A section of the congregation of Chinese worshippers that meet at the Jamaica Chinese Christian Fellowship.
IF YOU are a non-English speaker, worshipping on Sundays can be problematic if one is unable to find a church that conducts its liturgy in one's native tongue. For that reason, various ethnic groups locally have formed their own churches and have been meeting regularly.
There is in Jamaica a Nigerian Church and a Korean Church. Last Sunday, The Gleaner visited with the Jamaica Chinese Christian Fellowship which meets at 18 Trinidad Terrace, New Kingston.
Located at the top of a three-storey building, the church is seeking to relocate as the flight of steps is proving too challenging for some of the older members of the congregation.
The Chinese community in Jamaica have been convening their own church services from as early as 1938, says Eli Ho, 82, an elder at the Jamaica Chinese Christian Fellowship. In fact, one of the most popular Corporate Area churches at this time, Swallowfield Chapel, began as a fellowship for Chinese Christians, Mr. Ho noted.
Harry Wong, 54, a deacon at the Trinidad Terrace fellowship, said the church began in earnest about 1984. At that time, it began with three Chinese families. During the 1990s, at the time when the Kingston Freezone was in its hey day, several persons of Chinese origins who worked there, flocked to this ethnic church. At times, the typical attendance on Sunday mornings stood close to 100 persons, Mr. Wong recounted, but when the factories closed, several returned to China.
Mr. Wong, who, along with his wife Angela, operate Maxim Wholesale on Half-Way Tree Road, St. Andrew, explained that the church was fulfilling a unique role as it facilitated a closer bonding among persons of Chinese origins especially as several of its worshippers can barely speak English.
Mr. Wong laments that the church does not have trained personnel to adequately preach the Scriptures as a result a lot of 'sermons' are really devotionals and simple exhortations. The church, which is non-denominational, is seeking a pastor, as it has been without such a shepherd for the last four years. But despite advertisements in Chinese publications, no suitable candidate has been forthcoming.
On a typical Sunday, the church's activities begin at 9 a.m., with Sunday School. Then at 11.30 a.m., the divine worship service takes place, where about 70 persons will typically be in attendance. There is much flexibility in the worship styles demonstrated in the service and this is intended to ensure harmony among the Christian community there which is drawn from several denominations. There are not many distinctions in gender functions at the church, as women and men form the board of deacons and both may preach and officiate in services.
Translators are kept busy every Sunday. The liturgy is usually translated into Cantonese, the dominant language in the church, and Mandarin. English-speaking preachers who are invited to share in the service do so while two translators communicate the sermon to the congregation in the two spoken Chinese languages there.
It's location limits the performance of certain church rituals such as baptisms, weddings and funerals. For such occasions, the congregation turns to Swallowfield Chapel, with whom it has strong relations, for the use of its facilities.
Occasionally it is visited by short-term Chinese missionaries, who will preach and conduct workshops there. Every Easter, the church goes on a retreat at the Morelands Camp site in Manchester. There they are taught the Scriptures by a visiting speaker and given seminars and workshops to sharpen their vision and improve their skills for Christian witness.
Anyone is free to worship with them in New Kingston, but it would help if you brush up on your Cantonese and Mandarin, said Eli Ho, the longstanding elder there.
