Music of Africa

We’re stepping beyond borders, not just geographically, but emotionally, spiritually, and personally. Because travel isn’t just about where you go; it’s about who you become along the way. In conversations with us, is woman who has explored over 10 countries, with most of those journeys courageously self-planned. She’s a seasoned Human Resources professional of 16 years, a Business Transformation Leader, and a member of the board at a global organisation; but beyond the titles, she is a seeker of experience, connection, and meaning. From the vibrant rhythms of Jamaica to the breathtaking landscapes of Italy, from the cultural contrasts of Turkey to the daring heights of Réunion Island’s active volcano… her story is one of curiosity, courage, and expansion. She so happens to have travelled to Botswana too! We caught up with Neo Marokoane

Guest: Ashaad Hendricks, Islamic scholar and Advocate

Guest: Pastor Bishop Rakoopa

Guest: Apostle Maphonga, Activist and Wife of Pastor Joshua Maphonga

The Tenet of Dying for Allah According to radical Islam and the distorted way in which its tenets have been harnessed to the Palestinian national struggle, “death for Allah” is an important value. The main message of the Koran is that life’s purpose is to help one realize that the universe was created by Allah; one can then bear witness that there is no other God than Allah and Muhammad is his last emissary. Those who do so in this life will merit being in heaven in the next world, which is the truly important world, until the resurrection of the dead. Those who devote themselves to spreading this message, while fighting the enemies of Allah and Satan’s endeavor to convince people that there is no God and what matters is worldly happiness, will win further favors in heaven including the renowned virgins, especially if, during this struggle, one sacrifices one’s life and becomes a shahid. Two verses from the Koran, often used in proclamations by the Palestinian organizations that glorify terrorists recently killed while carrying out attacks, explain an aspiration that to us seems to contradict human nature: to commit murder while risking one’s own death. One of these, verse 169 of the House of Imran surah, states: “Do not think of those who die for Allah as dead, for they are alive and receive their sustenance from their Lord.” The distortion involved in the use of this verse concerns the assertion that it descended (according to Islam, the verses of the Koran descended from heaven and were given to Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel) in the context of a regular war, the Battle of Uhud, which Muhammad waged against members of his tribe, Quraysh, along with his followers, some of whom had left Mecca with him while others were from Medina. When these followers feared taking part in the battle, there was a need to boost their spirits. There is, of course, no similarity between that war and inhuman attacks on innocent people that are justified in this fashion. Guest: Cassiem Khan – A scholar, writer and Activist. Also a Social Worker And Educator

Sebabatso Molefi, in a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), has been given her and her mother the run around in paying out her mothers pension. UNPAID CLAIM Question: families and financial support after the loved ones passing and whether churches should be helping poor families in these type of situations. So many families are going broke because of the cost of funerals, especially when policy companies are not paying out benefits. Can you still bury your loved ones with dignity? Guest: Apostle MW Makhathini – Durban Miracle Center

Guest: Nthabiseng Dubazane, Attorney at Dubazane Attorneys Guest: Apostle Lungi M, Senior Apostle of Kingdom Life Ministries

Guest: Gogo Khanyakude Mabuza, African cultural expert

Guest: Rabbi Daniel Belder, Orthodox Rabbi from Johannesburg Jewish Community Guest: Dr Firoz Osman, Executive member of the media review Network

Guest: Swami Vishwaparanthapananda, Author

Guest: Ronald Dalton Jr, Filmamaker/Author of "Hebrews to Negroes"

