Dear Editor;
I read the article about the Christian Council objecting to the Carnival Parade being held on Sunday, May1, and decided to lend my two cents on this issue for three reasons – 1. There is some misinterpretation of the whole truth. 2. I detect some selfishness, and 3. The Christian Council have some issues they should be thankful for.
Let me start with No. 1 – I know that some years ago the organisers of Carnival agreed not to hold the J’ouvert morning jump up and the Grand Carnival Parade on Sunday, but they also made it clear that the Grand Carnival Parade was dependant on which day of the week April 30 fell.
The Christian Council stated in their letter that they object to the parade being held on “the Lord's Day” and that “Sunday is a day that has been set aside from ancient time for Christian worship” and that Sunday is “a day of rest.” This is why I say it is a misinterpretation of “the whole truth.” It was indeed set aside for Christian worship, but not by God, but by man. According to the Bible, God created heaven and earth in six days and on the seventh day He rested.
In the 10 commandments God said “Remember the Sabbath Day” referring to the seventh day. He forbade working on that day and instructed to keep that day holy, thus making it “the day of rest,” which was later changed from the seventh day of the week to the first day of the week by man. Nowhere in the Bible can it be found that God made that change. It was man who changed it. So, based on God's word, the day of rest is the seventh day of the week and based on man's words, it is the first day of the week. I stress that God never changed it, and that will remain my belief until someone can show me where in the Bible it is stated that God changed it, while I know from history (not the Bible) that man changed it.
2. There are denominations on St. Maarten who worship on Sunday as well as Saturday. I am sure that those that worship on Saturday are also members of the Christian Council, yet when the J’ouvert morning jump up or the Grand Carnival Parade were held on Saturday; the Christian Council had no objections. I ask myself, “Why not?” Is the Christian Council representing only the denominations that worship on Sundays? I don't think so. Then, I find it selfish of those who worship on Sundays to neglect the issue when it affects those that worship on Saturdays.
3. The Christian Council should be thankful that they operate on St. Maarten where the date of the Grand Carnival Parade can be adjusted. What if they were operating in a country where they have “Carnival Sunday?” For instance in Aruba and Curaçao, just to name two, the Grand Carnival Parade is held every year on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday, just before going into Lent. What does the Christian Council in those countries do? Don't they deal with the fact that the Grand Carnival Parade is held on a Sunday? So, our Christian Council should be thankful that they live in a country where the date of the Grand Carnival Parade can be adjusted to suite them.
In closing, I want to make it clear that I am not condemning the actions of the Christian Council. They are doing their job to maintain moral standards in our society, but I think that, instead of criticizing Carnival, they should get involved to bring it to an acceptable and decent standard, if they feel that it is not at that level. We all have our parts to play in this society. So, Christian Council, play your part in the whole St. Maarten society.
Fernando Clark
