What do the land of Oz and the land of Babel have in common? Is it the dazzling flash of the dazzling brilliance of glittering silver and gold? How about the horse of another color? Maybe it’s the Tower of Oz and the Tower of Babel? The Wizard occupied the tower of Oz and Nimrod occupied the tower of Babel, right? Both rulers were feared and adorned by their people. Isn’t that a similarity? Both were the center of their respective cities. Were they both also cursed because of their spectacular abundance of brilliance and wealth or were they praised by the Most High? One witch threatened one city while the other remained blasphemous. What about the Metropolis of our time … the labyrinth in which we reside? Is there a lesson to be learned? Could we mere mortals understand the teachings of children?

Take a lesson …

On Friday 27, 2011, my granddaughter, Gianni participated in a kindergarten production / play. The school he attends turns out to be a Christian academic institution. His caricature was “Glinda”, the good witch of the North. Needless to say, the story was from the 1939 book and movie, “The Wizard of Oz.” The children did an excellent performance. The audience was also very friendly … parents and grandparents, and other viewers equally enjoyed the show. The cast of characters was spectacular. The five-, six- and possibly seven-year-olds paraded down the yellow brick road with mechanized paper, which surrounded the auditorium / gymnasium and dining room. Cameras of all kinds took photos, recorded and appeared everywhere. The fear of missing out on the nostalgia (and memory) of the moment spread through the air like a sale at the JC Penny’s parade going out of business. The excitement could be felt from the top of the building to the bottom.

Finally, the curtain opened to reveal the creative geniuses to the anxious audience. The thunder of the palms and the whisper of amazement gave way to the non-descriptive cries of mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters and cousins: the ‘people of men’ simply smiled with approval and pride.

The cast of characters consisted of ‘Jymeer’, ‘Rebecca’, ‘Jacqueline’, ‘Timothy’, ‘Bret’, ‘Anwar’, ‘Morgan’, ‘Christian’, ‘Joey’, ‘William’. ‘Amanda’, ‘Raya’, ‘Evelyn’, ‘Ameer’, ‘John’, ‘Gianni’, ‘Zephorah’ and ‘Davaughn’ were just amazing! Many of us are aware, through the movie (and possibly the book) of the exploits of the “Tin Woodman”, the “Scarecrow”, “The Cowardly Lion”, “Dorothy” and “Toto”. Do you remember the goodness of “Glinda” and the “Munchkins” happy, joyful and grateful? How about the cunning, skillful and boisterous “Wizard / Professor Marvel”? Didn’t “Auntie Em” (Uncle Henry just scratch his head) make you angry when Dorothy tried to say something to her?

He made many attempts to convey the fact that “Something wicked around here comes!” But they wouldn’t listen, would they? They all thought, “This girl is crazy!” It took events for them to happen so they could understand that everything we need, be it relationships, financial stability, sustenance and yes … life itself, begins with faith in God, and not with faith in Man or Mammon. It is God who set us all on the “yellow brick road” of life. It is up to us to do the right things and love each other … yet we judge and criticize while we will be the ones to be judged.

The characters in the story had to follow the yellow brick road to reach the Wizard. They sought out the Magician to fulfill their wish (s). The road to perdition is flawed, you wouldn’t get there … it’s a dead end. The deep dark forest land is dangerous. It is full of falsehoods, anti-gods, demons, devils and witches. The ‘Wicked Ole Witch’ tried to kill, destroy and prevent the group of good intentions from achieving their dreams and wishes. Could we equate the “yellow brick road” with the road to salvation? Isn’t it quoted in the Bible that it was Jesus who said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”? (John 14: 6) Where do you walk in this world of Metropolis?

What path do you use to get to your desired destination? How about the path of war, invasion and annihilation? Didn’t it take ‘Glinda’, the good witch, the guardian angel to keep an eye on the company, to keep them on the right track?

