Christian leaders condemn Easter music festival as ‘affront to faith’

Two prominent Christian leaders have sharply criticised the decision to stage the Caribbean Music Festival on Easter Sunday, denouncing it as a “direct insult to the Christian faith” and linking it to deeper societal issues they say are fuelling Barbados’ rising tide of violence.

Reverend Cicely Athill-Horsford, chair of the Barbados Christian Council, and Sean Apache Carter, organiser of the Spiritually Aware group, voiced outrage at the scheduling of the event—set to feature controversial dancehall artistes Vybz Kartel and Tommy Lee Sparta—on what they described as the most sacred day of the Christian calendar.

Reverend Athill-Horsford warned that Barbados was facing an “unacceptable level of violence” that demanded urgent, collective action.

“It’s not just over there – it’s affecting every person,” she told Barbados TODAY. “Every one of us must be concerned to the point of doing something. Not to take up guns and go after them, but to help persons resolve conflict without killing.”

She revealed that the funeral of 13-year-old Shawnaton Chase, who was gunned down in his community last month, would be held on Tuesday, and that the church nationally was in mourning. 

“We must reach the young men in particular – and young women too, because they are now getting involved. It’s not just about what the church can do. This is an all-of-society problem. All hands on deck,” Reverend Athill-Horsford urged.

Condemning the planned Easter concert, the reverend lamented the erosion of respect for sacred days. 

“All of us have abused the sanctity of Sunday. Nothing is holy anymore in Barbados. We are into fete and party and concert, and headliners. I don’t even blame the man. It’s the promoters I would go after because they know what they were doing when they planned it,” she charged.

The Moravian minister argued that promoters and corporations supporting such artists should be held accountable. 

“They are concerned about their bottom line rather than what effect it would have on all of society,” she charged.

Reverend Cicely
Athill-Horsford, chair of the Barbados Christian Council. (FP)

Calypsonian, activist and spokesman for the Spiritually Aware group Carter, who participated in a march against the concert last Saturday, echoed her sentiments, calling the event “blasphemous” and “disrespectful” to Christians.

“It is very inappropriate for Vybz Kartel or Tommy Lee Sparta to perform on Easter Sunday,” he told Barbados TODAY. “A lot of persons are putting emphasis on Vybz Kartel because of his songs and lyrics dealing with domestic violence and how they’re derogatory towards women and the gun violence that he promotes in his songs. He has about four or five songs that are very blasphemous as well — a song called Gun and God.”

Carter also criticised Tommy Lee Sparta, referring to the artiste’s self-given names such as Uncle Demon and Lucifer. 

He declared: “He is clearly into dark stuff. He’s clearly into Gothic stuff.”

Carter further noted that the artiste had been denied a US visa on several occasions and was also refused entry into Canada. He added that in 2024, the performer had been denied entry into Dominica, yet Barbados was allowing him to enter and perform—on Easter Sunday, no less—alongside Vybz Kartel.

He further accused the government of double standards: “You’re asking the church for help, but then at the same time, you are
being disrespectful by allowing this thing to happen on Easter Sunday.”

Carter recalled previous backlash when Barbadian artists released a rhythm featuring gun-themed lyrics and questioned why similar outrage was not being directed at the foreign artistes scheduled to perform. 

“Statistics I saw this morning, we have 17 homicides and we have 29 shootings so far for the year,” he said, describing the surge in gun violence and killings as growing at an alarming rate.

Both Reverend Athill-Horsford and Carter called for a zero-tolerance, all-country approach to tackle rising violence and what they see as the erosion of national values. 

“Each one of us has to stop and ask: what can I do to help?” Reverend Athill-Horsford said. “We’re calling the churches, we’re calling the counsellors, the psychologists, and the call is the same: that there has to be a zero tolerance approach…. It has to be all country.”

louriannegraham@barbadostoday.bb