Sermon by Dr. Brinell Anderson at All Saints Church, Pasadena, on Sunday, February 4, 2018.
First giving honor to God who is the head of my life.
To my ancestors upon whose shoulders I stand and in whose presence, I’m fortified.
To those African-centered scholar-warriors who have thought deeply about the condition in which we find ourselves as a people, your rigorous study, prolific output of ideas, and love for Black people have significantly shaped me.
To Rev. Kinman whom I owe this honor and privilege to stand before you today.
To the other priests and clergy present.
And to each of you, my brothers and sisters in Christ.
In the custom of traditional African practices, I would like to acknowledge my place within the circle of life by asking an elder for permission to speak. I recognize that those who have come before me have journeyed longer and have the responsibility to protect the community. It is with their blessing that I am able to move forward.
So, I am not a clergy person; however, I am an African-centered psychologist with psychoanalytic psychotherapy training who views my role as a healer as one who works in the realm of the sakhu. The sakhu which is a Kemetic, or ancient Egyptian, word means the illumination of the spirit. So, it is my hope that with the task of facilitating the awakening of the spirit for some and the reawakening for others, that you would ask God to help you to desire illumination.
Today’s message was birthed out of my own epiphany after experiencing a weekend long group exploration of the personal and collective trauma rooted in the wounds from enslavement of African people. So, given the context from which my own epiphany came, I need to remain true to the audience for whom this message is meant: specifically to persons identifying as Black or of African-descent and those identifying as White or of European-descent. In no way am I intending to leave anyone feeling left out and my hope is for people who come from other cultural backgrounds to also be challenged and inspired by what the Lord has laid on my heart. For the sake of time and brevity of words, I will mostly use the terms “White” and “Black” in capturing these two groups which I view as cultural groups although the terms are largely viewed as racially-based.
So, I would like to look at Psalm 147 this morning, particularly, a few key verses. Psalm 147 is a post-exilic psalm that was written to the children of Israel to help them put things in their proper place after they had been put out of their land. After being exiled and displaced, they were going to be restored not only to their birth place as a people but also to their birth rite as God’s people. So, this psalm is speaking to a people who have recently been released from captivity and are returning to their “Motherland.” Let’s start by examining this passage within the light of child development.
In order for a child to grow properly, she must allow herself to be dependent upon what the parents have to give to her. In order to allow for such dependency, the child must recognize where she came from—in other words, whose womb gave birth to the child. Part of the difficulty for the children of Israel was they repeatedly resisted their dependency upon God and the inherent fact that God had given birth to them as a people. So, after the exile, the children of Israel not only needed God to rebuild the actual city of Jerusalem; but, they also needed God to rebuild and restructure their proper relationship with God and with one another. Now let’s take this developmental lens and apply it to race relations.
Verse 2 says “God’s the one who rebuilds Jerusalem, who regathers Israel’s scattered exiles.” This verse is really meaningful in that God is always wanting to rebuild what has been torn down and to gather what has been lost.
You may wonder what’s been torn down and what’s been lost.
So, what has been lost that God needs to regather is the truth that people of African descent are the parents of humanity AND civilization. Sit with that for a few seconds. What has been lost that God needs to regather is the truth that people of African descent are the parents of humanity AND civilization. In order for God to regather what has been lost, Black people of African-descent must take our rightful place in humanity and civilization. God’s gotta rebuild! God’s gotta regather! Black people are the parents of humanity and civilization and Black and White peoples’ freedom is connected to God regathering the lost truth of our birthing of civilization. Let’s think about this…
So, what does rebuilding and regathering look like for a people who have been in captivity. As the parents of humanity, Black people of African-descent, need to get free of the psychological shackles that annihilate our sense of worth and dignity. We have been fed lies that tear down and have kept us believing that African-descended folks, are humanity’s children and not only the children, but the orphans of humanity…you know, those pitiful, displaced people who weren’t “cultured” before they were brought to the Americas but were just so strong to endure those difficult “work” conditions.
Humanity was given birth out of Africa!
How is it that the parents of civilization have been exiled out of the land and scattered as orphans?
How is that the parents have been subjugated by the children?
How is it that the children have attempted to convince themselves that they really are the parents. Repeat after me and say, God’s gotta rebuild! God’s gotta regather!
On this first Sunday of Black History Month, when I consider the level of anti-Blackness not only in our society but in the world, I am comforted to know God desires to rebuild what has been torn down and to regather what has been lost. God’s gotta rebuild! God’s gotta regather!
There has been an intentional distortion of whose womb gave birth to humanity as well as a destructive and deceptive reversal of parentage.
