In my article Liturgy & Culture in the Caribbean — What is to be done? I reflected on the importance of song and dance celebration to the people of the Caribbean. One does not mean here the unfortunate tourist image of the lazy, guitar playing, calypso-singing, limbo- dancing island boy, but what it does mean is that in spite of poverty and the scars of our colonial past, the people of the Caribbean have an ability to celebrate to laugh, to sing, to dance and to enjoy themselves with minimum preparation. The poet Basil Smith expresses this truth in his poem Tom Tom.

Give me Tom — Tom abeng, abeng, abeng!
Carve my features in the likeness of a bronze Yoruba mask!
Give me personality the rhythm of the drum and make my blood boil to the temperature of the Sahara!
Teach me to dance
The way my grandmother has forgotten and don’t hide the face of Shango from me
Then and only then shall I be a man

There are two very significant things to note in this poem. First, Shango is a Yoruba God and devotees to the cult are found in many Islands and Latin-America, e.g. Trinidad and Tobago. Through the medium of the dance one finds Shango. Secondly, one finds oneself through dance — dancing here is prayer. This poem is authentic West Indian Theology and it parallels what Dr. J. C. McLelland suggests in his book Crown and Crocodile. He says, “man’s song and dance are self-expression but they are also done for others, for the other. It is before God that the dance comes into its own, for it claims imitate God’s own way of creation”. Unfortunately, as he pointed out, orthodox Christian theology neglected this fundamental truth and perhaps the only theologian in our time to understand and to take seriously this truth is Karl Barth.

The true motion of God, is the motion of God the dancer

But it is also remarkable that, the Asian and African religions have always looked upon deities as divine dancers. For example, Osain, a deity in the Shango cult is asked to participate in the dancing: This is the way, he will communicate to the devotees. So, too, in the Hindu Tradition, Krishna and Siva are great dancers. This is a significant concept, but is unfortunately neglected in orthodox Christian circles. It may be noted that the Spiritual Baptist make full use of them.

Yet no one was able to relate this feature as Sidney Carter did in his well known hymn: The Lord of the Dance. While inspired by the life of Jesus, Carter noted that he was partially inspired by a statue for the Hindu God Shiva as Nataraja (Shiva’s dancing pose) that sat on his desk. The melody was adapted from the Shaker Hymn Simple Gifts. The Shakers were known for their communal dancing. The Simple Gifts was written during what the Shakers called an “Era of Manifestations” or “Mother’s Work.” During this time many Shakers received what they considered “gift” songs from the spiritual realm.

Carter notes that in Lord of the Dan

I see Christ as the incarnation of the piper who is calling us. He dances that shape and pattern which is at the heart of our reality. By Christ I mean not only Jesus; in other times and places, other planets, there may be other Lords of the Dance. But Jesus is the one I know of first and best. I sing of the dancing pattern in the life and words of Jesus.

This understanding and emphasis of God the Lord of the Dance, God the Singer is a major contribution that the Church in the Caribbean could make to the Theology of Christian Worship. Hence worshippers in the Caribbean Churches will emphasise and express in their Liturgies that God is dancer and divine singer, a God of movement and motion not to the static unmoved mover of Aristotle which the “Death of God” Theologians felt impelled to get rid off in their new Theologies.

Knolly Clarke, November 2017

About the Author:

Now well into his eight decade and Dr. Knolly Clarke is former Dean of Holy Trinity Cathedral, Port of Spain. Even though he officially retired from the Anglican Diocese of Trinidad and Tobago, he still serves as priest in charge at Christ Church, Cascade a small parish in suburban Port-of-Spain. Dr. Clarke currently lectures in Morals, Ethics and Values at the Cipriani College of Labour and Co-operative Studies. Knolly also Chairman and Dean of the Sehon Goodridge Theological Society.

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Song and Dance Celebration in Caribbean Christian Worship was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Brothers and sisters, we have had a lot of singing today so far. Do you want one more? If you know it please join in.

