Rastafarians and Al Wolters

I'll sum up the beliefs of the Rastafarians very briefly and perhaps I'll make a more in-depth post at a later date.

Influenced by the oratory of the back-to-Africa leader Marcus Mosiah Garvey, the Rastafarians adopted Emporer Haile Selassie as God. Marcus Garvey himself never proclaimed this idea - in fact, he condemned it - but the Jamaican workers who heard his message to look to Africa for the coming of their Messiah were thoroughly impressed with the news of Ras Tafari Haile Selassie's coronation in 1930.

The divinity of Haile Selassie was not simply pulled out of Marcus Garvey's supposed prophecy. Selassie himself claimed to be descended from Solomon via the Queen of Sheba. Therefore, Selassie was of the line of David and Rastafarians could pull out all kinds of Biblical prophecies to support their claims to his divinity.

Of course, Rastafarianism has many more influences which have shaped it into the various sects it encompasses today. Hindu holy men who came to Jamaica as cheap labour brought their spiritual ideas, their ascetic lifestyle, and their appreciation of marijuana to the Rastafarian religion. Marxism, the Afro Athlican Constructive Church , Judaism, Christianity, obeah, and the repatriation movement also exerted influence.

The Bible is also a major influence. Some Rastafarians accept both the Old and the New Testaments while others only accept the Old Testament. Many Rastafarians acclaim what they call the "Holy Piby" which is a book adopted from the Afro Athlican Constructive Church. This gnostic book, which originated from the hand of Robert Athlyi Rogers from 1924-28, is a profoundly Afro-centric scripture.

Rastafarianism recognizes the Ethiopian people as the chosen people of God. Of course, in this sense, Ethiopia is not restrained to the modern boundaries of the state of Ethiopia but to the whole of Africa (The word Ethiopia is derived from the Greek Aithein (to burn) + ops (face). In Greek times, Ethiopian referred to anyone of a dark complexion and it is in this sense that Rastafarians use Ethiopian in.) As the chosen people of God, the Ethiopians disobeyed his will and were stolen from Zion (Africa) and brought to Babylon (the West.) After four hundred years of slavery, reminiscent of the slavery in Egypt, the time has come for the Ethiopians to free themselves from mental slavery and repatriate to Africa. Before, after, or during this repatriation, the Rastafarian can meditate and find their divinity and oneness with Jah (Selassie was/is the perfect expression of Jah on earth in the Rastafarian mind. Divinity and unity can be found in and with every man and woman, thus a Rasta will refer to himself/humanity as I & I to denote this universal experience.)

Now that I have given a cursory treatment of Rastafarian beliefs I can speak of one of the facets of Rastafarianism I find most interesting. Now, I'm not an expert and I may have this wrong, but it's worth a try. Rastafarians often refer to fire in their songs and in their daily life. Fire, for the Rastafarians, will cover the whole earth and burn away all wickedness. This obsession with fire might have a lot to do with the influence of Pentecostal fire and brimstone oratory but there is also an element of Al Wolter's Creation Regained. Now, I'm not saying that the Rastafarians have read Creation Regained, but they might find some things they'd agree with in there.

Sizzla Kalonji, a militant Bobo Ashanti singer drew much criticism when he sang a musical fire upon white attendees at a concert a few years ago. Sizzla defended his musical fire by stating that no one had to fear the fire as it was for purification. Many reggae singers have blazed a "musical fire" on everything from Babylon to themselves. The fire of Rastafari is not a fire of destruction but a fire of purification. Wicked Babylon can be purified in the flames and a conscious Rasta even needs the baptism of fire for purification. The creation is fine, it is the wickedness that needs to be burned out.

Just something I thought was interesting.