Category: death

A Strange Dichotomy

On By Dr. William James Carter, IIn Brother, Change, Christendom, COVID 19, death, Freedom, hurt, Love, Racism, Reconciliation, Unity, worship1 Comment

     For the past several days I have been troubled about what is taking place in this nation. My heart has been hurt and I struggled with how I should handle and address the matter of the disruption of peace and tranquility. I have thought how some might respond and considered that some will take my words out of context or simply tell me I am on the wrong side of the issues at hand. The struggle still continues as even some family members take issue with my stand. My stand is not for this group or that but the whole of mankind. Even so, some take issue with that.

     So, I might as well get to it. If I lose friends, so be it. I am not in a popularity contest nor am I pretending to be politically correct for the moment. We are in a war and the enemy does not care about ethnicities. He does not care about culture. He does not care about families nor does the enemy care about socio-economic status or religion. Our common enemy cares only to steal, kill, and destroy and we are allowing him to do that by furthering divides which serve only to push his agenda and that is done through deception. Let me explain.

     Much of the turmoil in this nation at this time is said to be centered around the death of George Floyd. Mr. Floyd, a Black man (I sure hate colour-coding people) was killed by a White police officer. I am not certain that anyone would argue that Mr. Floyd should be dead and that his killer should be free. Yet, the continual narrative is that police are targeting Blacks and that all Whites are somehow complicit in the wrongs of a few. Yes, there are some racist Whites. There are also some racist Blacks. The fact is that there are racists in every ethnicity, yet those racists do not speak for the whole.

     Digressing to the killing, I am not fully convinced the murder was based on racism. This is where I get in trouble. You see, the news has largely ignored the fact that Mr. Floyd and his murderer were co-workers.[1] This fact means that certain questions must be asked. How well did Mr. Floyd and his killer know each other? Was there a continuation of bad blood between the two? Is it possible this murder could have been more personal than racial? Why is the media hiding the fact of these long-lasting co-workers? Is there a political motivation to continuing the racist rhetoric associated with the death of Mr. Floyd?

     It is also necessary to look at the ever-resounding mantra of Black Lives Matter. This is a movement that began in Baltimore after the death of Freddy Gray while in police custody. Mr. Gray was not killed by the police, yet the movement began.[2] Not many will argue against the fact that Black lives matter. The strange dichotomy is that while the death of Mr. Gray was made political and caused rioting in the streets of Baltimore there were no voices raised for the many deaths of those dying in the streets of Baltimore at the hands of other Blacks. Specifically, there were 344 murders in Baltimore that year and no one took to the streets.[3] There were no riots. Stores were not broken into and looted. Could it be that the deaths did not fit the political narrative? Were those 344 lives not precious? Is the lack of concern because those people primarily Black, did not matter because their lives were taken primarily by Blacks? It just seems to me that if Black lives matter these 344 in Baltimore should be counted as those that matter.

     Now, Mr. Floyd’s death was also tragic and totally unnecessary. There is no doubt that his life mattered. The dichotomy is that the many other lives taken in Minneapolis do little to raise eyebrows. It almost appears the eyes are turned away even when the lives are taken from Blacks. Do their lives not matter? There is no marching in the street for those Blacks killed by other Blacks in Minneapolis. There were, undoubtedly, Whites killed as well. Are their lives less significant because they are not Black? I find it hard to believe that one’s value is predicated upon his ethnicity; a matter of which he holds no control.

     When examining strange dichotomies, one has no choice but to consider Chicago. Chicago is a city long known for its crime. The “Windy City” has had the winds of lawless at least since the time of the show Good Times. It appears that not much has changed even in the face of a Black mayor, Miss Lightfoot. Mayor Lightfoot is obviously no fan of churches and that has become evident during this Coronavirus fiasco.[4] Even while her venom for churches is spewed Blacks are being murdered in Chicago left and right.[5] It could be that those nearly 250 people killed so far this year did not matter. Most were Black. Most were likely killed by Blacks. The problem is that they do not fit the convenient political narrative.

     I could go on and on about the many Blacks killed at the hands of Blacks that never make the national or sometimes local news. Consider, the deaths in New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, New Orleans, etc. Do these lives not matter? Many are Black. The problem is they were not killed by the police. It does not fit the narrative that police are exterminating Blacks. The fact is that police kill very few Blacks and most of those killings are justified. For instance, the associated footnote will show that this year there have been Blacks killed by police (research for details) more Whites were killed than Blacks.[6] Other ethnicities were killed as well. It just seems that those other than Blacks do not have the political backing to get attention.

