Jamaica: Pastors, pulpits and politics

HEART TO HEART
With Betty Ann Blaine



..."in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned..." (Titus 2: 7,8)

Dear Reader,

Over the years, I have been a constant public critic of the failures of the Jamaican church. While I have openly recognised and congratulated the church on its history and continued commitment to education and social outreach, I keep reminding those of us who are the body of Christ that the area of greatest weakness is that the church has failed to act as the conscience of the state. To put it another way, the church has been reluctant and afraid to speak truth to power.

The words of the late Rev Dr Martin Luther King, Jr are haunting. In the book, Strength to Love, King asserted: "The church must be reminded that it is not the master nor the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state. It must be the guide and the critic of the state, and never its tool."

It is clear that some of our Jamaican pastors have forgotten whom they serve, and the most recent case in which the Rev Al Miller, one of the country's most influential pastors, has sided with the government on the extradition of a reputed "drug lord" and community "strongman", is to my mind the most glaring example of pastors allowing themselves to be used as tools of the state.

One of the observations I have made concerning Prime Minister Bruce Golding and Rev Al Miller is how quickly they have both became converted to full-fledged human rights activists. In fact, they have all but eclipsed Jamaicans for Justice and the Independent Jamaica Council on Human Rights in this particular so-called human rights case. Never before have I heard a pastor and a politician achieve such unison of thought and purpose, and speak so eloquently and stridently about the human rights of any Jamaican citizen in a country where violating people's rights is an accepted way of life. Are we to understand from the pastor and the politician that the human rights of some Jamaicans are more important then the human rights of others?

Somebody needs to tell Rev Miller that the debate surrounding the extradition of Coke is best left to lawyers, judges, politicians and to those constituencies where morality is inapplicable and where the law is supreme and self-serving. In biblical terms, it is the divide between the teachings of Jesus Christ and the system of Rome. One examined the soul of man, while the other was sworn to the service of Caesar.

There must be a greater motive unknown to us that would cause a pastor to ignore the brutality associated with "strongmen", and choose instead to focus on the "principle" of the extradition matter. I am reminded of a recent case where the accused rapist of a nine-year-old girl was set free because of a technicality involving DNA evidence. The question for the pastor is, where would you focus - on the horror of the crime or on the technicality of the law? What Rev Miller doesn't seem to realise is that lawyers have no responsibility to debate morality, but as a pastor he is absolutely obligated to doing so.

In fact, it is the moral failings of Jamaican society in general, and our political leaders in particular, which should be the concern of every pastor, let alone one who sits at the right hand of the prime minister. Instead of focusing on an issue that is best left to constitutionalists, lawyers and judges, Rev Miller ought to be speaking about the social ills in the society that have led to the ascendancy of "strongmen" and drug lords. The question that should be exercising the mind of every Jamaican pastor is, how do we build a society in which we can strengthen family life, protect our children and promote a consistent ethic of human life? Rev Miller needs to be reminded that if God is not at the centre of national life, then we can never achieve human rights.

Instead of "selling out" to man's politics, Rev Miller should be steadfastly focusing on perpetuating God's politics, and should make note of the fact that any discourse that is disconnected from moral values quickly degenerates.

Rather than "parroting" the government's position on the extradition, Rev Miller should be calling the leaders to a higher moral standard which dictates that they clean up and dismantle their garrison communities so that the murder and abuse of citizens will end, and that the scourge of strongmen will be cauterised and eventually eliminated.

Rev Miller should be calling for a deeper discourse about vision and values in public life. He should be speaking about how a new vision for the common good could inspire us all to lives of service and to a whole new set of public priorities.

Instead of pandering to politicians, Jamaica's pastors should heed the words of Rev Martin Luther King who warned that "if the church does not recapture its prophetic zeal it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority". In his book, God's Politics, author Jim Wallis asks, "Who will question the self-righteousness of nations and their leaders? Who will not allow God's name to be used to simply justify ourselves, instead of calling us to accountability? And who will love the people enough to challenge their worst habits, coarser entertainments, and selfish neglects?

I would implore Rev Miller to ponder on those things and to keep in mind that politics without a soul is anti-God. He should bear in mind too that pastors and politicians can make strange bedfellows.

With love,

bab2609@yahoo.com

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

jamaicaobserver

Bahamas Blog International

Mixed reviews for the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)

Mark Beckford, Staff Reporter

Susan Goffe, chairperson, Jamaicans for Justice.

Despite assurances from the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) about measures put in place for the independence of the court, Susan Goffe of Jamaicans for Justice is expressing some concern about how it is administered.

Goffe noted that while there was a Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission to oversee the selection of judges, the arrangements do not go far enough to ensure the legitimacy and security of the court.

Goffe added that more changes are needed to secure the independence and permanence of the court than the amendments already made to the Treaty of Chaguaramas. This treaty is the agreement between the Caribbean states, setting up the CCJ, among other things.

Goffe believes that any legitimisation of the court should be done by enshrining whatever changes there should be in the Jamaican Constitution. With that said, she believes serious national discourse should begin.

Judiciary independence vital

Answers to concerns about the independence of the court from manipulation are posted on the CCJ website.

"It is generally accepted in our societies that independence of the judiciary is a vital and essential ingredient of the rule of law, a basic principle of social engineering in CARICOM member states.

"To ensure independence of the members of the court, appropriate provisions have been elaborated in the agreement establishing the CCJ to provide for credible institutional arrangements," the website read.

It continued: "First, unlike the situation with the European Court of Justice, where Judges are appointed by the ministers of government, judges of the CCJ are appointed by a Regional Judicial and Legal Services Commission, whose composition should offer a reasonable degree of comfort to the court's detractors."

The funding of the court by member states of CARICOM has also raised the spectre of influence by these same states. However, the CCJ on its website said that certain steps have been put in place to ensure that this does not occur.

"In order to pre-empt this eventuality, the heads of government have mandated the ministers of finance to provide funding for the recurrent expenses of the court for the first five years of its operation."

A trust fund has been established and capitalised in the sum of US$100 million, so as to enable the recurrent expenditure of the court to be financed by income from the fund which is administered by the Caribbean Development Bank.

Former Solicitor General Michael Hylton said this provision has earned his confidence in the court.

Beyond the rules

"Political influence doesn't mean that a politician is going to call you and tell you what to do, but if a country doesn't like a judgment, it can withdraw its payment. This cannot occur under the treaty and with the trust fund that is set up," he said.

Attorney-at-law R.N.A Henriques, however, believes that independence goes beyond just putting in rules.

"We have had a history in Jamaica, where the bias of rulings are in favour of the government in cases. Therefore one is not really insulated by a Constitution. The dispensation of the rulings will be based on integrity not by what is in the constitution. Time will tell, that is why it is important that the judges are of a certain calibre."

December 7, 2009

caribdaily

Bahamas Caribbean Blog International