it was an incredibly influential aspect of Rasta Culture. Here is a link to a PDF of the Holy Piby, not the original, but a preceding edition with a preface and proclamation: http://www.rastafarionline.com/files/TheHolyPiby.pdf Also, here is a link to a youtube profile hosting videos that are made by an incredibly well read Rasta Elder … I really encourage you to watch them. https://www.youtube.com/user/IslandMysticFilms#p/u/0/1uT8E03WcK8 Wow … I am going to do my best to present the shortest possible answer to your question I’m from South Africa, Port Elizabeth (in the South East region) and I have spent several years in Cape Town (in the South West region too) … and have interacted, moved, studied, lived and grown with Rasta in this part of the country since the mid ‘90s. The way I speak and write is a combination of being South African and the time I have spent with Rasta Kings and Queens … although, I will add that the words used by Rasta are not slang or lingo, but instead have specific meanings, meanings that can only be expressed by these words, that is why I use these words. Although race and white society is generally a major issue for Rasta, Rasta is not colour specific. Instead, Rasta is perspective specific, and for any person to be Rasta, means they reject all other perspectives. For a white person to be Rasta, that person has chosen the Rasta perspective over every other perspective, not only the white society perspective. There are plenty white Rasta in South Africa and Africa itself … White Rasta who exist in Rasta communities. To be Rasta is a heavy commitment … heavy, heavy, heavy. I have failed on numerous occasions at the starting point, which is the Nazarene Vow … No Flesh, No alcohol, No cutting of the locks, etc. This is the third time I’m growing locks, so I have cut twice before … and although I have not consumed meat since ’95, I have given into alcohol on numerous occasions in the past. There are many peeps that claim to be Rasta, eager to sport the branding … peeps that look for external recognition, a disguise, chanting in His Majesty’s Name. But this does not make a person Rasta. When I look at Rasta, I look at the heavy of the heavy’s, those Kings and Queens that concern themselves with what is happening inside their mind and body … anybody can look like Rasta, few actually are. And I am not one of the few, at best I can say that I would like to think that I can strive to be Rasta … instead I am a Biblical Scholar, which comes with the basic understanding why Ras Tafari is His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and Elect of God. Furthermore, this understanding comes with the knowledge that His Majesty’ Reasoning’s and the continuation of The Works that His Majesty started is the path to Liberation and Unity. Anytime, we learn from each other … there are many unfortunate misunderstandings in the world which stem from people not communicating. PS, Are you a Man or Woman, as I’m not sure if I should refer to you as Brother or Sister? One Love … Jah Guide!
