From time immemorial, religion has shaped the identity, culture, class systems and politics of nations around the world.
In India, there is Buddhism and Hinduism - the latter regarded as the world's oldest religion.
The Middle East - Islam - the world's second largest religion.
The Chinese have Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, folk religion, and others.
The Jamaicans can boast Rastafari.
But here in The Bahamas, as is the case for one-third of the world's population, as well as regions within those listed above, Christianity is the dominant religion.
We who call ourselves Christians believe in Jesus as Christ, the Messiah; subscribe to the Bible; pray to God, in Jesus' name, as soon as we wake up, before consuming a meal, during morning assembly (for schoolchildren), before any life-changing moment, during trials and tribulations; we attend a weekly church service; and even exclaim the occasional "Lord, have mercy" when something troubles or excites us.
Sir Arthur Foulkes, who is one of just four signatories to the constitution still alive today, is credited with principally drafting the preamble to the 1973 constitution.
Foulkes, while in Cabinet in 1969, drafted a preamble that was intended for use in the '69 constitution, but the British did not agree for a preamble at the time, given that The Bahamas was not an independent state.
Though in 1972, Foulkes was then in opposition, the preamble he drafted earlier was largely adopted. His original preamble did not include any mention of Christian values (or a Christian nation).
"They made a couple changes and one of the changes was the addition of 'respect for Christian values'," he said in a recent sit down with The Nassau Guardian.
"That was not in what I wrote and the reason for that was that was a compromise ... there was a lot of pressure on Sir Lynden, as I understand it, on the government, on all of us, I guess to say something to the effect that this is a Christian nation, which, of course, Sir Lynden rightly rejected; and that I understand was a compromise, respect for Christian principles, but we are not a Christian nation. In the political document, you can't say we are a Christian nation or a Hindu nation," Sir Arthur said.
"We are a democratic country where there is freedom of religion and some people need to learn that today."
The role of the church on the road to independence
Although The Bahamas today prides itself on being perceived as a "Christian nation", the church had no direct involvement in negotiating or securing independence, according to Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Drexel Gomez.
"Preparation for independence, the church really played the role more of praying for the people who went over to England to discuss with the British government the terms and conditions of independence, but the church itself was never represented in those discussions and made no direct contribution," said Gomez in a recent interview with The Nassau Guardian.
"But the church, as church of the various denominations in the country, were all supportive of independence and the natural progression from colonialism to being responsible for our affairs. But the church had actually no participation in the discussions and the arguments that our representatives used when they went to England. The church had nothing to do with that."
Among the framers of the constitution who traveled to London in December 1972 were 15 members of Parliament - 11 from the then-governing Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), led by Lynden Pindling, and four from the then-opposing Free National Movement (FNM), led by Kendal G.L. Isaacs.
Unaware of the reason for the church's absence, Gomez, when asked why it was so important that the country's founding fathers agree to a constitution based on Christian values, noted that the "majority of the population were Christians".
"So, that became sort of the religious goal; the religious standard would be that of the Christian faith," he said. "So, they had to pay attention to that in introducing - really, it was an introduction to the constitution. It's not in the constitution itself."
He was referring to the preamble of the constitution which states: "AND WHEREAS the People of this Family of Islands recognizing that the preservation of their Freedom will be guaranteed by a national commitment to Self-discipline, Industry, Loyalty, Unity and an abiding respect for Christian values and the Rule of Law ... and recognizing the Supremacy of God ... DO HEREBY PROVIDE by these Articles for the indivisible Unity and Creation under God of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas."
Nonetheless, Chapter III Section 22(1) of the constitution itself provides the right to religious freedom.
It states: "Except with his consent, no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of conscience, and for the purposes of this Article the same freedom includes freedom of thought and of religion, freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others, and both in public and in private, to manifest and propagate his religion of belief in worship, teaching, practice and observance."
Notwithstanding these freedoms, the first independence sermon, delivered by Dr. R. E. Cooper, founding pastor of The Mission Baptist Church, during the Ecumenical Thanksgiving Service, which was sponsored by the Bahamas Christian Council (BCC), and held on Clifford Park on July 8, 1973, spoke to our Christian values.
For many who attended and who are still alive today, the verse he chose, 1 Peter 2:9, is burned in memory: "For ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light."
Cooper preached, "... We Christians want to safeguard human rights in a just Bahamian community. The very nature of our convictions causes us to be concerned about the dignity and freedom of men everywhere. Men created by God in His image and His likeness.
"We must also be concerned for the equality of individuals who make up our community, regardless of race or origin. So, then, we must pay particular attention to the development of human rights and the right of self-determination."
Today, The Bahamas is home to not only many non-Bahamian nationals, within a population of about 400,000, but also non-Christian religions - a constitutional right.
The relationship between church and state
With Christianity having the largest following in the country - many of whom are politicians - Gomez believes "religion should be primary" to political decisions.
"To me, that is kind of a contradiction that exists that we have these representatives who are all, or the vast majority of them claim to belong to, one Christian church or the other," Gomez said.
"But the teaching of the church is not primary in Parliament. It is ... the stance of the political party. And so, to me, most MPs have their religion in a secondary position - it should be primary."
