Jamaica must become a nation under God

THE EDITOR, Madam:

What has become of the command to “Love thy neighbour as thyself”?

There are many wants and needs. Mankind seems to have forgotten that we are but stewards. Adam failed to keep the power that he was given – dominion over all things; Cain slew his brother Abel because God favoured Abel’s offering over his. And so the trend continues today. We have taken over the devil’s mandate to “steal, kill and destroy”.

The irony is that the majority of Jamaicans are God-fearing people. We have the Word but no comprehension of its meaning.

When the Pharisee asked Jesus what was the greatest commandment in the Law, Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself.”

We have failed both God and our fellow countrymen on all counts. We are the idiom “crabs in a barrel”. We only know to hold down/sabotage each other.

The number of people willing to give someone a helping hand has greatly reduced over the years, and more sadly is the harsh truth that those who help others feel that they have done themselves a disservice because the very one (s) they help sometimes become their greatest opposition (s).

We have been hearing this saying over the years “no good deed goes unpunished”. What have we become? What has become of this nation that is supposed to be “under God”?

Our National Anthem is a prayer. Our National Pledge is an oath before God. What has become of these words? Does this generation even know the National Pledge? Is it still being used in schools? A nation without God eventually crumbles.

Jamaica must return to its roots – a nation under God – both in words and deeds. People should return to our first love – that of God, so our nation can become that place our pledge declared, A nation that increases “in beauty, fellowship and prosperity, and plays her part in advancing the welfare of the whole human race”.

May God’s love and continuous mercy towards Jamaica not be in vain.

D.B.