Was Emperor Haile Selassie I God?

Part 1 of 7 If Jesus did not openly demand worship, does that mean Christ was not divine? That is the question I am sitting with. The recent statement from the Crown Council appears to distance itself from the Rastafari belief in the divinity of HIM Emperor Haile Selassie I, partly because His Majesty did not publicly declare Himself to be God. But here is my question: Did Yeshua publicly demand to be worshipped? Did Yeshua commission His disciples to build churches in His name? Yet today, churches have been established all over the world in the name of Christ. Wars have been fought in His name. Nations have been colonized in His name. Indigenous peoples were called “savages” while missionaries claimed to be saving souls. So why is it considered unreasonable when Rastafari people recognize HIM Haile Selassie I as God in flesh, especially when they see the signs of prophecy fulfilled in His life, His lineage, His coronation, His titles, His works, and His example of righteous governance? As someone who is a recent student of the Rastafari faith, whose family is Jehovah’s Witness, who grew up in the Presbyterian Church, got “saved” as a child, worshipped in Spanish Baptist, non-denominational, Church of God, and Bethesda Worship Center spaces, and now serves as Secretary of the Haile Selassie I JAH Rastafari Royal Ethiopian Judah Coptic Church, I have questions. Jehovah’s Witnesses are non-Trinitarian. They do not worship Jesus as Almighty God, yet they honor Him as the Son of God. So why is it so difficult for some to understand that Rastafari people may reason about HIM Haile Selassie I and Empress Menen through a sacred, prophetic, royal, and divine lens? Especially when both Yeshua and HIM Haile Selassie I discouraged blind worship and instead taught humanity to live by righteousness, truth, humility, discipline, and good fruit. Christ said to preach the good news. But what is the good news? That God is not merely outside of you. God lives in you. The same divine spirit that lived in Jeshua, the same divine authority Rastafari recognize in HIM Haile Selassie I, must also bear fruit in us. And how do we know if God lives in someone? By their fruits. Would God lock a family member out of a home for financial gain? Would God enrich leaders while the people suffer? Would God use power to oppress the poor? Would God criminalize a spiritual people for honoring the King of Kings? Leadership reveals spirit. Fruit reveals root. And when I study HIM Haile Selassie I, I see more than a monarch. I see a righteous example. Before His coronation, Ras Tafari Makonnen made a radical choice. He married Woizero Menen Asfaw, a woman who had been previously married and had children. He later had her crowned alongside Him as Empress Menen — a powerful departure from the customs of the time. Why would He elevate a woman so publicly? Why would He honor her beside Him in a world that often pushed women behind men? Why did His reign carry such deep signs of prophecy, royalty, righteousness, and divine order? HIM Haile Selassie I was crowned King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah on November 2, 1930. Rastafari did not invent those titles. They recognized the signs. And I do not believe Rastafari are wrong for recognizing divinity where prophecy, lineage, coronation, works, and righteous example converge. I have more questions as I prepare to continue the work of Royal Priest Wesley Kelly and the Haile Selassie I JAH Rastafari Royal Ethiopian Judah Coptic Church. Why did the elders give the Church that sacred title? Why was Rastafari so violently suppressed in Jamaica? Why was the Coral Gardens atrocity allowed to happen? Why has the Jamaican state historically resisted and marginalized His Majesty’s Church — a Church petitioned by Rastafari elders and established through legal and royal process? Enquiring minds want to know. I have asked Ibbi Lion, Priest of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Kingston, Jamaica, to reason with me around these matters. Once the date is confirmed, I will share it. Follow my YouTube channel for upcoming reasonings, sacred dialogue, and deeper questions around HIM Haile Selassie I, Empress Menen, Rastafari, prophecy, church, state, and the unfinished work of Royal Priest Wesley Kelly. Rest in Power, Priest Kelly. The reasoning continues. 🔥👑🇯🇲🇪🇹 Share your thoughts below.