Retired Baptist minister and author of the country's pledge and national song, "God Bless Our Sunny Clime", Reverend Dr. Philip Rahming, agrees.
"I think we need to do more work in our churches with the need for Jesus," Rahming said. "And so, when folks are elected, they are elected from the churches who know about what Christ expects from us."
Gomez recalled a moment in politics where he felt the church had been slighted.
"I remember vividly in a debate over the gambling issue where a minister said the church has had its say, now the government will act," Gomez said. "And to me, that's typical of how Parliament functions. They say you (the church) can have your say, but we (the government) will make the determination."
In fact, just 10 years ago, after the 2013 gambling referendum, then-Prime Minister Perry Christie overruled the overwhelming vote not to legalize web shop gaming and for the government not to establish a national lottery - creating a tug of war between church and state.
Ecstatic that the church and the voting public were in accordance with rejecting both propositions, then-BCC President Dr. Ranford Patterson said, "This is a victory for the church. We are excited and thanking God."
Still, Christie went on to legalize, regulate and tax web shops, claiming that his decision to do so was of "national interest".
"... Where my personal interest conflicts with national interest, the national interest takes precedence," Christie said in response to then-Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn, who questioned his decision to overrule the vote on the floor of the House of Assembly.
"I provided the rationalization for a decision where I moved from the results of the referendum, persuasive though it may be. ... I had consultations with banks, and I then made a decision and I stand by that decision."
However, Christie's blatant disregard for the public's ruling fueled a "war of words" between members of the clergy and the then-PLP government, with Pastors Lyall Bethel and Cedric Moss, in a joint statement, calling for Christie and then-Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis to reveal if they or the PLP received any "financial donations or other benefits" from any web shops or their operators.
There was, however, no allegation of corruption leveled against Christie or Davis.
'God and Caesar are not on the same level'
More recently, in what was an explosive public battle between Reverend T.G. Morrison, pastor at Zion Baptist Church, and the government, regarding COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings, including church services, Morrison vehemently made it known that the government "does not have the power" to dictate to the church.
"... No government has the authority to tell the church it can't keep Sunday school," he said in a May 2020 interview with The Nassau Guardian.
"... The government does not have the power to tell the church that it can only keep service for an hour. The government does not have the power to tell the church that it must keep service in a parking lot."
Morrison noted that such measures were "out of the purview" of the government and that more pastors needed to take a stand "and act on the courts of the house of the Lord".
However, in a recent interview with The Nassau Guardian, Morrison said that part of the reason why he adopted that stance was because he strongly believes that it is "precisely in a time of crisis when people need spiritual outlets and an opportunity to be reminded that life is not just medical".
"When the Bible speaks about rendering to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's, a lot of people, even members of the clergy, seemingly interpret that to mean that God and Caesar are on the same level, and the truth of the matter is, God and Caesar are not on the same level," Morrison said.
"And whenever we allow Caesar to dictate to the church, then it means that God has been dethroned."
He added that there had been moments where he stood "shoulder to shoulder" with doctors who were allowed to do what was needed, medically, while he was allowed to do what was needed spiritually.
"And all of a sudden, in the midst of the pandemic, the role of the Christian minister in healthcare was totally denied," Morrison said.
"And to me, that was a point that I was not prepared to stomach, neither should any other pastor be prepared to stomach it.
"There will always be a time where what the government asks of its people may run counterculture to the church.
"But the Christian church has a standard, a mantra, by which she is governed. And if the laws of the land come to conflict with a mandate of the church, then the church has a responsibility to stand up."
The future of the church in an
independent nation
As The Bahamas becomes more exposed to liberal ideologies, particularly out of America, Christian beliefs that were once staunch are now suffering at the hands of "woke-ism", according to Morrison.
"The way the world is heading ... is towards a Godlessness where everything that is of value to the Judeo-Christian tradition is being challenged and upended in this age of 'woke-ism'," he said.
He added, however, "If men and women who claim to be Christians are not prepared to stand up for what the Bible says, then we will increasingly become a secular nation without regard for religious undertones."
When asked if he thinks the country has strayed from Christian values, Gomez said, "I wouldn't put it that way because I am not sure that we can say that at any stage of our growth and development that we were really following Christian values and standards."
He added, "I'm not sure, but I think that in most instances, we have really been making ad hoc decisions. I don't think there was any decision that was made that I know of that was a direct influence of the Christian church."
Nonetheless, Morrison, Gomez and Rahming all want the same thing - for Bahamians who subscribe to the Christian faith to draw closer to Christ.
"You pray, and it's hoped that those of us who are Christians will so live and lead [a life] that will get those who are not [Christian] to follow," Rahming said. "And when you listen to people who are not [Christian] in other countries, you will see that trusting God is always the best way out."
Thus, as we reflect on Hanna's bold statement 10 years ago, we acknowledge two truths: first, that non-Christian religions exist on our soil, a right enshrined in our constitution, and that people, regardless of their religion, can learn from one another. And second, the value of the Christian church won't decrease just because of religious freedoms.
Those who claim to be Christian can take joy in knowing that the significance of the future of the church relies on what has kept it going all along - for its members - who are "the church" - to continue spreading the gospel of Christ through thought, word and deed - as a sign of true strength in an independent nation is when people can see the world differently, but still coexist harmoniously.
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