The Scarecrow searched for a brain in the land of Oz. Wouldn’t you agree that God gave us all brains with the potential for great wisdom? “If any of you lacks wisdom, ask God for it, who gives generously to all without fail, and it will be given to him.” (James 1: 5)

The Tin Man wanted a heart. What would you do if you didn’t have a heart? Every day people don’t love each other. What happened to “We The People”? Politicians constantly attack what they disagree on: The president wishes good things for the people of this American metropolis, while his colleagues focus on hatred, wealth, lust and contempt. Is it possible for God to change the hatred in the hearts of man and woman? “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26)

The Lion wanted courage. Do we get our value from the knowledge of God? Isn’t he the one who is always with us, protecting us? When we begin to understand this and to believe and practice courage, the more courage we will have to sustain our own existence on this planet to stand up for what is right, regardless of the enemy or challenge. “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be afraid for them, because the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31: 6)

Dorothy wanted to go home. “There is no place like home!” Your house is your castle, nobody dares to disrespect it, right? I wonder … with all the foreclosures, relocations, bankruptcies, floods, insurance plans and scams, starvation and job loss after job loss; Politicians want to eradicate Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, Unions, Medicare, Medicaid, Food Stamps and Public Welfare while sending our jobs overseas to enrich us (bypassing the tax collector with shelters and low overheads i.e. decent wages for the workers). They don’t want to contribute their fair share while supporting the tax increase for you and me. They tell you your future is secure … “just anti-increase in your contributions – we need your money” – it doesn’t matter if you get UC, SS or any other supplemental or residual income … it’s TAX! The only power is OPM (Other Peoples Money). There is no place like home …? I don’t think I’m going to live anywhere other than the good America. What are they doing to people in other countries? Do you remember Zarganar? What about the atrocities that occur in Mother Africa, Asia, Egypt, and oh yes, the entire Middle East and some other unnameable societies? It is said that we have the perfect home waiting for us in heaven, while we shit on it. This world IS NOT OUR HOME – WE ARE ONLY TENANTS – WE ARE HERE TEMPORARILY! “But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord lives, OUR GOD (Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and any other religious denomination).” (Philippians 3:20)

Let me tell you about Babel … the Earth, the Tower.

“Come, let’s build ourselves a tower whose top reaches up to the stars! And on the top of the tower we will write the words: Great is the World and its Creator! And great is Man!”

But the minds that had conceived the tower of Babel could not build it. The task was too great. So they hired labor in exchange for a salary. But the hands that built the tower of Babel knew nothing of the dream of the brain that had conceived it. Thousands upon thousands sweated, bled, and died. The hymns of praise of one man became the curses of the other. People spoke the same language, but they didn’t understand each other …

The head and hands were not in cohesion, one dominated the other subjective. Great is the world and its Creator and great is Man – “The Head and the hands needed a mediator!”

The brain behind the dream could not control / contain the contracted hand (s) … and began to sow discord between the head and the hand (s): divide and conquer. Lust and the desire to contain and control – suppress, oppress, possess and cause hatred … soon led the tower to collapse and collapse – to the dust from which it came.

Pay attention and be warned (powers that be) … the seven deadly sins (anger, greed, laziness, pride, lust, envy and gluttony) – greed is the cutting edge practice of many governments and their so-called leaders – greed, lust and gluttony. Does this all sound familiar … lately? The lifestyles of the rich, famous, political beggars and warmongers will be his / your / our downfall. These symptoms have manifested themselves numerous times, haven’t they?

“Let the workers do what they want … let those in the deep use force and do evil, so that we can be justified in using force against them … here is a New World Order! ! “

Among us, a mediator whose number is forty-four. They will try to destroy (our) faith in him. Who is the heart? Peace be your name (some who call Yashua, Jesus and the Christ). “O mediator, show them (head and hands) the way between them …!”

The children continue to show us the way. Ask them if their friend (s) skin color matters – watch them play, sing, eat, run, sleep, laugh and hug together for no reason or rhyme – watch them entertain with their genius and zeal, the cohesion of love , faith and trust in each other while protected from evil, animosity and hatred on this land between Oz and Babel.

Take a lesson.

Until next time …