Mark Dawes, Religion Editor
In the wake of Jamaica's successes at the Beijing Summer Olympics, members of the clergy were asked to comment on its impact, if any, on national development.
Specifically, they were asked: 'Describe what, if any, effect you think Jamaica's gold medal-winning performances in Beijing will have on the spiritual and social climate of the nation?'
Below are some of the responses:
God is using athletes to bring us together
ALLEN
Dr Patrick Allen, president of the West Indies Union of Seventh-day Adventists:
Everyone should pause and see the miraculous way in which God is bringing us together as a nation and the means He is using to accomplish this feat, our athletes and the Olympics, happening so far away from us.
On the first weekend of August, the Christian community united, in prayer for this nation, and interceded with God to intervene, on our behalf, in turning things around. On the following day, the prayers continued as the umbrella groups had signed off on. God gave our athletes superhuman strength, confidence and courage to show-case Jamaica in a positive light at the most opportune time, when the entire world is watching.
This did not happen by chance, we asked God to show up, we just did not know how He was going to do it.
We must seek to transfer these outstanding achievements into every part of our nation's fabric to propel us to some serious action in building this nation. Whatever platform we perform on, we are guided by the values that are inculcated in us. Wherever we work or whatever we do we can draw from the phenomenal performance of our athletes to propel us to greatness.
These past few days have shown that we can work together, we can respect each other, we can be genuinely happy for each other, we can pray for one another, we can live together in peace and unite around one common goal.
Jamaica has to be the better for this experience. The long-lasting effect will be the result of a commitment on the part of the nation's leaders to highlight positive values and demonstrate that success is the result of hard work and a strong belief in divine guidance.
Inspiring lessons our leaders can learn
NOTICE
Rev Dr. Roy Notice, former pastor of Mandeville New Testament Church of God:
The victories remind us of our capacity to achieve, even with limited resources and many other obstacles. There are lessons that the nation can learn.
I think the first is that success is not just about skill, potential and talent. The price that must be paid is discipline and hard work. Our athletes have trained hard and have sacrificed much.
As a nation, we can reflect on this victory and, when the celebrations are over, we must commit ourselves to discipline and hard work.
I also believe that we can be inspired by the kind of leadership given to these winners by their coaches. Our victories are influenced by committed and tough leadership. Our track and field leaders, coaches and administrators are competent and, for the most part, have proven to be leaders of integrity.
Success is not dependent on where you are from. Our place of birth does not have to determine our destiny. If we, as leaders, learn these lessons, then perhaps we can use them to inspire those we lead towards a deepened spirituality and greater social justice.
We, too, can see our dreams become reality
MORGAN
Pastor Carrington Peter Morgan, executive director, City Life Ministries:
The opportunity for unity lies in that, when we are all elevated, we meet each other in a glorious place of agreement. There, we truly become one, and so the walls that segregate are lowered bit by bit.
Every Jamaican is able to dream himself or herself out of a depressed situation because of the wins.
The winners have come from humble beginnings and are able to give us all hope that within our lifetime, we, too, can see our dreams become a reality. With each victory, the stains of past failure and consistent depression and oppression are slowly erased. We must utilise events such as these to reverse the scale of our present reality of misfortune and underachievement.
This is a breakthrough for our people. We can now see ourselves as winners and not just talented people who try hard.
Better still, we can view ourselves as true achievers, free from the twist of corruption and perversion of the 'system', which has almost become a way of life here in Jamaica.
Positive effects of athletic gold however, depend on two things;
What we do with new-found fame and glory. Similar to Mammon, if it is elevated above the Creator and above service to others, it will destroy us.
If we relate this athletic prowess to other areas of our livelihood which we have not been so good at.
We must believe that the discipline that Usain and others went through to achieve on the track can be related to other areas such as self-control, care for others, respect of God, those in authority and the personal belief that I can do all things with the help of my God and with a determined spirit.
More conscious of our potential
Rev Chris Newton, lecturer at Bethel Bible College:
I would agree that the reality in Beijing will have some impact on the nation in the affective realm, but when you consider the harsh realities of Jamaica - spiritually, morally, economically, and politically - it will be quite temporary at best.
The most significant impact, I believe, will be socially, as it raises our consciousness of our potential as a people. For there to be a significant spiritual change, there needs to be a spiritual revival where Jesus is the centre and focus is placed on Him. The fact is that spiritual change comes not by 'feeling' but by decision resulting from conviction.
Antidote to self-hatred
JOHNSON
Rev Karl Johnson, president of the Jamaica Council of Churches:
Our Beijing exploits should serve as an antidote to the induced self-hatred and self-denigration for which many, at all levels, have been responsible.
It is clear evidence of potential that has been realised and exceeded, as well as, potential that is yet to be fulfilled.
This moment ought to remind us of our common sense of belonging and family, and that our capacity for good transcends the divisiveness and destructive actions, which have become part of the fabric of our everyday lives.
