Kwanzaa?? Um, I think not...2013
A 2013 update to my original 2008 blogpost ...
So, what exactly is this ‘Holiday’ known as Kwanzaa? This
post seeks to uncover/reveal that, and take a look at it in light of the scripture
Who is its founder?
Who made it up?
Maulana Ndabezitha Karenga (born Ronald McKinley Everett on
July 14, 1941) is the creator of Kwanzaa.
In the late 1960’s he started and led an organization (a
black nationalist cult) known as the ‘United Slaves’. Interestingly, as Kwanzaa
caught on, Mr. Karenga was sitting in a California prison for torturing two
black women who were members of the United Slaves.
Originally known as Ron N. Everett, he went by (and
eventually legally took on) the name
Karenga and in the 60's took upon himself the title "maulana," which
means "master teacher" in Swahili. He was born on a poultry farm in
Maryland, the fourteenth child of a Baptist minister.
Mr. Karenga was convicted of two counts of felonious assault
and one count of false imprisonment. He was sentenced on Sept. 17, 1971 to serve
one to ten years in prison. After being released from prison in 1975, he remade
himself as Maulana Ron Karenga, went into academics, and by 1979 was running
the Black Studies Department at California State University in Long Beach and
converted to Marxism.
The Crime:
On May 9, 1970 he initiated the torture session that led to
his imprisonment. The torture session was described in the L.A. Times on May
14, 1971.
"The victims said they were living at Karenga's home when Karenga
accused them of trying to kill him by placing crystals in his food and water
and in various areas of his house. When they denied it, allegedly they were
beaten with an electrical cord and a hot soldering iron was put in Miss Davis'
mouth and against her face.
Police were told that
one of Miss Jones' toes was placed in a small vise, which then was tightened by
the men and one woman. The following day Karenga told the women that
'Vietnamese torture is nothing compared to what I know." Miss Tamao put
detergent in their mouths; Smith turned a water hose full force on their faces,
and Karenga, holding a gun, threatened to shoot both of them. The victims
Deborah Jones and Gail Davis were whipped with an electrical cord and beaten
with a karate baton after being ordered to remove their clothing."
Karenga was convicted of two counts of felonious assault and
one count of false imprisonment.
More information can be found here: http://www.nathanielturner.com/karenga2.htm
At Karenga's trial, the question of his sanity arose. A psychiatrist's report stated the following: "This man now represents a picture which can be considered both paranoid and schizophrenic with hallucinations and illusions, inappropriate affect, disorganization, and impaired contact with the environment." The psychiatrist reportedly observed that Karenga talked to his blanket and imaginary persons, and believed he'd been attacked by dive-bombers.
Jones and Brenda Karenga testified that Karenga believed the women were conspiring to poison him, which Davis has attributed to a combination of ongoing police pressure and his own drug abuse.
Karenga denied any involvement in the torture, and argued that the prosecution was political in nature. He was imprisoned at theCalifornia Men's Colony, where he studied and wrote on feminism, Pan-Africanism and other subjects. The US organization fell into disarray during his absence and was disbanded in 1974. After he petitioned several black state officials to support his parole on fair sentencing grounds, it was granted in 1975.
Karenga has declined to discuss the convictions with reporters and does not mention them in biographical materials.[17] During a 2007 appearance at Wabash College he again denied the charges and described himself as a former political prisoner. The convictions nonetheless continue to generate controversy during Kwanzaa celebrations. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maulana_Karenga
Origins of Kwanzaa:
What is it, how and why did he put it together?
On December 25th 1965,
three months after the founding of the Us (United slaves) organization, Samuel
Carr-Damu, one of the original members visited Karenga's home to present his
daughter with a black doll for Christmas. Karenga rejected the gift, stating
that Us members should not celebrate Christmas. Since the entire rank-and-file
recognized some form of Christianity and were life-long celebrants of
Christmas, the potential elimination of the holiday posed a serious problem for
the organization, especially those with young children….. Karenga spent much of
the following year researching African cultural practices, trying to find a
suitable alternative for Christmas 1966….. Excerpted From:
The Black Power Movement: Rethinking the Civil Rights-Black
Power Era by Peniel E. Joseph (2006) Pages
342-343 You can read it in more detail here: http://books.google.com/
The word "Kwanzaa" itself is man made. It is
derived from the swahili phrase "matunda ya kwanza" which means first
fruits. Karenga's history has it that the extra "a" was added to
represent the seven children that were a part of his organization, (US
Organization) as each child wanted to represent a letter of Kwanzaa.
From: ‘Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and
Culture’ pg. 108.
The Kwanzaa celebration consists of seven days to celebrate
seven principles (the Nguzo Saba), with emphasis on one principle a day. The
seventh day culminates in a feast, patterned much like the first-fruits
celebrations of ancient Africa. There are activities such as the pouring the
libation for ancestors, lighting of candles, raising names of ancestors (also
referred to by many as "ancestor worship" - discussed more in detail
later), and gift-giving.
http://www.believersweb.org
Coincidentally, the seven principles of Kwanzaa are the very
same seven principles of the Symbionese Liberation Army. In 1974, Patricia
Hearst, kidnap victim-cum-SLA revolutionary, posed next to the banner of her
alleged captors, a seven-headed cobra. Each snake head stood for one of the SLA's
revolutionary principles: Umoja, Kujichagulia, Ujima, Ujamaa, Nia, Kuumba and
Imani — the same seven "principles" of Kwanzaa.
For those of you who do not know or remember the SLA or its
history:
What is the purpose
of it?