     It has become politically correct to join the Black Lives Matter movement. To raise fists in solidarity with those lives fit the political rhetoric serves to further the political movement. It has become the norm to say that Black lives matter. However, the dichotomy is that one standing in solidarity with others is somehow offensive. To say “all lives matter” is sufficient to cause maltreatment and maligning of the one standing for all. For me, this is a difficult pill to swallow. In fact, I do not want the pill. I stand for each and every life no matter the ethnicity. I stand with right no matter where there right falls. I stand against wrong no matter where that wrong falls.

     I find it necessary to stretch this discussion just a bit further. You see, many that purport to be Christians are among those ready to fight at the suggestion that all lives matter. This is problematic when one considers the fact that God so loved the world (the entirety of mankind) that He sent his only begotten Son John 3:16). God’s love is not concerned with ethnicity. It is not concerned with national origin nor is it concerned with language or political correctness. God’s love is concerned with the individual as he is placed in the world. The world encompasses all of mankind is a type of what we will find in Heaven.

    Revelation chapter five points to the contingent of people that will be giving God praises in Heaven. They include people of every kindred, nation, and tongue. No group is excluded. All are included. To God, all lives matter yet the dichotomy would suggest otherwise. Even so, to be people of God we would do well to remember the principle of love. If we but love our neighbors as we love ourselves, we would do well to lay aside this strange dichotomy.

[1] http://salonedaily.com/2020/05/30/shocking-late-george-floyd-his-killer-derek-chauvin-were-co-workers-at-a-club/

[2] http://archive.bluelivesmatter.blue/truth-behind-freddie-gray/

[3] https://chamspage.blogspot.com/2015/11/2015-baltimore-city-homicidesmurders.html

[4] https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/05/24/chicago-mayor-launches-police-raid-shut-down-black-church/

[5] https://graphics.suntimes.com/homicides/

[6] https://killedbypolice.net/kbp2020/

The Destruction of a People

On By Dr. William James Carter, IIn Brother, Christendom, COVID 19, death, Encouragement, Fear, Freedom, healing, Renewal3 Comments

Over the past several weeks I have been watching the people of the United States being destroyed piece by piece. Some may not see this as destruction. However, a careful examination of Scripture shows that God’s people are destroyed for the lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6). That lack of knowledge is significant in spiritual matters as well as natural matters. Let’s do a brief examination of the lockdown this country has been subjected to over the past weeks.

A first thing to note is that this taking away of the freedoms of the people began of misinformation and hyperbole. This misinformation was the projections that COVID 19 was set to kill many people over a short period of time.[1] This was not only false information but that it seems to have played a major role in pulling from facts and introducing fear to a people that have failed to seek information for themselves. This lack of knowledge has caused people to bend to the whims of dictatorial despot wannabes whose sole desire is to impose a false authority on an unlearned people.

Another thing needing a little examination is the matter of fear. Among other mediums, the media at large became a useful tool in introducing fear to millions of people. That was done in part with the regular use of the term “social distancing.” There is hardly a news segment from the mainstream media wherein the idea is not introduced. One might argue that this is a form of indoctrination as it is the repeated mantra of an idea that has yet to have a clear scientific basis. In fact, social distancing is very harmful to individuals as humans are communal by nature. Yet, the fear-induced propaganda has sought to lead the uninformed to believe that this virus is so dangerous that we cannot even touch our faces even in the absence of anyone that may have the slightest chance of being infected. Fear is most effective in the absence of knowledge and so the fear of being close to someone has made many angry and rude. This goes to the oxymoronic idea of social distancing.

The list of destructive ideas is long. There is the closing of parks by some jurisdictions when it is proven this virus lives a very short time in the sun. People have been giving citations for attending church services while sitting in their cars. Pastors have been arrested for holding church services. Beaches have been closed. Businesses have been lost. Millions are sitting home waiting for the government to send them money not realizing the government does not care and cannot care about the individual. The list of atrocities goes on as the governmental agencies seem to mandate the people kowtow to authoritarian rule. However, to be subjugated to the government is indicative of the fact the government controls you. This ignorance of people causes them not to realize that when the government controls you there is no freedom.

With this contemporary look at the destruction of a people, it is reasonable that a biblical examination be employed. John 10:10 highlights the motivations of the thief. The text, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.” Said differently, the thief (the devil) has but one purpose: the destruction of a people.

