"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission t do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." ....Nelson Mandela's 1994 Inaugural Speech
Today, Mr. Mandela turns 90 years young. Happy Birthday to one of the most awesome and greatest heroes of the modern world! He spent 27 years in a political prison for speaking that which he knew to be right; opposition to racial inequality. His captors believed his absence would quiet the masses of oppressed people in South Africa. The solution to the political unrest was to imprison this man in hopes that he would die, or that he would give up this "foolishness", or that people would simply forget about him. 27 years later, he emerged from that prison, took up his Cross once more to continue his fight, and freed his people from the oppression of a "might is white" political system to become President of his country.
This speech has been one of the most inspiring and powerful elements of influence in my life. When I am feeling downtrodden, defeated, or thinking God is nowhere to be found, I remember his words. They remind me that the words of mankind are fraught with lies, innuendoes, greed, selfishness, a desire for power, control and authority. They remind me that, in the face of adversity and oppression, in defense of the poor, the oppressed, the persecuted, the lonely, and forgotten children of God, that someone, somewhere, must be the voice for those who believe they have no voice. As Simon of Cyrene stepped forward to help Jesus of Nazareth carry His Cross, so we, as ministers and children of this family of God, must step forward to help carry the cross of those who are weakened by the constant beratement and hateful words of mankind.
The Great Mystery of All That Is and Is Not, Tokahe' Wakan Isn'ala, God, has given us people like Mandela, King, John and Bobbie Kennedy, Ghandi, and the Dali Lama, feminists like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage, and so many other figures of history who listened to the Voice of God and took up their Cross in earnest, willing to sacrifice their lives for "that which is right". People who listened and acted on those things that transcend the human soul and the Spirit of our Creator that dwells in every one of us.
And now, as Mr. Mandela draws near to his day of reckoning, who will be his successor to these Truths that he so eloquently recited in 1994? Who, among all of humanity, will dare to speak the Word of Truth, the Sword that will impail itself into the heart of mankind? Who will have the courage to stand and speak the Word of Truth that comes directly from our Creator? The Word that instills in us a sense of unrest, that something, somehow, somewhere, must be done to stop this deadly spiral into insanity and obscurity? The Truth that provokes us, and angers us, when we see injustice and prejudice, who will advocate for these who suffer? Who will give the greatest gift mankind has to offer, the gift of Love, the gift that manifests itself in sacrifice for others?
I will weep bitter tears when Mr. Mandela is gone. Not for his death, but for the loss of the world as they will forget his message of enlightenment, and the opportunities we had to do differently. I will speak my Truth as it is revealed to me. I will not fail in the face of adversity. I will remember his words with the same respect and honor and dignity that he provided to others. I will heed the call from God to reveal these great strengths and potentials of others, and to focus on those gifts and talents of his children that they may be lifted from the streets, that they may share in His Great Love and Mercy, that they will learn to carry their own Cross and help those who have not yet become strong enough to carry their own. I will speak against all wars, tyranny, hatefulness, prejudice, and discrimination of any kind, recognizing that we are all His children and a part of the Sacred Circle of this Universe. I will speak as "the voice of one crying in the wilderness", the voice of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the timid and meek, the alcoholic and addict, the prostitute and thief, that they too, are God's children.
This is my Sacred Path, the Sacred Promise I made to my Creator, the Way of my people, as it has always been. May these things come to pass in a world of greed, avarice, lust, infidelity and godlessness, as I take up my Cross to do that which God has ordained for me to do. And I wish Mr. Mandela, many more years to be our teacher, our guide and our conscience. Happy Birthday to you Sir! And may the God of our understanding continue to bless you and reveal His Truths to you that they may be spoken and heard by those of us who are listening and have clarity of vision.....God's Love and Peace....To`na Wanagi