The Land Beyond the Pulpit

For generations, Jamaica’s churches have stood at the centre of national life. They have built schools, operated children’s homes, supported struggling families and provided refuge after storms and other emergencies. Yet beyond the sanctuary walls lies another part of their inheritance: substantial parcels of land, some of which are vacant, poorly documented or occupied without permission.

In 2018, Anglican priest and social commentator Dr Raulston Nembhard argued that the Church had failed in its stewardship of church lands. His criticism followed reports that several denominations had lost significant acreage to squatting. Eight years later, the central question remains unresolved. Do Jamaica’s churches know precisely what they own, and is that land being protected and used responsibly?

Hundreds of acres lost

The most striking reported case involved the Moravian Church’s approximately 500-acre estate at Lititz in St Elizabeth. By 2018, around 435 acres were reportedly occupied by squatters, some of whom had been on the land since the 1970s.

Other established denominations, including the Anglican, Baptist, Methodist and Roman Catholic churches, were also reported to have experienced encroachment or uncertainty over parts of their property portfolios. The Anglican Diocese of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands has previously acknowledged the loss of land to squatters and the need to improve the protection of church property.

These institutions inherited or acquired land over many generations. In some cases, documentation may be incomplete, boundaries uncertain or titles registered in the names of trustees who have since died. A congregation may occupy and maintain its church building while having little knowledge of a larger parcel stretching beyond it.

But institutional complexity does not remove the responsibility to act.

“Land does not stop being valuable because an institution has forgotten about it. Neglected property can become a legal dispute, a financial loss and a missed opportunity for an entire community,” said Dean Jones, founder of Jamaica Homes and Realtor Associate.

A national problem, not only a church problem

Churches are not alone in struggling to protect large and dispersed property portfolios. Government agencies, private companies and families living overseas face similar difficulties.

Jamaica’s Squatter Management Unit says informal settlements create serious social, economic and environmental challenges. Its work includes national surveying, mapping and the development of a comprehensive policy intended to prevent new squatting while improving conditions and security of tenure in established communities.

The frequently repeated claim that Jamaica has close to one million squatters should be treated cautiously. The most widely cited assessment identified roughly 750 informal settlements containing approximately 600,000 people. That information is now dated, and a completed modern national count has not been publicly presented.

The scale nevertheless remains serious. In April 2026, the Office of the Prime Minister connected the spread of informal settlements directly to Jamaica’s shortage of planned and affordable housing. Unregulated communities are often established without adequate roads, drainage, water, sewage systems or emergency access. Regularising them later can cost considerably more than planning properly from the beginning.

This is why the debate cannot be reduced to churches removing poor families from their land. Some occupations have existed for decades and involve children, elderly residents and households with nowhere else to go. The answer must combine lawful ownership, humane treatment and workable housing solutions.

Adverse possession remains a risk

Jamaican law still allows a person to claim land through adverse possession when strict legal conditions are satisfied. Recent Supreme Court cases continue to examine whether claimants have demonstrated factual possession, an intention to possess and open, undisturbed occupation for the required period.

Occupation alone does not automatically confer ownership. Paying property tax does not create a title either, although tax receipts may form part of the evidence presented in a claim.

The practical lesson is unmistakable. A registered title cannot simply be placed in a cabinet and forgotten. Churches need current surveys, scheduled inspections, accurate boundary records and a central register showing the condition and occupation of every property.

Good stewardship begins with knowing what exists.

Tax exemption is not a management strategy

Religious property in Jamaica does receive important tax protections, but the exemption is not necessarily a blanket covering every parcel owned by a church.

Official guidance from Jamaica’s local authorities identifies buildings used exclusively for worship, churchyards, burial grounds and rectories among the exempt categories. Certain charitable and educational properties may also qualify where the statutory requirements are met.

That is different from saying that every vacant hillside, unused agricultural parcel or commercially held property belonging to a religious organisation is automatically exempt.

Taxing idle church land would be politically and legally contentious. Before considering such a measure, the Government would need reliable information about ownership, use, planning constraints and charitable purpose. A steep or inaccessible rural parcel cannot reasonably be treated as though it were development-ready land in Kingston or Montego Bay.

Still, tax exemption should not become an excuse for institutional neglect. A blessing over the collection plate is not a property-management plan.

From dormant land to living communities

The National Housing Trust now operates a Joint Venture Programme through which landowners can contribute land to affordable housing developments while the Trust provides financing and other support. This creates a possible route for churches that have suitable land but lack development capital or expertise.

Not every parcel should become a large housing scheme. Some sites may be better suited to starter homes, elderly accommodation, rooms for teachers and nurses, transitional housing, agriculture, community enterprises or emergency accommodation.

A church could also retain a long-term interest through an appropriately structured lease or partnership instead of selling its inheritance outright.

“The choice is not between preserving the Church’s mission and developing its property. When properly planned, housing, agriculture and community facilities can become an expression of that mission,” Jones said.

Development must nevertheless be approached carefully. Each proposal requires clear title, an independent valuation, planning and environmental assessment, transparent partner selection, professional legal advice and safeguards preventing the land from being quietly transferred or undervalued.

Time for an open account

There is no current public inventory showing how much land Jamaica’s churches collectively own, how much is titled, how much is occupied or how much has been placed into housing and community use. Even the often-repeated description of churches as Jamaica’s second-largest landowners after the Government lacks readily available official verification.

The next step should therefore be an independent national church-property audit, beginning with the major denominations. It should record ownership, boundaries, occupation, condition, income, liabilities and development potential.

This is not an argument for stripping churches of their property. It is an argument for protecting that property and asking it to serve the future as faithfully as it served the past.

“Stewardship is not proved by holding land indefinitely,” Jones said. “It is proved by protecting an inheritance and using it wisely enough that the next generation can see what good came from it.”

Jamaica’s churches have long taught that gifts carry responsibilities. Their land is no exception.

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