Now developmentally, if a child creates the delusion that she is the parent, guess what, she cannot grow. What that child then does is to create and live out of a delusion of omnipotence and omniscience…a belief that they created themselves and are all powerful and all knowing. Let’s take that delusion further, if one is all knowing and all powerful, then psychologically you have to destroy the parents in order to not be reminded of the truth that they gave birth to you. There has been a physical, psychological, and spiritual destruction in the land and repeat after me, God’s gotta rebuild! God’s gotta regather! Can you imagine the cost to the child’s development if she is unable to be fed by her parents. Think of the dire consequences if the child attempts to live as if she can exist outside of the parents. Not only would her body be unable to grow; but, she would mentally live with a fragmented sense of herself.
Within a system of oppression and White supremacy, Black folks’ sense of ourselves has been held in the captivity of not knowing that we know that we know that we are the beloved of God. God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.
In order for God to rebuild from the insidious and destructive lies that Black people are inferior to White people and the inverse that White people are superior to Black people, we have to get access to and affirm the cultural history and tradition of the oppressed and no longer elevate as normative the history and culture of the oppressor (see Dr. Linda James Myers Four Phases of Oppression). When we come out of captivity, although physically free to return to our home, we bring with us the mindset of captivity.
Let’s address this mindset. So much of the difficulty is grounded in the promulgation of lies that support everything White or European as good, primary, moral, normal, and “right.” These lies tear down! Dr. Gail Christopher describes White people’s sense of selves having been defined by a “hierarchy of human value” which suggests Whiteness is more valuable than anything else. God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.
Black people have seen suffering for so long that we think our history began with our enslavement (See Community Healing Network’s Emotional Emancipation CirclesSM). God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.
White people have seen the image of a White Jesus for so long that you unconsciously believe that God co-signs on your decision-making and every action. God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.
In order to regather, we must first admit that something has been lost. In order to rebuild, we must first admit that something has been damaged. We need to be able to be honest that this system has lied. The system has told us that White people gave birth to civilization. We must admit that the deep psychological and spiritual effects of this lie has caused damage rooted in the belief that White people are inherently better than Black people. This lie rooted in anti-Blackness harms not only the victim of the lie but also the perpetrator. We often think of oppression as only applying to marginalized communities; however, what I want to help you consider is that to believe one is superior over another is even more oppressive than to believe one is inferior. (pause) This superiority complex is more difficult to recognize because that denial of it is thick and the damage from it is less apparent. Just as Dr. Douglas stated at the rector’s forum, “Power produces the knowledge and the discourse it needs to sustain itself so that it appears the way things are, are the way they are supposed to be.”
I want you to know that God desires to rebuild and restore in order for there to be freedom from the lies, freedom from the distortions, and freedom from the delusions!
So, this may surprise you; but, I am here today to tell you: White people, you need Black people. Just like a child who needs their parent to be healthy and whole in order to grow to their fullest; White people, you need Black people to be restored to our proper cultural-historical legacy. Deep within the unconscious fabric of everything that we experience in our world is both this sense of inferiority grounded in not having had access to the truth of our African cultural history and heritage and this belief in Whiteness as superior grounded in the lie that Europe gave birth to civilization and hence everything out of Europe is better. Black people, we need to be regathered and restrengthened because everyone suffers when we live out of a place of collective cultural alienation and White people live out of collective cultural superiority and dominance.
The goal is not a reversal of position which a Eurocentric mindset views as the only possibility. The goal is a different relationship altogether that does not involve domination or oppression. The fact that we can see hierarchy as the only potential within cultural relationships is a reflection that the deep aspects of culture largely are NOT conscious, like the air we breathe. So, within a system wherein an Eurocentric worldview permeates all areas of influence within our society, it leaves us believing that Eurocentric hierarchical ways of being are normative.
Now when I describe the dichotomy of mindsets, I am well aware that some of you may feel as if I am making gross generalizations about who you are based upon your cultural group and you want to be seen solely as the individual that you are. I challenge you to reflect on how much an individualistic Eurocentric worldview is dominating your sense of identity. I am speaking about very important aspects of cultural identity which often do not get discussed or explored much. We have been primarily taught to think about identity as solely personal; however, we also have cultural identities which are shaped through the contexts of legacy, history, tradition, race, and ethnicity. I am fully aware that across persons within every cultural group there is the full gamut of psychological health and illness; however, what I am focusing on today are the unconscious cultural layers of our collective identities which do not often get identified, let alone articulated.
