Devon Dick
RECENTLY, I received a book, What God Hath Wrought! by Lucia Howe. Howe started an independent ministry in 1960 and now, as the Overseer of the Prophetic Church of God, she directs 20 churches in Jamaica and four churches scattered across the USA, Canada and India. According to THE STAR of February 14, 1962, six young women became variously blind, dumb and crippled after they had received the Holy Spirit at a crusade held at the Bible Church of God, May Pen. Under the ministry of Lucia Howe, they recovered.
Sadly, many mighty and unusual workings of God in Jamaica are not recorded or highlighted. The experiences of Jamaican Christians are not promoted.
Take a visit to any bookstore, whether Christian or not and the motivational and inspirational books are largely foreign. If one is not careful one is led to believe that God is not among us but only with foreigners, especially foreign Christians on television from the U.S.A.
Therefore, being slain in the Spirit, the type where a preacher touches a believer and that person falls backwards, came to Jamaican consciousness via television. Overseas Christians are brought to Jamaica whether live or via technology largely to teach us and rarely do they come here to a seminar to learn. And when we go to foreign lands, it is largely to learn.
SAME-SEX MARRIAGES
One can therefore expect that the Jamaican Church will change its attitude and teachings on same-sex marriages because Christians in USA and Canada bless same-sex marriages. However, when Rev. Dr. Vivian Panton, now chaplain of the Police Force, encouraged in his book another approach to common-law relationships, few listened to him and the ideas were not taken to regional and international fora for discussions. Obviously, the Holy Spirit can only inspire foreigners to change doctrines and practices.
Why is it that Caribbean people have hardly ever headed their international denominational organisations? Why is there no Caribbean hymn book after all these years? There is one Eastern European country that has one hymn book used by all the denominations! But we still import American and European hymn books. Obviously, God is not among us the same way he is with foreigners to help us produce a Caribbean Christian hymn book. But there are Caribbean musicians, composers and singers who produce good material.
There are also Jamaicans who produce good spiritual food. I heard televangelist Al Miller speak on stewardship of money that was sound and practical. I have never heard any foreign televangelist give an exposition even close to Al's sermon on money management but I bet you that persons would rather invite a foreigner to speak on stewardship than use Al Miller.
It reminds me of a story I heard a couple years ago about Reverend Dr. Burchell Taylor who was invited to speak to a group of Christians in Ocho Rios. That group also invited an international speaker from Britain, who is a sound expositor and whose books I have read. One participant told that she saw no difference between Dr. Taylor and the foreigner, in fact, in her judgment Dr. Taylor provided better spiritual food. But how many persons believe that our home-grown talents are spiritual giants? How many persons have bought Dr. Taylor's Bible study on Micah?
NEW PHENOMENON
This is not a new phenomenon for some Jamaican Christians to prefer foreigners to locals. Shirley Gordon in her book Our Cause for His Glory relates a story about Native Baptists who warned members of LMS congregations that they would be ill-treated if they insisted on having European pastors. And the LMS congregations experienced bad treatment at the hands of Europeans in the 1840s.
When Jamaica became independent in 1962, there was a Jamaicanisation of the Church but these gains are being threatened again with this taste for things and persons 'farin'. There is the feeling that Jamaicans and persons of African descent are inferior. So there are Jamaican Christians who have never bought or read a book written by African Christians.
There is nothing wrong with learning from others especially their best practices. One of the best conferences I have attended was at Willow Creek Community Church, Illinois. However, the relationship between Jamaicans and foreigners ought to be as equals and in partnership with the understanding that God has gifted Jamaicans who can contribute to the edifying of the community because God is among us.
Devon Dick is pastor of the Boulevard Baptist Church and author of Rebellion to Riot, the Church in nation building.
