by Rev. Vonnie James
If Grenadians and others in the Caribbean are truly honest and forthright, they will admit that the events of October 1983 in Grenada have created pain and suffering up to this point in some of our lives.
It is, therefore the central thrust of this article, that helping Grenadians and Caribbean people, protecting our mental health and building resilience requires a reconciliation process.
In a very real and frontal way, this process must recognise the cause of our relational tension—whether of particular sinful actions during the October 1983 time, or failures to act or indeed indifference, for which we are personally responsible; or of historical or inherited factors that generate and perpetuate estrangement.
The events of October 1983 Grenada are too heavy to carry lightly. And Grenada as a project may be guilty of carrying on too lightly, while Grenadians and Caribbean people are still hurting, and in need of healing from these events.
Let us pause for a while to reflect on some harsh realities. During this period the world was experiencing a geopolitical crisis. The US was facing a political embarrassment, framed as a national security threat; the Grenada regime. The church was at odds with the People Revolutionary Government.
In October 1983 alone: (a) School-aged Grenadian children became freedom fighters and liberators of Maurice Bishop, once the most powerful man in Grenada; (b) Grenadians murdered other Grenadians, the victims included Maurice Bishop, and unarmed women and children; (c) US Christian missionaries engaged in espionage; (d) US Military invaded and killed Grenadians and Cubans; (e) Grenadian and Cubans became killers possible for the first time; (f) The Caribbean coalition forced treated some locals as less than humans.
My first encounter with a Jamaican person was with a Jamaican soldier who by his deposition and approach made the possibility of tomorrow looked bleak.
37 years after the events of October 1983 in Grenada, some refuse to engage in broad, deep, honest, intentional, purposeful and wide acts of reconciliation. And yet it is impossible for a country to make great strides without this reconciliation process. And maybe one of the issues that we are faced is a theological reality that continues to negatively affect Grenada and the Grenadian people. That is the concealment of our sins of October 1983.
Scripture is clear: The person that covereth his or her sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy (Prov 28:13). And confessing though sometimes can be an embarrassing, painful and life-threatening process for some, it is a necessary prerequisite to begin an honest process of reconciliation
In A Theological Framework for Reconciliation, With Special Reference to The Indigenous Peoples of Australia (2018), the authors noted that “In Scripture, the word ‘reconcile’ (καταλλάσσω) occurs in a limited (although theologically very significant) number of passages in the Pauline epistles (Rom 5:7-12, 2 Cor 5:16-21, Col 1:16-22, Eph 2:14-17). However, the theme of reconciliation is much wider and is connected to the restoration of peace and the right ordering of relationships more broadly. In Paul’s usage of the term καταλλάσσω, he ranges across the cosmic to the vertical to the horizontal dimensions of reconciliation.”
When it comes to people affected by the incidents of October 1983, the church is in a key position to present God’s offer of reconciliation. However, as we are dealing with Grenadians who were victims of historical wrongs, God’s gift of reconciliation must not be offered without ‘practical reconciliation’. Other theologians will support me then, that the church engaging and leading the reconciliation process becomes an enactment of the gospel and a powerful demonstration of the truth and power of the message of the cross. However, as rightly noted, if acts of restorative justice are to have any Christian meaning, they must be interpreted to their beneficiaries by the verbal explanation of the gospel.
As is noted in any theology of reconciliation, Christians are already spiritually reconciled in Christ. The church has a role in helping make that reconciliation a reality in relationships, whether on a church, community or country level.
On the basis of the above, the first steps toward reconciliation involving the Grenadian community might include (1) establishing the historical actions, either taken or enabled by the Grenadian people or foreigners which lie at the root of current estrangement; (2) establishing the identity of those groups and individuals who now suffer from those past actions; and (3) establishing the harms suffered then, and their enduring consequences.
Having shared the above there are 2 other thoughts we should consider:
(1) The church, as a people of the Christian faith or the institutional Christian body, has to find ways to enable people to act towards this justice praxis. It has the mandate, motive and means, to facilitate ‘practical reconciliation’ between Grenadians, Caribbean nationals including Cuba and the United States as all players in the October 1983 conflict in Grenada.
(2) If there are Christians or faith groups in Grenada or the Caribbean that was involved in activities of October 1983 Grenada, which led to blood-shed or the destruction or distortion of relationships, these people need to repent personally, congregationally and then publicly. That is, even if they may not be personally culpable in these sins.
The reconciliation process has to acknowledge that even if people are not acting in oppressive ways now, that historically they or those before them may have acted in these ways, and thus those now need to repent and start the reordering of life and relationships with self, others and God or their Supreme Being.
In fact, expressing repentance as a church, community or country, for past actions, has the power to set relationships right where possible.