Question: Is Valentines Biblical? What does God say about soulmates? From Feb. 13 to 15, the Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia. The men sacrificed a goat and a dog, then whipped women with the hides of the animals they had just slain. The Roman romantics "were drunk. They were naked," Noel Lenski, now a religious studies professor at Yale University, told NPR in 2011. Young women would line up for the men to hit them, Lenski said. They believed this would make them fertile. The brutal fete included a matchmaking lottery in which young men drew the names of women from a jar. The couple would then be, um, coupled up for the duration of the festival — or longer, if the match was right. The ancient Romans may also be responsible for the name of our modern day of love. Emperor Claudius II executed two men — both named Valentine — on Feb. 14 of different years in the third century. Their martyrdom was honored by the Catholic Church with the celebration of St. Valentine's Day. As the holiday spread, it evolved Later, Pope Gelasius I muddled things in the fifth century by combining St. Valentine's Day with Lupercalia to expel the pagan rituals. But the festival was more of a theatrical interpretation of what it had once been. Lenski added, "It was a little more of a drunken revel, but the Christians put clothes back on it. That didn't stop it from being a day of fertility and love." Around the same time, the Normans celebrated Galatin's Day. Galatin meant "lover of women." That was likely confused with St. Valentine's Day at some point, in part because they sound alike. As the years went on, the holiday grew sweeter. Chaucer and Shakespeare romanticized it in their work, and it gained popularity throughout Britain and the rest of Europe. Handmade paper cards became the tokens du jour in the Middle Ages. Eventually, the tradition made its way to the New World. The Industrial Revolution ushered in factory-made cards in the 19th century. And in 1913, Hallmark Cards of Kansas City, Mo., began mass-producing valentines. February has not been the same since. How we celebrate now Today, the holiday is big business. But that commercialization has spoiled the day for many. Helen Fisher, a sociologist at Rutgers University, said we have only ourselves to blame. "This isn't a command performance," she said. "If people didn't want to buy Hallmark cards, they would not be bought, and Hallmark would go out of business." And so the celebration of Valentine's Day goes on, in varied ways. Many will break the bank buying jewelry and flowers for their beloveds. Some will celebrate in a SAD (that's Singles Awareness Day) way, dining alone and bingeing on self-gifted chocolates — while others will find a way to make peace with singlehood in a society that wants everyone to partner up. Guest: Nthabiseng Ngoepe - Attorney Author and Mental Health Advocate Guest: Sheikh Solieg Ceres - Associate Imam of Highlands Waqaf Trust

For centuries, the most common image of Jesus Christ, at least in Western cultures, has been that of a bearded, fair-skinned man with long, wavy, light brown or blond hair and (often) blue eyes. But the Bible doesn’t describe Jesus physically, and all the evidence we do have indicates he probably looked very different from how he has long been portrayed. Most of what we know about Jesus comes from the first four books of the New Testament, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. According to the Gospels, Jesus was a Jewish man born in Bethlehem and raised in the town of Nazareth, in Galilee (formerly Palestine, now northern Israel) during the first century. We know Jesus was about 30 years old when he began his ministry (Luke 3:23), but the Bible tells us virtually nothing about what he looked like―except that he didn’t stand out in any particular way. When Jesus was arrested in the garden of Gethsemane before the Crucifixion (Matthew 26:47-56) Judas Iscariot had to point Jesus out to his soldiers among the disciples―presumably because they all appeared similar to one another. For many scholars, Revelation 1:14-15 offers a clue that Jesus's skin was a darker hue and that his hair was woolly in texture. The hairs of his head, it says, "were white as white wool, white as snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace.” “We don't know what [Jesus] looked like, but if all of the things that we do know about him are true, he was a Palestinian Jewish man living in Galilee in the first century,” says Robert Cargill, assistant professor of classics and religious studies at the University of Iowa and editor of Biblical Archaeology Review. “So he would have looked like a Palestinian Jewish man of the first century. He would have looked like a Jewish Galilean.” Guest: Pastor Israel Phiri - Co-founder and Snr Pastor at Shapers church - (Jesus wasn’t black) Guest: Reece Phatudi - Spiritual Teacher, Author and Political Evangelist - (Jesus was black)

Guest: Ganief Hendricks - Member of Parliament and President of AL Jama-AH

Guest: Bishop Joshua Maphonga Guest: Paul Nzimande - Author, Life Coach and Mental Wellness Advocate

Guest:Prof Karen Milner - National Chairperson SAJBD Guest: Heinz Schenk - Sports Journalist

Guest: Rabbi Daniel Beider - Orthodox Rabbi from Johannesburg Jewish Community

Guest: Bongani Zwane - Author and artist