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Dear Sir:

In the Caribbean, in particular the country of St Vincent and the Grenadines, there is superstition surrounding the Spiritual Baptist religion. From my interactive knowledge of this religion, I can confirm that, although it has a foundation that is based on Christianity, a great deal of the rituals and core beliefs of this religion are deep in spiritualism (the belief in the activities of individuals after they die). Similarly, the Christianity that is practiced by the Catholic Church is an integration of many practices of the pagan Romans’ religion and culture, which were grafted onto Christianity with the conversion of the Roman emperor Constantine the Great.

These religions have many rituals and practices, some of which are rooted deep in spiritualism; examples of such: the Spiritual Baptist believes they have the ability to communicate with the dead, while the Catholics regularly offers prayers to the “Holy” Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, who is dead, and they also believe that she (the deceased Mary) has the power to perform miracles. As a result, these religions, especially the Spiritual Baptist, believe that by virtue of their religion they are endowed with the gift of reading the life of others, they communicate with the dead and, like the Roman Catholic Church, they possess the ability, through the process of ritualistic exorcism, to cast out demons that have possessed others or things. Both religions also offer protection from evil in the spirit realms.

It has been rumoured, and I have spoken to many people who have convincingly assured me from their personal knowledge that, prior to the Ralph E. Gonsalves Unity Labour Party’s Victory in the 2000 general election in St Vincent and the Grenadines, the then opposition leader Ralph Gonsalves allegedly visited Pointer (Pointer is the title given to the leader of the Spiritual Baptist Church) Pompey’s Spiritual Baptist Church, where he was taken into the moaning room (moaning: is a practice of seclusion, prayer and fasting that members of the Spiritual Baptist community engage in, to obtain spiritual purity), he was instructed to strip down to his birthday suit (naked) and he was sapped (sapping is where one individual, using their cupped open palm, which is full of liquid, firmly hit the body in a therapeutic massaging manner with the open hand and the liquid) with fresh cow’s milk among other things.

It is widely believed that such a ritual, with the reading of the correct division of biblical psalms, will grant protection from evil, undo evil that have been affecting the individual and bring good fortune. Some years later it is also alleged that Gonsalves participated in a spiritual retreat at the St Benedict Catholic church in Trinidad and Tobago, where a similar ritual was performed on him.

It is important to note that these rituals are superstitious and is not supported by biblical teaching. One can easily understand the association of such practice to these two religions; but it will all come clear when one checks out the origin or the history of the said religions. The Catholic Church comes from a background that is steeped in pagan Roman idol worship and demonic reverence. Their idols and demons were worshipped and human and other sacrifices were made to them.

The Spiritual Baptist religion on the other hand has a similar origin. The Spiritual Baptist religion is a mixture of Christianity and African witchcraft. In the same manner that took place when Christianity was adopted by the Romans, who sanitized their idols and demon worship and integrated them into Christianity, in the same manner when the witchcraft believing African slaves were converted to Christianity, they comingled their devil worship religion with the worshiping of the Creator God; resulting in the Spiritual Baptist religion. It is important to understand that the Roman Catholic and the Spiritual Baptist to this day still practice a mixed religion.

It is no secret that Haiti is the Caribbean Mecca of witchcraft, as a result it is believed that the acts and rituals of the Haitian practitioners will be more effective in accomplishing their goals, than any sapping that Rev./Pointer Pompey or the bishop of St Benedict could have ever perform. This is so because the Haitian practitioners practice the pure, undiluted form of witchcraft. There are some obeah men and or women who claim they use their power for good and call the craft they practice white magic, while those who practice the craft to bring forth an evil end work black magic.

One thing must be made clear and that is, whether the magic is black or white, it is deeply rooted in satanic practice; both black and white magic practitioners are servants of Satan, the Devil, the archenemy of Yahweh and Jesus. There is nothing good to be derived from the services these people provide.

I can assure you that the use of witchcraft in any of its forms is not without its repercussions; anyone who uses witchcraft for personal gain, to do harm to others or otherwise suffer some adverse consequence; consequences, the users of such service may not have known that are associated with the solicitation and use of such services. It is important to understand and believe that the power of witchcraft in any of its forms cannot affect anyone over whom Yahweh’s protective hand is hovering. But evil has the power to affect those whose life is corrupted by evil, those whose thoughts are blighted with jealousy, whose consciences are singed and cannot understand the righteousness that Yahweh expects his people to demonstrate daily.

As soon as I was told, by a Haitian using the service I provide, that Prime Minister Gonsalves was going to Haiti to represent St Vincent and the Grenadines at the Caribbean heads of Government meeting, my mind went on a nostalgic journey, to the two previous allegations of ritualistic involvement PM Gonsalves was the primary subject in, those activities mentioned above. Then I asked myself this question, will Ralph E. Gonsalves journey to Haiti, the Mecca of witchcraft, and not use the service of at least one of the Haitian practitioners?.

