Editorial

The last few months have been like a quantum leap into the future! I won’t even try to count all the many things that have happened. Some of us are set to SCREAM if we ever hear the words COVID-19 again!! So this issue is not about the CoronaVirus, but the issues we will deal with affect the whole world just like the virus is doing right now even as I write. The first topic we chose was Reggae gospel around the world. Has it spread globally as much as straight reggae music has? And trust me … it has! I won’t forget going through immigration in Benin in 2003. We were there to conduct a songwriting workshop to create new songs for the church in a number of language groups. The immigration officer, when he saw my Jamaican passport, shouted in glee and demanded that I sing one of Bob Marley’s songs before he let me in. In Burkina Faso where I lived for a short while, even Ramadan was closed out with one of Bob’s anthems at 4:00 in the morning. No question - our reggae music has spread like a virus all over the world!

As I was trying to answer that question (about the spread of Reggae gospel), the matter of reparation was brought to my attention. But should Christfollowers be concerned about people of African heritage being compensated for the atrocities perpetrated against our forefathers during the Transatlantic Slave Trade? In trying to answer that question, I was faced with the question of whether we should be seeking reparation or reconciliation.

This is how we ended up addressing these three matters in this one issue! And then, as if to confirm that we were on the right track, the whole world, it seems, joined African Americans in protesting the ongoing violence being perpetrated against their people, especially by the police, after the public murder of George Floyd while he stated repeatedly “I can’t breathe!”

Come along with us. We are praying that ultimately, we will see transformation as we love and embrace ourselves enough to realize that we do deserve to receive all the benefits of being human, take another step toward repairing the breach between us and our brothers and sisters from every ‘race’, and celebrate the gospel of Jesus Christ shared through the medium of the gift of Reggae Music all over the world!

We have set up a group inside Facebook to take the conversations introduced in this magazine off the pages for greater impact and influence. The best part of this group so far is the conversations we have been having weekly, covering topics such as Racism & the Church, Garveyism, and Repatriation. Please join us there if you will. Here is the link: www.facebook.com/groups/ CREWShallConnections/.

KW Magazine is an almost quarterly magazine of CREW 40:4 - a non-profit entity based in Jamaica, whose mission is to spread the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ through culturally relevant expressions of worship. The magazine’s aim is to facilitate conversations about worship and cultural identity among Christ-followers on the African Continent and in her Diasporas.

Disclaimer: We may not agree with all views expressed by contributors or interviewees.

Editorial Team

Jo-Ann Richards Goffe

Marcel Goffe

Angela Slack

Sylvia Gilfillian

Telephone: + 876 820 0258

e-mail: kommekwiworship@ gmail.com

Website: www.crew40-4.com

KWMagazine: CREWShall Connections in Faith & Culture

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