ANGLICAN LORD Bishop of Jamaica, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Alfred Reid's chiding of the local Church community in general for failing to provide moral leadership to a troubled society is somewhat ironic.
The church community of which he is a leading member has not been muzzled in any way by any forces except, perhaps, by their own timidity or a burying of their heads in the sand to the myriad social problems in the country. In their defence many church leaders will point to annual synodical declarations, regular denunciations of various social ills from pulpits, or to the various works of charity in which they are engaged, which attempt to address the plight of the society's marginalised.
The problem with these declarations however is that often they are delivered to the converted or shrouded in the kind of language that leaves most people befuddled as to what exactly is being said. Inconsistencies in statements do not help their cause either. But beyond statements, what the society is crying out for is courageous, visionary leadership at all levels. So as timely as the Lord Bishop's observations were, the lack of specifics highlights the concerns which many people have with the moral leadership of the Church about which he spoke. Sociological and economic analyses are useful up to a point but are hardly enough. The Biblical prophets in whose tradition presumably the Lord Bishop walks, were pretty clear as to who and what they were targeting when they spoke. The late Bishop Percival Gibson, a predecessor, who is still revered for enunciating very clear, practical and moral leadership to the Jamaican society, provides a more modern example.
Of some interest, is an example referred to by the Rev. Devon Dick in his column yesterday on the Street Pastor project being developed in Britain, using the examples of some Jamaican ministers of religion. There are other, less well-publicised projects in which persons are engaged in serious work to reduce the many dysfunctions in the society. These need to be replicated where practical.
Clearly, the Rev. Dr. Reid and his colleagues are grappling, as are many other non-religious groups, with how to halt a general drift in the society. His analysis is a start, but more needs to be done. We suggest that as they seek to define their mission in the context of changing mores and values, that their statements be made more relevant to the communities they wish to serve to the extent that they are backed up by practical action.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
