LOVE TRIUMPHANT: THE OUTRO

Do you remember when people could not marry the one they love because of their matched genders? Did you doubt that Love would triumph over Hate?

It’s been a long time coming. I know we’ve been singing, “A Change Is Gonna Come” for some decades now that many have begun to doubt that they would witness this change in their lifetime. But that change is indeed now real, manifested, live and in vivid living color...rainbow colors! I know that those rising from the ashes of Stonewall burning only to be put to the test by the infernos of a plague, terrorism, bullying, unrelenting demoralizing rhetoric bashing your love and human dignity to bits, and ex-gay ministries seeking to brainwash and trick you into believing that what you instinctively know is a lie, that all of this may have left you exhausted, hardened and maybe even bitter, cynical and numb. But you have surmounted it all and are alive for this day. Not only may you have doubted that you would witness this day, but you were not certain that you would survive your youth like many of your beautiful and beloved contemporaries who are not here with you in the flesh to celebrate this momentous occasion, which then makes for a bittersweet reflection with tears. We can pour libations unto their memories this weekend as we ourselves eat, drink and be merry...I mean gay.

Love is a fire, a spiritual fire. It’s dynamic energy is palpable and only brings out the best in those engulfed in its flames. This is because like that burning bush Moses encountered in the desert, it is a fire which stimulates, inspires and edifies. It does not destroy. Love liberates. It does not constrict like religion. When it consumes, it integrates and harmonizes. It does not disintegrate. If it destroys anything, it incinerates only that which is untrue, unjust and insubstantial, leaving behind only that which is true, beautiful and whole in a refined and polished state. That is what we have endured for the past 45 years when we first began in earnest to snap the fetters on the love in our hearts and our human dignity. Stonewall was its breakout and Friday, June 26th, 2015 was Love’s breakthrough!

In the confrontation between the river and the rock, the river always wins, not by a stubborn front, but by persistence. Love can not help but be persistent because by its very nature it is perserverent. Its energy never gets used up but only increases in potency the more it is given away. Anything standing in its way which cannot be consumed will be mowed down in its trek, GUARANTEED! This is because love is the nature of the human heart. It begins in the heart and then reaches our mind when it comes to the prudent decision to marry until death do you part and then persists until the end and even perhaps thereafter.

Hate, on the other hand, operates in the reverse. It begins in the mind through ignorance and consumption of lies, half-truths, mistruths and untruths becoming superstitions and paranoid suspicions. This misunderstanding creates separation which leads to broken communication by the time it reaches the heart as the emotions of fear, distrust and animous. The result is to call your brother a stranger, a queer, something alien and soon an otherized enemy which needs to be destroyed.

Passionate, aggressive and destructive as hate can be, Hatred builds its foundation in the dark upon that which is not the verified truth, making it unstable from the beginning. Who would doubt that the light of Love would upon confrontation expose its fallacies and fault lines and with the indomitable Truth undermine its efficacy, leaving its structure to collapse like a house of cards? Hatred is only the hot air of stupidity, that’s all it really is. It is no match for Love, never was and never will be. Because of our Love, we were set up for victory from the very beginning. All we had to do was become conscious of it. Our opponents realized it too, a little too late after discovering that they had brought a knife to a gunfight, which is why Love Activists had become accused of being bullies. They could not figure out how to beat us, and with each little victory, the more resentful they grew. The more hate they spew, the more we were advanced. Some arriving at the wisdom of our truth conceded and a few even joined our cause, while others stubborn to the core threaten to set themselves on fire with their hate. If you need proof that all of what I am saying is the real deal and not just rhetorical poetry, review Friday’s news reports for your evidence, about those jubilant and those steaming with indignation. It is Poetic Justice.

So now what? You have in June 26th, the bonafide veritas of the tremendous power which resonates within your own heart. It is indeed a super power more potent than anything Superman could ever wield. Thankfully, it is only useful for the cause of justice. If we have now used it to accomplish the seemingly “impossible”, what else can we do with it now? The cause for equality, justice, peace and harmony is not yet won, though we celebrate a milestone victory. As Lovers, you are Champions, Peaceful Warriors to be reckoned with, and now you know it.

