Mark 200 Years of Partnership Jamaicans + British

and James Philippo, were strong opponents of slavery. After 1831, British Baptist missionaries were not prepared to follow a “no politics” rule in their missionary endeavors. Knibb, in particular, traveled through England to drum up support against the slave system. After the end of slavery, British

Baptist missionaries led initiatives to found new communities for the newly freed population. Dozens of these communities, called Free Villages, were established throughout the island and became the backbone of Jamaican rural life. Free Villages had a strong agricultural base and included a school and a Baptist church.

Jamaican Baptists George William Gordon and Paul Bogle,

both of whom, like Sharpe, are among the country’s seven National Heroes, led protests and demonstrations and tried to effect legislation to improve the living conditions of the majority of Jamaicans. The famous Morant Bay Rebellion of 1865 led to the execution of Gordon and Bogle by the Jamaica colonial leaders. In the wake of the Morant Bay uprising, the British Crown took direct control of the island’s affairs away from the locally based Jamaican Assembly. Jamaican and British Baptists collaborated in the establishment

of Calabar Theological College in 1843 and Calabar High School for boys in 1912. The theological college is regarded as the first theological school for Black Baptist pastors in the world. This

The Sam Sharpe Rebellion was the

catalyst that broke the back of slavery in much of the British Commonwealth

Sculpture of antislavery campaigner Sam Sharpe

college is one of several “antecedent” colleges that closed its doors in the 1960s to form the United Theological College of the West Indies, an institution owned by various Christian traditions, including the Jamaica Baptist Union (JBU). The JBU itself was formed in 1849 out of the witness of both Jamaican Baptists and British missionaries in the country.

The relationship between Baptists in Jamaica and their British counterparts was not always smooth. In 1840, The Jamaica

The William Knibb Memorial Baptist Church in Falmouth, Jamaica, named after the British missionary and emancipator

Native Baptist Missionary Association was formed in response to prejudice of British missionaries toward persons of African descent holding pastoral office in Baptist churches on the island. A significant number of Jamaican Baptists who migrated to Britain in the 1960s did not feel welcome in British Baptist churches and left to join churches of other Christian traditions, such as Pentecostals, or formed their own churches. In 2007, 200 years after the abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, the Baptist Union of Great Britain (BUGB) offered an apology to Jamaican Baptists for the evils of slavery and the slave trade under the British. JBU General Secretary Karl Johnson said the friendship between Jamaican and British Baptists has withstood the test of time. “Our friendship represents a powerful testimonial of mutuality, collaboration, respect and continuity,” Johnson stated. “Like any longstanding partnership there were, and will be, moments of disagreement, misunderstanding and even tension but true friendships are usually robust enough to withstand those threats and today we have much more to celebrate than commiserate about how God has led us over these two centuries.” BUGB General Secretary Lynn Green said there is a “rich relationship that is shared between Jamaican and British Baptists.” She described the 200 years as a “significant journey” and expressed hope “that reflecting on this particular story will inspire [persons] to learn and re-learn how to respond to God’s call to us in this generation.” General Director David Kerrigan of the British Baptist mission

agency, BMS World Mission, said “It is only with hindsight that the story to which so many lives have contributed to shape and form is discernable.” Several activities were held in Britain in October 2014 to mark

the observance, including a special bicentenary worship service, lecture, symposium and various other meetings. A delegation of JBU leaders shared and participated in these events.

JANUARY/MARCH 2015 27