You’ve gotta have faith
on Fiona Craven (Guyana), 22/Jan/2012 16:21, 34 days ago
Religion and belief, where do I even begin in a country likeGuyana?Over the last year I’ve attended a Christian Christening, participated in a service in a Hindu mandir, and heard stories from Amerindians of Kanima and Jumbies. There are more Christian denominations here than I ever knew existed, and every street has at least one place of worship, from mosque to mandir to Christian meeting house. In a country with such adversity, having faith is an essential part of life.I love this religious melange. I can wake up to the sound of Hindu chants from a neighbour’s house on one side, and cook to the sounds of the charismatic Christian minister in the Brazilian church on the other side. Every so often I’m aware of the call to prayer from the mosque one block over, while at lunch I buy from a Rasta place where a picture of Selassie peers down at me whileI wait for my ‘eddo leaf and cook up’.God is everywhere inGuyana. In most shops and workplaces there are signs posted to the walls with religiously motivated work mantras which make me smile at their irony. When being told that it wasn’t possible to buy an adapter in a shop, I gazed over the shop assistant’s shoulder at a sign that read “all things are possible through Him”. Just not this request!On the whole, all these religions live very comfortably around and with each other. Take for example last weekend, when I attended an inter-faith service to celebrate 45 years of the Ptolmey-Reid Rehabilitation Centre (one of the services I work with). There were representatives from the Christian, Hindhu, Muslim and Baha’i faiths, all offering up prayers of thanks and joy. What struck me, was that if I didn’t see the person’s ethnicity and dress, I probably wouldn’t have been able to determine which religion they belonged to. Their message of trusting in a good God, and of caring for the people around us, is a universal message that goes beyond religious doctrine.As volunteers from abroad, we do get asked a lot about what our belief system is. The longer I’m here, the less sure I am of how to answer. The majority of volunteers here would say they don’t have a religious faith. But I think we all share the fundamental values of responsibility for the environment around us, respect for the people we share this earth with, and a celebration for the beauty of life.