Trying Times – “WHEN WE STARTED …”
by
Dr. Gale A. Ragan-Reid (5/29/2013, 6/1/2013, 6/15/2013, 6/18/2013, 6/22/2013, 6/29/2013, 7/6/2013, 7/11/2013, 7/15/2013)
“But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him”(St. John 6:64, King James Version (KJV) [The bread of life])... “Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you?” (St. John 13: 8-12, KJV [He foretelleth his betrayal])... “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you” (St. John 15:3, KJV [The true vine]).
Greetings, in the most holy name, of our Lord and Saviour, Christ Jesus,
John, the disciple witnessed Peter's denial of Christ, “...Art not thou also one of his disciples? He denied it, and said, I am not...Did not I see thee in the garden with him? Peter then denied again: and immediately the cock crew” (St. John 18: 25-27, 13: 36-38, KJV [Peter denied Christ]). Matthew, the disciple, also witnessed (His witness is true to Christ's saying that Peter would deny him three times, St. Matthew 26:75, KJV), “...Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest...This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth. And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man...Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee. Then he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew” (St. Matthew 26:69-74, KJV [Peter denied Christ three times]).
Peter denied Christ. What made a loyal disciple, who, cut-off the ear of one of those that came to arrest Christ turn away and deny (St. John 18:10, KJV [Peter cut-off Malchus' right ear]? What made a loving disciple, who, would also profess his love for Christ three times, turn away and deny? (St. John 21: 15-17, KJV [Peter sincerely professed love for Christ three times]).
The flesh is weak. In a study, we found this to be, truth, in the workings of the world, so many times: for example, the weakness of the flesh made many innocent captured citizens confess to crimes that they knew nothing of.
Is it the stress, the pressure of duress, the fear of being a captive that made folks confess or deny information? In Dr. Phil McGraw's, new book, Life Code, published by Bird Street Books, he
says, “People stressed out tend to forget and the stress creates fear, avoidance, and a need to run away. In an anecdotal of case studies, one woman who needed to perform on stage, forgot her name. Another man, forgot about his car filled with his groceries for about four hours” (McGraw, 2013). Why did Trayvon Martin's father and brother deny the sound of his cry, then, later, rebut and factually say, it was, his cry? I remember a prophet said, “Fear not!”, is in the bible, one time for each day in the year, so, that was at least 365 times yet many folks still, tremendously so, suffered, with fear and in fear. For the Trayvon Martin's camp (those testifying on his behalf since Trayvon was killed), the fear stemmed from death threats and with Trayvon already dead, I imagine their fear was great, indeed. However, the fear, in the George Zimmerman's camp, did not disable them from standing up for George, possibly because George, lived and was the only witness of the killing.
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It's amazing, the folks in the neighborhood stayed inside their homes and you could clearly hear the noise of the fight on their cellphones yet they remained safely in their homes. What about the community, Sanford? As a child, I heard it was a prison town-known, as a prison town and run with the same mentality as the prison located in the same jurisdiction. Perhaps, it
was unspoken but known, to everyone, to stay inside their homes, obviously Trayvon Martin, did not know the culture of the Sanford community but, that's like the community was just like the prison and preferred citizens, free to stay inside just as those incarcerated as inmates, in the prison. Well, why was George Zimmerman, so disturbed because Trayvon Martin walked out and about, to the local mart to purchase tea and skittles?
For Trayvon Martin, the fear factor worked against the strength of his father's and brother's hearts and rendered them speechless and when they did speak, they denied and lied. Unfortunately, the Zimmerman camp, strongly held up and everyone, spoke on the same page and authenticated that the cry, was not Trayvon Martin's cry but factually, George Zimmerman's. Obviously, the division, over whether the cry, was Trayvon Martin's or not, in the Martin camp, cost them, for a house divided standing against a united house, could not sustain itself, in fact, once, it wavered. Even with the explanation, of why, they doubted that the voice was Trayvon Martin's cry, without expert witness to testify to the nature of captured or citizens, in the wake of traumatic events, to deny or lie because of fear, left the Martin camp, weak, with little evidence to prove beyond a shadow of doubt, whether George Zimmerman intended to kill, at the moment, he pulled the trigger.
Obviously, a jury of six women, showed compassion for George Zimmerman and felt that he did not intend to kill. What about their compassion for Trayvon Martin, an innocent child, lawful and decent at the same moment that the intent of George Zimmerman, was judged, by them? Trayvon could not speak for himself as George Zimmerman could; he could not tell his father and his brother, what happened because his voice was taken by George Zimmerman, silenced for ever. Why?
Why did he kill, if he did not intend to, then, kill? It's a compelling supposition. Is it not? Let's suppose that he did intend to kill, then, he did just what he intended to do.
On the contrary, as the jurors, who acquitted supposed; let's supposed he did not intend to kill, then, again, we compelling question, why did he kill? There are those who strongly feel, a close range shot, in the heart, does not show lack of intent to kill or merely only winging an aggressor, to gain the advantage, in a fight; it showed vicious, calculated, cold-blooded murder, especially that Zimmerman profiled Trayvon Martin since he sought Martin out, pursued him; tracked him, despite the command from dispatch to STOP. The defense sought to showcase George Zimmerman as a soft and fuzzy teddy bear, with no fighting skills that a mere child, mercilessly beat down, which left Zimmerman no other option than to “shoot” but not “shoot to kill”. Are we to suppose that George Zimmerman, was such a fuddy-duddy that he also had no shooting skills or lost all control but the gun was READY to fire, READY to release a bullet; prepared to shoot.