The thief is no friend to the people of God. He comes to destroy you by any means that will cause that destruction. This is much like what is going on in the United States today. The enemy has stolen the peace of many. There is little trust in our fellow men. Brother has been turned against brother. The truth has been stolen by reason of an abundance of lies and hyperbole. One lie the enemy will tell you is that you are worthy and that you deserve to die. Well, let me tell you, you are worthy, and you deserve to live. Christ came so that you could have life and that life is one free from the destruction of peace

This thief, this enemy, has also come to steal. While that may seem obvious, these dictatorial restrictions of heavy-handed despot types have stolen lives by reason of suicides directly linked to the restrictions.[2] Moreover, some have died because they were not able to get necessary medical care because of the restrictions placed on hospitals. Peace of mind has also been stolen. Joy has been stolen. Careers have been stolen. Yet, Jesus came that our life would be more abundant. For those of us that trust God we know that what the cankerworm has eaten God will restore (Joel 2:25). And, while that text is specific to certain people the principle of God remains strong. God is a restorative God.

There has also been a lot of destruction of the past weeks. Families have been destroyed. Some lives will never be the same. All of this has happened because of the lack of knowledge and understanding of what is going on in the natural and spiritual worlds. It is high time we stopped the destruction of a people and stood on our founding principles. Those principles are outlined in the Word of God and that is where we find life. The destruction will be abated once we come to the knowledge of truth and begin to rest in that. And, while the Word of God is our founding principle we need also to rest in the knowledge of the law of this land, the Constitution. Once both are properly employed the destruction of a people will be abated.

Finally, think not that this essay is to make light of those seriously impacted by COVID-19. It is not. The intention of this is to remove the blinders of fear as we stand steadfast in truth.

[1] https://thefederalist.com/2020/03/25/inaccurate-virus-models-are-panicking-officials-into-ill-advised-lockdowns/

[2] https://www.ccn.com/chillingly-scariest-coronavirus-death-toll-may-not-come-from-covid-19/

Lifting My Voice

On By Dr. William James Carter, IIn abortion, Christendom, death, Freedom, lifeLeave a comment

There are a number of heinous things taking place in the United States these days. There are continued attacks on Christianity. Masculinity has been attacked. Families continue to be torn apart and yet there seems to be no one crying out for the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution. Well, I am lifting my voice. I am sick and tired of the few elitists who know more than God does. It is time we took a stand not only for the rights as guaranteed by the Constitution but also, and more importantly, the Word of God.

The most egregious affront to freedom is the condoning of the murder of unborn children. Abortion has taken center stage and the road is being filled with people that have a disdain for life. Yes, I am certain this expose will be rebuffed, yet that is not a matter of concern. My concern is for those children that would survive outside the womb but a selfish mother, father, and doctor (or whoever else in some cases) deem that is it not prudent to allow the child to live. Well, this very notion is an affront to the Word of God. It is time someone stood against the likes of New York Governor Cuomo who recently signed such an offense into law. Now, at least one delegate in Virginia seeks to follow suit. Well, I am lifting my voice against even the idea of needless and senseless abortions and infanticide.

Exodus 20:13 uses the simple words, “Thou shall not kill.” This is to say that God strictly condemns the taking of innocent life. There is no more innocent life than an embryo or fetus. The newborn child is also guiltless in that neither the unborn or newborn have had the opportunity to commit any sin or wrong. Yet, there are those that have determined that it is a woman’s right to take the life of the most innocent in our society, What about the rights of the embryo? What about the rights of the fetus? What about the rights of the newborn? God knew them before they were formed in the womb and still, some see them as being insignificant and not worthy of life. Well, I am sick of it. I have had enough. I am lifting my voice against the ruthless murder of those who have no ability to defend themselves.

Do not misunderstand my anger. I realize there are rare circumstances wherein the mother’s life could be in danger because of problems within the pregnancy itself. I am no medical doctor, so I don’t speak on that end. I speak on the end that God is the giver of life and that if He determines it is wrong to kill the innocent then we ought not to kill the innocent. Those who choose to participate and encourage this activity will one day have to stand before God and answer as to why they found reason to kill innocent people. Roe vs Wade was an atrocity. What is going on now is an infringement on the right to life as well as a total disregard for the Word of God. I lift my voice and urge all to return to the Word of God so as to make such infractions of the Word void.

Times of Sadness

On By Dr. William James Carter, IIn death, healing, hurt, sadness3 Comments

Today my mind goes back to a difficult time in my life. It is a day I will never forget. Some days just do not go away and there is good reason the for lingering of those days. This particular day I went to see my mother in a hospital in Baltimore. My sister, just a few days prior, moved my mother into her home. You see, my mother suffered with Alzheimer’s and was not in control of herself. My youngest brother, my sister and I were my mother’s primary caretakers. And, for good reason my sister thought it best to move my mother into her home where there were no steps inside. My only question to my sister was “Will she ever come back home?”