Dr. Karenga, 1977: "...
it was chosen to give a Black alternative to the existing holiday and give
Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and history rather than simply
imitate the practice of the dominant society. Kwanzaa: origin, concepts, practice - Karenga
(Maulana.) 1977 Kawaida Publications, - pg. 21,
Why is this a problem
for Christians?
Because Kwanzaa is a RELIGION!
"Kwanzaa has
definite principles, practices and symbols which are geared to the social and
spiritual needs of Afro-America." - Kwanzaa: origin, concepts,
practice - Karenga (Maulana.) 1977 Kawaida Publications, - pg. 14.
The Nguzo Saba are seven principles clearly set apart for
the Black American and not for others. It is also an attempt by Dr. Karenga to
introduce humanistic principles for improving life without God. Kwanzaa is not
just a cultural celebration, but an attempt to establish a way of life with man
as the center of worship and reverence.
If anything, many are accepting these principles as
SPIRITUAL principles and a guide for their lives. A disturbing fact for the
Christian who believes that all spiritual principles begin with the Bible and
not with man.
Frequently, spirituality is mentioned and the Nguzo Saba is
said to be a standard by which to live for moral guidance and instruction
within the community. The Nguzo Saba (seven principles) is given so much
emphasis in character development that it is also said in Dr. Karenga's book,
to make one a "new man, woman and child." (The African American
Holiday of Kwanzaa, p44.) Very similar to what is said in the Bible regarding
the newness of man:
"Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come!" -
2 Cor 5:17 (NIV)
So here we have a celebration that emphasizes a code of
ethics (the Nguzo Saba) for moral instruction to bring about a spiritually
developed character. Thus far, Kwanzaa has a few things in common with
Christianity and other religions. Moral instruction, spirituality and a purpose
-- becoming a new person!
Karenga Lists The
Nguzo Saba as a Religion
Dr. Karenga even recognizes the "religion" of
Kwanzaa when in his book, Kawaida Theory, p. 25, he says of the seven
principles (The Nguzo Saba) as coming "from African religion" and
lists it among other religions such as Buddhism, Christianity, and Judaism in
his section on positive functions of religion. In light of that writing, it
then becomes difficult to explain his statement that "Kwanzaa is not a
religious holiday," especially when the Nguzo Saba is considered the
centerpiece of Kwanzaa.
"The primary
conflict that the Christian should have with Kwanzaa is that it is a way of
life. It is even being encouraged by many to celebrate it not just during the
holiday season, but all year round! Why is that so? Because it is promised to
be build character, to change one's life spiritually. This can be seen on the
Melanet's Kwanzaa Information Center web site under the Goals of Kwanzaa topic.
It says: "To develop self and facilitate a positive Black self-esteem by
exposing individuals to 'Kwanzaa', a culturally desirable pattern of
principles, to help them live their lives and to encourage the highest level of
positive Black self-esteem and spiritual development. -- To establish a
culturally oriented 'WAY OF LIFE."
There are several
dangers that present themselves when the Christian attempts to combine their
"religion" of Christianity with that of the "religion" of
Kwanzaa. 1) They take upon the assumption that the Bible is not enough to
spiritually feed us a a people... 2) That we MUST define ourselves in the
context of culture 3) Unity is possible without Christ, by simply uniting with
those of the same color, i.e. culture. Our self-worth only comes from knowing
Christ as Lord and Savior, so we can't really do both."
- Carlotta Murrow,
a San Diego computer technician who runs the website - http://christocentric.com/Kwanzaa/ - which is a fantastic and comprehensive
website dealing with the history, contradictions, ancestral worship and other
problematic issues inherent in this 'holiday'
A little more background from the Dartmouth Review:
Initially, Kwanzaa
proceeded from Karenga's hostility toward Western religion, which, he wrote in
his 1980 book, Kawaida Theory, 'denies and diminishes human worth, capacity,
potential and achievement. In Christian and Jewish mythology, humans are born
in sin, cursed with mythical ancestors who've sinned and brought the wrath of
an angry God on every generation's head.' He similarly opposed belief in God
and other 'spooks who threaten us if we don't worship them and demand we turn
over our destiny and daily lives.'
Thus, Karenga
explained in his 1977 Kwanzaa: Origin, Concepts, Practice, 'Kwanzaa is not an
imitation, but an alternative, in fact, an oppositional alternative to the
spookism, mysticism and non-earth based practices which plague us as a people
and encourage our withdrawal from social life rather than our bold
confrontation with it.' The holiday 'was chosen to give a Black alternative to
the existing holiday and give Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and
history rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society.'
Since then, the
holiday has gained mainstream adherents, and Karenga has altered its
justification so as not to alienate practicing Christians: 'Kwanzaa was not
created to give people an alternative to their own religion or religious
holiday,' he writes in Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community, and
Culture, published in 1997. - J. Lawrence Scholar from the Dartmouth review
So dear reader,
Having significant information at your disposal now, you
must ask yourself: Ccan the celebration, even the acknowledgment of Kwanzaa in
the house of God, or by the people of God be justified, except to condemn it?
I daresay not.
God is possessive of the worship and service that belong to
Him. It is a sin (as God points out in Exodus 20:4-5) to worship or serve
anything other than Him. God is jealous for what belongs to Him; worship and
service belong to Him alone, and are to be given to Him alone. As 1 Samuel 5
clearly examples, YHWH does not 'play well' with other 'gods'... That said,
clearly, at its root, Kwanzaa was designed and presented as an alternative to
Christianity. This is of course, a violation of the first commandment.
Please note that I am anxious to hear/share/discuss your
thoughts/opinions, etc, as they relate to this issue, and look forward to
hearing from you
Blessings to all,
Pastor CTJ
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