The Matriarch Messiah

Preface I completed the manuscript for The Matriarch Messiah in 2018, which went through developmental and copy editing throughout 2019. However, as I was incorporating recommendations from the copy editor, the world plunged into unprecedented chaos. The greatest global pandemic since the Spanish Flu. Millions upon millions of deaths, followed by years of social and political upheaval around the world. The near final manuscript sat in cloud drive for nearly five years untouched. Therefore, this story, created in 2018, set five years in the future, 2023, reflects the geopolitical realities of seven years before the publication of this sequel to The Matriarch Matrix. After the tragedies of October 2023 and the resulting suffering, I struggled with whether to publish this epic tale out of concerns for potential misunderstandings from readers regarding my respect and intentions toward different cultures and faiths portrayed in this sequel. The story introduces a new pivotal character named Rachel, an Israeli Torah historian and archaeologist who plays a crucial role in solving the mythical elements of this sequel. The story juxtaposes her culture and faith with those of Zara, the devout Islamic Kurdish protagonist from The Matriarch Matrix, and a minor Palestinian character. In 2018 and 2019, Jewish and Muslim beta readers provided feedback that both cultures and religions were treated respectfully and with dignity. I hope that in 2025 and beyond, readers will find the same. The premise of this story revolves around two devout women of seemingly different faiths, cultures, and family pressures—Zara and Rachel—who must overcome their disparities and come together to save humanity. Both follow a matriarchal lineage that believes in an ancient prophecy about a cavern of blue light: "Women would return to save humanity, bringing peace from the blue light. But to return, one must overcome one's fear of death. Two women will fight so that one will die. For only in the death of life as one knows it can one be in the light." Other characters in The Matriarch Messiah also face clashes of culture, religious beliefs, and family expectations on their quest to help find the cavern of blue light. And just like our protagonists, they too must confront their inner demons and learn to trust one another for the world to be saved. Their journey serves as a reminder that we must all strive away from dark, destructive stereotypes and strive toward mutual understanding to achieve peaceful coexistence. Similar to The Matriarch Matrix, this story also features a parallel storyline about pre-Neolithic ancients whose chapters serve as parables to explain the origins of customs, faiths, and disharmonies in our modern world. The premise is that ancient societies' oral traditions, spanning tens of thousands of years, form the basis of many of our current beliefs. The story's ancient barbarities mirror the documented atrocities faced by the Kurds, like Zara and her family, over the past decades and beyond, highlighting ''humanity's unchanging dark nature. I hope readers will embrace the wisdom spoken by one of the pivotal ancient characters from 9525 BCE, Illyana: "For a better future, we must let go of hate and violence from the past." May this book inspire us all to strive toward a peaceful future in a world that is rapidly heading in the opposite direction.