In order to change the world, you have to get your head together first.
--- Jimi Hendrix
Prior to Black American, I started writing a book titled “Religion in the Black American Community”. In that book I begin to write about faith and spiritual, stuff and such. I realize some people may not know and or understand that God is an enormous part of my life. However, I imagine after reading my thoughts some people may question my faith and possibly that I believe in God.
I stand by the fact that religion does not have a monopoly on morality i.e. being religious is not a prerequisite to being a “good person” and being a good person is most certainly not required in order for one to be religious.
Now that I’ve said that let’s move on. My mom was a member of the Greater Hope Church of God in Christ.
For those readers who are not aware, when a black mother goes to church her children go to church. When I was a child, my mother went to church a lot. Therefore, my sister and me went to church a lot.
The pastor of Greater Hope church was Revered Jones. One special Sunday pastor Jones preached a particular sermon that has stayed with me since that day. Pastor Jones preached about Lazarus and the rich man. The parable speaks about how both Lazarus and the rich man died. Jesus spoke about Lazarus being carried off by angels to a place of comfort. While the rich man was taken to a place of torment. Although the the rich man pleaded for mercy, he wanted most for his brothers not to experience the same fate as he, was experiencing.
“27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ 29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ 30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’”
--- The Bible Luke 16:14-31)
As a child and all the way through to adult hood I can remember both consciously and sub consciously thinking and equating firstly wealth with being financially rich and secondly financial riches being equated with evil. While I hold no one particular person or group of people responsible for this wrongly worked out equation I do however hold myself accountable for allowing this type of thinking to trap and inhibit me from taking action to acquire wealth earlier in my life.
The thinking that somehow it is more righteous for one to be in poverty than for one to be wise and build wealth is both ridiculously wrong and evil, it can also be considered sinister.
It can be debated that the parable referred to activities and attitudes associated with greed rather than accumulating wealth. Consider, God made Solomon the wealthiest person.
The understanding, creating and building of wealth is one of the primary needs in Black American communities specifically in inner city and urban Black American neighborhoods and communities.
Teaching wealth is a corner stone in the foundation of creating economic power for Black Americans. Understanding wealth and how wealth relates to Black Americans beckons us to understand how wealth was created in the United States and what role Black Americans played in creating this wealth. One does not need to research to great depths to begin to understand building wealth for Black Americans in the early stages of the United States was virtually impossible as Black American were considered and counted as pieces of wealth. To elaborate, Black American could not legally own property as Black Americans were brought and sold as pieces of property. This information is both important and significant as we know that property and ownership are two key components in creating and building wealth.
Wealth is more than money. Wealth includes property, knowledge, assets and money. Resources that can perpetuate through generations and that can be handed down and inherited. Wealth is a cornerstone to social and political power. Powerless is what a lot of Black Americans experience in the United States.
Growing into adulthood, I would reflect on pastor Jones’ sermon from that special Sunday. And later I began to empathize with the “Rich” man for different reasons.
Experiencing the weight of poverty and the emptiness of hopelessness is a place of torment. I would pray that my brothers and sisters would gain wealth of knowledge and finances to avoid arriving at such a place.
Perhaps we all have our personal missions to do the work to help our communities arrive to a place of comfort.