By AVA TURNQUEST
Tribune Chief Reporter
aturnquest@tribunemedia.net
PRIME Minister Perry Christie yesterday warned religious leaders against getting involved in politics as he defended his morality and that of government members of parliament.
Bain and Grants Town MP Dr Bernard Nottage also took issue with recent statements by religious leaders urging Bahamians not to support politicians who vote in favour of Gaming bills.
Dr Nottage questioned how he could vote against the Bill when the majority of his constituents voted in favour of legalising webshops and a national lottery in the 2013 Gaming referendum.
He referred to an “unchristian desire” to target supporting politicians, adding that he was “mystified” how persons could accept casino gaming but demonise web shops.
Dr Nottage charged that he still believed that Bahamians should be able to own casinos, and that more than one Bahamian conglomerate should be able to own banks.
He added that the legislation to regularise web shops was inevitable given the circumstances, and would have been brought to government by any administration.
During his wrap-up contribution, Mr Christie said that he did not have a problem with criticism as long as he was allowed to defend himself.
Mr Christie said he told an executive of the Christian Council that he was searching for a new “moral authority” during his discussions with the religious community concerning the critical need to regulate the sector.
“I have not committed a sin, I have no intention to be sinful,” he said. “I’m doing this in the interest of the Bahamian people. Ultimately I am serving their best interests.”
Mr Christie explained that it was the “assignment” of religious leaders to create a peaceful environment to allow for community development.
He explained that he discussed his fears surrounding the unregulated industry with church leaders from various denominations, adding that he invited members of the religious community to consult with the financial sector.
Mr Christie warned that it was important not to polarise politicians as sinful or corrupt based on their support of the gaming bills, which he said was a reasonable decision expected by “all agencies of the world”.
“They must also allow that though they (religious leaders) may not have been in that room with all of the other church leaders, they must allow for the fact that when you start an action that can be described as political, you are then going into an arena that is going to prove to be very difficult.”
Comments
Well_mudda_take_sic 9 years, 8 months ago
This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
killemwitdakno 9 years, 8 months ago
government does not control whether you sin or not. people need to start gaining some control for themselves.
Reality_Check 9 years, 8 months ago
Now we have Christie making veiled threats to the clergy. To have resorted to stooping this low only serves to evidence one thing: Christie now has no moral compass whatsoever!
DreamerX 9 years, 8 months ago
Threatening a group that threatens you does not denounce your moral compass. He was informing them quite clearly, that if they speak politics as such as to push a "No confidence" or condemn the majority party, they are not just teaching a faith, they are actively playing the political game and as a player in the game you don't get to hide behind unelected positions of perceived 'holy' power.
henny 9 years, 8 months ago
Why threaten the clergy now when they have always had a say in political debates and government has always listened and taken seriously claiming the Bahamas is a Christian nation.
GrassRoot 9 years, 8 months ago
How dare you church-ies!!! The PM Christ-ie should change his name in protest. Any suggestions? Corrupt-ie? Greed-ie? Moralit-ie?
The_Messenger 9 years, 8 months ago
WOW
This government is doing a magnificent job making sure they turn their backs on all Bahamians.
DreamerX 9 years, 8 months ago
Going against an unelected group of claimants to moral superiority equates 'All Bahamians'? Or do you mean most? Is it even most? That purport these capricious zealots as our spiritual leaders? Christianities overarching claim to be one faith is a sham. The Bahamas is mostly a collections of strongly differing faiths based on the Judeo-Christian teachings.
UserOne 9 years, 8 months ago
While I do not support the actions of this government for many of the reasons that have been discussed since they came into power, I do think the clergy have too much say in politics. They have not been elected by the people so preach in church and don't try to run government. Alternatively, if they want to get involved in politics then they should run for a seat.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 8 months ago
I agree completely churches are for saving souls and helping the poor and weak. What I do not appreciate is disingenuousness. And this takes the cake. Coming from the man quoting John 3:16 (for what, I don't know) last week. Nobody drags religion into politics more than him and he uses it as a gimmick to draw the poor and the religious base, beyond the pale.
Emac 9 years, 8 months ago
You mean churches SUPPOSED to be saving souls and help the poor and weak. But they're not!
DreamerX 9 years, 8 months ago
But a man who quotes the bible was elected as our leader. This man who is claimant to spiritual leadership was not. That's the difference. We have not elected a zealot, we have a elected a man who claims a certain faith.
Sickened 9 years, 8 months ago
And that was our first mistake. We need to elect sensible people who do not follow any 'man-made' religion. We need people who do what is right because it is right, not because some story book interpretation says its right.
justthefactsplease 9 years, 8 months ago
What we need to realize and accept is that every member of the clergy and indeed the wider church is either a citizen or a resident of this country and as such has the right to speak on any topic that affects this country ... just like anyone else. Their take may be different from ours but they have the right to present it just as we all have.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 8 months ago
Wait a second, did he consult with Neil Ellis before making statement?
