Jah in the Flesh: an Examination of Spirit, Power, and Divine Envesselment in Rastafari
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JAH IN THE FLESH: AN EXAMINATION OF SPIRIT, POWER, AND DIVINE ENVESSELMENT IN RASTAFARI ________________________________________________________________________ A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board ________________________________________________________________________ In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY ________________________________________________________________________ by Randy R. Goldson August 2020 ________________________________________________________________________ Examining Committee Members: Terry Rey, Advisory Chair, Department of Religion Laura Levitt, Department of Religion Christopher Johnson, Department of Africology and African American Studies Harvey Neptune, External Member, Department of History e-title page © Copyright 2020 by Randy R. Goldson All Rights Reserved ii ABSTRACT This dissertation examines one of the most significant theological shifts in the Rastafari movement: the transformation of the Rastafari deity, His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I, from Jah in the flesh to the spirit that dwells within the body of each Rasta. Although the belief that Rastas are participants in the divinity of Jah emerged early in Rastafari, it was not until Selassie’s death in 1975 that the theological assertion of Jah dwelling within their bodies as the spirit emerged. Despite the initial claim made by some of the early Rastas that their bodies are the dwelling place of Jah, the notion of Jah as indwelling the spirit remains undertheorized, thus leading to an inadequate view that Rastafari is tenuously an African-derived religion. The aim of this dissertation, therefore, is to make visible the notion of Jah as spirit by focusing on how Rastas conceptualize and ritualize the process of Jah becoming a part of their bodies. The dissertation proposes divine envesselment as a central theoretical and conceptual framework to understand the Rastafari belief that their deity Jah becomes a permanent part of their bodies, thereby imbuing them with divine power, authority, and identity to resist the oppressive state Babylon. By formulating a theory of divine envesselment to account for the indwelling of Jah within the body, this study highlights the social, cultural, and theological factors that enabled Rastas to deify Selassie, continue to proclaim him as God after his death, and distinguish themselves from the oppressive neocolonial state through their ritualization of Jah spirit and power. The study uses an African-centered epistemological approach to argue that the Rastafari belief that Jah dwells within them is not only an embrace of the spirit but an iii ethos rooted in the history of contestation and creative friction within the Afro-Caribbean religious field. Furthermore, an African-centered epistemology locates the process of divine envesselment (Jah becoming the spirit that dwells in flesh) within the social, material, intellectual, and symbolic world of African people on the continent and in the diaspora. The study asserts that the logic, structure, and nature of Rastafari as an African- derived religion with a conception of spirit become evident when examined through an African-centered epistemological lens. iv DEDICATION To my mother Charmaine “Chuku” Martin (1967-1998). v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The production of a dissertation is not an insular activity, although it requires seclusion at times to move the work along. In my case, an entire “village” provided emotional, spiritual, and scholastic support that enabled me to complete my work. I am grateful for their encouragement and would like to thank them. The unwavering support and continued encouragement of my partner and best friend, Dr. Ugochi Ukegbu, made this long and arduous journey through my Ph.D. program most bearable. I am grateful to Ugochi for her love, patience, and thoughtfulness. Special thanks to a host of family members, for whom the completion of this part of my academic journey symbolizes the fruit of years of selfless sacrifice and care. I express heartfelt gratitude to my maternal grandparents Darlin and Bala, my father Barrington Goldson, stepmom Sharon, and my paternal grandparents Carmen and Joe. Respect and appreciation to my aunts, uncles, and relatives for their unfailing support: Annette, Andrea, Joan, Sue, Suzette, Marvin, Chris, and Karen Knott. My deepest appreciation goes out to the members of my dissertation for their guidance and encouragement. Thanks to my doctoral advisor Dr. Terry Rey for his generosity, insightful feedback, and patience. Dr. Rey has supported my academic pursuits from the day I had emailed him back in 2015 to express my interest in doctoral studies at Temple University. Special thanks to Dr. Laura Levitt for her interest in my