News

In Hate-Filled Times, How Do Christians Cope?

Published

5 years ago

August 17, 2019

Pastor Phyllis Scott, Tree of Life Empowerment, Ministries Church

Make no mistake, this is the season of HATE, and the effects of this season are great. Anxiety, migraines, fear and depression are on the rise.

One may find it hard to trust one another, hard to fellowship with those not like yourself for fear of scorn or deportation. In this climate of hate, one might pose some serious questions to Christians.

What are the churches doing to combat this season?

Specifically, where is the love, empathy and support that is preached Sunday after Sunday? Why haven’t we seen more religious leaders speaking out against such hate?

Why haven’t we seen the Black churches reach out and embrace Latino and Hispanic churches and, conversely, why haven’t Latino and Hispanic churches embraced Black churches?

Where is the body of Christ?

Where are the believers of God who should be coming together in love while living in this season of Hate?

The answer is as simple as it is complex: Unresolved pain.

If we, the believes of God, have not resolved our own pain, worked through our own spiritual, and emotional traumas, how can we serve others? If we have not been able to speak truth to power and cry out beyond our make-up and nice clothes? If we’ve sat in the church Sunday after Sunday, listening to sermon after sermon, sermons filled with excitement and hope and yet when we leave church we leave the same way we came in, “broken,” hurt and filled with pain.

Until the believers of God work out our own soul salvation, until we deal with the traumas in our lives, we can’t be that light needed in these dark and perilous times.

It’s time to move from “Pain to Purpose” where you can not only rise above the traumas in your life but find purpose and live purposefully in Christ Jesus despite it all. It’s time, to lose the shackles from your life and move into a life filled with purpose.

It’s time to move from “Pain to Purpose: Renewing a Hurting Generation for the Glory of God.”

For more information on the Moving from Pain to Purpose movement contact Pastor Phyllis Scott at (510) 688-7437 or read our upcoming articles right here in the Oakland Post. The Tree of Life Empowerment Ministries Church is located at 7801 Edgewater Drive in Oakland. Sunday services are at 10:45 a.m.

Pastor Phyllis Scott, Tree of Life Empowerment, Ministries Church

Posts by Pastor Phyllis Scott, Tree of Life Empowerment, Ministries Church

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

20 hours ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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California Black Media

Yahushua’s Law: Senate Advances Bill to Protect Students from Extreme Weather

In a significant move towards student safety, the California Senate Education Committee passed Senate Bill (SB) 1248, also known as Yahushua’s Law, on April 3. The bill is named in memory of Yahushua Robinson, a 12-year-old student from Lake Elsinore, who tragically died due to a heat-related illness during a physical education class in 2023. It is a pioneering effort to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Yahushua Nyerere Robinson (Courtesy Photo)

By California Black Media

In a significant move towards student safety, the California Senate Education Committee passed Senate Bill (SB) 1248, also known as Yahushua’s Law, on April 3.

The bill is named in memory of Yahushua Robinson, a 12-year-old student from Lake Elsinore, who tragically died due to a heat-related illness during a physical education class in 2023. It is a pioneering effort to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Authored by Senator Melissa Hurtado (D-Bakersfield) and co-authored by Assemblymember Akilah Weber, M.D. (D-La Mesa), SB 1248 directs the California Department of Education to develop comprehensive guidelines for schools regarding student activity during all extreme weather conditions.

“No student should ever lose their life on campus to extreme weather when we can take steps to protect them by preparing statewide plans to minimize exposure to the most harmful elements of exposure,” Hurtado said after introducing SB 1248.

The bill stipulates that schools must implement safety measures which include monitoring weather forecasts, postponing or relocating outdoor activities during hazardous conditions, and ensuring students have proper hydration and access to shade. It also requires schools to establish clear communication plans to keep parents, teachers, and students informed about potential weather hazards.

Supporters of the bill include the Robinson family, advocate Christina Laster, Bold Enterprises LLC, California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute, Familias Empoderadas del Valle Central National Action Network, The Black Student Advocate, and the Ventura County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Thanking Hurtado for introducing this crucial legislation, Weber said, “The story of Yahushua Robinson last year was heartbreaking. We have protections for farm workers and other industries in the case of extreme weather, now climate change is forcing us to also extend similar protections to students at school.”

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Barbara Lee

Congresswoman Barbara Lee Issues Statement on Deaths of Humanitarian Aid Volunteers in Gaza 

On April 2, a day after an Israeli airstrike erroneously killed seven employees of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a humanitarian organization delivering aid in the Gaza Strip, a statement was release by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-12). “This is a devastating and avoidable tragedy. My prayers go to the families and loved ones of the selfless members of the World Central Kitchen team whose lives were lost,” said Lee.

Published

3 days ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

By California Black Media

“This is a devastating and avoidable tragedy. My prayers go to the families and loved ones of the selfless members of the World Central Kitchen team whose lives were lost,” said Lee.

The same day, it was confirmed by the organization that the humanitarian aid volunteers were killed in a strike carried out by Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Prior to the incident, members of the team had been travelling in two armored vehicles marked with the WCF logo and they had been coordinating their movements with the IDF. The group had successfully delivered 10 tons of humanitarian food in a deconflicted zone when its convoy was struck.

“This is not only an attack against WCK. This is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the direst situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable,” said Erin Gore, chief executive officer of World Central Kitchen.

The seven victims included a U.S. citizen as well as others from Australia, Poland, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Palestine.

Lee has been a vocal advocate for a ceasefire in Gaza and has supported actions by President Joe Biden to airdrop humanitarian aid in the area.

“Far too many civilians have lost their lives as a result of Benjamin Netanyahu’s reprehensible military offensive. The U.S. must join with our allies and demand an immediate, permanent ceasefire – it’s long overdue,” Lee said.