Whilst not disagreeing with the premise that politics is too important to be left up to the"professional" politician and that Christians must not hide their heads in the sand in the hope that we will not be tainted by this thing called politics.

It is important to understand what lies behind the such decisions of the Maha Sabha. Politics in Trinidad and Tobago, together with Guyana is perhaps the most fractious in the region, and racial politics undergirds that intended decision.

Such involvement must never be seen as a paradigm for the involvement of Christians in the day to day affairs of the individual countries and the region as a whole.

We see what is happening in the USA when "Christians" band together and vote for one political party with particular pseudo-religious cloaked themes as its mantra. It leads to discrimination, it leads to the erosion of the rights of those who disagree; it leads to ideology being mistaken for theology, and earthly power and military might becoming gods worshipped on the altars of the marketplace, and the God of life being substituted, by the gods who in the words of the prophet Jeremiah: "For the carved images of the nation are a sham; they are nothing but timber cut from the forest, shaped by a craftsman with his chisel and decorated with silver and gold. They are made fast with hammer and nails to keep them from toppling over. They are as dumb as a scarecrow in a plot of cucumbers; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them: they can do no harm, nor have they any power to do good." Jer.10:1-5

I am sure a person of Mr. Noel's wide ranging experience and intellect knows that because something looks good or sounds good does not mean that it is good. In fact if I read his article correctly I think that he is saying that in the top part of his article.

I would hate for Grenadians and fellow Caribbean citizens to necessarily engage in politics that would further fracture the fragile nature of our multi-facted country and region. The need for Christians to face up to the fact that for too long we have been willing to be led than to lead has contributed to serious decline, decline that cannot be ignored thinking "this world is not my home".

This is the home that God has placed us in and given us the responsibility to be stewards of, and that includes political stewardship. Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's and God the things that are God's.

Stewardship belongs to God.
 
Rev. Wesley Daniel
New York
USA