Ecumenical Service to Mark ‘Jamaica 50’

A national ecumenical church service in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Independence will be held on Sunday (January 29) at the Webster Memorial United Church, 53 Half-Way-Tree Road in Kingston.

The event, under the theme: ‘Feel the Heart and Soul of a Nation’, is being organised by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) and the Committee for the Promotion of National Religious Services (CPNRS).

Archbishop of York, the Most Rev. Dr. John Sentamu, who is a leading figure in the Church of England, will deliver the main address, while moderator for the service will be the Rev. Gary Harriott, Chairman of CPNRS.

Gospel Coordinator at the JCDC, Leighton Jones, told JIS that the service will commence at 3:30 p.m. with a procession of 50 clergy, in their clerical attire, from the intersection of Oxford and Half-Way-Tree Roads to the church. 

He said that several persons in the procession, which will be led by the Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade of Webster, will carry the Jamaican Flag and religious symbols, including the bible. “They will be marching down on Half-Way-Tree Road and proceed right into the church at 4:00 p.m," he informed.

During the service there will be special renditions and performances from a number of groups, including a combined mass choir involving members of the Jamaica Folk Singers and the Jamaica Youth Chorale.

The JCDC Performing Arts winners, students from Glenmuir High School in Clarendon, and a combination of choirs from various primary schools from across the corporate area, will also perform.

Mr. Jones said the service is to bring the various denominations together in praise and worship and to thank the Almighty for his blessings over the last 50 years.

"We want to come together as churches to say thanks for 50 years and we are looking forward to His blessings for the other 50 years to come,” Mr. Jones said.

By E. Hartman Reckord, JIS PRO