If PM Gonsalves had an audience with a Haitian witchdoctor how will we know?

If PM Gonsalves had an audience with one of Haiti’s devil worshiping practitioners we will know, for the two most frequent manifestations of such involvement come in the forms of sudden illnesses and/or scandal. The manifestation of such use comes within three to four weeks after the involvement. So if Gonsalves becomes ill or he becomes engulfed in new dishonourable scandals, we can safely conclude that Gonsalves while in Haiti received the services of a Haitian devil dealing practitioner.

Allan Palmer

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Nico Vendetta:

How I wish people would quit associating witchcraft with Satan. What this writer is talking about is Satanism and not Witchcraft. If you cant get this fact correct you have no business writing about it.

Wellington C Ramos:

Dear Writer,
This article is kind of confusing because I was expecting more from it. I am troubled by it because you mentioned Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as one of the islands in the Caribbean that mostly practice Obeah and Witchcraft where my ancestors came from. Gobedah is the religion for the Garifuna people who were forcefully removed from Saint Vincent by the British on March the 11th, 1797 and that is not Obeah or Witchcraft. The fundamentals of this religion is based on native Carib, Arawak and African cultures religious rites. Europeans believe that Christianity is the best religion and have always looked down on the religion of others. Prime Minister Gonsalves like every other person can practice any religion he wants because he is responsible for his own soul.

Peter:

Gonsalves slipped up in Parliament when he told parliament, told the nation that he only works Obeah for the Lord. You can't work Obeah for our Lord God, so which Lord was he referring to, perhaps the Lord Satan?

Now these are the words of Gonsalves, not mine or anyone else's, his, his very own. No apology, no explanation, no regrets.

jason :

On a more serious note, one would have thought by now your support base to be strong. But it seems like not much people interesting in your constant bashing of Ralph. Vincentians are more focus on progress rather than rhetoric.

Palmer I know you can do better than this. Come up with idea so as help move SVG forward.

Allan Palmer :

Wellington C Ramos,

How are you, unfortunately you understood wrong, I never said or imply that St. Vincent is a leader in obeah or any such practice. There is no evidence to support this. What I did say however is it is suspecion surrounding the Spiritual Baptist religion where spiritualism is concerned. Never will I say something like that unless there is evidence to support such.

I can remember as a child we will hear rumors of people going to Baga, Union Island, Cariacou or such likes. Maybe you are not aware that one thing we Vincent are good at and that is the killing and total destruction of anything traditional. I do not have any doubt that at one point Obeah was practiced in St. Vincent and the Grenadines but there is no evidence of that now.

Peter:

JASON, Alan has made a suggestion on a number of occasions to move SVG forward.

Its a very simple matter, get rid of Gonsalves.

Allan Palmer :

Nico, who ever you are, satanism, obeah, witchcraft, voodoo, psychic readers are one and the same, they are called by different names to fool unsuspecting people into believing that one is evil and the other are not.

Their source of information, power, granting of wishes are from Satan, the devil the motivator of hate for Yahweh and his son Jesus Christ.

Nico are you a witch or have you solicited the service of a witch well if you are and or did, then you have used the service of the Devil if that be the case shame on you.

Allan Palmer:

Peter,

I honestly did not know that Ralph declared in parliament that he work obeah for the lord. P, you are correct when you asked, which god.

Is ralph planning to use the limited power of the devil to benefit the awesome all powerful God of the universe? Ralph do not understand who make the devil, and to whom all power belong. Even the power the devil is using even today.

Yahweh is the owner of every power even satan's ability to breath, his very existance belong to Yahweh. Their is nothing the devil or anyone can do to benefit the almighty creator of the Universe.

Peter:

ALLAN, I have been repeating the words that GONSALVES told us in parliament "I only work Obeah for the Lord" ever since he said it.

In all those months you are the first person to comment on it.

Even members of his scum brigade like VINCYPOWA leave it alone.

kervin Harry:

Hi Allan,

Your started off on some very interesting historical facts on the Spiritual Baptist sect. I thought you were going to dive into more historical facts, for example, the linkage of the shakers, as they are sometimes called to African Traditional Religion (ATR) and the main reason why they why their various forms of practice seem to have some sort of resemblance to the mean stream christian churchs. I would love for you to continue, but perhaps in another forum write and article on the subject. I am not so much interested in issues of Prime Minister Gonsalves.

Allan Palmer:

Kirvin Harry, I am sorry that I disappointed you when I diverted my discourse. However I am not promising you anything, If time permit me I will do futher research and do a piece on the topic you request. Please remember I said, If time permits.