God’s spirit is in my heart, He has called me and set me apart
This is what I have to do,
What I have to do
He sent me to bring the good news to the poor
Tell prisoners that they are prisoners no more
Tell Blind people that they can see
And set the downtrodden free
And go tell everyone the news that the Kingdom of God has come
And go tell everyone the news that God’s Kingdom has come

Now, if any of you have had the privilege of passing outside Rosary Boys RC School when they’re having their sing along and they sing that song, you would have heard that there’s this little echo that they do. So we sing “tell blind people that they can see” and they sing SEE. Then we sing ‘…and set the downtrodden free’ and they shout FREE.

Now those of you who remember your own childhood will know there are certain songs that from the time you hear the intro, you waiting for one particular part. You don’t care about the song yuh know, you might not even care to sing, period, but for that one part…That is what you waiting on. Well I can tell you that the first morning I had that particular privilege, I can’t remember where my mind was but it wasn’t on the here and now. But that sound, note not the song, but that sound, pulled me from wherever I was, back into the moment and at the same time sent me back to my own childhood mischief, and I could not help it my spirits lifted and I had to smile. That sound was the sound of pure unadulterated joy, wildness and abandon. The sound of children singing and laughing is a universal symbol of hope. Advertisers know this and they use it all the time. It affects us on a psychological and a spiritual level.

By contrast, so many times when we turn on our nightly news, the images we see have the opposite effect. We see images of children, crying, screaming in either pain, fear or rage or even worse from my perspective anyway those still shots of children who have gone missing or have turned up dead and the stark silence that accompanies them.

Which of these two opposites is the reality? They both are. We live in a world of extremes. Back in the 70s someone, no one seems to know exactly who, came up with a slogan “Know Justice Know Peace. No Justice, No Peace. Basically there can be no peace without Justice. I think that we can all agree that there is great truth in that little slogan. But what is Justice and why are we all here today?

In the first reading God says clearly to us through the prophet that He does not want our empty service or sacrifice. He wants Justice that flows like a river. Now for those of us who have been on the receiving end of flood waters, this image may be hard for us to swallow. But let’s break it down a little. Let’s imagine that this is not an island, there is no coastline, no cool Caribbean breezes, and it is very, very, hot. The river doesn’t just flow, it draws all living creatures to it. It cools us down, it cleanses us, it nurtures us. While trees and plants may be withered and dying everywhere else, those that grow on the banks of the river are lush and green and give shade, shelter and fruit. This is what God wants us to create here on earth, a justice that is accessible to everyone. One that protects the environment and the most vulnerable among us. One that all living creatures are drawn to and that mirrors the justice of the God’s own Kingdom. One that is clean and pure.

How can this be accomplished? We look to the Gospel Reading for that answer.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because the Lord has anointed me.

He has sent me to preach good news to the poor,

to proclaim release to the prisoners

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to liberate the oppressed,

and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4: 16–21)

Good news to the poor, sight to the blind, free the prisoners.. all of that sounds wonderful and lovely but tell me, do we really want any of that? Back in April 2016, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of this Archdiocese, His Excellency Joseph Harris, led a petition asking that certain prisoners be granted their freedom. Many of us immediately raised concerns. To make sure we’re on the same page here let me re-iterate what that petition was really about. Archbishop Harris was asking that those prisoners who were in Remand Yard, had NOT been brought to trial, and had been there as much as or longer than the maximum sentence they would have gotten had they been found guilty of the crime for which they were arrested be set free. Now we say all the time that justice delayed is justice is justice denied. Can any of us here imagine for a moment what it must be like to be arrested for something that you did not do and to never be given the opportunity to have your case heard? What if you did something the maximum penalty for which it 3 months and two years later you case has not been heard. Somehow, when we ourselves are in a situation we are quick to demand justice and we want it yesterday. When though we have done something wrong or hurtful we ask for mercy. Yet we are unable to see that another person might have the same needs. Friends, when there is no justice how can we know peace? Until and unless we are willing to create that river of justice in this land. Until we are able to truly love the other as ourselves, want the same things for each other that we want for ourselves, we will not know peace and our children will be unable to sing.

