(Trice Edney Wire)—Like Amy Acton, candidate for Governor in Ohio and Dr. Abdul El-sayed for U.S. Senate in Michigan, the Positive Calvary really is coming soon! Aren’t we all tired of the negative past two years we’ve experienced in the U.S.? Aren’t we tired of the atrocious accusations being thrown around, the filthy language, lies, unending corruption, hatred, racism, sexism, Islamophobia, and bigotry of all kinds. This election season has been worse than ever! I’m sick and tired of women’s names being dragged through the mud—as mine, and others have been out of hate and jealousy. I’m tired of so many people being reluctant to support women. Let’s be the ones to stop this

I’m ready to hear in detail what candidates are ready to do to win the upcoming elections and give help to the people in need—and there are a lot of things from which to choose!

My prayer is that candidates will stop bickering and just tell us what they’re planning to do to help to bring us out of this abysmal situation we’re in now. Instead of spending so much time being shocked by what the highest elected man in the land is saying and doing, let’s concentrate on how to put up guard rails for him when we vote We already know more than enough about what he has said and done. Let’s pledge to elect leaders who’ve shown they care about the people they campaign to represent. There are a lot of good candidates out there who are being overshadowed by the bickering

Let’s not leave everything to elected leaders. As community activists, Get Out the Vote workers, religious leaders and all the good people around us. Show the way to a better nation to all around us. Let’s concentrate on what we are going to do to help people in need. Let’s work on plans to make their lives better. Let’s pledge to get along with our neighbors at home, and our neighbors in Canada, our friends in Ukraine and stop being led by someone who hangs out with those set on disrupting our system of democracy. Ignore the wrecking balls who are more interested in tearing down monuments and praising themselves, supporting evil with lies and unbelievable positions on good people, those who are destroying our military and using government and our taxes on evil things.

Let’s call out corruption, but don’t participate in it. Let us ignore lies about good candidates at all levels. Let’s support the left out. Jamie Davis, a Black man in Louisiana, is a leading candidate for the U.S. Senate. We don’t have to live in Louisiana or be a Democrat or a farmer to support him when you see how much trouble the person running against him is dealing with something people don’t want.

We can vote across party lines when that candidate has expressed the good things she/he will work for when elected. Never mind that in this case she has an R after her name. I know Monique Appeaning in Louisiana who worked in my campaign for Congress when she was a very young woman. I missed winning by a few votes to become the first Black woman to represent my home state in Congress. Forty years later, there has still been no Black woman in the Louisiana delegation. Monique has chosen to pick up the challenge and give my hope life so that other young Black women can have hope in refusing to allow any good thing to be beyond their reach

You know right from wrong, so don’t be afraid to vote for what’s right in a few days. Always promote good. Dr. Abdul El-Sayed and Amy Acton deserve your vote if you are in Ohio or Michigan. Yes, you know right from wrong, so do what’s right wherever you are.

Based on reporting by Seattle Medium.

Faith leaders of different religions came together Thursday afternoon inside the downtown Detroit United Methodist Church to oppose Islamophobic rhetoric that’s ramped up ahead of the Nov. 3 general election.

“In the final weeks of Michigan’s U.S. Senate race, we have watched religious identity used as a weapon,” said Rev. Paul Perez, who leads the downtown Detroit church.

Perez and other faith leaders said at the press conference they weren’t endorsing a candidate, but compassion and understanding as Michigan voters decide who to send to the U.S. Senate.

Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed would be the first Muslim ever elected to the U.S. Senate. His identity is being used by supporters of Rogers’ campaign to cast doubt on his loyalty to the U.S. Constitution.

Earlier this month, El-Sayed’s Republican opponent, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers agreed with a social media post calling El-Sayed a terrorist.

“The charge of dual loyalty has been thrown at Jews for generations,” says Rabbi Alana Alpert, of Ferndale’s Congregation T’chiyah. “When we hear it aimed at our Muslim neighbors we recognize it. And we will not let it be used against anyone.”

At an El-Sayed event Thursday at the Wayne State Fieldhouse, an ant-Muslim activist Cam Higby interrupted his rally as El-Sayed began his remarks.

