Uplifting sermon on traditions

THE EDITOR: I was brought up to appreciate and respect the traditions of my  ancestors. I therefore want to sincerely thank and compliment the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church for his timely message he presented at the 135th anniversary of the church on Sunday, November 9. I was truly impressed with the Right Reverend Rawle Sukhu’s uplifting, fair and balanced sermon on our traditions.

His just viewpoint was sincere and lauded the intrinsic worth and the virtues of tradition while rightly reminding us of the negative, destructive side. He mentioned that some of the most heinous crimes in history have been committed in the name of tradition. The plain truth is that some traditions are bad and should be done away with. I wholeheartedly support Rev Sukhu’s call to uphold our good traditions and to keep them animated. After all, our traditions are our links with our ancestors and give us our identity. Personally, traditions give me that special sense of serenity that we all crave. The people of the Presbyterian church have inherited rich, beautiful traditions, based on  a diverse culture which extends centuries into the past to a vast, awesome  land far away.

These traditions have been passed down from generation to generation. Even some of the churches carry Hindi names which to me is tradition at its finest and simplest. Susamachar for example means “good news”  and it is quite sentient that Rev Sukhu’s sermon was delivered at the Susamachar church in San Fernando. The Moderator’s message has inspired me to love and cherish the  glorious traditions of my ancestors even more. I am glad that at least one important person in the leadership of the church is proud of his heritage.

We have grown accustomed to accept the dominance of other prominent leaders in the church who love to talk and love attention and power, and who have seemingly given their support to a political cult that has ridiculed the traditions of the Presbyterian people. These individuals seem to be ashamed of their traditions, and even go as far as to demonise their culture and heritage. At the same time, they bend over backward to appease the cult. Rev Sukhu deserves full praise for his inspiring homily and his plea to embrace our traditions should be supported by all, including the young people like myself.                                        

SABRINA SOOKNANAN
Princes Town