Somehow I knew that she would not return to my childhood home. I studied that two-story brick house in Baltimore for a moment reminiscing on the many things that took place in that house. I knew that things would not be the same. I knew that my mother did not have many days left and I had no idea how to handle the eventuality of her death. After all, she was my mother and she had been a strong woman. She was a feisty woman so, to see her weak in many ways was far from the norm. Yes, I saw my mother even while it was hard to see Mama. Sometimes sadness is masked by duty and responsibility. That would not matter though; as my sister drove off with my mother sadness would slowly seep out.

And there was the final hospital visit. I knew my mother was having some issues. That did not matter. I wanted to sit with her. I wanted to hear her talk. I wanted to make her laugh. The problem was that she did not talk – not to me nor my sister nor the personal attendant. She grunted a little and then choked. The nurses assumed the choking because of what she had recently drank and sat my mother more upright in the bed. I stayed with her a while longer and had to leave as I was scheduled to tutor a young lady in Baltimore County. I was going to come back; that is where my heart was. My sister would stay in touch with me as to my mother’s condition. The blood clot in her lung would see to her soon demise.

The two hour session was more than half over. My phone rang and my sister was on the other side. She advised me that there was no need to go to the hospital. It was all I could do to contain myself as I sat in front of that young lady. There was nothing more I could do for my mother and this student was in need of my services. I continued with the lesson. I needed to finish this course for the young student. I could not sit there and express my sadness. My work and duties had to prevail so that the hurt was covered by responsibility. Still, just below the surface the hurt was boiling.

There was no one else that I would allow to preach her funeral. No one else could be a personal as her son. Perhaps this was a bit selfish of me? It truly matters not because as I presented her eulogy the message was “A Sure Foundation.” The reflection only brought about more tears yet there was certain joy because my mother was certainly Mama. The hurt sometimes presents today. That is alright though, it has only been a few years and sadness is not a thing that can be easily erased. Yes, I miss my Mama which is why there are sometimes moments of sadness.

Yes, there were times of sadness prior to that. In 1976 my maternal grandfather succumbed to the results of a stroke. Other family members preceded my mother in death to include all grandparents, a niece and my father. Yet there remains another time of sadness that arose not long after my mother crossed into eternity. My great-nephew was born with dire sicknesses. I did not know him very well yet I lived with him, his parents and his brother for a short period of time. He crossing into eternity soon followed my mother. Sadness set in on top of sadness. I was asked to preach his funeral. So, I did.

Yes, I remember that five year old. He never quite got “Uncle” down so it sounded like he was calling me “Oink Oink.” Yes, even in sadness there are things that can make you smile. In hurt there are moments of healing. I was asked to preach this young child’s funeral and I preached as though it was Sunday morning. The goal was to present healing in pain. There is absolutely little we can do when we are sad except to wade through the sadness. So, in wading I preached “Time is Winding Up.” The message was not for the audience alone but also for me. It would be nice to hear my nephew once again say, “Oink Oink.”

Today I have been made sad again. You see, Hawaii was a wonderful experience for me on a number of levels. It is true that the military took me there. Nonetheless, I am convinced I was there by reason of Divine intervention. This is because I was invited to the City of Refuge soon after I arrived on the island. I quickly joined the church and became involved in the ministry in a number of ways. In doing so I had opportunity to work with the Anderson family. Pastor Anderson was an excellent pastour with four children. The oldest was David. David was a few years younger than me yet we bonded.

I choose not to forget the time there was a church picnic. David thought that he could beat me wrestling. He was a tall, lanky teenager and I a trained Marine; not so tall and far from lanky. Well, let’s just say David never pinned me. These are the types of things that come to mind when I think of a young man that became a husband and father. I had not seen him for several years before I visited him in the hospital a very short time ago. We were able to talk and reminisce. We laughed a little and eventually prayed. It was a blessing to be in David’s presence. I am not so sure they make them better than that.

David has now crossed into eternity. As these words are being penned I am cloaked in a sort of heaviness. Sadness has once again found itself around me. Yet, I am not the only one walking under the cloud of despair. I am certain Pastour Anderson, Sister Victoria and David’s siblings are having a hard time keeping tears from their eyes. Sadness is no easy thing. It pulls at your very fiber. Even so, I am convinced that in this time of sadness God is able to show himself mighty and powerful. I am certain that through this hurt and pain there will be healing. This is a time of sadness and it is my prayer that comfort and peace envelope all that mourn for David.