The Justice of God’s Kingdom though can really confuse us. If we look at that parable in Matthew 20 about the labourers who came at different times and were paid the same amount we can deduct from that that God’s justice is unfair. If we look at it from a different perspective though, we can come away with the idea that God’s justice is merciful. Here was this landowner who actively sought opportunities to allow people a decent days wage to take home to their families. Are we actively looking for and creating opportunities for justice and peace in the spaces within which we have been planted. Well, look around, first of all, you are all here. You answered the call and you came from those spaces. You are here from various denominations, walks of life, parts of the country and you are here together. That is a start. Let me make a suggestion, don’t leave without getting to know one person that you did not know before you got here. When you leave here resolve to seek out ways to Be justice, to be peace in this land.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the opportunities you present us with every day to see you at work in others. Help us to actively seek you out. Help us to come to know and to mirror your Justice in this world. Help us to be Your peace. We make this prayer through Christ Our Lord Amen.

Nicole Poyer

About the Author:

Nicole lectures serves on the board of directors at the Sehon Goodridge Theological Society and lecturers in our Diploma in Theology Programme. Nicole is a trained Youth Minister and Catechist, who currently serves her parish church as a Lay Minister and Lector. She is also cofounder of the Sychar House of Prayer which aims to advance the cause of Christian Unity through healthy dialogue and peaceful encounters deeply rooted in the Gospel of Love.

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Know Justice, Know Peace — A Homily was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Living water fountain of life
Drink it and you will never thirst again
Drink it up, drink it up
Drink up
Drink till you satisfied
Drink it and you will never thirst again
Drink it up, drink it up
Drink up
Drink till you satisfied

Yes is ME
Is me Jesus wants you know
The woman who loose five husbands and still don’t have any
Yes is me
The woman with the colorful family history
Yes is me
The sketel at the well
Yes is me Jesus wants you know
Yes is me
You go ahead and judge me
But hope, come see a man who has set me free

Yes is SHE
Miss “prim and proper”, miss “high and mighty”
Is she Jesus wants you know
Yes is she
The one who always down by the bar
Always dressing half naked and under she clothes you could see she panty
Yes is she

Yes is HE
The one who on coke and is dig grave in the cemetery
Yes is he
Is he Jesus wants you know
Yes is he
Who? The one who friending with Harry wife?
Yes is he
Is he Jesus wants you know
Yes is he

Yes is THEM
The school and cyberbullies
The teachers who like to pickup students
Make their life living miseries
Winning souls like theirs
Man, those are victories

Yes is YOU
Always on Facebook, Snapchat, WhatsApp and Twitter
Posting and sharing memes
Causing defamation of my character
Yes Jesus wants you know
The kings and queens of inappropriate use of social media
Yes is you
Ha! You thought was only me?
No! Jesus want everbody
You who too hoon, you who too dirty
He is saying, I want you to believe that worshiping me goes beyond the walls of this church

Yes is EVERYBODY
He want us ALL as true worshipers
Worshiping him in spirit and in truth
So bow down and worship him
Yes bow down and worship him
Worship him, worship him
So bow down and worship him
Yes bow down and worship him
Worship him

Amanda Cole O’Neil

Amanda is a teacher by profession and currently teaches English at Bishop Anstey High School East. This teacher/ writer/poet grew up in Eccles Village, Williamsville a small village in rural Trinidad, but currently lives in Tunapuna and is a parishioner at Good Shepherd Anglican church. She also models and is currently pursuing Post Graduate studies in Creative Writing at UWI, St Augustine.

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The Woman at the Well — is SHE was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

I am the person who sits next to you at Church. I work with you, go to school with you, lime with you, play with you. I am your friend, your neighbour, your relative, your classmate. I have an invisible disease.