From the beginning, I have fashioned the strategy and philosophy of the Love Under Fire Campaign upon the Gandhian method of Satyagraha, “Satya” which means Truth, “Graha” meaning Force. In Gandhian philosophy, Love, Truth, GOD and The Soul are one in the same and are interrelated concepts of the same thing. Love is the attitude. Truth is the science, the eternal and immutable laws. GOD is the source. The Soul is the essence, the energy and the light. When one says that they are in love and truly means it, what they are saying is that the attitude of Love has brought them in conscious connection and sensation with their Soul, the soul which is in and interconnects all things. When this happens, one does become a physical manifestation of GOD. Thus, Satyagraha can also be interpreted as Soul Force. To diverge from the violent connotations of “Force” for our purposes we will use the best English equivalent, “Soul Power”. The word “Power” is...well...empowering and has nothing necessarily to do with “forcing” people to do anything or controlling anyone outside of yourself. That is not what Satyagraha, Soul Force or Soul Power is about. It is all about harnessing the power within which connects with all the power that is without and it is Love which brings everything into accord.

Don’t worry if I just went a little too deep and sent you on a mind trip. The Love Under Fire Campaign was only an experiment, if only for myself to test the useful power of Love, to see if it is still true and lives as it is reported in the days of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, The Early Christians, Jesus of Nazareth, Socrates and the Old Testament Prophets. I point again to June 26th as the answer to this experiment.

Now, I have begun work upon an actual school, a learning institution where you may learn how to use your new found superpower for the work which lies ahead. The X-Men Superheroes had a school, and now you will soon too. If there is a prestigious academy for those who wish to train in the discipline of violent warfare and military strategy, the “West Point Military Academy” shouldn’t there be an alternative institution for those wishing to train in the potent discipline of Nonviolence, or Soul Power? Rev. Dr. King said “Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.” Now you may receive this training and education just as Gandhi and King would have taught it to you, for we are basing the bulk and core of the curriculum upon instructional material they have left behind for those like you who would rise up in their legacy to carry the baton of their work forward. Without actually invoking their ghosts, We are bringing them back posthumously as the master instructors of this course and including complimentary material, both contemporary and ancient which gives deeper insights into their philosophies and principles. The course is philosophical. It is as tactical as any law school program or course on military strategy and generalship maneuvers. It is scientific, and when you own it and begin to express the core of your spirit, values and ideals through it, it also becomes an art. By course completion, students will be able to take up any social justice concern near and dear to their hearts using the Gandhian method with opportunities for networking, collaboration and synergizing with many other passionate and brilliant new leaders reshaping our society for a quantum evolution toward peace, justice and harmony. It is called, “Soul Power University”.

We are just now in the midst of recruiting a leadership staff to serve on its Founding Executive Board. So, if you are inspired by this work and are confident in your leadership and organizing talents, we are looking for you. Please contact me, Branden Mattox at 404-492-4197 or email me at dir.loveunderfire@aol.com . I am also found on Facebook by the same name. For further details, like our fanpage www.facebook.com/SoulPowerU In the beginning, we are preferrably seeking those in the general Atlanta Metro region or those willing and able to commute to Atlanta at least on a monthly basis and can work on a very part time basis for a modest compensation at the beginning between 4-10 hours a week.

It has been an amazing ride, these past 3 years. It has changed me. I congratulate all of the lovers, activists, politicians and artists who have worked so hard to bring us this day, one step closer to a perfect union.

In the spirit of Love & Truth

-Branden G. Mattox

NEVER BETRAY YOURSELF

One of the most pivotal lessons 32 years has taught me is to never betray myself. We betray ourselves when we deny our truth in exchange for someone else's perspective. No one shares your exact spiritual address in time and space coordinates. This locale is yours and it was preordained. Therefore, no one has your exact perspective except you, and the ONE who knows and sees all. From our limited human vantage point, there is so much that we can not see, experience and understand, though you will acknowledge insights in ways no one else will. While there is so much we don't know, there are things from our personal scope and unique experiences which shows us truths for a certainty beyond a shadow of a doubt, even when we can not prove it to a skeptic or a nonbeliever. That vision, that insight may not be for them to see or understand, though it is revealed to you as clear as crystal.

We betray ourselves when we deny to ourselves the truth which has been revealed to us. We betray ourselves when we do not trust that truth. We betray ourselves when we compromise our own sense of ethics for any reason. We betray ourselves when we treat others in ways we would find unjust or disagreeable if done to us. We betray ourselves when do not follow our hearts. What I want to drill down on tonight is how we betray ourselves when we accept and tolerate abuse, mistreatment and disrespect out of desperation. Like the sage advice of William Shakespeare, "To thine own self be true, so that one canst not then be false to any man." You then make yourself unfit to stand up for anyone or anything so long as you adopt such an expedient backbone.