“Why do you take money from members of the Muslim Brotherhood?” Higby shouted before being escorted out of the gymnasium.

TV and digital ads echo the charge against El-Sayed that he is connected to designated terrorist organizations, which he has denied. He has disavowed and condemned Hamas, the military group controlling Gaza, and the Muslim Brotherhood, a decentralized movement with a long history in Egypt.

While tweets from his half-sister suggest she and her mother had sympathetic attitudes toward the organization, no evidence has been produced that points to El-Sayed being affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.

In an interview with Michigan Chronicle, Higby said he doesn’t believe Muslims belong in America. That sentiment is often found in online replies and comments from accounts run by conservative Christians.

sd Democratic voters have also expressed skepticism about El-Sayed’s faith.

Ahead of the primary election, Farmington Hills School Board member Angie Smith caused an uproar online after she told Michigan Chronicle she wasn’t sure whether El-Sayed could represent everybody.

“Don’t come out speaking only Arabic; don’t come out with your Arabic music on; represent everyone,” Smith said.

She later apologized for the comments.

At Thursday’s press conference, Imam Steve Mustapha Elturk of Warren’s Islamic Organization of North America, shared a story about how he eventually earned the trust of new neighbors who feared his congregation was bringing Sharia law when they arrived.

“When a person’s faith is treated as evidence for disloyalty, every Muslim family hears that message. Our children hear it. They come home from school and ask, ‘Are we really American?,’” Elturk said. I want to answer them today from this pulpit surrounded by our Christian and Jewish brothers and sisters, yes, we are Americans. Yes, we are Americans. Our faith is protected by the same Constitution that protects every other faith.”

Pastor Louis Forsythe II of Detroit’s Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, said that liberation of Christians, Jewish and Muslims are tied together.

“The Black church knows what it means to have our loyalty questioned,” Forsythe said. “We know what it means to be told we are less than full citizens. We are called un-American for demanding the rights of the Constitution promised us.

“Our faith carried us through that, and it was the faith of others standing beside us that helped bend this nation toward justice. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote from a Birmingham jail that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Based on reporting by Michigan Chronicle.

Scripture: Job 1:20–22; Job 42:5 (NKJV)

Job 1:20–22: Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. 21 And he said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.” 22 In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.

Job 42:5: “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You.”

Have you ever experienced a season when everything seemed to go wrong, even though you were doing your best to live faithfully before God? Have you ever prayed, served, sacrificed, and trusted God, only to find yourself facing circumstances you could not understand? If so, you are not alone. The story of Job reminds us that faithfulness to God does not exempt us from adversity, but adversity does not have to destroy our faith.

Job was a man of integrity who feared God and turned away from evil. He was blessed with a large family, great wealth, and an excellent reputation. Yet, in a series of devastating events, he lost his possessions, his servants, and all ten of his children. Then his own health deteriorated, leaving him physically and emotionally broken.

How could such tragedy happen to a man who was faithful to God?

Job’s story challenges the assumption that good people will never experience hardship. Sometimes we mistakenly believe that if we pray enough, obey enough, and live right, we can avoid life’s painful seasons. But Scripture never promises that believers will be spared every trial.

Faith is not measured only by how loudly we praise God when life is good, but also by whether we continue to trust Him when life becomes difficult. Job grieved deeply. He tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell to the ground in worship. His grief did not cancel his faith, and his worship did not mean he was free from pain. He brought his brokenness before God while acknowledging God’s sovereignty.

We can learn from Job that faith does not require us to pretend we are not hurting. We can cry, ask questions, and seek understanding without abandoning our relationship with God.

Job’s friends made matters worse by assuming his suffering must have resulted from personal sin. Their mistake reminds us not to judge people by their circumstances. When others are hurting, they may need our compassion more than our explanations.

Eventually, God spoke to Job out of the whirlwind. God did not provide a detailed explanation for every tragedy Job had experienced. Instead, He revealed the greatness of His wisdom and the limitations of human understanding. Job responded, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You” (Job 42:5).

His encounter with God changed his perspective. He came to recognize more deeply the greatness of the One he served. He was then prepared to pray for his friends and God promised He would answer.

