It is his capacity for self-improvement and self-redemption which most distinguishes man from the mere brute. – AUNG SAN SUU KYI, Freedom from Fear

On your quest to be successful, nothing will slow you down more than your belief that “who I am is who I am, and theres nothing that can change that”. I have heard Donald Trump say this on his show, The Apprentice. This belief forces you to also believe that you cannot overcome your flaws or forgive yourself . This limited point of view will discourage your efforts to make yourself better, and should be thrown out. What you did yesterday doesnt mean you are beyond redemption today.

What is Redemption?

According to Wikipedia, redemption is a theological concept that broadly means the deliverance from sin. For the purposes of this post, we define redemption as the following

Repairing, learning from, and evolving beyond the mistakes of your past.

There are a great many so called Christians, Muslims, and other “religious” people who spend Sunday after Sunday talking about redemption and saying they believe in the concept of delivery from sin, and yet they condemn prisoners to death, they say things like “once a criminal, always a criminal” and are hypocrites to their very faiths by passing judgment on their fellow man. If you believe that there is no hope for the next man, then you must believe that there is no hope for you. If you believe “that man” cant be redeemed, you must believe that you cant be redeemed. And in light of that truth, you must abandon your religion – since you dont truly believe that Christ died for your sins, or you dont believe that reincarnation is possible, or you dont believe that 48 virgins are waiting for you.

Redemption is Possible

Believe that redemption IS possible, regardless of whether or not you chose to pass judgment on so-called “scumbags”. A great many of my readers are ex-Convicts (I never use the term Felon, since that term assumes this individual is still the same person who committed whatever criminal act that caused his incarceration), and a great many of these people have overcame their past to go on to great success and total redemption. They have made amends with the individuals who were negatively impacted by their actions (victim impact panels are set up in prison for this very reason), have repaired their own lives, and have achieved great success.

Raphael B. Johnson

Raphael B. Johnson was convicted of second-degree murder in 1992 and was released in 2004. He holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Detroit Mercy.Raphael teaches Professional Development, Conflict Resolution and Anger Management in schools and communities across the country. He is a member of the NAACP, Detroit Parent Network, Sacred Heart Parish, Cass Tech Alumni, Legacy Associates Foundation (LAF) and is the winner of Steve Harvey’s 2008 Award for Best Community Leader nationwide. In 2009, he made a strong showing in his run for the Detroit City Council.

Instead of the prison that he was released from supporting the success of this former inmate, they condemned him and banned his book from the prison. Check this excerpt from the Detroit Free Press

In the three years since he was released from prison, Raphael B. Johnson has become one of the state’s most successful ex-inmates. He has graduated from college, published a book, started a business, become a husband and father, and challenged hundreds of ex-offenders to do better. Instead of touting Johnson’s turnaround, however, the Michigan Department of Corrections considers him a threat. The department has banned Johnson’s autobiography and prohibited him from speaking to inmates.

It makes little sense. MDOC has made much of its Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative to reduce crime and recidivism by better preparing offenders for life after prison. What better way to do that than to offer up the example, and counsel, of an ex-inmate who committed a terrible crime and then re-created himself?

Now heres a comment from a reader (identifying themselves as “prayhard” on the Detroit news website M.Live) concerning Mr Johnson’s run:

…that’s all Detroit knows, is losers. I think he’s the type to use a platform for his own personal gain and make up for lost time in the slammer.

Bikers for Christ and Haiti

Bikers for Christ, whose motto is “No perfect people allowed” run a very successful prison ministry and programs devoted to helping those less fortunate. Many of the organization’s members are ex-convicts with strong construction backgrounds. These individuals mobilized after the earthquake in Haiti, seeking to put their money and construction skills to use in helping the country rebuild. Permission was denied. These “felons” couldnt be trusted to leave the country for any reason.

Whyclef and Haiti

Check these comments out in response to allegations that Wyclef Jean’s charity was a scam:

Posted by Roger, Monday, January 18, 2010, 4:31 pm  What makes us think that a hood can change his spots? This money is going right into his ‘foundation.’ Give us a break. What a crooked scam.

Posted by rlkreiedr, Thursday, January 21, 2010, 8:21 am its just another scam created by a minority to get over on majority

Posted by MrMalo, Thursday, January 21, 2010, 12:26 pm The man could very easily join the red cross, or doctors without borders or any other large charitable organisation with the resources and experience to do much good for haiti. This is a vanity charity. Its HIS charity, to show the world what a fine fellow he is. Even if the allegations of misconduct are completely false, it is a very inefficient way to provide the help and services needed. He and the haitian people would be far off if he were to use his OWN money to make TV commericals urging everyone to DONATE BLOOD.

