A Woman of God Feels the Wrath

I have to admit that I'm just a little shocked and apalled that the Prophetess caught a beat down from her husband, the bishop, of all people. The Atlanta Constitutional-Journal reported yesterday that a fiery national evangelist, whose sermons empower women to walk away from dead-end relationships, was allegedly struck by her husband Tuesday in a hotel parking lot after the pair had dinner together to discuss a reconciliation. Clearly that meeting didn't go well because everything that I've read says that he whipped her ass like he was gonna collect a check after. At least one account states that after pushing her to the ground, he kicked and stomped her repeatedly.

Of course, I have no clue as to what happened in their relationship, but the writer in me can't keep from posing speculative questions. According to a relative, they separated three months ago when SHE moved out of the couple's home. I was raised by a grandmother who firmly believes and taught that a woman never leaves her home. She sticks around and makes the man miserable enough that he leaves.

I have to wonder why Prophetess left. One possibility is that this ain't the first time he's gotten in that ass, but according to Granny, that's no reason to leave. That's when you start adding ground glass to all his favorite foods or just outright kill him in his sleep. Yes, she's crazy and my grandfather (God bless the dead) knew it. That, and her posse of equally crazy sisters (especially Letha and Viola) kept him real cool. Plus, he just wasn't violent by nature. Prophetess must not have any crazy relatives.

Perhaps her name isn't on the deed. She wouldn't be the first woman who ended up in that predicament. Again, that wouldn't happen in my family. Mr. and Mrs. is on EVERYTHING, especially deeds and titles and such, along with full names. What if a brother has another wife that he never quite divorced? It's not an uncommon occurance. In fact, I knew a couple that had been "married" for eons and when the wife went to apply for Social Security benefits using her married name, she was denied. That's when it was discovered that the couple never legally married AND that his first wife, whom he hadn't seen in ages, was still his legal wife. It was a shock to everyone, especially the couple's 11 grown children. A sister could have shown up at his funeral and laid claim to things for which she hadn't worked. Perhaps Prophetess stumbled upon another wife or baby mama. A ghost or skeleton might run anyone from the premises.

What really intrigues me is what she must have said to set him off. The news accounts say that he was walking away, then suddenly turned around and commenced to whipping that ass. One thing I know about black folks is that we don't have a propensity to discourse. Our debates seldom end with an agreement to disagree, even when playing the dozens. A yo mama jab that rings a little too true can turn a harmless game quite deadly. Perhaps she said something about his mama. My friend, DeShawn says, "she prolly called him a sissy,' which is not a far-fetched scenario. It wouldn't be the first time a high-profile woman married a gay man. Consider McMillan and Husband. In any event, she served up something for which he had no verbal response.

Could be he's just plain old-fashioned crazy and skipped his meds. One of the attorney's representing him states "he has never had any accusation of any sort like this from her or anyone else." The same attorney says he will try to reconcile with his wife once the allegations are dealt with. Come on! He very publicly beat down a very public figure who vehemently speaks out against abusive men and relationships. Reconciliation? Mmmm... not so much! Even Nippy left... eventually. A reconciliation, for me, would let me know that crazy is contagious.

Finally, what was she doing during this attack? In his mug shot the brother is flawless. Not a scratch on him. I understand that he choked, pushed her down and proceeded to stomp and kick. She probably checked out, curled into fetal and missed the opportunity to reach for her purse, but again, she's not like the sisters in my family. They come prepared for anything. With my girls, he would have turned around, met a can of mace and a straight razor. I would be tightening up someone's commisary and kissing plexiglass.