THE EDITOR, Sir:
YOUR ERUDITE, veteran journalist, Lloyd Williams, did our beloved nation of Jamaica a great favour in your publication of April 29 by highlighting the shocking murder statistics on our "paradise" island from 1960 to present. I support the call of Mr. Williams for all decent, peace-loving Jamaicans to co-operage with the law enforcement authorities to help bring the murderers to justice and thus stem the flow of innocent blood across our groaning "land of wood and water."
In addition, however, I would like to appeal to the religious leaders and churches in Jamaica to take a more active and proactive stance in helping to curb or halt the island's malignant murder malady. I am sure, Mr. Editor, that many Jamaican churches and individuals are praying, especially those who have been touched closely by losing loved ones to the country's crime spree.
PRAYER NOT ENOUGH
Nevertheless, this is clearly one of those times in Judeo-Christian history when prayer is not enough. In fact, it might just be the case that for the Church to render prayer by itself in perilous times like these would be a colossal waste of time. In other words, now is the time when prayer without a practical programme to help fight crime would be like 'faith without works,' which is nothing but dead useless.
The Bible depicts a few cases where God instructed those who were praying to stop mouthing words and become more practical. James rebuked those who offered just prayers and nice words to needy people and commanded them to do something about their brother's plight (James 2:15-17). John said that action, not words, would show Christian love (1 John 3:17-18). Jesus himself warned against long, redundant prayers (Matthew 6:7-8)and his life exemplified action over just praying. It is time for Jamaica's religious leaders, churches and individual saints to begin to strategise and implement actions to help fight crime.
The Government and the law agencies clearly cannot manage by themselves and the Jamaican Church has a track record of rising to the occasion in dire cases like slavery, colonialism and illiteracy to take action to bring deliverance. It is time to do it again. It is time for the Church to do something about the nation's killing spree. There have been enough pontificating from the pulpits and enough prayers in the pews. It is time for action. Is there no deacon Paul Bogle, no Rev. Thomas Burchell, no deacon Samuel Sharpe or even a Nanny of the Maroons to take the lead and declare war on murders?
Unless the Jamaican Church can step up to the wicket now and give the country one of its greatest innings ever against murder and other crimes, then the Church would have failed the nation, rendering itself as useless as salt that has lost its flavour.
Thanks to Lloyd Williams for laying out the bare facts about Jamaica's runaway murder rate before the nation and the world. I call on the Jamaican Church to take these facts as its cue to add action to the prayers being made to help stop the senseless killings. I believe God is saying that enough unsupported prayers have been made. While the Church should keep on praying, it must now support prayers with action, because "faith without works is dead, being alone" (James 2:17).
I am, et c.,
REV. MERVIN STODDART
INMerv@hotmail.com
Altamonte Springs, Florida
Via Go-Jamaica
Attributed to an American Naval
chaplain at Pearl Harbour, Dec.7, 1941.