Were any of these people happy to find out that he was one of the few celebrities to help the country? Nah. NOT TO MENTION HE HAS NO CRIMINAL RECORD! His “hood” reputation is derived solely from his music!

Christopher 2x

Christopher 2X, formerly Christopher Anthony Bryant, is a community activist in Louisville, Kentucky. A former drug trafficker, 2X served seven years in prison before being released in 1999. Shortly thereafter, he joined the Nation of Islam temple in Louisville and changed his name to 2X. Since then, he has dedicated much of his time to community outreach programs in Louisville, especially in the West End. After the death of four-​year-​old Ce­sar Ivan Cano, Christo­pher 2X ini­ti­at­ed the Fight Crimes Against Chil­dren Part­ner­ship aware­ness cam­paign.

You would think local residents would be happy about an ex-convict turning his back on the drug dealers lifestyle and using his powers to improve his community. Wrong! Heres an exchange from a forum post entitled who has had enough christopher 2x

kevin d wrote:

this dude is a joke,now he out there with illegal
immigrants,The same ones that are taking the jobs
from his brothers and sisters,Mark my word he will
shoot himself in foot, just wait!

jcmlb wrote:

i hope somebody does

Scientific Proof of Redemption

You are not born a criminal, you are not born stupid, you arent born to fail, and you arent born destined for the penitentiary or the poor house. Yes, there is scientific evidence that you can be born with certain qualities, but there is just as much scientific proof that what we do matters more than what we are born with. Remember the article, What it Takes to be Great?! You may be born with your dad’s bad temper, your mom’s fear of conflict, or your grandfather’s high risk of having a heart attack. But you can also learn to manage your anger, train yourself to take risks despite fear, and change your eating and exercise habits keep your heart healthy into old age.

Genes, rather than being fixed entities, activate or deactivate based on their interaction with other genes. Genes respond to dozens of outside cues (many that are firmly within our control), meaning you can actually shut off certain undesirable genes by changing your environment. Research conducted in 2008 showed that improved diet, meditation and other non-medical interventions can actually “turn off” the disease-promoting process in men with prostate cancer (Changing Your Lifestyle Can Change Your Genes; Newsweek Magazine).That’s why its so important to watch who you interact with, what you eat, the words you say to yourself, and the things you spend your time doing.

There is scientific evidence that your brain and its neurons are “plastic” (the scientific term is neuroplasticity). At its most basic definition, neuroplasticity is your brain’s ability to change its neural connections based on new experiences. When you learn something new, your brain “tingles” as new neurons connect with each other and fire off electrical signals. According to the theory of neuroplasticity, thinking, learning, and acting actually change both the brain’s structure and functionality from top to bottom. You can unlearn a behavior just as you learned it. You learned how to give into the desire to rob, steal, or molest. You can redeem yourself and unlearn these behaviors.

By making new learning a priority activity in your everyday life, by regularly exercising your brain, by exposing your brain to the kinds of information, images, concepts, relationships that you would like the majority of your thoughts to be made up of, these are activities that can truly (and literally) change your brain for the better. – From Brain Ready

Becoming Your Own Redeemer

You can modify any behaviors that you have that you dont like. Are you lazy? An over spender or an over-eater? Hateful? A pushover? Insecure? Disorganized? Under-educated? You can redeem yourself!

• You can be successful, no matter if you have failed every day of your life
• You can heal relationships with people you have had it in with
• You can correct the mistakes of your past
• You can overcome your criminal past

The key to accomplishing these things is the will to get started. If you give yourself no other option and relentlessly seek out and apply solutions, you will be victorious. There will always be ignorant and hypocritical people in the world who hold opinions like those in the forums, but as long as we work to keep these behaviors out of our political, judicial, and corporate cultures, then those bigots dont matter. (Note: These behaviors are already there. You must root them out by forcing those politicians out of office, lobby against such behavior, and stop supporting businesses that dont support you! Heres a great post that you need to read entitled “Old criminal records are life sentences in job market“). If you are offended by that comment, take refuge in the fact that you can change your bigoted ways.

What we do matters more than what we are born with! So do the right things for the right reasons, and you can correct ANY mistake that you have made in your life. Thats what success and redemption is all about.

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