The Colored King & His Caucasians

The Colored King & His Caucasians

What about Michael’s White wives?

While I featured Black women appearing in Michael Jackson’s videos I didn’t say anything about the White women he married. Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe were the first and second wives, respectively, of the King of Pop. Not surprisingly, he embraced all in the beautiful, multifaceted human family; with all the various colors of the warp and woof so skillfully woven into its fabric. Of course, he’s not the first king to cross the color line.

Monarchs & Mixed Marriages: History’s Mark Anthony and African Queen Cleopatra of Egypt, and Perseus the Greek and Andromeda the African princess of Ethiopia (both of Greek mythology), are just two of many examples of famous mixed unions. The Bible itself mentions powerful men with royal authority who married

African women. Prime Minister Joseph, Lawgiver Moses, and wise King Solomon were among these.

Prime Minister Joseph: “Then Pharaoh gave Joseph an Egyptian name, Zaphenath-Paneah (God Speaks and He Lives). He also gave him an Egyptian wife, Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On (Heliopolis).” (Gen. 41:45, The Message Bible) Children born from this marriage were of course bi-racial. Though Michael had no such children with Lisa Marie Presley she is nonetheless viewed somewhat as a ‘priestess’ or ‘goddess’ by millions of adoring Elvis Presley fans.

Lawgiver Moses: Using the proper English of his day Bible translator Steven Tracy Byington reported that Moses married a “Negro” woman. (Num. 12:1, The Bible in Living English) That she may have been a commoner is indicated by the fact that Moses’ sister Miriam bitterly objected to the union. (Num. 12:1-16) If this is so, it would appear that the “Negro” wife had this in common with Debbie Rowe. Many objected to Michael’s marriage to the commoner.King Solomon: The Bible tells us that wise King Solomon went to Africa; married an African princess; then brought her back to “the city of David” until he could “build his own house, and the house of Jehovah, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.” (1 Kings 3:1, Young’s Literal Translation) Indeed, aside from building the “house of Jehovah,” “Solomon also made a palace like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.” (1 Kings 7:8, NIV) Why? Because, as Solomon tells it: “My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places are holy where the ark of the LORD has entered.” (2 Chron. 8:11, NASB) That his African queen’s palace was associated with the “house of Jehovah” seems to suggest that she either was sympathetic to or engaged in Solomon’s worship of Jehovah.

It wasn’t until Solomon married Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women that he turned from serving God. The Scriptures reveal: “He went on to build a sacred shrine to Chemosh, the horrible god of Moab, and to Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites, on a hill just east of Jerusalem. He built similar shrines for all his foreign wives, who then polluted the countryside with the smoke and stench of their sacrifices.” (1 Kings 11:1-10, MB) That his first wife, his African queen, did not influence him to serve Egyptian gods is probably another indicator of her conversion to the religion of the King.

Lisa Marie Presley may come to mind when considering King Solomon’s African queen in that Lisa is the daughter of “The King” himself, Elvis; and was married to the “King of Pop,” Michael. And, significantly, she was in one of his videos. So, ultimately, insofar as Michael Jackson was concerned, “It Don’t Matter If You’re Black Or White”-in God’s sight. Amen.

Family Tribute: Michael Jackson was born from a Motown background, and only his passing could lure the otherwise shy Rebbie Jackson out from the shadows of love. She’ll be performing at the Mellow Theater at Lackawanna College, and joined by the legendary Temptations, featuring Damon Harris, who sang lead on such hits as Get Ready, and had prominent vocals on Papa Was A Rolling Stone, Just My Imagination, and other big hits. For more information contact Wendy Evans at 570-955-1455 or [email protected].