A Pope and a Blackout

Just around 7am last Sunday, the dreaded blackout arrived in parts of Georgetown. Still in bed at the time, I groaned. Having spent Saturday mentally preparing, I was still hoping it would not hit my area; it is difficult to comprehend that this is the reality in Guyana in 2016. I recalled the many blackouts I experienced while growing up lamps and candles glowed as homework or studying for exams was done. And now, as a woman over thirty years old, the world has evolved in many ways, but still in Guyana we cannot keep all areas of the country powered without fail.

Hours before, right around midnight, a quick scroll on social media revealed soft porn images of a local preacher, who had last year declared his ascendency to the status of the first Guyanese Pope. The images of the women were blurred, but the face of the man was clear. I thought that certainly we would have an interesting week.

I chose not to be angry about the blackout during the early hours. It was just around 8 that night that the power finally returned, ending not 10 but 13 hours of blackout. Ill words for Guyana Power and Light were exhausted by that time.

THINK ON THAT 3I was curious to know what people were saying about the Pope’s leaked images and videos. Social media revealed much banter about it. Many were condemning his actions. I try not to concern myself with the sex lives of other people but for many the fact that the man is a religious leader made his actions foul.

There were his followers who felt betrayed, but then there were also those who were supporting him, saying that he is a man with the need for sexual gratification like any other.

There were also those who were denying that it was him in the images and videos, saying they were designed by the ‘wicked’ in an effort to damage the reputation of their Pope. They dismissed any notion that their leader would surrender to the needs of the flesh in such an uninhibited way. It made me think about the day I had just had, the silence and the darkness that came with the evening.

Later, after I read a report where a follower once again vehemently defended her leader, saying that he would never betray her, I was reminded about how oppressed the minds of many people are. An apparent lack of critical thinking skills keeps them stuck on a dark path that many times is meant to be a path of illumination.

A former member of the Pope’s church told me, “When he seh that he din want grey money is when I done! Me lil twenty and forty dollars wasn’t good enough! Duh was years ago when I had me lil sweety tray. Why I must be struggling while de preacher driving fancy car and living in fancy house?”

That is a question that I have asked many times.  Many people wait on the day when the Lord would pour their blessings. They are contented to “bless the men of God,” with some even taking their very last to plant a seed or throw an offering, while sometimes leaving their families wanting. They pray fervently when they are told that they are not exercising enough faith and, therefore, delaying their blessings. Most of these people do not live in mansions, they do not wear the finest clothes and they do not drive fancy cars.

While there are many religious organisations with good intentions and genuine leaders, there are those who lead us to believe that their churches are mainly for profit. In Guyana, we do not have mega churches, but many people attend local churches that engage in the business of encouraging the sowing of seeds and offering an abundance of tithes to bless their leaders with whatever they desire.

I do not believe that life is meant to be lived in suffering. I do not believe in hoping for a better life after death. I do not believe that any life is worth more than the other.  We are here now and we should make the best of our present and value ourselves. But many people are too frightened to question those they choose to follow, too caught up in some deception about honour in a life of suffering and, therefore, stuck in a blackout.

Whether in politics or religion, many people look to leaders to magically change their conditions, and while in many instances leaders are tasked with creating the environment to provide opportunities for the people to prosper, it is up to the people to create the lives they want by the way they think, the way they assess their place in the society, the steps they take to elevate themselves and the work they put in to achieve their dreams.

Unfortunately, many religious leaders recognise that many people depend solely on external sources and are contented with suffering when they believe that it is God’s will for their lives; the threat of damnation perhaps frightens these people, and therefore, they are more concerned about what will happen when they would have expired.

It is these thoughts that lingered when I thought about last Sunday and the events that followed. Like many others, I saw unedited images of the women and the Pope along with videos. And I thought about the part of the scripture in Luke 12:3 about what is in darkness coming to light.

I hope that Guyana Power and Light will evolve to a point where we as Guyanese would never have to wait in darkness. I hope also that the many people who blindly follow leaders would accept that leaders are not flawless and that they will disappoint sometimes. We must take control of our lives; put in the required work to create the lives we want and allow the power we have to guide us. This is a lesson for all.