By Leela Ramdeen, Chair of the Catholic Commission for Social Justice

“Let’s keep together.” These were the parting words of Bishop Emmanuel Lafont of the Diocese of Cayenne, French Guiana and Chair of the AEC Justice and Peace (AEC J&P) Commission, to the 19 participants who attended the AEC Justice & Peace Seminar at the Regional Seminary of St John Vianney and the Uganda Martyrs on September 12 and 13.

Inter alia, the seminar provided a wonderful opportunity for fellowship/solidarity/strengthening relationships across the region. Representatives from French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago considered:

• the main issues arising out of Pope Benedict XVI’s third encyclical, Charity in Truth; and the challenges and opportunities of applying the encyclical in the context of our various dioceses in the region;

• the role of the AEC in promoting and supporting Diocesan J&P Commissions; the ways in which Diocesan J&P Commissions can better address priority issues – including a concern to promote the integrity of creation – environmental/ecological issues;

• Strategies for strengthening the AEC J&P Commission.

Msgr Jason Gordon and I presented two papers focussing on the applications and challenges of the encyclical for us in Trinidad and Tobago and on the Methodology and Structure of a J&P Commission – using CCSJ as an example. All the other regions also gave comprehensive reports on their activities.

The presence of Gerard Granado (General Secretary, Caribbean Conference of Churches) at the seminar was helpful as we focussed also on ways of strengthening ecumenical arrangements and inter-faith relations.

Those of us who represented our Archdiocese of Port of Spain have agreed to organise a seminar in October to plan how we will address the six main challenges we identified at the seminar – in light of the encyclical and our Synod Resolutions.

At the end of the seminar it was agreed that in order to contextualise the encyclical within our Caribbean context, reflections on the following themes will be submitted to Bishop Lafont by March 2010 for consideration by the AEC Bishops at their meeting in April 2010:

T&T: Climate change – taking into consideration issues arising out of the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Dec 7 – 18, 2009;

Jamaica: Racism

Guyana, Suriname and French Guyana: Youth and the challenges they face in the midst of unemployment, HIV/AIDS, crime and violence and so on;

Caribbean Conference of Churches: Economic arrangements impacting on integral human development in the Caribbean e.g. addressing concerns about the sustainable development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the Caribbean, in light of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union.

It is to be noted that although specific dioceses have been allocated areas of responsibility above, each diocese, including those that were not represented, will be invited to submit reflections on each of the four areas by March 2010.

A report of the discussions that took place over the two days will be produced and circulated to our 20 dioceses across the region.

We should all find time to reflect on the implications of this encyclical for us as individuals and for the archdiocese - see www.coc.org for a précis of the encyclical and www.usccb.org/jphd/caritasinveritate/ for a useful study guide of the encyclical. Consider: What is the Pope’s message to me as an individual about how I should live my life as a Catholic? How will the encyclical help us with our work in the archdiocese as we implement our Synod Resolutions?

The US Bishops state that “Charity in Truth” “provides helpful guidance for finding answers to the social, economic and moral questions of the contemporary world in a search for truth…it is a call to see the relationship between human and environmental ecologies and to link charity and truth in the pursuit of justice, the common good, and authentic human development. In doing so, the Pope points out the responsibilities and limitations of government and the private market, challenges traditional ideologies of right and left, and calls all men and women to think and act anew.”

In a world that is becoming more and more secular and in which individualism and moral relativism is rampant, the Pope’s words are pertinent: “Without God man neither knows which way to go, nor even understands who he is.”

We left the seminar full of hope, encouraged by the Holy Father’s wise advice that “the current crisis obliges us to re-plan our journey, to set ourselves new rules and to discover new forms of commitment, to build on positive experiences and to reject negative ones. The crisis thus becomes an opportunity for discernment, in which to shape a new vision for the future.”

Participants at the AEC Justice and Peace Seminar at the Seminary.From left in front row: Bishop Emeritus Anthony Dickson, Leela Ramdeen Chair Catholic Commission for Social Justice Commission (CCSJ) TT; Bishop Emmanuel Lafont of Cayenne, French Guiana, chair of AEC J&P Commission; David Brooks, Mandeville Diocese; Gerard Granado, General Secretary Caribbean Conference of Churches, Sr Roberta, CCSJ, Rhonda Maingot, Living Water Community; Fr Peter McIssac, SJ, J&P Commission Kingston, Jamaica; Sr Bernadette Hughes, Mandeville Diocese; attorney Sylvie Compper, Cayenne J&P Commission; Attorney Maureen Tjon Jaw Chong, Suriname J&P Commission; Bishop Neil Tiedemann Mandeville, Jamaica; Deacon Mike James, General Secretary AEC; Msgr Michael Stewart, rector St John Vianney Seminary; attorney Gino Persaud, Guyana J&P Commission.