I know that you think I’m lazy when I don’t volunteer to help move that box. I know you’re probably tired of hearing me say that I’m tired. I know you think I’m a bad mother because my daughter’s hair looks uncombed; I know…

I suffer. I am in constant pain. I don’t sleep enough; my medication makes me feel sick and tired. I have trouble focusing. I spend money I don’t have on medication and medical tests and ‘helpful gadgets’ that don’t always help. I live with an invisible disease.

Every morning my alarm goes off and I have to wait a bit until I can move. I wish I didn’t have to get up, but I’m glad that I can. Simple, everyday tasks are a challenge for me; like opening a bottle, stirring a pot, opening a door or gate, flushing the toilet, using the phone. Sometimes I need help getting dressed. I live with an invisible disease.

At Church I dread the ‘sign of peace’, never knowing how hard someone is going to squeeze or shake my hand. I’ve started offering my left hand to shake, and I avoid hugging altogether. I know you think that I’m ‘standoffish’. I live with an invisible disease.

I prefer not to eat in public so I make excuses when invited out to eat. I know that you think I’m anti-social. I struggle to get out of bed in the morning. I wonder ‘what’s the use’. I know that you think I’m lazy. I live with an invisible disease.

Perhaps you will now think twice about judging me and finding me wanting. I struggle. I want to do better, but I’m doing the best that I can. Everyday I surmount odds that another person might say are impossible. I do get up. I go to work, to school, to Mass, to family gatherings… I LIVE with an invisible disease.

Nicole Poyer, 2013

About the Author

Nicole lectures the Diploma in Theology Programme and serves on the board of directors at the Sehon Goodridge Theological Society. She also works full time as and Administrator at one of the leading Financial Advisors in Trinidad and Tobago. Nicole is a trained Youth Minister and Catechist, who currently serves her parish church as a Lay Minister and Lector. She is also cofounder of the Sychar House of Prayer.

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Living with an Invisible Disease was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Today’s (June 25, 2017) gospel (Matthew 10:24–39) speaks about man’s relationship with God. If we are to call ourselves Christians, then we are to follow in the Lord’s way. How does one do this you may ask? We must follow in the Lord’s way by letting the Holy Spirit guide and direct our every action regarding how we interact with people; how we manage our daily stresses and as a young person especially, how we interact with our seniors. In Philippians 2:5 — Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus — Paul tells us that we must have an attitude like Christ, but you all know how difficult that can be especially as a young person in this world. Our every action must stem from our love of God, our belief in God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and our determination to live life according to God’s way.

However, do not think that it is going to be easy. Anything worth its salt takes time and effort. First, we must identify what we believe and where do we place God in our lives. Is He there as our Get Out of Jail card or is he the centre of our lives? Do we make sure that we connect every day with his sword; the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God or do we wait until Sunday worship to hear His word?

The Christian way is one filled with many trials and tribulations. After all, Jesus himself underwent many trials and tribulations on earth, and he was always in God’s presence. The Christian way requires us to surrender to God’s will in our lives. It requires us to do the things that are pleasing to God and not ourselves. To do this, we must have a strong belief in God and His principles, as outlined in the scriptures by the apostles in their letters recorded in the new testament. Every book of the New Testament gives us guidelines for effective living in Christ. As such we must know that no matter what our situation He is always present, for we are important to Him. As the Gospel for today tells us the sparrow:

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.

Remember, in those days was the cheapest of items and was offered up by the very poor, was still paid attention to by the Lord. You can only imagine how much attention He, therefore, pays to us who He has formed in His image and likeness. From that belief, our faith will grow, and we shall have an attitude like that of Christ. But remember, as I had said earlier, this is not going to be an easy feat. As young persons, we live in a world where significant importance is placed on power, popularity, having a good time and financial security to name a few. While these are important, the question is how do we achieve it? Do we achieve it by following God’s path or the path of Satan?

