PHILIPSBURG--St. Maarten Christian Council, St. Maarten Ministerial Foundation and Seventh Day Adventist Church held meetings recently with the four political parties contesting the early Island Council elections today, to discuss the role of the church and religion in the community.
The first meeting was held with United People's (UP) party, followed by Concordia Political Alliance (CPA) and National Alliance (NA). The Democratic Party (DP) was unable to attend the sessions due to scheduling issues.
According to a press release issued by the churches Thursday, UP had as a "redline" in the discussions its view that the Christian community had been "too passive" and should improve its profiling in decision-making.
The churches upheld the principle of separation of church and state, but believed too much authority had been given to government to dictate how things should be carried out and the churches must be prepared to become involved.
UP sees the introduction of Christian principles via culture and education and would encourage prayer at the start of all parliamentary meetings. UP also sees the need for a chaplain.
The party wants all stakeholders to discuss nudity on the streets and during Carnival. It said Seventh Day Adventists would not be discriminated against in the application of the labour laws. UP is against same-sex marriages and euthanasia.
CPA stands for a close working relationship with the Christian community, but believes in separation of church and state. It believes the people chosen for Parliament must be examples and that a chaplain must be appointed to prevent corruption in government.
CPA will call for more consultation between clergy and government. A cabinet minister of Ecclesiastic Affairs is something CPA supports, along with prayer in meetings and financing ongoing annual events.
CPA is against same-sex marriages, but believes government and the Christian community must offer counsel to those who need and want this. CPA believes abortion is something with which one should be very careful.
NA's position is that while there are and must be clear lines of responsibilities between church and state, there cannot be a total separation as they need to work together to fulfil their responsibilities.
NA believes that while the idea of prayer at the annual opening of Parliament is a good one, prayers before meetings would need to be properly discussed.
NA further believes public religious services are important and have played an important role in the spiritual life of the island in the past. An NA government will continue to support these ventures in every way it can.
While individuals cannot be forced to take part in these activities, NA will encourage and ensure that government leaders support these services as much as possible.
On same-sex marriage, abortion and euthanasia, NA does not have "an expressed corporate stand," but individual officials have their personal views.
With St. Maarten a signatory to the International Human Rights treaty, NA believes all persons taken into police custody must be treated with dignity and their rights respected.
