Condolences for Natashia Schmidt
Dear Editor,
Just a few weeks ago, I visited the National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA) and toured the facilities, including the MIC-IT program. I met several of our local people who had enrolled in the different construction courses being offered. I congratulated them for taking the opportunity to continue their education as a way of improving their lives and the lives of their families.
One of those MIC trainees was Natashia Schmidt, a 36-year-old mother of seven, who had started on a path to improving her education, skills, and training. From accounts received, Natashia had determined to turn her life around, despite all the challenges she faced. She latched on to this hope through education at one of our local institutions. It is with great sadness that as a community, we were awakened to the news that violence had snatched a young life away.
We are called “The Friendly Island”, and not too long ago, we were still living with that culture. Today, violence and crime have invaded our communities, our homes and our minds, gripping our residents with fear and isolation. Our children, youth, adults and seniors are affected. It is time to put a stop to this digression.
To reclaim and preserve our ‘friendly’ identity as Sint Maarteners, we must combat violence with peace. When faced with conflict, encourage our children, our neighbours and ourselves to walk away. We must defeat aggression with compassion. Consider yourself in the other person’s position and apply the Golden Rule. Let us do to others as we would have them do to us. We must counter negativity with a positive energy. Use the challenges that come our way to propel us to be better, stronger, greater!
On behalf of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, I extend condolences to the family and friends of Natashia Schmidt, and also to her school family at NIPA/MIC. May her soul rest in peace. Remember, it takes a village to raise a child, so let us as a community give support to her children as they will need this care more than ever.
May more of our people pursue the path to self-improvement and community upliftment through continued education. Weeping may endure for the night, but joy will come in the morning. Let us work together and overcome together.
Wycliffe Smith
Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport
Dear Editor,
I just want to share my views in reference to an article in the opinion page that appeared in your newspaper on the 20th of October, featuring: “ST. Maarten we are in danger!”
I do believe that God is still speaking to the people on this island, as well as the churches to wake up from their sleep and slumber. But are we listening? Will we be caught off guard?
The question is how many of us are serving the only true and most high God? Everyone will have their own opinion when it comes to spiritual matters. There are believers, and there are nonbelievers. There are those that know there is a God, and there are those who deny God’s existence. Some might even consider the Bible to be a book of fables, and ignore its truths. Everyone has a right to their own beliefs.
But for those of us that know and believe in the biblical truth, we know that God is still speaking to people today, and is calling them to repent and to acknowledge Him as the only true God, the maker and creator of all things. No other God can declare that they have created anything. When true believers or prophets of God begin to prophesy or warn of coming dangers or disasters, and these prophesies do occur, then I believe it’s time for us, not to remain ignorant, but to begin to ask ourselves some serious questions, and not ignore what was prophesied.
I am saying this because the various prophesies of flooding and destruction made over this island, before the hurricane Irma struck, did indeed come to pass exactly as said. As Jesus many times in the Bible would say: “Those who have ears to hear, let them hear.” From the Bible we learn that in many instances where God would send warnings to the people before disasters would strike, this is to give people a chance to repent.
We can learn this from the Chapter of Genesis in the Bible, referring to the ancient old story of Noah. The people who loved unrighteousness and sin more than righteousness made mock of Noah, and must have laughed him to scorn. They must have called him a foolish old man who is prophesying about flooding and disasters, when even at that time rain never fell on dry land, and massive flooding never took place. But when the clouds burst, and the water and flooding came, they knew he was speaking the truth. Everyone perished, except Noah and his family.
God will not be mocked. There is a saying: “Too late will be the cry.” Hurricane Irma has come and gone. We have bounced back, even more quickly than many of us would have expected. Yes, our economy, after Hurricane Irma, may not be strong as it should be, and we still need to cope with many other issues, before things can get back on track again. But for most of us things are still good. Many of us still have our jobs, we can buy new cars, build or repair our homes or businesses, and still load our shopping carts with groceries. Life is good, it’s business as usual.
We can eat, drink, wine and dine and be merry, because many of us still have sufficient money in our pockets, for the mighty dollar is still in control. So, we can easily forget God, or even forget there is a God to whom we ought to be thankful and grateful. We become proud, arrogant, selfish, ungodly, and disregard every form of warning from the Almighty.
But God is not asleep. He will not be mocked. If we continue to ignore Him, He has means and ways in trying to get our attention, thereby using natural disasters as a message or a warning. The end result is for us now to decide.
After Hurricane Luis in 1995, God was still full of compassion and patience and waited for 22 more years, until a more serious disaster struck us in 2017. God is still speaking to this island. Will He now wait another 22 more years? The churches are still too silent about this important matter of getting this message across.
Concerned Christian
Name withheld at author's request.
Dear Editor,
The majority of people in the world believe that human nature is basically good.
The facts are, if you believe that you have just deceived yourself. In fact, by making such a statement you are saying we do not need God.
Originally, human nature was perfect by virtue of having been created so by God. But that goodness was marred by the sin of Adam and Eve.
That sin (curse) we inherited from Adam and Eve.
Reality is that the moment all humans are born and without committing one sin intentionally we are all on the highway to hell.
That is exactly why Christ came and died to establish grace. No human being had the capability of saving their self.
The nature of humans has these attributes: lust, jealousy, hatred, covertness, murder, deceit, envy, lying, theft, rape, homosexuality, pedophilia and adultery, betrayal.
Be honest with yourself, how is that good? God gives us a mind and a heart to reason, but look at the destruction in the world today.
You see the reality, our nature is destructive. Give a normal person a lot of money, the first thing he or she loves to do is to commit more sin.
Humans love sinful pleasures and power, we lust for it and live for it. Some humans believe their education is their God. That is idolatry.
Listen to the news on TV and radio, the normal statement is education is the key.
That is not true. How is it that the educated people produce the most destruction in the world today? The idiot cannot make a nuclear bomb. The idiot cannot devise a plan to overthrow government or to create havoc in the world. Education without God becomes more destructive.
Romans 1:22: Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.
Because very brilliant people believe they are their own God, and they do not need God, In the last days knowledge will increase but morality will decrease.
This reality creates more destructive nature.
Education has nothing to do with being good. Because man’s passion is to have pleasure and money and power, that nature makes it more difficult for him or her to confess sin, repent and turn away from sin. Human nature is sinful and will continue to sin if he or she does not desire to have a passion for Christ.
Some people say it is the environment, the facts are that is not true. Adam and Eve were made perfect and were in a perfect environment and by one sin (a choice they made), disobedience, look what the world has come to. You see, my people, there is nothing basically good about human nature. That is why we need Christ, without Christ we are doomed forever and ever.
The conclusion is Jeremiah 17:9: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
The Patriot Miguel Arrindell
Dear Editor,
The people in Middle Region are worried and hope no bus should pass through Middle Region.
During the sewage project in Dutch Quarter, well, it’s sad Middle Region has no community centre for Minister for Justice, VROMI and Transportation to come talk to the people from Middle Region.
(I quote: bus drivers be careful.)
Cuthbert Bannis
It is better for schools to be reopened a little later than the day after the new year holidays.
Really and truly, the date needs to be changed three days or a week for back to schools after New Year’s Day.
Cuthbert Bannis
