Hard Sayings

The recent tragic killing of Cora Thompson on church grounds in Western Jamaica during a worship service has shaken many to their core. Having lived in a bubble for the past few weeks, I have just been reading the comments giving voice to the national reaction and have taken notice of the many questions the … More Hard Sayings

Diasporation

Dispersion was the secret ingredient that led to the widespread and rapid propagation of the gospel in the beginning and the same is true today, perhaps now more than ever before. This was decidedly expressed in the recent Lausanne document on world evangelism: The State of the Great Commission, a monumental work of intellect and … More Diasporation

Sovereign Intelligence

With all the talk about the Rules-based International Order collapsing and the anxiety over what will the emergent global body politic look like when the game reverts to Big-fish-eat-small-fish, I feel compelled to make some comments on basic ideas that no longer represent a consensus of human opinion, and why, and what to do about … More Sovereign Intelligence

Black Christmas

I’d like to sincerely wish one and all a very merry Christmas, but how can I? I’m ending the year as I began it recognizing the utter vanity of tradition if we are not prepared to protect and preserve it. As far as Christmas is concerned, I’ve long repudiated the Johnny Mathis and Bing Crosby … More Black Christmas

A church voting bloc?

The idea of a Christian vote in the Jamaican context is an interesting proposition. For such a voting bloc to exist and to be of societal value requires an internal cohesion which can only be achieved through common connection to universally trusted sources of information and universally respected voices of authority. Even then, weighing in … More A church voting bloc?

The Least of These

I spent Marcus Garvey’s birthday visiting the Haitian refugee camp in St Mary. It is hard to determine exactly how many have arrived on the island by boat. It is almost certain that some have evaded our Coast Guards and found a way to integrate into informal settlements around the island, but the government of … More The Least of These

The Fixer

A fair authentication of authorship is the ability to fix one’s broken invention. This assumption probably underscores the logic behind the central tenet of Christianity’s claim that Jesus is God – his purported ability to fix the problems of humanity. It started out with simple things, like saving the life of a party when the … More The Fixer

Finally, it’s an atheist who gets it right.

For 25 years, I’ve had real problems with the religious demographics being projected by scholars and even the most trusted institutions. I remember being dumbfounded by my scholar-friend Dr Muata Ashby, prolific author and Egyptologist, attempting to resurrect both ancient Egyptian language and religion, following the Zionist model, as a precursor to 21st century Pan … More Finally, it’s an atheist who gets it right.

Language and Identity

The metaphysical foundations of the church were laid in a crucial conversation between Jesus and Peter. At the heart of this conversation were three questions. Two were stated explicitly and the third implied: If we can recognize that the human drama in its entirety is the mission to define self, (whether that self be individual … More Language and Identity