So, let’s put a little more meat on the bone as we consider the expressions of collective internalized superiority within the context of a historical reversal of cultural parentage. When I am clinically working with someone who expresses a sense of superiority, I am often looking for what we psychologists call disavowed envy. I am looking to see if there are unconscious feelings of resentment based in a hatred of not having what someone else has. So, part of repairing the psychological and spiritual effects of internalized superiority is having to identify the ways in which White people may unconsciously resent the rich legacy, the strengths and the capacities of Black people. Envy is a human emotion that we all experience; but, it is one that is so painful to feel that we often act on it outwardly or inwardly. In order to not act on it, we need to be able to experience it, name it, and allow it to enlighten us.
This is some heavy work AND there is some hope! Based on this passage, God is in the restoration business.
How does God restore the effects of a long captivity? Verse three states, “God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” I am here today to say the kindom of God cannot reflect the heart of God until the captivity from the lies of White superiority and Black inferiority are healed.
The wounds are ugly and gaping and will take time to bind but we have a God who longs to heal us deeply.
Examining our wounds, especially when they have been operating at a deeply unconscious level for so long, can be tremendously disturbing. Because they are beneath the surface of what we are mostly aware of, we can end up justifying and defending ourselves to find some aspect that does not connect with that wound. So, let’s consider we can have competing aspects of ourselves alive simultaneously. In the midst of God’s healing presence, can we be honest this morning? Let’s take a deep breath and speak the truth of some of the wounds in order to expose them so they may be healed.
There may be some White people here who love All Saints because it is comfortable to have compassion on Black people as wounded victims and but there is little awareness of the deep gifts that Black people have brought to the world when we were especially victors. Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some Black people here who are attracted to a church like All Saints not only because the sermons stimulate your intellect and your heart but also because you have internalized the lie that Black people are not as smart as White people and find yourself better able to accept what’s being preached because it’s coming from a White person. Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some White people who love All Saints because of the social justice focus but you were more comfortable and gave more credibility when Tim Wise talked about White privilege last year than when Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas described how Whiteness stands its ground two weeks ago in the rector’s forum. Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some Black folk here who have internalized a Eurocentric individualistic sense of self and prefer to emphasize the heterogeneity of the Black community because you want to distance yourself from “those Black people.” Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some White people here who may feel unsettled that Africa is the birthplace of civilization and humanity; but also associate Christianity as a European religion even though Ethiopia was Christian before any European country. Can you say it again, “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some Black people who prefer All Saints because you are less comfortable with expressive worship that occurs within many Black churches (You’ve heard it: “It just don’t take all that!”). Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
There may be some White people here who view the traditional worship style here at All Saints not as Eurocentrically classical in nature but as holy and the only kind of worship style that truly pleases God. Say “God’s gotta rebuild. God’s gotta regather.”
We can be comforted in knowing that God already knows there is damage from the wounds and sees specifically what needs to be healed. God is eager to tend to every one of the wounds that need to be bandaged.
So, if the foundation that needs to be rebuilt is the fact that Black people are the parents of civilization, I imagine that many of you are wondering what does it look like for Black people to be restored in this manner. As I stated earlier, it does not mean subordination or domination. Remember Sister Lisa Sharon Harper’s description of Genesis 1:26, we all bear the inherent dignity that comes from being born in the image of God. So, restoring the dignity of African people as the parents of civilization does not remove dignity from anyone else. Restoration means doing the work necessary to be clear about our collective history, our value, our dignity and our purpose. We cannot expect the cultural children of the world to respect us if we are seeking their approval. You’ve seen how that works within family relationships: making choices so your child does not become upset with you. IT DOES NOT WORK!
So, we need to amplify the voices of those healers and psychologists who are able to connect the cultural and spiritual identity implications of the knowledge that Africa is the birthplace of humanity and civilization. There is wisdom from the parents of civilization and I want to share some of that wisdom so that all of us can work towards a healthy and mature collective cultural development.
We often focus on Black folks’ capacity to endure suffering as something we can teach the world (you know statements like, “Black people are really strong people to have gotten through what they have.”); however, that capacity is not about Black folks’ mega-human-ness but it’s about what this psalm is speaking, recognizing the centrality and grandeur of God as well as God’s interconnectedness in all of life and all living things. The psalmist says, “You know the number of stars and call each one by name. Great are you, O God, and mighty in power; there is no limit to your wisdom…God who covers the heavens with clouds, who provides rain for the earth, Who makes grass sprout on the mountains and herbs for the service of the people; who gives food to the cattle, and to the young ravens when they cry.” What is deep within the cultural DNA of people of African-descent is the belief that God is the center of all things. In reference to a traditional African cultural structure, Dr. Wade Nobles elocutes that within the cosmology and axiology is a deep unconscious knowing that God is the essence of all being…the Source and Sustainer of all living things, the One to be reverenced. The psalmist begins by saying, “Alleluia! How good it is to praise you, O God!” Traditionally, African people recognized that the rhythmic connections with God can be found throughout all of life and because of that, God is the One to be praised! Our personal and collective praise is an expression of that connection to a God whose essence gives us life, gives us meaning, gives us purpose, and gives us joy.
