Michael Abrahams | The pastor’s rant: straight outta the Bible

A St Ann pastor, Peter Chambers, was recently arrested, and eventually released from custody, after hitting out against Prime Minister Andrew Holness in a widely circulated video. The prime minister recently announced that the Government would be enforcing stricter measures in an effort to control the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

These measures include locking down the country for three successive weekends, which would eliminate physical church gatherings for three Sundays in a row. In his diatribe, the pastor “prophesied” that the prime minister would die and his body would be eaten by worms, and that his first son would also die, insisting that Holness “must go down”. According to a media source, a representative of the police’s Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) said that Chambers was to be questioned on “reasonable suspicion of creating public mischief”.

NOT TO BE SURPRISED

But, if this man reads the Bible and is influenced by it, we ought not to be surprised by his comments, as they come straight from the ‘Good Book’. For example, King Herod was killed by an “angel of the Lord” and his body eaten by worms after he gave a powerful speech and was praised for it, but did not “give God the glory” (Acts 12:23). Also, when Pharaoh did not release the Israelite slaves, Yahweh got very annoyed and sent his “angel of death” to kill all the firstborn sons of the Egyptians (Exodus 12:29). As a matter of fact, Yahweh threw such a hissy fit that he ordered that even the firstborn of livestock be killed too. Yes. Even cows, goats, sheep, and other animals were smitten because a leader displeased God and incurred His wrath. By the way, the word “smite” is mentioned in the Bible 113 times, and “wrath” approximately 180, usually in relation to Yahweh’s anger.

Andrew Holness, like Herod and Pharaoh, is also a leader. Many, probably most, Christians place a great deal of importance on attending church. The Bible verse, “Where two or three are gathered in my name I am in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20), is very popular and often quoted by church folk. Also, Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

GOD WILL PROTECT THE FAITHFUL

The Bible also teaches that God will protect the faithful. The often-quoted Psalm 23:4 states, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” According to Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.” And when Jesus arrived on the scene, he continued to preach on the value of faith, stating, in Mark 11:23, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.”

So, if the pastor believes that God protects the faithful, sees the prime minister’s actions as interfering with praising and worshipping God, and believes that this displeases the Almighty, his utterances should not raise eyebrows. After all, he praises a deity who killed a leader who did not “big Him up”, and innocent kids (some firstborn would have been children) and farm animals because another leader angered Him.

Do I think the pastor is a out of order? Absolutely. Do I think some of the stories in the Bible are disgusting? Definitely. Rubbishing the pastor and simultaneously holding up the Bible as the inerrant word of a loving God are incompatible.

In my opinion, if you dismiss the pastor, you ought to dismiss at least portions of the book he uses as a moral guide too, as it is full of violence, cruelty and lots and lots of killing by a vengeful (Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans 12:19, Hebrews 10:30) and jealous (Exodus 20:5, Exodus 34:14, Deuteronomy 6:15) deity whose wrath is easily incurred and will smite disobedient, and innocent, people in the blink of an eye.

Michael Abrahams is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, social commentator, and human-rights advocate. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and michabe_1999@hotmail.com, or Twitter @mikeyabrahams.