|
|
July
2001 Page 3 |
|
|
While talking to
his disciples one day, Jesus told his disciples, “The scribes and
the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid
you observe, that observe and do; but do not after their works:
for they say and do not”. Jesus
was teaching a valuable lesson that might shed some light on this
I-95 turmoil we are facing. Jesus
acknowledges that we must act in accordance with and comply with the
authority of the “scribes and Pharisees”.
The “scribes and Pharisees” and the terminology “Moses’
seat” refer to government or judicial power.
Society and prevailing social order have influence and power to
which we must accede. The
scribes and Pharisee, however, were satiated with ulterior motives and
secret agendas. Theirs was a mission at odds with the spiritual revival that
Jesus brought. But they
represented the established leadership in whose hands the integrity of
civil order and social stability rested.
Their word was law, and Jesus says we are duty bound to do as
they command us to do.
But (and oh,
what a powerful conjunction) running behind doing and performing for the
mere sake of following our perceived leaders, be they government,
religious, secular or whatever, at a jet propelled pace without
examining and questioning, testing and proving for ourselves,
unfortunately, is going too fast and following too closely.
Laws are laws, about that, we can do little.
Jesus, however, does put the responsibility on us to set His
teachings and His standards above those mandated by the “scribes and
Pharisees”. The standard
imposed by the teachings of Jesus far exceeds that of any man.
And more importantly, the teachings of Jesus reflect the loftier
ideal that our motive, not our action, is precedent to our entry into
the Kingdom. It’s like
that example Jesus gave that if you are doing as the law commands and
come to the altar to offer your tithes and offerings, but there remember
that your brother has some issue against you, leave there your gift,
first go be reconciled to your brother and then return to offer your
gift. “The scribes and
the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid
you observe, that observe and do; but do not after their works: for they
say and do not”. For
help with openings, grammar, characterization, plot, and endings, refer
to Dare To Be A Great Writer by Writer’s Digest Books, ISBN:
0-89879-464-1 and The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr.
and E. B. White, ISBN: 0-02-418200-1.
Great openings, grammar, characterization, plot and riveting
endings attended to, perform a spell check on your manuscript.
Today, all word processing programs come equipped with spell
check. This software option has become a friend to many a writer.
Make good use of it. A
last step before sending a manuscript to a publisher or editor is to
submit your work to a reading or critique group.
Do not ship your manuscript to Grandma Smith, Cousin Leroy or
Uncle Joe and ask them for their opinion.
They will only give your work praise.
There is little benefit in unwarranted praise.
Check the local newspaper or the local white pages for a
reading/critique group near you. To
court and guarantee success as a writer be persistent.
Persevere. Polish
those returned manuscripts then send them back out into the world of
editors and publishers. Network
with other writers. Join
local writing groups. Read
as often as you can. Study
the markets you write for. Above
all, never quit!
Love Has Many Faces and Portia's author,
Denise Turney, has been writing or more than twenty-five
years. She is a professional author whose works have appeared in:
Today's Black Woman, Sisters In Style, HeartBeat, Your
|
These
authors paved a road infrequently traveled until the latter part of the
century. Their works remained in relative obscurity, and arguably,
marginal to the celebrated Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement
of the 1950’s and 60’s. The bridge between those two literary periods
is found in the work of Chester Himes and the introduction of his new
archetypes, Coffin Ed Johnson and Gravedigger Jones, two bare knuckle,
bruising detectives who work the night shift in 1960’s Harlem. This
radical character departure anchored the framework established by Hopkins,
Bruce and Fisher. The resulting influence, coupled with the expanded
awareness of the 1980’s, provided the basis for what became the Third
Renaissance, a relative explosion of African-American authors writing
about African-American characters in the mystery genre. Lead by Walter
Mosley, Barbara Neely, Eleanor Taylor Bland and the late Hugh Holten,
trailblazers in their own right, these authors and others can trace their
roots back to the work of Hopkins, Bruce, Fisher and Himes. Lee
Meadows attended Michigan State University where he earned a BA
in Telecommunications, an MA in Counseling and Adult Development and a
Doctorate in Higher Education and Management. Yet, while you’re seeking to be published,
something both strange and wonderful happens.
When you have a dream, and you can see yourself as an author, even
though one person tells you no, you don’t allow their words to
discourage you. You keep going, try other resources, and push yourself
past their words and begin to elevate yourself to where you need to be. And during this painful yet necessary process, you are amazed
to realize how strong you really are.
You notice that determination has been birthed, and believe it or
not, you actually find yourself becoming more focused as you learn how to
dismiss any negative thing that gets in your way. I was reminded that faith is built in the dark.
It’s easy to believe in things you cannot touch, but true faith isn’t
based on what you see, how you feel, or what you hear. When you have that
dream, you continue believing no matter what. And today, that is where I
am. Still believing and knowing that the things I dream about will one day
be reality. So if you’re an aspiring writer, keep writing. If you’ve gotten your rejection letters, you’re not alone. Cry, mumble, but continue going forward and know that you are as strong as the things you survive, and rejection is survivable. Cydney Rax is originally from Detroit. She is the web manager for www.book-remarks.com, a site that promotes books written by or about African Americans. Check out our GREAT site
called www.blackretail.com
. We have music, movies, electronics, books, flowers, sporting goods and
much more. Our site is one of
the largest Black owned shopping sites and was launched on April 15, 2001.
The best part about our site is that 5% of its profits are donated
to charitable causes that support African American communities.
Please help us make this site a success by visiting often and
forwarding our URL to everyone you know.
Also, by just telling three friends about this site you could win a
Digital Camera. Check BlackRetail.com for details. We plan to make our
first donation in July 2001. Your
support is greatly appreciated in making a meaningful first donation. |
Our
Sponsors Book
of the Month CD
of the Month Web
Information Literary
Contest Question
of the Month |
