A mentor-friend-brother of mine, Jonathan Sprinkles once said, If you do not know the purpose of something, you will misuse, confuse or abuse that something. That being said, I felt compelled to make my first post a 'statement of purpose,' not only to introduce you to me... but to reaffirm, really, why I felt the need to start a blog.
I guess we should start with the name. Seraph is a character from The Matrix movie trilogy (I'm a huge movie buff). According to the Seraph's backstory, he is considered a 'guardian angel,' and he feels compelled to 'protect that which matters most.' Throughout the film series, the Seraph also 'tests the heart's resolve' of many people by challenging them to battle, so they may earn access to the people he cares about. Seraph is derived from Seraphim, a term used in the Hebrew Bible to denote the highest ranked of angels, who were guided by 'a continual upward movement, borne inflexibly towards God. Seraphim burned with the fire of charity, or even an excess of charity, and with love for the Creator and perfectly enlightening others.'
The BrotherMan was/is an alter ego I created for myself back in high school, a confident, smooth Brotha who dropped grand poetic knowledge. He was a sort of "Super-Negro," constantly devoted or even bound, perhaps, to the collective uplift of Afrikan and African-American people. In short, he was/is a hero. Much like the heroes of movie and comic book lore (I'm a fan of those, too), though, perhaps his dedication to 'the cause' sometimes resulted/results in a lack of commitment, thereof, to the people he considers close to him.
I consider myself an embodiment of both: a Seraph, a guardian angel devoted to the Creator in Heaven, committed to reaching out to and wrapping my arms around those close to me, quick to stand for and in front of those I care about whenever they are threatened; and the BrotherMan, a not-quite-tragic hero, a liberator for my people trapped in the misinformed and miseducated confines of the modern, real-time Matrix. I do not claim to be perfect or flawless. But I do consider myself faith-livin' and purpose driven.
To borrow the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "I may not get there with you" in terms of the liberation of my people, for ours is an ongoing struggle. But I'll be DAMNED if I'm going to leave you behind in, especially if I possess the tools and knowledge needed to get you out of the struggle in one piece and to empower you for the future battles. That, ultimately, is what I hope to accomplish: to encourage and empower you through my experiences. I accept that what I do may lead me to become as 'invisible' at the titular character in Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man; but through the power of The Creator, I find it more important to remind US that only when we are 'indivisible' as a people, can we achieve our highest potential to change the world.
Stay blessed and steadfast, and stick around: I just might be able to provide the spiritual or intellectual sustenance you've been looking for.
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