God’s way is one where he invites us to choose which way we want to go; whether His way or the way of the world. We must make a conscious decision to walk in the way of the light and not darkness. In making this decision, we are sure to encounter many obstacles. We would be lucky if these obstacles came from strangers. Some unknown person, mocking our faith or trying to convince us that our belief in the Lord is false or attempting to make us believe that our life in the Lord is boring. That would be easy because one can ignore a stranger. However, it is usually the people you are close to, your friends, your family, people within your church. They are the ones who attack your faith or rather it is Satan, acting through them, who attacks your faith. Like the incident with Simon Peter and Jesus in Matthew 16:21–23:

From that time on, Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised on the third day. Then Peter took Him and began rebuking Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord! This shall not happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things that are of God, but those that are of men.

Our belief must be like the roots of a mangrove tree. The mangrove tree comprises of a vast root system. The tree starts off with one main root. As the tree grows several other main roots develop, soon you have a series of roots forming stilts which grow from the tree trunk and branches. All the while the roots spread towards the soil to develop a firm hold. As this goes on above ground, don’t think that the roots below ground are lazy. Just because they have reached the ground does not mean that they stop. They continue to grow; new roots branching off from existing roots until they form a very dense network stabilizing the tree. We must be like that. The roots of the mangrove represent our belief in the Lord and the tree itself our faith. As our belief deepens, our faith grows, and we can withstand the pressures of life for we are firmly rooted and grounded in God. Then like Jeremiah in the old Testament lesson (Jeremiah 20:7–13), we will acknowledge God at all times and in all places. So that even when close friends are watching for us to stumble, we will know that the Lord is with us like a dread warrior, and therefore our persecutors will stumble, and they will not prevail.

In closing, we need to remember the words of our Lord when he says that if we acknowledge him before others, he will acknowledge us before his Father in heaven; but whoever denies him before others, he also will deny before his Father in heaven. So again I ask the question, where do you place God in your life? Is He there as your Get Out of Jail card or is he the centre of your life?

Danielle Steele , 2017

About the Author

Danielle has been a Civil/Structural Engineer since 2005. She has worked on many of the more significant infrastructural projects in the Trinidad and Tobago including the International Water Front Project, Brian Lara Cricket Academy and NGL Train 2. An important aspect of Danielle’s practice is restoration. In this regards, she has served as structural engineer/consultant on a number of major Church restoration projects including Trinity Cathedral Port of Spain, St Patricks Cathedral Barbados, St Josephs RC Church and Our Lady of Montserrat Roman Catholic Church to name a few. Danielle worships at Good Shepherd Anglican Church Tunapuna and this article is based on a Homily she delivered at Good Shepherd on Third Sunday after Pentecost (June 25, 2017)

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Is God Just Your Get Out of Jail Card? was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Christianity would be popular if it did not have the Cross at the centre. People are not so much anti-Christian as that they find the via dolorosa to difficult, too demanding, and particularly is this true when men and women are called today to witness in the face of injustice, in humanity and indiscriminate abuse of power. There can be no cheap grace, co cheap witness. We bear not the mark of the beast, but the mark of the Cross, or baptismal name:

Seeing that this child has now by Baptism been made a member of Christ’s Church I sign him/her with the sign of the Cross in token that hereafter he/she shall not be ashamed to confess the faith of Christ crucified, and manfully to fight under his banner against sin, the world, and the devil, and to continue Christ’s faithful soldier and servant until his/her life’s end

To witness is to bear the Cross; in the Greek of the New Testament the same root-word is used for ‘witness’ and ‘martyr’ — martus. We recall what witness meant in the early community of faith in the midst of a pagan culture and under the tyranny of mad emperors. The Christian writers and preachers of the fourth century looked back to the persecutions as the heroic age of the Church.

From the star the Christians were regarded as having been deceived and having forsaken the essential faith and tenets of Israel for an impostor who received the just punishment for his deeds. The Jews regarded Christianity as a heresy within the context of Judaism. To the problems created by daily conflict with the Jews were added the consequences of the policy of Romanisation pursued by some emperors, which brought Christianity intodirect conflict with the powerful pagan orders. Other contributing factors to the life of martyrdom were: the renunciation of wealth and privilege, the imitation of the Passion of Christ, the vindication of his earthly ministry, and the liturgy and way of life practiced in his service by the Church. The example of martydom did git Christianiity a defensive power.

