BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - CHRISTIANITY is said to be based on at least three things – a set of beliefs, a way of life and a community of people. All three of these things are based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who is also known as the Christ; the Greek form of the Hebrew “Messiah”, meaning the “anointed”.
It has been over two centuries since this religion was introduced to mankind and it is called “ethical monotheism”, because of the belief in one God and following the fact that this God commits us to a number of specific ethical rules or principles.
We worship this God, who, according to Christian persuasions, is also Jesus – the Holy Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And most of us do this in a church. But do we understand what is meant by the word church?
Church has many meanings, and in some quarters it is referred to as all of Jesus’ followers, viewed as a community; specific institutions, either local congregation or a national or international body; the building in which they meet; or the group with which we worship. Most of us, however, define church as the place in which we congregate to worship God.
In the church there are many ordained and non-ordained spiritual leaders or teachers. These individuals are placed there to educate and guide us along the path of righteousness – the teachings of Jesus the Christ. But many of them do not practice what they preach.
It is recorded that over four percent of all US priests since 1950 have been accused of sexual abuse of children…greater than for other Christian and non-Christian religious leaders. During the early months of 2002, revelations of pedophilia and hebphilia among some priests in the Roman Catholic Church spread like wildfire across the US.
These abuses also exist right here in the Caribbean, but many victims have remained silent.
We trust these ‘men of the cloth’ and we have a right to do so, because we were convinced, according to societal norms, mores and cultural beliefs, that they are the messengers of God. But have we ever considered the fact that they are humans and are subject to mistakes and temptations?
The devil is a very busy spirit and, in these last days, he has increased the pace in his quest of converting God’s children; and to a very large degree he has been successful, even with the spiritual leaders.
It is being bandied on the streets that a number of spiritual leaders in the twin-island Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis have been committing adultery and other acts that are abomination unto the Lord.
This writer therefore implores those guilty of any act that contradicts their social and religious standing as messengers of God, to cast off the devil’s harness, wash themselves in the ‘blood of the lamb’ and don the garments of purity.
