Christianity and social cohesion

Sep 18, 2016 APNU Column, Features / Columnists

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His Excellency Brigadier David Granger
to the 5th Anniversary Celebration of Solomon’s Temple
Phillipi Farm, East Berbice-Corentyne Region
2016.08.21

This Church is an appropriate ‘Temple’ in which to worship God. This village is a proper place for this Church. Phillipi Village was bought over 100 years ago by a group of 28 Africans who established a thriving farming community. The name, most likely, had its origins in the Holy Bible. Phillipi was the site of the first Christian Church in Europe and was established by the Apostle Paul himself.
This Church, from the start, was dedicated to God’s work. It is written in the Holy Bible at Psalm 127:
Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.

This Church, this congregation and this community belong to a big and beautiful Region – the East Berbice-Corentyne Region. The Corentyne covers a large area of 36, 234 km² that makes it three times the size of Jamaica and seven times the size of Trinidad and Tobago.
This Region is not poor. It is a major producer and exporter of bauxite, fish, rice, sugar and timber. The Region possesses a diverse landscape – coastal plain, rainforests, savannahs and wetlands and is sandwiched between two great rivers. There is no reason why the Corentyne cannot provide ‘a good life’ for all of its citizens.
This Region is ethnically diverse. It has significant Amerindian, African and East Indian communities and there are still reduced numbers of persons of Chinese, European and Portuguese ancestry. It is renowned for its eminent sons and daughters among whom are some of Guyana’s finest academics, attorneys, businessmen, composers, doctors, engineers, entrepreneurs and sports personalities.
This Region, however, faces challenges which cannot be ignored. The Region’s population, is falling; it declined by almost one-third from 152,386 in 1980 to 109,431 by 2012. Migration out of the region has been particularly high over the past 25 years, mainly between 1991 and 2012 when the population fell by 23.23 per cent.
This Region, also, is under threat from crimes such as armed robberies, fatal road accidents, murders, piracy, rapes and suicides. We recall that:
– an atrocious traffic accident occurred in this village when three children were crushed to death by a speeding motor car two years ago.
– an outrageous murder-suicide occurred when a man chopped his wife to death then hung himself in this village three years ago.
The Church must have a solution to these social problems. The Church must uncover their causes and work to improve the quality of life of its worshippers and citizens.
This Region is the cradle of Christianity in this country. The Lutheran Church was established in October 1743, two hundred and seventy-three years ago in this Region. The Mission Chapel Congregational Church was established 197 years ago in this Region. Other Christian churches followed and were joined by Hindu and Islamic places of worship after the arrival of East Indians.
The Christian Church, as one of the oldest institutions, together with the Hindu and Islamic faiths, has a duty to act to help to eliminate the social problems that afflict the Region. The Church must attend to a person’s spiritual as well as material needs. The Church’s mission has a social character. It is written, in the Holy Bible, in the Gospel according to St. Luke (Ch. 14), that Christ said:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.
Christians believe that it is Christ’s commandment “to preach the gospel to the poor.” This Region is made up of a string of neighbouring villages many of which are poor. The residents should see themselves as neighbours. Christ linked the love of God to the love of your neighbour. We cannot love God unless we love our neighbour.
It is written, again, in the Holy Bible, in the Gospel according to St. Matthew (Ch. 22), that Christ, when asked which is the great commandment in the law, said:
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22: 37-40).
This Church must ask itself, who is ‘thy’ neighbour? ‘Thy’ neighbour is he or she who needs your love and your compassion. It is written, in the Holy Bible, in the Gospel according to St. Luke (Ch. 10), that Christ said:
A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
This Church, and any other church, mandir or masjid on the Corentyne, must reach out to its neighbours. The Church cannot separate itself from society, village cannot separate itself from village and citizens cannot separate themselves from each other. Faith cannot be divided into the personal and the public. There is one God and Christianity has only one doctrine, one that does not separate the spiritual and from the social. That doctrine is the bedrock of social cohesion in this country:
– Social cohesion involves creating a moral community that is safe and secure and that offers opportunities for the improvement of everyone’s quality of life.
– Social cohesion involves promoting cooperation and trust among citizens and combatting exclusion and marginalization.
A cohesive society is characterized by a sense of sympathy and solidarity. The Church must promote social cohesion by:
– promoting non-confrontational ways of settling differences and by becoming a peacemaker and a bridge-builder;
– providing spiritual and physical relief to those in need and mending the emotional wounds caused by violence; and
– protecting the vulnerable from malice and injustice and by advancing religious, ethnic and gender harmony.
The Church has a moral mission and the moral authority to reach out to its neighbours.
The Church also has the responsibility of upholding the long and proud tradition of Christianity in this Region.
The Church can contribute to the quality of life by becoming a champion of social cohesion.

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