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wPractical Truth |
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Let's take a practical look at some ancient truths and some contemporary discoveries and examine the relationships. This is my CyberSpace Ministry. You are welcome to pause, consider, grow, and give thanks.
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wSunday, August 18, 2002 |
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Today I attended church at Hillside Chapel & Truth Center, Dr. Barbara King's church in Atlanta, Georgia. They had scheduled a last minute guest speaker and I was interested in hearing his message. I was running late because I had to stop for gas. The service was scheduled to begin at 9:30 am and I arrived around 9:40 am. I later discovered that people had been lining up since 6 am to get a seat. A half mile before I got to the church, the streets were lined with parked cars. The church parking lots were full and all streets in all directions for over a half mile were bumper to bumper parked cars on both sides of the street. A nearby school parking lot was packed, as was the nearest bank parking lot. The next bank parking lot had available spaces where I parked. Instead of waiting for the shuttle to pick me up, I walked the 1/4 mile to the church.
Hillside seats 1200. It's original, older church building is still standing and probably seats another 500. Their fellowship hall maybe seats an additional 200-300. By the time I arrived at the church, I was directed into the original church. After being "patted down," I climbed a stairway to discover that the old sanctuary was SRO. While standing in the stairwell with almost a dozen other people, we were told that we would be the last people allowed in, and that it was standing room only. I let everyone else enter before me, and as I entered, they closed the door behind me. I was the very last to enter. As if by divine appointment, Hillside's head usher was standing close enough that we hugged. I've known Richard for several years now, having met him while attending classes with Dr. Rocco Errico.
Richard motioned for me to follow him and we made our way to the main sanctuary. Once inside, he told me to wait by the door and he proceeded to search the entire sanctuary in search of an empty seat. Although it was obviously SRO with people standing around the walls on the mail floor and in the balcony and every chair in the choir loft occupied by parishioners, still I stood quietly confident while Dr. Barbara led the congregation in prayer and song. After about ten minutes, I again saw Richard across the room. He motioned to me, I motioned an acknowlegement, and I quickly joined him to take the last empty seat in the church.
I went to church this morning because, as I said, I wanted to hear the guest speaker. He is a man about whom I have heard much over the years, though most of it has been via the news media. But I wanted to find out for myself, first hand, what he had to say and how he "felt" to me. Although Dr. Barbara has booked speakers like Iyanla VanZant, and Johnny Cochran, and Oprah Winfrey, and Rev. Jesse Jackson, today I was going to hear Minister Louis Farrakhan. In a brief, off-handed sort of way, I was reminded of the time I want to hear Eldridge Cleaver of the Black Panthers speak in Los Angeles just 3 days before he disappeared and fled to Algeria. I was one of only a handful of white faces in a beautiful sea of black.
Minister Farrakhan's topic was "Today Is The Day That The Lord Has Made, Rejoice And Be Glad In It," and his message was excellent. He's obviously very astute on his knowledge of the Torah, the Prophets, the Gospels, and the Koran and he quoted extensively from all of those sources. Moreso, however, was the way in which he used these quotations. It revealed a depth of understanding which goes beyond mere knowledge and delved into the truths which underlie the scriptures. Friends, I was impressed.
Rather than talking about hatred and separation, as is so often claimed about him, Minister Farrakhan spoke of peace and inclusion amongst all people. He didn't talk about one group of people being better than another group but rather that ALL people are created by God, and we therefore all share a oneness inspite of our individual uniqueness and it is a part of the purpose of our creation to discover how to get along with one another. Rather than speaking largely about Mohammed, as one might expect from this leader from the Nation of Islam, Minister Farrakhan spoke most knowledgably of Jesus the Christ, whom he claimed to know personally, and explaned Jesus' mission and his gospel in ways that are unfortunately lacking in most socalled Christian Churches.
Other than one brief statement which is open to different interpretations, I found that Minister Farrakhan and I are in agreement in our understanding of ancient truths and teachings. He pointed out that the original "religion" given to Adam by God was "obey my word." And he went on to say that doing so leads us to Freedom, Justice, and Equality.
I left the service and drove home with gratitude for the realization that "this is the day that the Lord has made." Thank you Minister Farrakhan, and thank you Dr. Barbara King. And thank you, Richard.
posted by
Charles DeTurk at 11:02 PM
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Last year I posted a weekly 5,000 word eLetter as an outreach of my ministry to over 600 recipients around the world. Then, a number of things changed and I began seeking a "different" way of accomplishing the same end. This Blog, Practical Truth, is the first outgrowth of that search. In the meantime, however, I, myself, began to receive a daily "message" from a wonderful minister in Mobile, Alabama. Her name is Rev. Carolyn Crane and she is the minister of Unity Christ Church in Mobile.
Carolyn is very prolific and I have saved some 80 messages that she has posted on a regular basis. If you'd be interested in receiving a dynamic, daily email truth message, Carolyn's email address is unitymob@aol.com Drop her a line and ask her to put you on her mailing list. And tell her that I sent you. I guarantee that her stuff is great.
posted by
Charles DeTurk at 10:05 PM
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