The first day of the Baptist World Alliance’s gathering in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, offered a bus tour of nearby Baptist historical sites. About 15 intrepid travelers seized the opportunity and from 9 until 6 were escorted by two remarkable local Baptist historians, Glenroy Lalor and Doreen Morrison.
There is one super highway between Montego Bay and Ocho Rios, and once the bus ventured off of it, the ride was an adventure in the bush. The roads to these out-of-the-way sites were narrow and without guardrails, and as the small bus climbed hills, deep ravines were only a few inches away. The bottom of the bus took a beating from rocks. The road was too narrow for two vehicles to pass and on one occasion there was a standoff until an approaching vehicle backed up.
Fred Anderson
|
Somewhere on that back road this columnist had visions of “what if” we became stranded. It was at about that point that I relied on an old method. When I was a boy I always enjoyed going to the fair and riding the ferris wheel, but when my little seat got to the top and began to rock, I would close my eyes and pray: “Lord, if you get me off this thing I will never get on one again!” And of course, the next year I was back on the ferris wheel.
Along that bumpy road out in the bush I repeated that childhood prayer. I survived the bus trip and, true to form, the next day was on another small bus along with the entire BWA delegation of 400 from 40 countries headed to a welcome reception held by Jamaican Baptists outdoors in front of “the great house” of a former sugarcane plantation. Once again, the road to the house was a washboard and everyone aboard got a jolting ride.
Jamaican Baptist historian Doreen Morrison at a grave containing the chains and shackles for former slave. |
Both ventures—the historical tour and the evening reception—were worth the spinal adjustment. On the tour our two knowledgeable guides offered a running commentary. We learned of the tremendous sacrifices made by pioneer missionaries and early preachers. We learned that in the colonial period under Anglican domination Baptists in Jamaica once faced great persecution for their faith.
Our guides shared that Baptist work dated to 1783 and was established by a self-appointed missionary of African descent, the remarkable Virginia-born former slave George Liele. He is credited as a founder of the First African Baptist Church of Savannah, Ga., and is possibly the first modern missionary, beginning his work 10 years before William Carey and 20 years before the Judsons. He is the subject of a new biography published by Mercer Press.
One of Liele’s fellow ministers in Jamaica was Moses Baker. On the tour we visited the ruins of Salter’s Hill Baptist Church which was Baker’s congregation and likely the site of his burial. Baker appealed to John Ryland Jr. of Great Britain—a name prominent in Baptist history—who encouraged his fellow Britons to send missionaries to Jamaica.
Following a slave revolt in Haiti, Jamaican authorities adopted the Consolidated Slave Law in 1791 which governed worship and seemed aimed at the Baptist movement. The laws specified that no more than 12 persons could gather and slaves found preaching or teaching were punished. Anglicans joined the Colonial Church Union and, like the KKK in the American South, terrorized blacks and burned numerous Baptist churches.
The ruins of Salter’s Hill Baptist Church.
|
Over the years 79 missionaries traveled to Jamaica under the auspices of the Baptist Missionary Society of Great Britain. It is difficult to imagine how these British folk endured the tropics, the hardships and the harassment. Only a strong calling and an equally compelling faith must have sustained them.
Today, in church after church, there are stone tablets on the walls commemorating the work of early missionaries. Among these were William and Mary Knibb who were dedicated to missions work two days after their marriage. William became one of the great friends of the enslaved people and boldly took stands on their behalf. He faced all manner of persecution, including murder threats, and for three days a mob stoned his house. The enslaved within his churches sent him back to Britain, where he lobbied for an end to slavery.
William Knibb is memorialized across Jamaica, and a large Baptist school is named for him. Our guides shared that there are three Baptist schools on the island and that Christian churches—Baptist, Anglican and Catholic—long ago initiated public education.
After emancipation in 1838—175 years on Aug. 1—every Baptist church planted “a liberty tree.” One church buried a coffin and the marker reads: “Freedom. Here lie buried shackles, chains and branding irons used to torture and enslave the earliest members of this church. ‘Lest We Forget’”
Baptists endured in Jamaica. Today there are about 330 churches in the Jamaica Baptist Union. It seemed that every other person we met was a Baptist. The stern-faced passport official at the airport asked why we were coming to Jamaica, and when told about the BWA meeting, she said, still without smiling, that she was a Baptist. The clerk at the shuttle bus desk also said she was a Baptist and asked, “So, how many souls did you save on the airplane?” Many of the conference’s hotel wait staff identified themselves as Baptists.
There are similarities between the Baptist story in Virginia and Jamaica. Both dealt with “the peculiar institution” and both were witnesses to the gospel in major slave trade centers. Both experienced religious persecution. Both endured harsh laws restricting blacks in worship. Both struggled for freedom. Both produced bold and courageous ministers who opposed slavery. Both became major influences for good in their settings.
Fred Anderson ([email protected]) is executive director of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society and Center for Baptist Heritage & Studies.