Where Did Our Beliefs Go?

Are we (black people) a spiritual people? The Fool's question for the day. I

know we used to be a religious people. We used to believe in a God and... that belief held us in good stead for almost 300 years. We used to believe that good and righteous people would, in the end get their "just" rewards in heaven. We believed that the wicked and evil people that inhabit this realm with us would get their comeuppance. Not so much now.

Heaven, in today's reality is just a mite bit too far away, I think. Have black people lost their way? Do the not "guaranteed rewards" outweigh the fact that there are so many evil people in the world who are living it up to the max on your dime?

Is it the fact that you have to go through so many personal, unnecessary and unwanted slights during the course of a day that makes you falter in your belief?

The black church used to be the center of our communities. The pastor reigned supreme. He held us together. He would visit our homes for dinner. He would inspire us with his sermons. The church was where we would go to contribute to the community. Remember the bake sales? Nobody could cook like the older black women. The Fool misses that.

Hey. Back in the day a lot of states were "blue states", meaning no liquor on Sundays. We would attend services in the morning, have a big lunch and go back to church in the afternoon. At the time, a lot of the parishioners knew where to get alcohol, which was THE place to go after services. We didn't argue. We didn't have fights and we certainly didn't shoot each other. We enjoyed each others company, as strange a concept as that appears to be in today's reality.

The Fool knows he is dating himself. And your point is...?

Somewhere along the line, the pastor figured out that the money and the glory to be had between sister Annie's thighs outweighed your spiritual well being. Thus the fall of the black community.

And I ask again. Are we still a spiritual people? Personally, The Fool doesn't think so. For one thing you have to remember, Christianity was forced upon us by our ancestor's slave owners. Our normal thinking minds had went on permanent vacation, during the Middle Passage. We were empty vessels waiting to be filled. And boy, were we ever.

The fool would like to know, here in the twenty first century: How do you define spirituality? Is your spirituality associated with any religion or is it a personal relationship with the Divine?