The psalmist makes this connection after identifying the magnificence and benevolence of Who God is when expressing, “Sing to our God with thanksgiving, sing praise with the harp to our God.” If White people don’t acknowledge Black people as the parents of civilization, you miss out on the opportunity to learn from as well as grow from the wisdom of humanity’s parents.
The music we all just experienced was not a performance, it was an expression of the ontological African cultural factor of consubstantiation, which describes the nature of being as one in which we believed we all were made of the same essence and that essence is Spirit. So, when we realize we did not create Spirit, but the Creator imbued God’s spirit into us, we can’t help but shout and praise God for being the glue that interconnects all of creation!
Within an African worldview, there is no disconnection between thoughts and feelings. So, to just think about how praiseworthy God is, brings forth feelings of adoration which leads to an awareness as Dr. Nobles says, “that when the heart is moved, Spirit is activated.” Remember Sister Lisa Sharon Harper’s description that goodness exists between the relatedness of all things and God sees it as forcefully good. That relatedness is at the essence of a traditional African cultural worldview.
The scriptures teach us that the Spirit of God indwells us to live and act according to God’s purposes. So, all of us must be about the work of rebuilding and regathering. Now, I have emphasized that Black people of African-descent are the parents of humanity. Just like our personal ones, there are no perfect parents. So, as Black folks work to own and live out of the depth and richness of who we are and who we have been to civilization, we have to be careful not to do a reversal by responding to White people from a place of superiority. This can be tempting when you are coming out of a trauma history and begin to learn that your ancestors created the first universities.
It can be tempting when you learn that Socrates was not the originator of “Man Know thyself” but he learned it from the ancient Kemites as that saying is found on the temple walls in Egypt. It can be tempting when you learn that Hippocrates was not the first physician, but Imhotep was the father of medicine. After being told you were dumb, lazy, uncouth, and impoverished, it can be tempting to respond from a place of superiority when you learn that your ancestors were astronomers, mathematicians, horticulturalists, and philosophers. We have to keep in mind that parents are not superior to their children. Just as Annmarette preached to last week, parents have their unique wisdom as well as a perspective that is gained from age and experience.
Also, as White people begin to take ownership for the ways in which you have viewed yourselves as the parents of civilization and hence, better than, you have to be careful not to idealize Black people and devalue yourself. That idealization will be tempting as you begin to appreciate the people Sister Lisa Sharon Harper describe as “dancing through space.” The rebuilding will be a painful and sobering journey for White people who want to be healed from internalized superiority. As the healing journey will call you to deeply reflect upon the ways in which your collective cultural psyche has been held up by a delusion. There may be feelings of inadequacy that come rushing in could tempt you to be overcome with condemnation. Or feelings of guilt may manifest for buying into the psychological gain of destroying the parents of humanity. There could also be shame that may flood after becoming awakened to how much of our education has propped you up with the lie that the birthplace of civilization was Greece and not ancient Cush or Nubia or Kemet.
So, this process of restoration, rebuilding, healing and binding will be messy just like any construction site or emergency room is. We have to decide as a community if we are ready for the mess and if so, decide collectively, to allow God to use us to do some world changing work and that works starts here first.
God, give All Saints Church the courage to face the devastation and destruction grounded in the distortion of the truth of who Black people are and the delusion of who White people are. God, help us to move in a spirit of divine authority that seeks access to the truth of African cultural history and confirms the inherent worth and collective expression of African cultural wisdom. Your psalmist said, “You lift up the oppressed and cast the corrupt to the ground.”
God give us the endurance to withstand the casting down of what is corrupted within us and the boldness to lift up what has been oppressed. God give us the ability to bear and stay with the deep pain from broken hearts and deep wounds from the lies of Black inferiority and White superiority. Give us a heart to pray and turn to You when the pain from lies that have torn down feel like too much to bear. God, help us to be agents of rebuilding and regathering in order to allow Your healing and restoration.
God will rebuild! God will regather!
Ashe’ and Amen
