Christ & Caribbean Culture(S)

A Collection of Essays on Caribbean Christology and Its Pastoral Implications

This book focuses on the Caribbean church in its attempt to unravel the significance of the Christ-Event in the Caribbean context. The Challenges for the Catholic Christian in the New Millennium (Part I) articulates the major concerns of the Caribbean church under three main themes, namely, relevance, authenticity, and evangelization. These are presented as the evangelical posture needed for the contemporary period. Christ and Ethnicity in the Caribbean (Part II) attempts, through the use of the notion of the incarnation, to unravel the concept of Christ as Saviour in the Caribbean context. It attempts to show that genuine Caribbean theology is a reflection on the Christ-Event in the lives of its people. It is geared toward helping Caribbean Christians develop a greater sense of self-worth. It purports that Christology must be related to the identity of a people if it is to engender effective pastoral action. Toward a Caribbean Christian Civilization (Part III) gives a comprehensive view of the Caribbean reality in which Christianity is lived. It takes into account the influence of the history of the region, the effects of colonialism, the evolution of its culture(s), its ethnic composition and the dispositions that surrounded it, the challenge of traditional religious elements, and the moral question in its varied dimensions. Finally, it presents some suggestions on what a Caribbean Christian civilization should look like if it is to carry out the mandate of Christ. A Theological Reflection on "Bamboo Bursting" in the Caribbean serves as a postscript. It unravels the meaning of this pre-Christmas pastime in some of the territories of the Caribbean. Short though it may be, the collection provides a fair understanding of the Caribbean churchs experience and its responsibility to be a leaven in the midst of God's people in its particular context.