scholarly pursuit and development. Her advice to graduate students, especially those of us who worked as teaching assistants, to “prioritize your own work,” has helped me stay on track during my Ph.D. My gratitude to Dr. Christopher Johnson for helping me to vi understand the theoretical contours of African-centered cultural practices. Dr. Johnson’s class on Maroonage in the Americas was indeed one of the most transformative courses I have taken at Temple. Thanks to Dr. Neptune for graciously agreeing to be a part of my academic journey by serving as the external reader on the committee. I must say thanks to Orlando Broomfield, Ardaine Gooden, Demar Felix Fearon, Kevin Mckoy, Darren Murphy, and Kirkland Williams for their genuine friendship and support over the last ten years. Thanks also to David Campbell and Danny Nicholas for enduring my endless talk about ideas I had for this project and for sharing suggestions on how I could enrich my research. My gratitude to Michael Wedderburn for “trodding” across Jamaica with me during my fieldwork. Thanks to Dr. Clinton Baldwin and Dr. Eric Henry, two of my professors from Northern Caribbean University in Jamaica, who had encouraged me to pursue academia long before I even considered graduate school. They guided and supported me throughout my time at NCU and continue to mentor me. Finally, much love and respect to Dr. Kerry Maxwell and Dane Campbell for setting me on the path to “sight up” Rastafari and pursue research focused on black liberatory praxis. My appreciation to Dion for connecting me with Ras Bobby. Thanks to Ras Iyah V, Ras Bobby, Ras Iyosef Melku, Ras Elijah Tafari, Mama Lily, Cush I, Dr. Ras Wayne, and Dr. Deena-Marie Beresford for their time, generosity, and insights. Their involvement deeply enriched my research experience and the production of this dissertation. Give thanks! One Love! vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………...iii DEDICATION…………………………………………………………………………….v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………………………………………...……………………...vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS…………………………………………………………….xii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION: “SIGHTING UP” RASTAFARI…...……………………………...1 Selassie’s Death and the Spirit of Jah in Scholarly Discourse…………...……......6 Definition of Key Conceptual Terms…………………………………………......13 Spirit……………………………………………………………………………...13 Power……………………………………………………………………………. 14 Divine Envesselment……………………………………………………………..14 Methods and Methodological Considerations……………………………………15 Fieldwork………………………………………………………………………...15 Digital Archival Research………………………………………………………..22 Theoretical Perspective…………………………………………………………..23 Dissertation Structure………………………………………………………….....25 Endnotes……………………………………………………………………….....28 2. A HISTORICAL AND THEORETICAL OVERVIEW OF THE AFRO-JAMAICAN RELIGIOUS FIELD…………………………………………….....33 Introduction………………………………………………………………………33 Tainan: The First Inhabitants of Jamaica…………………………………….…..34 viii Tainan-African Contact………………………………………………..................39 Sugar, Slavery, and the Domination of Africans………………….………………40 Colonial Laws and the Racist Erasure of African Culture…………………….....50 Slave Laws…………………………………………………………………….....51 Obeah Laws………………………………………………………………………54 African Agency and Cultural Retention……………………………………….....57 Christianization and Early Missionary Work in Jamaica…………………………61 Rebels with a Cause: Slavery’s End and Post-Emancipation Troubles………......72 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….84 Endnotes……………………………………………………………………….....84 3. THE ORIGIN, LOGIC, AND STRUCTURE OF RASTAFARI……………………..95 Introduction………………………………………………………………………95 Socio-historical Context: Jamaica in the early 20th Century…………………......99 The Maroon Path: Cultural Continuities and Discontinuities……………...........105 Work (in) the Spirits: Ancestral Religions as Cosmological Antecedents…………………………………………………...107 Ethiopianism as An Ideological Basis for Rastafari………………………….....124 Rastafari and the Bible……………………………………………………….....134 The Rasta Problem: Persecution and Afrophobia………………………………138 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...147 Endnotes………………………………………………………………………...148 4. I-TRAITS OF JAH: IMAGES OF EMPEROR HAILE SELASSIE I IN RASTAFARI VISUAL AND MATERIAL CULTURE….…………………………159 Introduction……………………………………………………………………..159 ix Selassie’s Coronation and Rastafari Visual Culture…………………………….168 Coronation Symbolism and the I-traits of Jah………………………….……….173 Jah Rastafari, The Son of Solomon…………………………………......173 King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the Conquering Lion of Judah………………………………………179 Haile Selassie I as Apocalyptic Warrior………………………………………...181 I-traits as Religious Commodities………………………………………………190 Rituals and Images at the Church of Haile Selassie I: A Case Study……….......196 Conclusion……………………………………………………….......................200 Endnotes………………………………………………………………………...201