Call for public support

THE Very Reverend Dr. Jeffrey Gibson, Dean of the Cathedral Church of St. Michael and All Angels, has asked for corporate Barbados and the general public to support, specifically through generous donations, the St. Michael Centre for Faith and Action.

Speaking during the press conference that was held at the St. Michael’s Cathedral on Thursday, Gibson noted that the centre has been registered as a charity under the laws of Barbados and promises that they will be fully transparent in their operations.

“We invite the private sector and Barbadians in general to support the work of the Centre through generous giving,” he said.

Gibson, who is the Chairman of the centre which will be launched this Sunday at the St. Michael’s Cathedral, revealed that they planned to sponsor lectures, publish position papers, and convene panel discussions on topics of national interest. He also highlighted that a programme of activities for the first year of the centre’s life was currently being finalised.

He announced that the centre, which is run by a Board of Trustees, had three broad goals, which are the advancement of public education and religion, the promotion of purposes beneficial to the community and the relief of poverty. Gibson added that they had a few other objectives that they hoped to achieve, which are to create an environment conducive for dialogue that promotes understanding; to cultivate and facilitate an atmosphere for research and publication in the area of public theology for personal development and advancement of the church; to respond to human and social needs through demonstrating kindness and showing the love of God to the vulnerable; as well as support the faithful in their everyday lives and support charities or charitable purposes, which the Board of Trustees in their absolute discretion think fit.

To achieve these objectives, Gibson noted that they would need the continuous help of the general public, media and corporate Barbados in order to be successful.