A Sociological View of Rastafarianism Essay

The two religions of Rastafarianism and Judaism embody many of the same characteristics, as well as their ancestry. Although the Rastafarians, at times, inaccurately explain the bible, their belief in the Old Testament is still prevalent. Many of the customs are almost identical, but the rationale behind the traditions and laws contrast greatly.

The Rastafari movement is a positive movement that promotes peace amongst all, self-respect, self -awareness, and respect for others.

In class, we talked about discrimination in society through economic inequality with Marx, and then with Durkheim. We discussed the positive viewing of individualism in society through inequality. Max Weber is comparable to Karl Marx because they both focus on inequality and capitalism. However, unlike Marx, Weber views the uneconomic actions in society. He has an interpretive view, and as an interpretive sociologist, this means he focuses on the concerns of the society itself and not the people

Marley’s presence can be felt in many platforms but his music was source of inspiration and awareness for poverty, racism and colonialism (the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically). The word Jah is used quite frequently in Marley’s music that refers to the black messiah whom they believe to be Haile Selassie who was the emperor of Ethiopia.

Rastafari’s believe Tafari Makonnen, who was crowned Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia on November 2nd, 1930 is the living God incarnate, called Jah. He is the black Messiah that will lead the world's people of African origin into the Promised Land of full emancipation and divine justice. This is partly because of his titles King of Kings, Lord of Lords and Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah. These titles match those of the Messiah mentioned in the book of Revelation, in the Christian New Testament (Rastafari).

Nonetheless, Garvey’s vision for Negroes was that we can do anything that we set our minds to regardless of the circumstances that we could face. Garvey writes, “ Let no man pull you down, let no man destroy your ambition, because man is but your companion, your equal; man is your brother; he is not your lord; he is not your sovereign master”. (p.1003) Garvey’s vision to the Negroes was that man is not the one you live for, God is the one who will be their with you to the end and he will never leave you.

The topic I chose to write about that interest me the most is religion. I chose religion because there are lots of differences when it comes to religion and cultures. I felt it was important to acknowledge three religions that our practiced today. The religion groups I chose to discuss in my paper are the Muslims, Santeria and Judaism .

"Justice and equality by any means necessary" was said in one of the most controversial speeches in history by a Nation of Islam superior named Malcolm X. The pursuit of peace and justice has been sought after in almost every major religion and culture. The meaning of peace and liberation within the Nation of Islam is no different than any other oppressed or mistreated group of people. However the way the Nation of Islam was said to market its strategy for peace and justice of mostly African Americans was by preaching violent and even oppressive behavior to its followers. Leaders such as Louis Farrakhan and Malcolm X were the front runners of the controversial undertone of the Nation of Islam during the civil rights movement which was considered

I selected the article Famine, Affluence and Morality written by Peter Singer concerning the moral obligation of affluent people to those with a lesser stature in life. In the following paper, I shall reconstruct his argument concerning said obligation. I shall utilize critical thinking to articulate a more focused account of his argument and my criticisms against it.

Black Gods of the Metropolis (Negro Religious Cults of the Urban North), Arthur Huff Fauset, University of Pennsylvania Press. 1944. (Ch.5 Moorish Science Temple of America, page 41-51…”Marcus Garvey was to Noble Drew Ali as John the Baptist was to Christ.”)

In many ways it could be argued that Marcus Garvey was the most significant African American civil rights leader of this time because of his role in tackling the social issues African American’s faced. He aimed to improve the lives of African Americans by encouraging them to take control of their own affairs and education. His role surrounding this issue is illustrated by his founding of the UNIA. This Universal Negro Improvement Association was an organisation dedicated to racial pride, economic self sufficiency and the formation of an independent black nation in Africa. Through this and the magazine the ‘Negro World’ he urged African Americans to be proud of their race, and argued “a people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots”. It has been said that through Garvey’s dedication to social improvement for his race he managed to capture the imagination of many blacks for whom the American Dream was a dirty joke.

Rastafari is an African religion that is still relatively new. The religion was developed in the 1930s in Jamaica after Haile Selassie was named the King of Ethiopia. The followers of this religion believe that Selassie is God and that he will return all of the black people displaced from slavery and colonization to Africa. Bob Marley’s music and success helped spread the religion. The Rastafarians believe that black people are the chosen people of God. Some of the religious practices in the religion include smoking and inhaling marijuana. The purpose of the marijuana is to increase a person’s spiritual state of mind and awareness. Most Rastafarians have long

Rastas believe that Selassie the I is the Jesus that Christianity speaks of with his “hair of wool, whose feet were like unto burning brass”. Rastas worship Jah and we participate in rituals and chanting as well as following the laws of Divine Power throughout our daily life. Rasta believe in the power of doing good and being blessed and so forth, we believe in power of doing evil and being punished. As the Rastas say, “Life is everliving” is the reward for following the word of the bible. Rasta say that blacks are to blame for their own shortcomings because they strayed away from the holy and divine way of living that was given to them in the Bible. Their enslavement and life ever since has been a punishment from Jah for their sins. “The scriptures are fundamental to Rasta world view. We do not look on the Bible as the ‘the good book’ ---everything has good and evil in it. Over time, the bible has been altered from its original state. For political and economical reasons, things have been edited out and different concepts and explanations patched in –especially by the translators of the Kings James I of England. Therefore, the Rasta is particularly selective about what they believe from the scriptures. Generally, Rastas point to the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Psalms, Song of Solomon, Isiah, Ezekiel, Timothy, Corinthians, Hebrews and Revelation to

In the opposite, Weber rejected the economic determinism of Marxism in the understanding of the stratification of the modern capitalist society. For Weber, the capitalist society is stratified in a two different ways from the Marxist description: On the one hand, the class differentiation is not classified merely by the ownership of means of production. According to Weber, class interest not as a given historical attribute to workers and capitalist, but is an ‘average interests’ of different individuals sharing similar market situation and ‘life chance’. Such ‘life chance’ is defined by the capacity of the individual to create utility and exchange value in the market by the utilization of their property. Therefore, class situation of the propertied is not merely defined by the ownership of means of production, but also returns on investment and rental income, which Marx doesn't take into account; for the class situation of the property-less, people is also fragmented by their differential possession of scarce skills, services and knowledge. Class interest is complex and fragmented.

Like in the earlier years, it can be seen in this story that Christianity was the most dominant and highly accepted religion in Jamaica. Having contrasting beliefs and practices, individuals would be shunned and ostracized. The author illustrates this idea by showing how Darren’s passionate beliefs in Rastafarianism had resulted in him being kicked out of his house. He was told to “never to come back until he had given up that Rasta foolishness.” Today, the Caribbean has become religiously diverse with a tolerance for different