Truth Minute: Where is Wakanda? (Part 2) #tchalla
So again, I truly can relate to an element of Erik’s experience. However, something happened to me that changed the course of my life forever. I found out about Wakanda. Now I realize that this is a fictional place only found within the recesses of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s mind but something tells me that it’s deeper. First, both of those authors were Jewish and while they may have been secular Jews. They still have an understanding of history which mirrors the African American experience in very similar ways. The 400 years of slavery and emancipation. The scattering of people to various areas of the globe. The dividing of the kingdom into north (Israel) and south (Judah). No real land to lay claim to outside of a promise. Plenty of enemies and some ancient literature filled with details about something they never seen for hundreds of years. That is, until 1948 when they all came home to a land called Israel. Which just so happens to be the most technologically advanced area in the middle east, that has a wall, and carries the most precious resource in all of the world; The Knowledge of God through the scriptures that tells of a Savior (Jesus).
But how does that relate to a movie about Africa let alone Wakanda? Well for me as a Christian pastor, I know that there is this place that the Scripture calls the “Kingdom of God”. It is a place that is not external but “hidden” like treasure (Vibranium) in an earthlike vessel. (2 Cor. 4:7) It wasn’t created by us but planted within us by something greater than us (God). You can’t get to it by manipulation or brute force (Religion). It is designated as an inheritance for the chosen which means that it being given is not based on what the individual has done but based on the love (grace) that the father has for those that really don’t understand him or his ways. It has to be cultivated over several years (sanctification) and shared with others (The Gospel). In addition, It will never lose its power no matter how many others deny its existence or relevance.
This truth allows me to celebrate T’Challa, not only as King and Deliverer but also as a man whose ability is not defined by what has happened to him but by what has happened within him. The King’s power came from a Lilly in the Valley. It transformed his mind and the way he handled people, wealth, resources and also the ones he loved. He understood his purpose and did not allow vengeance to be the fuel for his vision. That was the difference between T’Challa and Killmonger. They both knew where Wakanda was located, both had a right to its inheritance. But only one was able to grasp power and responsibility of its legacy.
~ Andre L Martin
#blackpanther #wakandaforever
P.S. They didn’t need Egypt to define who they were. They had a legacy and history just as noteworthy. That fact alone should give some people of Color quite a bit to think about.
