I was asked what is my view on the proposal to remove God from the upcoming Charter?

I would like to establish the fact that God is not an authority found only in words, the rule of God is both eternal, universal and cosmic, the laws of God are steadfast and can’t be affected by governmental laws.

That being said, I would like to suggest that one of the moves of the religious community should be undertaking at this time is to ask themselves. What is the social, economic, and spiritual contribution of the religious community to our nation? How can the religious community be included and seen as a viable alliance for the 21st Century and beyond? How can the religious community move from a place of positional or emotional bargaining to a sound intellectual and authoritative place? How can the religious community be seen as an inclusive progressive organism? What is the contribution of the religious community to the social sciences? What made the church so relevant all those years ago?

I want to make it abundantly clear that I am not in any way suggesting that the religious community has done nothing for society. I am suggesting that rather than get defensive that they ought rather to begin an introspective look at how they can be counted as meaningful and relevant. The times that we are living in has presented a number of challenges that go beyond the scope of morality, for example, The pandemic and its pressure on all systems, the climate crisis and what impact this will have on our economy and society, social inequality, gender and workplace equality, and the issues surrounding the establishment of the Sustainable Development Goals. In many high-level dialogues regarding food and security, interfaith and interreligious debates, I am yet to see any of them participating. The church can’t just be a place that we visit to pray or sing, it has to become a place of social, educational and mental relevance.

Therefore, I would like to posit that it is an opportunity for the religious community to move out of the shadows of the past and into a new place. For too long the religious community have been hiding behind morality a few of these institutions of religion are seen as nothing more than a bygone source of change.