I have often been criticized for being "foolishly proud" when in the position of need and vulnerability, I have resisted the need to kiss butt or to tolerate condescending, controlling, patronizing and denigrating attitudes and behavior from so-called "helpers" in order to get my needs met. This is wholly unnecessary. I have learned the humility that as a human being a part of the whole, I am entitled to needing others. When in positions to help others in need, I have done so without question, judgment or expecting anything in return. The opportunity to serve is a privilege and a payment in itself, to know the feeling of contributing value to my world and paying the rent for the space and time I am taking up in this world. So why should I deny someone else that same privilege? So many people need to know that they matter, and they can find this best through the act of selfless service. Even if I am on the recipient end, I am allowing them a privilege to serve my needs, while my heart is crushing with gratitude. They are in reality serving themselves, serving their truth and in so doing, serving their GOD. It isn't even anything personal. When ego, disrespect, abuse and exploitation creeps into this loving transaction, it blows the truth, value and the beauty of the service for all involved.

If someone is not serving you in love and out of love, it is best if they decide to deny you and just leave you alone. Any act of service outside the space of Agape or humble altruistic love is serving poison to your spirit. While you may very well need what they have to offer, you do not ever need to betray yourself in order to get it. Truth be told, if it is GOD's will for you to have it, GOD will plunder them of it and give it to you, if they choose not to give it willingly, like Israel plundered Egypt on its way out of bondage. If it is not yours to have, GOD has something more perfect in store for you that what you think you might need from them would only get in the way of something better. Never forget this. When we betray ourselves to get what we need, that is the definition of prostitution. Prostitution is idol worshiping. "The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want."

For the need of companionship, many tolerate verbal and physical abuse, neglect and infidelity. For the need of income, many barter their most precious resource, their time in labor which does not honor and make use of their talents and passions, nor educates them in the ways of money-making. What adds insult to the injury is when many endure exacting and sometimes abusive and punitive micromanagement practices which is anything but appreciative. For the need of belonging, we compromise just about everything which makes us beautiful and unique to assimilate to the values of the masses, we lie about our love, suppress our counter gender expressions, chemically burn the curls out of our hair, bleach the melanin out of our skin, and disguise or true image behind makeup. All the while, our true identities given to us and to the world through PROVIDENCE sulks in the corner, teary-eyed wondering why they are not wanted and appreciated by the body they have been given to inhabit.

My favorite Dr. Phil McGraw quote is, "You have to teach people how to treat you." If you are being abused, disrespected or mistreated, you must begin taking responsibility for enabling this if you really want it to end and take flight in the power of your truth. Our spirits know full well when we are receiving love and when we are not, even when the specifics of the violations are subtle and insidious as often is the case. Never lie to yourself about this. Love doesn't hurt. Love feels good. Love does not go upside your head or put you down. Love builds you up, lifts you up, fills you up and edifies your character. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." -1 Corinthians 13:4-7

A good church is one which is if intolerant of anything is intolerant of anything unloving. If upon stepping over the threshold, you do not immediately feel the warmth of love, turn around and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them. I mean it.

The word ABUSE, can be deduced to its rudiments, AB-USE (Outside-of-Purpose) If you have not gotten crystal clear on what your purpose is in life, to yourself, to your world and to each person you share a relationship with and the roles you play to them, you are leaving yourself wide-open and vulnerable to AB-USE. The most original purposes given to us as newborn babies is to be an object representing an opportunity to love. On the first moments of entering the world, we hadn't done anything wrong yet, our survival was totally dependent upon love and that is the purpose we served for our parents and our family from the very beginning. Our first purpose is still that of being an object representing an opportunity to love. Once you get clear about that and your other purposes as early as possible, then when others attempt to use you in ways which are contrary or outside the scope of your purpose to them, you can kindly, yet firmly assert your boundaries by communicating to them that you are not here for that, and mean it. Teach them how to treat you by demonstrating to them the best treatment you can bestow upon them. You teach people how to treat you by being kind and true to yourself as you observe this rule to never betray yourself. Lastly, you teach people how to treat you by knowing how to get up from the table when love is no longer being served. Do not trade disrespect for disrespect. To do so is to betray yourself.

Regardless of my social position with others or my degree of dependency upon them, respect is the ground rule in my dealings with them. I have no problem bringing whatever it is that we have going on to a screeching halt and making it clear that we will have respect for one another, or we will have nothing at all. I don't allow people to scream at me or address me outside of my given name, terms of endearment or titles of respect. Not with me, they won't. This is only a precursor to them feeling allowed and justified to strike me if they could get away with it, if I did not check them at the first instance of undeserved disrespect.

Those who continually and consistently betray themselves are not to be trusted. For if they would sell themselves out cheap, what trust should we have in them not to also sell us down the river at the first expedient opportunity? The same goes for those would ever suggest that you should betray yourself. And that is what I know for sure.