And whenever Americans, Cubans, Caribbean nationals and Grenadians can come to together to repent, apologise and reconcile to each other and God, this can be a powerful process leading to lifted, emotional, mental, political, relational, social and psychological burdens.
To continue as we are going is too heavy a burden to carry lightly.
NOW Grenada is not responsible for the opinions, statements or media content presented by contributors. In case of abuse, click here to report.
The worst thing that could ever happen in Grenada was the murder of Morris Bishop.
Maybe he wasn’t perfect, who is, but he put Grenada on the map.
I still hear people idolising Eric gairy??
The man who was a puppet to Britain and America, the man who secretly murdered Grenadians with his mongoos gang and worse.
If it’s not bad enough that the West is killing off all our great men women and prophets, we are killing our own. But this isn’t new.
We cry “Black lives matter” yet we killing each other in the street with knives and guns,prostituting our women and killing others off with drugs.
No other culture country or nation abuses it’s own people,mothers,fathers ,women and men in words and songs as much Black.people in rap in particular.
Now much like Africa after going through 400 years of white slavery with all its brutal trimmings, we are willingly for whatever political or financial gain , allowing the chinese to take over large areas of our land to turn into a rich playground that the locals will never be able to play in or call home to walk through.
The chinese ” may” manage it, controle it and run it and you “may” find that the locals will be responsible for garden, room and laundry maintenance.
Again finding ourselves second class citizen’s in our own country..
It’s already started in Africa.
And don’t you believe for one minute that these people like you.
I have trained with them, lived with them and I understand their language.
And the only representation they have for us in their language is ” Black ghost Devils”
Translated into English.
Look how they have been Africans in China.
Mob beatings,murders,eviction,blame for the virus.
WAKE UP PEOPLE . NOT JUST FOR GODS SAKE, BUT ALSO FOR YOUR SAKE AND YOUR CHILDREN’S SAKE.
I was not on the Island at the time, but I think it was a deplorable act. Mr. Bishop and all those people and children should not have been murdered like that. This small once peaceful Island. No one even knows what was done with the Pri-minister and others remains. And for what,. Grenada is not better for it now.
Health care is deplorable, poor and disgusting. People want to return home, but is afraid. People only stealing, no young persons wants to work. I say what’s on my mind.
I recalled 37 years ago today at the time when Maurice Bishop and other members of his cabinet were executed and shot dead. That was the crisis that had happened in this island by a U.S. led military coup. And it was after my previous overseas trip in the U.S.A. itself 36 years earlier before my second trip to this island of Grenada which I had made last year August.
Thank you for sharing.
I agreed the burden of October 19th, 1983, is to heavy to be carried so lightly. Our truth and reconciliation committee and process was it sincere, truthful and forthright????
How about:
1) including the revolution and what lead up to the revolution in the curriculum
2) providing mental health services for people who were and still is affected by the incidents of 10/1983.
That is how you combat trauma.
Prayers and therapy can co-exist!!
How did the Jamaican make things Bleak for Grenadians?
Yes, I want to know this too
I was making the point that the Jamaica Defense Force soldiers were people that some of us encountered for the first time. Being young, ignorant and frightened, my encounter with them made me feel that ‘tomorrow was hopeless’. Someone helped me understand that the geopolitics rhetoric influenced the way the ‘invading and peacekeeping forces treated some of us. They were not like Grenadian police. They were rough, serious and looked deadly.
Pastor if you have something to confess to go right
Ahead.i was in the march to free the late prime minister and for me it has no effect on me
Desmond could you explain which Caribbean nationals took part in the abuse of Grenadians during the USA invention
This is what you say until we uncover thing buried under the surface, as old people said I heard better cock than you crow already.
RUMMI,
Thank you for your input. The idea is to encourage conversations; hard as they may be, uninviting as they may be. And while I happen to be a Minister of the Gospel, I write as a Grenadian affected by Grenadian history and as an attempt to give agency to ordinary, ‘non-powerful’ Grenadians and others to speak and voice their own experiences…
It has affected some of us. We all had to either experience or witness public and modern day lynchings of our people. Tge children have been affected and they are now adults. Whether near or far we had to witness our people being murdered on the tv screens, innocent school children being mowed down by army tanks ànd later shovelled like nothing and chucked into wide open landfills and treated as gravesites.
It was a detriment to our human rights. Where is the reparation for our losses and our GDP. We have suffered greatly
Thank you. I was too young and ‘obedient’ to be in the march.
I pleaded with my school teachers at Calisate Government School to go, but they will not let me. Neither did any in the Calliste community gave me permission. Up to this day, I suspect that this no=permission’ saved my life on the 19th of October, 1983.
Very enlightening