Who prepared the gun, placed the gun, in READY to fire, READY to shoot, READY to release a bullet? Does not that require thinking on George Zimmerman's part, to release the safety or was the safety released ahead of the struggle in the fight, calculated and planned? Who truly knows what was in the heart and mind of George Zimmerman at the moment he pulled the trigger, Was it to inflict great bodily harm? Or, not?
Well, George Zimmerman, factually confessed to inflicting great bodily harm and he factually, did inflict great bodily harm. The explanation of why he did so, does not, cannot negate that fact. It is still great bodily harm. It is still a murder. Trayvon Martin is dead.
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My heart cries out for the father and the brother, who did not take courage to defend their son and brother, in the wake of the storm of Trayvon Martin's death. My heart cries out for the mother and the girlfriend, who held up in their heart to sustain and defend, Trayvon Martin's, truth, of the fight that led to his death. An aggressor he feared, for he spoke of the man who was
in pursuit of him, to his girlfriend. My heart cries out for the cries of us all.
The idea that Trayvon Martin did not cry, was difficult, for me, to believe that a child did not cry out. It seemed the adults felt satisfied when an adult confronted a child, in that neck of the woods instead of having felt a separation, a dividing line that adults did not fight with children. More importantly, the idea that George Zimmerman, was more a child than a man, was preposterous and down-right ridiculous, especially with no evidence of autism, disability or slow-learning. Are we to assume that Trayvon Martin was more a man than a child and George Zimmerman was more a child than a man? Is it highly unlikely that Trayvon Martin, a child, in a fight with a man, at least 60 or more pounds larger than himself and so many years his senior, pounced on him, lifted his head and upper torso that aggressively time and time again, until his death?
Yes, it is highly unlikely that Trayvon Martin lifted George Zimmerman's head and upper torso that aggressively time and time again, until his death. Even with an adrenalin rush, he had to be SUPERMAN to withstand the onslaught of George Zimmerman's defense, if you maintain he was the aggressor, as well as, Trayvon Martin had to hold up, in stamina, to mercilessly slam George Zimmerman's body down to the ground again and again. I assert that this is highly unlikely especially since he was not exercising or even running, to build up his stamina, he was just walking, merely in a stroll, to the local convenience mart and back. It would take tremendous stamina to engage on that level of aggression.
Without an expert witness to speak of stamina in correlation to body height, weight and build (mass), it is rather obsequiously demeaning (sycophantic darkness of old demons) to suggest and portray in animation strength and stamina on that level as truth of Trayvon Martin's performance in the fight. I just do not see it as possible, no matter, how well, the technical tools that displayed George Zimmerman's storyline depicted such a reality. It was highly unlikely that Trayvon Martin performed on that level of aggression. It is mere fantasy, more like a video game depiction of any fight but I do not see it as the fight between Trayvon martin and George Zimmerman.
Most importantly, adults helped children to sort through their puberty issues and community helpers, did not kill children. Adults should not place themselves on the same level as children and initiate in pursuit, a neighborhood brawl, beat down, fight. Simply, we cannot, allow the fear of a father and brother, to turn a case, when threats of death loomed, in the midst, to halt their efforts, to defend their dead loved one. We must discover, the cause and defend the effect, to make sense of it all, and objectively move forward, instead of taking the moment of advantage, to throw the case, take the case. Trayvon Martin would speak for himself, if, he were allowed to live since the fight but Trayvon Martin is dead and needed the strength of his family, friends, and listeners on, to speak for him.
And, of course, those people who can stand to sort through the evidence, great or small, so that justice is served must do what they can because this is the land of the free; leaders not only in the free world but leaders for those who live in oppressed nations. The fear of the life we live must not consume us, so that we deny peace and cannot live. Yes, Trayvon Martin's life was well-served because unbeknownst to many, Trayvon was a messenger, he was born, to bring the message, How free is your freedom? and awaken the hearts of man, to the happenings, of a community, a neighborhood, an offensive culture, that encouraged all the malpractices that
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Christ spoke against: turn the other cheek instead of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, pray for those who despitefully use you, in the Sermon on the Mount. There are those who believe George Zimmerman, a want-to-be police, who failed several times, to achieve goals and denied his knowledge, used Trayvon Martin, when he saw him alone walking the streets, to fuel his
ambition, that he was a small man not in size but in decency, no matter how he lacked skills; for
he had great ambitions and was just about willing to do just about anything to achieve his goals, even kill.
Whatever George Zimmerman is, as a man, he knows, for it is his personal best that he sought, in the killing but he must appeal to his own conscious, to strengthen himself and ask himself, Is the death of a child, a badge of honor? May the Lord be with you. May the Spirit be with you. Christ is the Prince of Peace. Let's fervently, pray; for this kind of prayer comes not without fasting and prayer.
McGraw, P. (2013). Life Code: The New Rules For Winning In The Real World. Los Angeles, CA:Bird Street Books
