Do you believe that it is unloving to exclusively focus on justice for Black people everywhere, to the exclusion of other races and groups? Does it feel like inclusion and integration are the only ways to peace on Earth? Do your religious or spiritual beliefs preclude you from embracing a spirituality that is specific to Black people—specific to us?

First and foremost, Black Liberation Spirituality is for and about Black people. Its principles are meant to help guide us in achieving freedom from racism and oppression. Notice that every time we seek justice for the atrocities done to us, our plight is immediately diminished by White people bringing up injustices done to other groups. We get lost in the shuffle as if our history is commensurate with theirs. It is not.

There was a time, for instance, when Black History Month meant something. It was recognition of the often hidden and ignored contributions Black people have made in every area of human endeavor. Now it is only one of the months designated to honor some minority group or another. We literally can’t have anything of our own without it being co-opted into oblivion by incursion from other races or by our being lumped together with other groups. Black Liberation Spirituality is about following a sacred path that is exclusive to our struggle.

Everyone deserves freedom. The problem is that Black people in America have trouble recognizing that every other culture and group on Earth instinctively looks after their own. They act in their own self-interest for the preservation of their group. Here in the United States, Black people are confused; we mistakenly think that all Americans are our own. That is simply not the case. Our own consists of that discrete subset of people belonging to the ethnic group called Black people.

So who belongs to our group? How do we identify ourselves? It’s simple. We identify ourselves based on our experience of being Black. We are a vastly diverse group in our outlooks, values and personalities, but our Blackness is unmistakable because we wear it on our skin. If you have lived your life, day in and day out, experiencing discrimination and injustice because what people see is a Black person when they look at you, then you belong to the ethnic group that comprises Black people. Even though we constitute a profoundly diverse group, our Blackness itself is uniquely ours. Therefore, it is on this basis that we must organize ourselves. In taking our group’s wide-ranging diversity and geography into account, BLS reaffirms the theme of the historic 1972 Black National Convention in Gary, Indiana:

Unity Without Uniformity!

Principle 1: BLS is Unapologetically Black Nationalist

Black Liberation Liberation Spirituality seeks to achieve justice and equality for the global Black Nation. Our Black identity is inclusive of all Black people here in the U.S, in Africa, and throughout Diaspora. In order to achieve Black Liberation on a global scale, Black people everywhere must unite based on our Blackness—autonomously, and without interference or infiltration from other groups.

Black Liberation Spirituality looks at spirituality through the lens of our specificity. We are Black people with a common history, background and set of experiences that can bind us together the same way countrymen all over the globe come together to commune with, support, and uplift their own. Black people’s spirituality should likewise bind us together to provide mutual aid and support to achieve liberty, self-determination and self-sufficiency. 

Black Liberation Spirituality is both radical and revolutionary. It recognizes that the global White power structure will never assent to genuine racial justice for Black people, on whose backs and natural resources White supremacy has been built. It recognizes that we will never be free so long as we remain subject to the economic restraints imposed upon us by the system of global capitalism. Therefore, we must create justice and equality for ourselves, on our own terms, with our own resources. That means that we must become global in our assessment of the scope of our Blackness, and more radical in our approach to achieving political, social and especially, economic independence. Further, Black Power Spirituality recognizes that socialism is a more humane, evolved approach to human relations as we choose from its tenets those we deem relevant for the uplift of the Black race. 

In upcoming articles, we will explore the other four Principles of Black Liberation Spirituality. They are an expression of Black spirituality, intended for those among us who seek to live a loving, meaningful life. They illuminate the divine beings that we are. They guide us toward practicing cooperation, self-sufficiency and self-determination among ourselves while not sacrificing the morals and compassion at the root of any form of spirituality. These Principles are meant to guide us toward our own salvation . They are meant to show us how to save ourselves.

The Church of the Cosmic Mother explores the metaphysical approach to creating freedom and justice for Black people. It teaches how creation on the physical plane works and gives specific examples of how we can practice metaphysical principles to change our world. Get your copy today!