In the history of the Church there have been some who have caught the spirit of the early Christians. One recalls the witness of Martin Luther “Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God. Amen.” and Thomas Moore “I die the king’s faithful servant, but God’s first”. In the last century we have Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This last has perhaps than anyone else to map out for us what it means to confront demonic power. His Letters and Papers from Prison have become a classic of the courageous resistance to Hitler by the confessing Church in Germany.

In his The Cost of Discipleship, he attacks all notions of ‘cheap grace’ and summons us to costly Christian living in the world, exposed, unsheltered, and vulnerable. His consistent cry was No Rusty Swords, and in his Ethics he showed how inadequate the old weapons were to deal with the forces of evil let loose by Nazism.

We too must count the cost and fashion new swords, as we respond to the Word of God in Christian obedience, accept the imperative of good, not bad, political involvement and be vigilant about the civil and political rights of our fellowmen in the face of arbitrary use of political power. Listen to Bonhoeffer again:

When men are confronted by a bewildering variety of alternatives, the path of duty seems to offer a sure way out. They grasp at the imperative as the one certainty. The responsibility for the imperative rests upon its author, not upon its executor. But when men are confined to the limits of duty, they never risk a daring deed on their own responsibility, which is the only way to score a bull’s eye against evil and defeat it. The man of duty will in the end be forced to give the devil his due. Some seek refuge from the rough-and-tumble of public life in the sanctuary of their own private virtue. Such men however are compelled to seal their lips and shut their eyes to the injustice around them. Only at the cost of self-deception can they keep themselves pure from the defilements incurred by responsible action. For all, that they achieve, that which they leave undone will still torment their peace of mind. They will either go to pieces in the face of this disquiet or develop into the most hypocritical of Pharisees. Who stands his ground? Only the man whose ultimate criterion is not in his reason, his principles, his conscience, his freedom or his virtue, but who is ready to sacrifice all these things when he is called to obedient and responsible action in faith and exclusive allegiance to God. The responsible man seeks to make his whole life a response to the question and call of God

The Christian faith, and the Church as the guardian and transmitter of this, has to do more than saving souls. If the Church is to join God’s action in the world, to be concerned for a right ordering of society in which men and women can realize their total personal fulfilment in the totality of their lives’ situations, then there is the imperative of entering the sphere of politics. The task of the Church has to do with all things — with the use of power, distribution of wealth, human rights, as well as with family unions and the status and education of children — which either liberate or dehumanize.

When powers that should be our servants become our masters, then they are the modern counterparts of the ‘principalities and powers’ which Jesus dethroned and made a spectacle of (Colossians 2:15). The Church has a tremendous responsibility within the political conditions for development and social change as she helps man to use his power, not as a power-drunk dictator or as a self-justifying revolutionary, but as a witness and servant of an emerging nation and people.

Sehon Goodridge, 1977
Taken from his book The Church Amidst Politics and Revolution

About the Author

Sehon Goodridge was born In Barbados in 1937. He was educated at Harrison College, Codrington College, Barbados and King’s College, London. He was ordained as a minister in 1964 and began his service in the island of Saint Lucia. He then was appointed as The Chaplain of the University of the West Indies and then Principal of Codrington College from 1971–1982. He also served as Warden at the Cave Hill Campus, Barbados and the Episcopate as Bishop of the Windward Islands. He was also the first principal of Simon the Cyrene Theological Institute in Wandsworth, a pre-theological training institute for ordinands and lay workers specially designed to serve Anglicans from minority communities in the UK. Sehon died in 2007. After his death the Theological Society of Trinidad and Tobago, invited his widow to one of its Graduation ceremonies. She gave permission for the Trinidad and Tobago Theological Society to use the name Sehon Goodridge Theological Society. This article is extracted from his book The Church Amidst Politics and Revolution published by The CEDAR Press, Bridgetown, Barbados (1977)

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Counting the Cost was originally published in The Journal of Caribbean Christian Action on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.