Mark Dawes, Staff Reporter
Blake Hannah in an expressive mood. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
At age 44, a miracle happened in the life of Barbara Makeda Blake Hannah. She became pregnant. She had been praying and trying to have a child for years, but without success.
The diligence in prayer began when she stumbled on a document at her home which she had taken back to Jamaica with her after having lived in England.
In the document was The Prayer of the Virgin Mary Out of the Bandlet of Righteousness.
She started praying regularly and anointing herself with holy oil. She was then a member of Holy Trinity Ethiopian Orthodox Church. There was a section in the prayer where it said ask for what you want. She asked for a son.
Premature baby
A month later, her stomach began feeling weird. She went to see her physicianDr. John Martin (now deceased). He made her do a number of tests.
She went back for the results and an overjoyed Dr. Martin, struggling to contain himself, told her, "Barbara, it's a miracle. You are pregnant. Please call one of his names John."
The child was indeed born a boy and one of his given names is John. He arrived prematurely. He was birthed after seven months into her pregnancy on February 6 - Bob Marley's birthday. He was named Makonnen David Yohannes (John) Hannah.
Being prematurely birthed, little Makonnen remained in the hospital a little longer to receive intensive care. His mother feared for his life.
The youngster was visited in hospital by His Eminence Abuna Yeshaq of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church who based in New York, had oversight responsibilities for the local chapter of this ancient Christian denomination.
Barbara Blake Hanna and son Makonnen at the press conference held following Jah Cure's release from prison on Saturday, July 28. -Ian Allen/Staff Photographer
A Nazarite
Abuna Yeshaq told Blake Hannah to read the first three chapters of First Samuel. She did.
It was the story of Hannah, who was barren and who cried unto the Lord for a child, and the Lord heard and gave her a child called Samuel who became a prophet in Israel. The Lord's instruction to Hannah was that Samuel was to be a Nazarite and that no razor should be used on his head.
Immediately, Blake Hannah resolved that her son would be Nazarite and that no razor would come on his head.
She was then a Rastawoman without the locks. But on reading those chapters in First Samuel, she then decided to grow her own dreadlocks. This was so that she could be an example to her son of the Nazarite way of life.
Not long after her son was born, she opted to add a 'h' to her surname there transforming it from 'Hanna' to 'Hannah'. This is in honour of the Biblical character who inspired her.
Head covering
Before growing the locks, she simply kept her head covered, especially when she prayed. She continues to keep her head covered now that she has dreadlocks. She holds strong views on the importance of head covering. A woman's head, she said, should be covered when she prays.
"When I would uncover my head and walk on the street, men would say, 'Hi sexy'. But when I cover my head and walk on the street men would say 'Blessed love, empress'. In fact, Western society is the only place where a woman goes bareheaded. In other world cultures, a woman, when she reaches a certain age, covers her head.
She explained that before she started growing her dreadlocks, " I had this pretty hair. But that is a vanity by itself. I remember once my mirror broke and for seven years, I went without a mirror. What you need a mirror for? I can tie my head without looking in a mirror. I could say to someone 'Is my slip showing?'.
"What Rasta taught me was to put aside feminine vanity, to look more priestly in behaviour. I am born in June, so I am from the tribe of Levi.
"The tribe of Levi have no inheritance on the earth - the other tribes are supposed to minister to Levi. I learnt it did not matter that I did not have a house or a car or a bank account. My destiny was to be the preacher of things spiritual".
Blake Hannah has been in the public eye for many years. The daughter of Veronica Stewart, a devout Catholic who worked at the Kingston Public Hospital and Evon Blake, poet, journalist and magazine publisher.
She was christened a Roman Catholic and confirmed as an Anglican while attending Hampton High School for Girls in St. Elizabeth.
After Hampton, she came to school in Kingston, and went to the St. Luke's Anglican Church in Cross Roads, St. Andrew.
Disillusioned with Christianity
At St. Luke's, she began to be disillusioned with Christianity. Her new church had members she felt who seemed to be in a perpetual fashion contest.
"At St. Luke's, you had to have a new dress and a hat when you go to church every Sunday. Church was how you looked. Church was dressing up to go to church."
Shortly after leaving school, world-famous evangelist Billy Graham came to Jamaica and conducted a gospel campaign in what was then called Knutsford Park (now New Kingston).
"He said 'Do you sincerely want to be saved?'. I put up my hand and went forward. I did not see any effect after that."
She explained that when she went forward, she was not counselled concerning salvation nor was she steered in the direction of a Bible-believing church.
At 20, she went to live in England where she embraced the Black Power movement, Hindu spirituality and was, in her words, "a weekend hippie".
While in England, she helped to break down a few racial barriers. She was the first black television journalist to appear on Thames TV, BBC-TV and Channel 4. For the eight or so years she was in England, she rarely, if ever, set foot in a church.
Embraced Rastafari
In 1972, she returned to Jamaica to help promote the launch of the Perry Henzell movie The Harder They Come, as well as help the newly-elected Michael Manley government bring change to Jamaica. By this time, she had embraced Rastafari.
Not long after she got back to Jamaica, her brother introduced her to the Holy Trinity Ethiopian Orthodox Church located on Maxfield Avenue in Kingston. She quickly fell in love with the church as its liturgy and history resonated positively with her.
She was baptised by Abuna Yeshaq in the church on a cold January night. That was a mystical experience for her. She was immersed three times, in the names of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
She reported: "I have never been so warm in my life with my head soaking wet."
Split in church
The worldwide Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the mid-1990s had a split and the repercussions were felt here in Jamaica, resulting in changes in the way the Maxfield Avenue congregation did liturgy and ministry.
These changes have caused Blake Hannah to grow disillusioned with that church and its leadership, so much so, that she does not go there anymore.
Nevertheless, she describes herself as an "Ethiopian Orthodox Rasta".
But when her soul aches for liturgical worship, she pops out a recording she has of a Black History Month mass held at the church and sings and chants along.
A former independent senator during the 1980s, Blake Hannah has a blog at www.myspace.com/barbaramakeda where she posits her views on the late Emperor Haile Selassie I, Jesus Christ and Rastafari. She has no problem acknowledging that the Emperor was not God. But she acknowledges that there are examples from his life that she has emulated.
She makes the claim on her blog, "Both Selassie and Jesus refused to acknowledge themselves as 'God', knowing well that would indeed be breaking the first commandment: (which says) "I am the Lord, thy God; Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
Rastafari, she wrote on her blog, is a religion going through evolution. What Rastafari must do now is earnestly re-examine the message of Selassie, she said.
Sense of contentment
Blake Hannah looks back at her life with a sense of contentment, having worked with the rich and famous and the very poor. She is thankful to God for good health at 60-something and is focusing on a few film-making projects.
She has moved away from the reparations movement she once championed. She believes the thing to do is to forgive slavery, forget reparations and "Let Jah bring about justice in His own way".
She looks back at her life with few regrets while excited about the future.
"I hope that as we pray, I can be one of the 144,000 gathered around the Throne singing endless praises to the Most High. I try and live my life to achieve that high crown. But even if I don't, I hope that the good spirit that I generate in the flesh leads some good essence behind so that my son who will remain and his children can be touched."
Send feedback to mark.dawes@gleanerjm.com.
