The Most Churches per Square Mile: A Priest Says COVID Gave Jamaica’s Church Room to Change Course

• Priest and commentator Dr Raulston Nembhard said the pandemic exposed failures in health, the economy and politics
• He noted Jamaica’s reputation for having the most churches per square mile
• He said social decline shows the church must stop doing “church as usual”
• He criticised denominations for not sharing resources in poor communities

Jamaica may have more churches for its size than almost anywhere, but Dr Raulston Nembhard asked what that has achieved. Writing in the Jamaica Observer, the priest and social commentator argued that COVID-19 had exposed failures around the world and given the church a rare chance to rethink its role.

Nembhard named three areas the pandemic laid bare. Health systems were inadequate even in rich countries. Economic inequality had deepened: “The rich in every country became richer while the circumstances of the poor continued to deteriorate to alarming levels,” he wrote, pointing to the gap in vaccine supply between wealthy and poor nations. And political leadership had failed. He singled out former US President Donald Trump’s handling of the crisis.

He then turned to the Jamaican church. Citing Guinness World Records, he noted that Jamaica is said to have the most churches per square mile. Yet the country suffers from serious crime and corruption. The problem, he argued, is not the gospel but the way institutions are run. “The Church cannot any longer be concerned with church as usual. The pandemic has given it the breathing room it needs to chart a new path,” he wrote.

He criticised the divisions between denominations that stop churches pooling their resources in depressed communities. He also said young people increasingly doubt whether clergy truly believe and live what they preach.

Nembhard’s point about the number of churches is also a point about property. A country with this many churches has a great deal of land, halls, kitchens and classrooms, often several on the same road, each with its own roof to fix and bills to pay, and many empty most of the week. If denominations shared rather than competed, that property could house joint homework centres, clinics, skills training and shelters in the communities that need them most. Pooling assets, sharing halls or even merging small congregations would free up land and money. Churches and the diaspora members who fund them should consider whether every district needs another building, or better use of the ones it already has.

Follow Jamaica Homes on Youtube @jamaicahomes and Instagram @jamaica_homes and on Facebook @jamaicahomesnews Send us a message or email us at onlinefeedback@jamaica-homes.com or editor@jamaica-homes.com