Faith-based organisations across Barbados have fully embraced a plea from the head of this country’s isolation facilities manager to pray this weekend for divine guidance as the COVID-19 Delta variant takes one life per day.
At a press briefing on Wednesday, Dr Corey Forde, who is also the island’s Infectious Diseases Specialist, declared: “I am asking all religions, whatever faith you are, even if you are non-religious to pray for this country.
President of the Barbados Evangelical Association (BEA), Dr Nigel Taylor said Wednesday, he was delighted to hear Dr Forde’s appeal for pray.
“I was very pleased to hear him say that. It also means that persons are willing not to separate their faith from their practice. That is something we will certainly engage. Not that it is a now thing because he would have said it, we have been doing that,” Dr Taylor told Barbados TODAY.
“I don’t see him asking the faith-based organisations to go through intercessory prayers this weekend for a situation where he is saying ‘I give up.’ No, I am not picking up that at all. I interpret that to mean that ‘right now, we have been trying our best medically, the numbers are still swirling; let me exercise my faith and ask the faith community’ to seek divine direction over the course of this thing,” the BEA leader stated.
“I think he knows that in the long run if we don’t get this thing arrested very soon, there is going to be great devastation,” the cleric contended.
He also pointed out that the church has been “very” conscious of the seriousness of the situation and has been in constant pray over this crisis.
Chairperson of the Barbados Christian Council (BXC) Dr Cicely Athill-Horsford was also onboard with the prayer request.
In fact, Dr Athill-Horsford told Barbados TODAY that even before Dr Forde’s appeal, there were plans by her organisation to have a special day of prayer.
“But I guess I would have to do that [pray this weekend] urgently now,” she promised.
The Muslim community is also supporting the call for special pray this weekend even though it says it’s been interceding for the country since the pandemic was declared.
“We have been on board from day one of this pandemic in offering prayers for the nation and the world in lifting this pandemic as a test and a trial upon us. We will continue to do so, and yes, we will definitely be increasing our prayers over the weekend as requested,” Secretary of the Muslim Association of Barbados Sulieman Bulbuliah said.
He said that along with prayers, Muslims are asked to be more charitable in these times “and to turn to Almighty God more in such times of tests and trials”.
“We will be encouraging all Muslims to do so and continue to pray for the country,” he added.
Today, two people died from the virus in Barbados.
When he addressed the press briefing, Chief Medical Officer Dr Kenneth George disclosed that a 52-year-old man had succumbed to COVID-19 this morning, while at the Harrison Point Facility where he was in primary isolation for three days. He had no chronic illnesses and was unvaccinated.
And later this afternoon, health authorities reported a second death; that of an 85-year-old woman who was in secondary isolation for 10 days. She had comorbidities and was unvaccinated.
These two deaths, pushed to 71, the number of lives lost to the coronavirus in Barbados.
On Tuesday, 199 cases were recorded with 858 people in isolation.
(emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb)
