Pope Benedict XVI has been told Catholics in the Caribbean are lovers of the Word and strong in faith, in a letter from Archbishop Lawrence Burke, former Archbishop of Kingston, Jamaica and former president of the Antilles Episcopal Conference.

In one of his final acts as president of the Caribbean conference of bishops, Archbishop Burke sent a April 7 letter to the Holy Father not only outlining the discussions at the AEC bishop’s plenary meeting in Rome, but the struggles of the Caribbean Church and its people.

Archbishop Burke wrote that the Caribbean bishops are “men who are close to our people and bring the light of the Gospel and our Catholic tradition to bear upon the realities and challenges which engage our Caribbean people”.

Archbishop Burke and Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican

He told the Holy Father, “Our people are lovers of the Word. We are therefore pleased that this year’s Synod of Bishops will reflect upon the Word of God in the life of the Church.

“We hope that the preparations for the results of this event will bring a renewed zeal to proclaim and live the Word of God which is such a gift to the Church and a powerful sign of God’s love for us, His people.”

The former Archbishop of Nassau, Bahamas, said the people of the Caribbean were “a people of strong faith, always thanking and praising God, even as they experience poverty and need. They are patient, loving and caring even as they hope against hope.”

He explained to Pope Benedict that the collective memory and psyche of Caribbean people was “very scarred” because of colonisation which “began with the extermination of almost the entire original indigenous people with the exception of small pockets in Belize, Guyana, Suriname and Dominica.”

“The vast majority of our people are the progeny of ancestors who were brutally forced from their families in Africa, suffered the indignities and humiliation of the Middle Passage and transported to the slave plantations of the region,” he wrote.

“This history” continued the Jamaican archbishop, “has had profound negative effects on our self-understanding and self-acceptance with resulting devastating effects in family life and vocations. In the modern day this is compounded by the all-pervasive culture of unbridled pleasure and promiscuity. It is in such a society, immersed in secularism, materialism, consumerism and individualism that we bishops continue to promote with confidence the values of the gospel of Jesus Christ as the real source of truth, life, hope, joy and freedom for our people.”

After outlining the outcomes of the plenary meeting, he mentioned the publication of the pastoral letter On the Gift of Life, saying this was in response to “the call to legalise abortion, and in response to the rise in violent crimes as well as the call to re-introduce or apply the death penalty.”

Archbishop Burke has handed over the presidency to Archbishop Donald Reece, who has also assumed responsibility for the Kingston archdiocese. Archbishop Reece was voted into the post towards the end of the plenary meeting.