Sometimes God changes our understanding before He changes our circumstances. We may not receive every answer we seek, but we can continue to grow in humility, trust, and compassion.

When your faith is tested, keep praying, keep trusting, keep serving, and remember that your suffering does not define the limits of God’s greatness.

Your faith may be tested by adversity, but you can continue trusting the God whose wisdom is greater than your understanding.

Be Blessed!

Rev. J. Loren Russell is an associate minister at Goodwill Baptist Church and is the clergy officiant of the Evangelical Church of God, all in the Bronx, President/CEO of The JLR Company for Church Financial & Strategic Consulting (718-328-8096), and hosts “Matters of Faith – The Radio Show” on Monday nights from 8:00–10:00 PM on Facebook Live. Be sure to Friend “Matters of Faith” on YouTube and email us at [email protected]. Order your copy of Matters of Faith: The eBook at www.smashwords.com/books/view/993177.

Based on reporting by The Positive Community.

Pastors, civic leaders, and community members in the Bay Area gathered Thursday, Oct. 8, at Church of All Faiths in Oakland for a meet-and-greet marking a renewed push to revitalize the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance (IMA) of Oakland and Vicinity.

A highlight of the evening was the “Souls to the Polls: Our Voice, Our Vote!” segment, led by Pastor Damon Owens of Genesis Church in Antioch, which urged congregations to turn out for the election. Organizers also announced a proposed joint pre-Thanksgiving worship service for Nov. 17, with the location to be announced.

Pastor Marcie Hodge of Prayer Mission Church called the program to order, and Rev. Michael Wakefield Wallace of Mt. Zion M.B. Church led the opening devotion. Pastor Cubie Finley III of Parks Chapel AME read Nehemiah 2:17-18, the passage behind the event’s rallying cry, “Let us rise up and build.”

COGIC National Evangelist Dr. Lucinda Taylor, principal of Westlake Middle School, delivered the opening welcome.

Dr. L.J. Jennings of Kingdom Builders Church gave a brief statement of purpose, explaining the alliance’s mission of ‘Voice, Vision, and Values.’ Pastor Terry Benjamin of Restoration Evangelistic Ministries then introduced the convener, Pastor Mark Anthony Clifton, Sr., who is in his 26th year leading East Oakland Church of God in Christ. Clifton has been reorganizing the alliance to unite clergy around civic engagement. He noted that IMA’s national roots in 1926 in Galveston, Texas, and honored the Oakland leaders who came before him, including his grandfather, the late Bishop Martin J. Clifton, Sr.

“The work of the IMA of Oakland is just a continuation of the work done before us. Today, working together we can continue to solve many of the issues our community faces,” said  Clifton.

Members were invited to share testimonies, challenges, and ministry needs.

Other participants included Dr. Billy Dixon of At Thy Word Christian Center and Pastor Raymond Lankford, CEO of the Oakland Private Industry (OPIC) Council who shared information on the organization’s workforce development programming.

Public officials in attendance included Mayor Barbara Lee, Alameda County Supervisor Nate Miley, and Oakland Unified School District Superintendent Denise Saddler, strengthening the ties between the faith community and local government.

“We are better together and our city is stronger when we partner with our faith leaders,” said Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee.

Bishop Brondon Reems of Center of Hope Community Church provided the closing prayer and Rev. Dr. Jeffrey M. Parker, Sr., host pastor, gave final remarks and thanked attendees for coming. 

“It’s an honor to serve the community and bring everyone together,” said Parker.

Dozens of pastors from Oakland, Antioch, and the greater Bay Area were recognized as supporters.

“I want our partners and attendees involved to help rebuild the city they love and this is only the beginning of a larger movement to restore our great city,” said Clifton.

By Special to The Post

The Council for Global Ancestral Reverence (C4GAR), a group of elders who practice African traditional spirituality, will lead a three-day gathering of prayer and discussion from Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

Called ‘Ancestral Souls Rising,’ the council members and 21 priests will lead the prayers from many parts of the African diaspora: Africa, Portugal, and across the U.S. from Maryland to the Bay Area.

Now in its seventh year, the annual ritual began during the 2020 pandemic when hundreds of thousands of people died alone and were buried in mass graves without rites and rituals according to loved ones’ traditions.

