by Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ and Director, CREDI
Earlier this year, Pope Francis referred to “Pius XII’s assertion that ‘the sin of the century is the loss of the sense of sin’… Losing the sense of sin causes others to pay for our ‘Christian mediocrity’…When the sense of sin is lost, so is the sense of the Kingdom of God lost.” In its place, he said, “…emerges a very powerful anthropological vision, in which ‘I can do anything’.”
On May 14, a letter by Dr Ramchand Rampersad appeared in the Newsday under the headlined, “TT now a land of hopelessness.” It stated: “It appears that even God has given up Trini citizenship and if so who can really blame him?” We Christians must categorically reject such statements.
While it may be true that some citizens may have moved away from God, we have a duty to demonstrate that there are visible, credible signs that Christians are living in T&T and working diligently to build God’s Kingdom in T&T and the world.
Faced with the scourge of crime, what are we to do? Christians are people of hope. We worship a God of order, of love, of justice and peace. Each of us has a role to play in finding solutions to heal our land.
We must turn back to God if we have strayed from the path of righteousness. As is said in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “…if my people who bear my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my presence and turn from their wicked ways, I myself will hear from heaven and forgive their sins and restore their land.”
If you wish to find/share solutions, you are invited to attend a free three-day Symposium that is being organised by Prayers (+) Plus, a Christian organisation. The theme is Finding Solutions to Crime – A meeting of Heads of the Christian Faithand it willbe held from May 27 to 29 at Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre. His Grace Archbishop Harris and I will be among the contributors.
Cleveland Thomas, Director of Prayers (+) Plus, says: “The objective of the three-day Symposium is for Christian heads to gain a better understanding of the crime situation, the measures already in place to solve it, the challenges and the contributions that the Christian community can make to help improve the country’s crime situation. The proposed programme includes presentations and panel discussions by senior officials and members of the Christian community. This will be followed by discussions and recommendations…Every single contribution to heal our land is important…therefore, united as the Body of Jesus Christ, we are confident that together we can better strategise.”
He added: “Collaboration at this time is critical. Overall, more than 250 national heads and church leaders are expected to participate. The Symposium will bring together leaders of various Christian communities, members of the Government, the Tobago House of Assembly, policymakers, the Judiciary, the police and prison services, the media and members of the wider community.”
Day 1 (May 27) will focus on crime and vulnerable groups – women, children, the differently-abled and the elderly, and the security and protective services will also be addressed.
On Day 2, solutions and partnerships for business and economic growth, and also to develop better young men and men in society will be discussed.
On Day 3, the symposium will address Tobago, the judiciary, prisons, and the media, before a Final Resolution is prepared.
The task of building safer, more harmonious communities that are crime-free is everyone’s business. Now is the time to rededicate ourselves to fight crime and corruption at all levels of our society. We are God’s instruments here on earth. We must work assiduously to find and implement solutions that will eradicate crime in our communities and help us build a civilisation of love.
For further information on the Symposium, contact Cleveland Thomas at clevelandancil.thomas@gmail.com or prayerplus2014@gmail.com and at 1-246-250-8906, or Margaret Lewis at 753-5827.
Let us pray for the success of the Symposium.