It is noteworthy that what really puts Jamaica on top are not the things that some would prioritise (e.g. measures of economic strength such as GDP or per capita income) but our God-given human and natural resources! It is instructive that so many of these mind-boggling achievements are emanating significantly from sections of our society which we often marginalise and discount.
We do not believe that our Beijing exploits are an accident of nature but they form part of our God-given endowment which, as a nation, we must always acknowledge in word and deed.
A psychological lift from God
STEWART
Dr Donald Stewart, pastor Portmore Lane Covenant Community Church:
I believe that success has the ability to galvanise a people and to give a sense of hope, meaning, purpose and possibility, which has been for so long covered over by the pain, frustration, despair and depression, in countless lives of our struggling Jamaican people.
Our significant success in the 2008 Olympics is a further testimony to the reality and faithfulness of a God, who knows that our Jamaican people needed a psychological lift, which will, in turn, open spiritual channels of thanksgiving, praise, encouragement and recommitment of faith in God (where it had previously dwindled).
This experience, I believe, will serve in Jamaica as a permanent reminder that, with God, all things are possible and that 'I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength'.
Will inspire hope, faith among the poor
Rev Donovan Cole of the Associated Gospel Assemblies:
Monday's Gleaner article told us about the "one-room board struc-ture" that Shelly-Ann Fraser calls family home. Many of the sprinters who have brought Jamaica Olympic glory, are from poor economic circumstances.
Jamaica's gold medal-winning performances in Beijing will inspire hope in the nation. The medals signify, among other things, that even the desperately poor can make it in life in an honourable way.
Jamaica's performances will, I believe, inspire courage in the nation. Maxine Simpson, Shelly-Ann's mother, struggled, we are told, to raise her three children, mostly on her own.
If what we hear is correct, Maxine was herself an athlete, competing in the 100m, 200m, and long jump in high school, but became pregnant as a teenager.
Teenage pregnancy is a major issue in the nation. There are people and agencies that are recommending abortion as a solution to some of Jamaica's social ills, including the problem of teenage pregnancy.
Poor women, they say, stand to benefit from access to abortion services because of harsh economic conditions. Maxine's story, and that of her champion daughter, will give the nation, and our poor women, courage to say no to this monstrous evil.
I want to make it abundantly clear that I am not trying to cast blame, guilt, or condemnation on anyone who was ignorant of the many options that exist—options that I have only recently come to know about—and so felt pressured to have an abortion.
Nor am I recommending to our teens to be involved in sexual activity. But, under the most dismal of circumstances, many women have come, similar to Maxine, to an outcome that brings joy.
Jamaica, in the midst of celebration, will be challenged and inspired to reaffirm faith and trust in the nation, and in God!
Shelly-Ann's mother, at race time was quoted as saying "Lord, give my daughter strength and give the team strength, dear Lord," and "Push out Baby, push out! Do it for Jesus!" Skeptics may dispute, but that is a mother's story and experience.
Maxine Simpson, similar to others, will give God the glory, whether at the Penwood Church in Waterhouse or some other church, perhaps in Trelawny.
More inner-city areas will become accepted
ADE-GOLD
Bishop Joseph Ade-Gold, Overcomers Christian International Church:
I am overwhelmed by the performances of our athletes, especially those from the depressed communities. I strongly believe that the esteem of our people, especially in the inner-city communities, will go higher.
Socially speaking, more inner-city communities will be more accepted, and this will change the way others think of the inner-city communities. Spiritually, I believe that trust in God will increase, thus paving the way for inner-city revival.
In order to see the effects of the above in the communities, the church must take advantage of these great successes to organise social programmes (not crusades) to create friendship geared towards knowing Christ.
Leaders should use results as inspiration
SAMUELS
Rev Dr. Stephenson Samuels, former general secretary of Students Christian Fellowship:
With no supporting initiative from our leaders, the gold medal- winning performances in Beijing will lift the happiness level of the nation.
Crime may decrease minutely and temporarily. I say this, as we have not seen any great impact since Bolt's 100m victory, as compared to the brief but significant positive difference when the Reggae Boys qualified for the World Cup.
On average, Jamaicans will feel a greater level of pride. Also, we will have a greater belief in the natural ability of the Jamaican to succeed. A lesser number of Jamaican will use this opportunity to actually take action and succeed.
If our national leaders act proactively, they can use this perfor-mance of our Olympic athletes to create the social cohesion necessary for the creation of a peaceful and productive society.
Just the results alone can be used as a source of inspiration to challenge our people to live at a higher level of achievement in all areas. They could go further to support research in the capacity of the Jamaican to perform, above and beyond the average.
Church leaders can also research the religious background of the various athletes to demonstrate, if any, the value of religion in the performance of an athlete.
There are quite a few of these athletes that publicly imaged a religious posture before and/or after their respective races.
mark.dawes@gleanerjm.com.
