Sing unto God, sing praises to His name: Extol Him that rideth upon the heavens by His name JAH, and rejoice before Him. (Ps 68:4)

Opening Prayer

So we hail our God, Eternal God, Ras Tafari, hear us and help us and cause Thy face to shine upon us, Thy children.

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The Kebra Negast

2. CONCERNING THE GREATNESS OF KINGS

Come then, let us go back, and let us consider, and let us begin [to state] which of the kings of the earth, from the first even unto the last, in respect of the Law and the Ordinances and honour and greatness, we should magnify or decry.

Gregory, the worker of wonders and miracles, 3 who was cast into a cave because of [his] love for the martyrdom of Christ and suffered tribulation for fifteen years, said, “When I was in the pit I pondered over this matter, and over the folly of the Kings of Armenia, and I said, In so far as I can conceive it, [in] what doth the greatness of kings [consist]? Is it in the multitude of soldiers, or in the splendour of worldly possessions, or in extent of rule over cities and towns? This was my thought each time of my prayer, and my thought stirred me again and again to meditate upon the greatness of kings. And now I will begin.”

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Old Testament Reading

Psalm 68[a]

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.

1 May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.

2 May you blow them away like smoke—as wax melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God.

3 But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.

4 Sing to God, sing in praise of his name, extol him who rides on the clouds[b]; rejoice before him—his name is the Lord.

5 A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.

6 God sets the lonely in families,[c] he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

7 When you, God, went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness,[d]

8 the earth shook, the heavens poured down rain, before God, the One of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel.

9 You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.

10 Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, God, you provided for the poor.

11 The Lord announces the word, and the women who proclaim it are a mighty throng:

12 Kings and armies flee in haste; the women at home divide the plunder.

13 Even while you sleep among the sheep pens,[e] the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver, its feathers with shining gold.”

14 When the Almighty[f] scattered the kings in the land, it was like snow fallen on Mount Zalmon.

15 Mount Bashan, majestic mountain, Mount Bashan, rugged mountain,

16 why gaze in envy, you rugged mountain, at the mountain where God chooses to reign, where the Lord himself will dwell forever?

17 The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands; the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.[g]

18 When you ascended on high, you took many captives; you received gifts from people, even from[h] the rebellious—that you,[i] Lord God, might dwell there.

19 Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

20 Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death.

21 Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies, the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins.

22 The Lord says, “I will bring them from Bashan; I will bring them from the depths of the sea,

23 that your feet may wade in the blood of your foes, while the tongues of your dogs have their share.”

24 Your procession, God, has come into view, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary.

25 In front are the singers, after them the musicians; with them are the young women playing the timbrels.

26 Praise God in the great congregation; praise the Lord in the assembly of Israel.

27 There is the little tribe of Benjamin, leading them, there the great throng of Judah’s princes, and there the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali.

28 Summon your power, God[j]; show us your strength, our God, as you have done before.

29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring you gifts.

30 Rebuke the beast among the reeds, the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations.
Humbled, may the beast bring bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war.

31 Envoys will come from Egypt; Cush[k] will submit herself to God.

32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth, sing praise to the Lord,

33 to him who rides across the highest heavens, the ancient heavens, who thunders with mighty voice.

34 Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the heavens.

35 You, God, are awesome in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.

Praise be to God!

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I love this psalm. It’s supposed to be one of the most beautiful written and is also one that is used a lot in the Rastafari communities. I love verse 10. Which is your favourite bit? I hope you will use this to meditate on during the next week….I am going to be!

Prayer Time

Time to share our thoughts and prayers and to give thanks for our many blessings.

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Reasoning

I’m sorry if this seems a bit like Groundhog Day for some of you…we keep on not getting as far as this Reasoning, so you keep getting given it in the printouts. Hopefully, this week…!!!

H.I.M. Haile Selassie’s speech, ‘The Way of Life’.

What we seek is a new and a different way of life. We search for a way of life in which all men will be treated as responsible human beings, able to participate fully in the political affairs of their government; a way of life in which ignorance and poverty, if not abolished, are at least the exception and are actively combatted; a way of life in which the blessings and benefits of the modern world can be enjoyed by all without the total sacrifice of all that was good and beneficial in the old Ethiopia. We are from and of the people, and our desires derive from and are theirs.

Can this be achieved from one dusk to the next dawn, by the waving of a magic wand, by slogans or by Imperial declaration? Can this be imposed on our people, or be achieved solely by legislation? We believe not. All that we can do is provide a means for the development of procedures which, if all goes well, will enable an increasing measure and degree of what we seek for our nation to be accomplished. Those who will honestly and objectively view the past history of this nation cannot but be impressed by what has already been realised during their lifetime, as well as be awed by the magnitude of the problems which still remain. Annually, on this day, we renew our vow to labour, without thought of self, for so long as Almighty God shall spare us, in the service of our people and our nation, in seeking the solutions to these problems. We call upon each of you and upon each Ethiopian to do likewise……

Above all, Ethiopia is dedicated to the principle of the equality of all men, irrespective of differences of race, colour or creed.

As we do not practice or permit discrimination within our nation, so we oppose it wherever it is found.

As we guarantee to each the right to worship as he chooses, so we denounce the policy which sets man against man on issues of religion.

As we extend the hand of universal brotherhood to all, without regard to race or colour, so we condemn any social or political order which distinguishes among God’s children on this most specious of grounds.

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It’s such an interesting speech, with so much in it to discuss. I thought we would divide it into sections, so we get as much benefit of His wisdom as we can.

So, the first bit to discuss is the first paragraph. I am going to start off the Reasoning with a few questions for you to debate and then you can take it from there!…

1.) The idea that “all men will be treated as responsible human beings, able to fully participate in the political affairs of their government”… How will this work, why is this important, will it make any difference?

2.) A “way of life in which ignorance and poverty, if not abolished, are at least the exception and are actively combatted”…H.I.M. was a huge believer in a good education system and the importance of continuing to learn. Here are two quotes of His about education:

“Education develops the intellect; and the intellect distinguishes man from other creatures. It is education that enables man to harness nature and utilise her resources for the well-being and improvement of his life”

“A MAN WHO SAYS “I HAVE LEARNED ENOUGH AND WILL LEARN NO FURTHER” SHOULD BE

CONSIDERED AS KNOWING NOTHING AT ALL.”

What is our responsibility in this? Why is it important?

…there are many ways this can be discussed, this is just to start off!

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Closing Prayer

InI father in heaven. Hallowed be thy name, may your kingdom come, may your will be done. On earth and in heaven.please oh JAH Give InI this our daily bread, and forgive us of our trespass as InI forgive those that trespass against InI. Please JAH do not bring us to the time of trial, but deliver InI from every evil. Almighty I JAH RASTAFARI HAILE SELASSIE I the first. King of kings, lord of lords, elect of god, light of the world. Thank you JAH FOR EVERYTHING you have given InI and blessed unto InI. In your holy name I pray Yeshua. JAH RAstafari