Ginni is back! The ministry goes on.

Hello all:
Well Ginni has returned after a few weeks of nursing back in the States. Hospice just keeps on going and they seem to be happy to welcome Ginni to do some per dium nursing when she can. This is good, because we need the extra income she generates; but its incredibly stressful for her and, even after just a few weeks, she returns a bit frazzled.

While she was away we had a string of violent crime here in the Bahamas. In one week we had 3 murders in 24 hours, with a total of 5 murders in that same week, one of whom was from Andros. Nassau violent crime is getting a ton of attention here, and it should. I already know of 10 families who have lost a family member to murder.

I heard about this particular murder while I was at the AUTEC Navy base for dinner before the Saturday evening service. The cashier told me a person from a local town was killed last night in Nassau and he was related to one of my 'members'. It turns out he is the step grandson of someone who comes to St. John's.

This news upset me a bit and my planned homily took a few twists and turns I hadn't planned as a result. When I got home I threw that homily away and a new one emerged. Bahamians know this problem is serious and universally, when asked how should we deal with it, the answer is "hang them!" My problem with that is two fold - first, hanging them is immoral; second, hanging them deals with the problem after it occurs, we need to deal with it BEFORE it occurs. The question is - how do we stop the murder in the first place?

There is clearly a need for stronger gun control laws in the Bahamas, but there is also a greater need for a personal relationship with Jesus. Bahamians are proud of the fact that this is a Christian nation - unlike the US it's in the constitution that this is specifically a Christian nation. Consequently there are churches everywhere and everyone claims to be Christian. My sense is that while church is important here, and people go to church, they may or may not have a relationship with Jesus. Church without Jesus is smoke in the wind. All the prayer books, candles, incense, icons, and crosses are nice, but without Jesus they're nothing.

What we need here is revival! Suffice it to say the updated homily made people sit up straight and take notice. Now what? Well this has become a focus of my prayer, and with the Holy Spirit, and Ginni, let's see where this goes.

On a different front, this week is the July 4 weekend in the US - happy Independence Day! In the Bahamas, the following weekend is Independence Day, July 12. We will have a huge party at the Crabfest Fairgrounds and all the clergy will be up on stage (including me, in my Roman collar). It will be a wonderful celebration, just like last year, and I am looking forward to it.

This weekend is also the closing liturgy for the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of Nassau as a diocese. Two of our parishioners here on Andros will be recognized with a special medal struck for the occasion for their years of service to the Church, and I am very proud of them. I hope to have pictures for the next post. While in Nassau for this event, Ginni and I plan on taking a few days to stay at one of the resorts on Nassau to celebrate our wedding anniversary back in June. It will be interesting to experience the Bahamas as most Americans do with all the glamor of Nassau.

Finally, some of you know that our source of diesel fuel is a man who has barrels of diesel in his back yard and who, at $5/gallon, will siphon fuel into our van with a garden hose. Well he told us he is going to Cuba for a few weeks and so I filled up several 10 gallon containers with diesel to get me through his absense. I made sure I have a functioning funnel - I haven't mastered the talent of sucking on a garden hose to get diesel to drain into my gas tank just yet.

Enough for now - till next time - Peace!