This prayer event was and is intended to give peace to the departed and comfort for the living who still mourn. Each year, we gather names of new ancestors from living elders to elevate them into the “Great Hall of the Titans.”

In ensuing years, C4GAR added themes to the prayer gathering that referenced current events. In 2024, before the consequential presidential election, C4GAR called on people to vote, invoking the memory of Civil Rights Movement heroes and heroines like John Lewis, who urged “Good Trouble,” and Fannie Lou Hamer, who famously declared that she was “sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

The day of global Prayer on Oct. 31 will be followed by a two-day conversation inspired by “The Blueprint,” an Afro-Beat song by UyiosaEl, to write our new blueprint that supports solidarity and action in the Black community.

 “Our elders have, for many generations, known the power of prayer, ritual and breath,” the council said in a statement.

It was and is their intention, then, to use the cultural wisdom, the gift of prayer “and the most sacred thing we have, our breath, to send energy into the world that invokes and honors our ancestors,” the council statement continued.

“Doing this creates a vibration that protects us and employs their ancient wisdom for the well-being of our communities,” the elders said.

The councilmembers, all over the age of 60, recognize that what is now history for so many was once their lived experience. And that history, those joys and sorrows, are now in their bodies.

To them, the uttered prayer and the sacred breath are oaths to an unfolding future that people can still shape.

The council members are Dr. Iyabeji Cathy Royal, Iyalocha Jennifer Dillard, Manbo Charlene Desir (Florida), Nana Sula Spirit (Louisiana), Baba Obafemi Feyemi, Ohen Nedra T. Williams, and Iyalocha Wanda Ravernell-Stewart Emeritus (Oakland).

This year, they also encourage everyone within their reach to VOTE because it is not only a secular and political act, but a sacred one. Remember, the ancestors were denied that right and died for it.

For tickets, go to:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/council-for-global-ancestral-reverence-presents-ancestral-souls-rising-26-tickets-2003127345814?aff=oddtdtcreator

Big Mama had a way of seeing something in you before you could see it in yourself.

My grandmother, Lucille “Big Mama” Allen, came from a generation that believed in correction. I grew up in a household where somebody might tell you, “Go get me a switch.” You knew what that meant.

But age has taught me something: correction without direction can stop behavior, but it doesn’t always develop the person.

Sometimes what we call a young man’s problem is really an undeveloped gift.

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I learned that through mentoring.

I once worked with a young man who was gambling and running numbers. Now, I wasn’t going to celebrate the behavior. Wrong is wrong. But I also refused to believe his mistakes represented the totality of who he was.

I looked underneath the behavior.

This young brother understood numbers. He understood money, calculation and risk. His gift wasn’t gambling. His gift was his mind. So I introduced him to another image: Mansa Musa, the legendary African ruler whose name became synonymous with extraordinary wealth, commerce and economic power. to The message was simple: You already have something inside you. Now what are you going to do with it? That young man redirected his abilities. What had been operating in the wrong environment found purpose through education, accounting and legitimate business. Today, he has built a leading Bookkeeping firm in California’s East Bay.

That is what mentoring can do. It is also why I created programs like City MenTor and why, for 25 years, City Men Cook has celebrated fathers, mentors and men who show up. Mentoring isn’t creating somebody in our image. It is helping somebody recognize what God already placed inside them. I thnaks GOd for allys ike Pastor Keith Lofton who helpe me keep the programs grunded in Faith.

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Scripture tells us to “fan into flame the gift of God.” — 2 Timothy 1:6.

Somebody reading this has a gift that survived mistakes, disappointment, rejection, bad decisions and maybe even your own attempts to bury it.

But it survived.Now comes the question Big Mama might ask

Baby, if God restored your gift, who are you using it to restore?

Don’t just celebrate your comeback. Reach back. Find somebody whose gift came wrapped wrong—and help them unwrap it.

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Big Mama said: Don’t throw away the gift. Redirect it. Develop it. Then give it away.

Terry Allen is an NABJ award-winning Journalist, DEI expert, PR professional, and – Vice President at FocusPR, founder of the charity City Men Cook, and Dallas Chapter President of NBPRS.org

Based on reporting by Texas Metro News.