B_I_D___ 9 years, 8 months ago
Let's form a committee to find out...
themessenger 9 years, 8 months ago
What a load of hypocrites. As if the numbers houses just suddenly appeared among us at the wave of Christie's wand.I don't approve of the governments handling of the gambling issue but some of these so called men of the cloth been preachin' politics in church so long they don't know the difference between the pulpit and a soap box, now dey can't get their way they hollerin'. When you sup with the Devil you need a long spoon!!
birdiestrachan 9 years, 8 months ago
These Revs are to political. One of them is the brother of Senator Bethel he will do well to ask his brother if he ever received any money from gambling.
justthefactsplease 9 years, 8 months ago
What does his brother receiving money from gambling have to do with him speaking on the issue? That is such an assified position ... do you take responsibility for the actions of your sibling? SMT.
reverendrichlive 9 years, 8 months ago
Well said, Mr. Prime Minister. As a Minister Of The Gospel, I declare that it is NOW time that Bahamians express their fundamental citizenship to own casinos, to gamble, or, not gamble. It is time to establish a LOTTERY that like the ones in the USA which contributes to education scholarships. All of this religious backward thinking has got to stop. If you do not want to gamble, then don't, but do not tell me, or stop me from exercising my right as a free moral being. We DO NOT need a referendum, or, any so-called Christian Council to dictate morality. The freedom to be, to choose to gamble or not to gamble is a fundament right of all humans beings, why is it okay for the tourists to gamble in the casinos and not Bahamians? There is something fundamentally wrong with that picture. Fix it PLP, do the right thing MR. PM . Never mind these hypocritical religious nuts, they'll get over it. Reverend Rich says, " it's no SIN to WIN ! "
by reverendrichlive
asiseeit 9 years, 8 months ago
Tax the Churches! They are run as a business, so TAX DEM! If they where taxed The Nation would finally get something positive from the religious community.
Sickened 9 years, 8 months ago
That's right. Churches provide a service to the poor and weak minded. They should be taxed 7.5% under the new VAT legislation. We will then see how many churches pay their due.
justthefactsplease 9 years, 8 months ago
I can see you are not involved in any church. The number of services that the church offers is valued more than any tax the goverment will ever be able to collect from them. If these churches are forced to stop their outreach to the youth and downtrodden in our communities, no amount of tax dollars would be able to address the ills that will come to the fore.
Sickened 9 years, 8 months ago
And just how many churches have a soup kitchen or lady's guild? Probably a dozen or so, out of how many?? Churches mostly give moral support to people and provide a platform for ask other people to reach into their pocket and support each other. Most churches always take their dues first and then ask their customers to reach into their pockets again to help the needy. It should be mandatory for a church to have AT A MINIMUM a soup kitchen in order to stay in 'business'.
John 9 years, 8 months ago
You know this discussion came up during the time when Jesus Christ was on on earth. Since he lived in JJerusalem there was no question that this was a Christian nation, at least,, the city since Christ resided there. But the church people had an issue with paying taxes to Ceasar. Maybe they felt that since they already paid tithes to the church, only the non Christians should pay taxes. But Jesus told them that they must pay tithes and taxes. Tithes to the church and taxes to the government They not only benefitted from being a member of a church, but they also benefitted from being under Caesar's rule. The government was not set up for non Christians . The point here that despite it being a Christian nation, there were non Christian activities going on and the government had to regulate and tax them. The church has authority over its membership but the government has authority and must regulate all activities that occur within its jurisdiction. To take this a bit further, I challenge all the ministers who oppose gambling to do one simple thing. Before they deliver their next sermon, ask anyone in their congregation to leave and not return until they have a victory over gambling. Or to make it even less harsh tell them it is ok to stay for this service but not to come back as long as they are gambling. The proper Christain thing to do would be to join in counseling and prayer sessions with these members and show them the evil of spending the rent or grocery money to gamble and the hardship it will cause on a family when one becomes addicted to gambling. WHen it was discovered that Ishmel Lightbourne was not paying his taxes, he was treated like a mangy dog and excommunicated. When Lady Pindling was found in a same state, she was deemed unfit to represent the Queen. Now here you have a segment of society who says we no longer want to be illegal, regulate and tax us so we can become legal. Is this not unlike a sinner coming to church to be converted.? Yes gambling is a vice, and maybe a sin even, but if it is allowed to happen in this Christain country, then is should be regulated and taxed. And if it is to be abolished then we should start with Paradise Island. Judgment begins at the pulpit.
. "Remember what was said in I Peter 4:17? "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?" Judgment begins at the pulpit first, and with every word spoken from that pulpit.
proudloudandfnm 9 years, 8 months ago
How much longer will we Bahamians put up with his idiot PM of ours? When will we stand up and demand his resignation and an investigation into every thing this party has done in the last two and half years?
I WANT EVERYTHING THEY DID STOPPED, REVIEWED AND CANCELLED.....
sansoucireader 9 years, 8 months ago
Fer real? These are the same politicians sitting up in various churches and never turning down a chance to ' talk fool' from a pulpit, especially before election time, and now he's warning church leaders to stay out of politics?! I wish politicians would stay out of the church!
licks2 9 years, 8 months ago
Perry them will not stop until something drastic happens in this country! They just can't see anymore that the PLP mentality of tief, graft, disdain, slight of hand dealings and hand in the cookie jar bull shed DO NOT SIT WELL WITH THE BAHAMIAN PEOPLE ANYMORE!! What will it take to wake these ijets them up?
Captian Kangaroo is acting like a school yard bully who will beat up any body who tells him dat he dumb as a door nail!! He made a statement that we can go to God. . .but we must come back to him for anything! Now he lammering about his invinsibility. . .even taunting the preachers them so!
This man done lost he damn mind and think he is master of the universse!!! He set up against God and his men. . .the die is cast. . .the better will win!! The contest has begun!
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