Betty Ann Blaine | Holness' flawed theory of evolution

The matter of human evolution has engaged the minds of enquiring men and women for generations with still no consensus or resolution to this day. Prime Minister Andrew Holness can now be counted among those persons attempting to speak authoritatively, yet not convincingly, on that subject.

At the recently concluded Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Brussels, Mr Holness was quoted as saying that the people of Jamaica are "evolving" on the issue of homosexuality. That statement has led many Jamaicans, including myself, to ask: How and when did we the people of Jamaica "evolve"?

From what I'm hearing on the ground, the PM's theory of evolution is being challenged by many persons asking similar questions to mine - "What does Mr Holness mean by "evolve", and which Jamaicans and how many are "evolving"?

To the best of my knowledge, the position of most Jamaicans regarding homosexuality and the repeal of the country's buggery law have remained static. The last Bill Johnson poll conducted found that 91 per cent of Jamaicans are in favour of the retention of the buggery law. Similarly, the LAPOP (Latin American Public Opinion Project) study found that 89 per cent of Jamaicans disapprove of same-sex marriage.

 

CONSISTENT VIEWS OF HOMOSEXUALITY

 

Jamaicans in general, and the Christian community in particular, have been consistent with their views on homosexuality. Jamaican Christians hold firm to the biblical teachings on homosexuality, which deems the behaviour a sin - "Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God ... or are slave traders, liars, promise breakers, or who do anything else that contradicts the wholesome teaching." (1 Corinthians 6: 9-10)

And there is much more that contradicts Mr Holness' so-called evolution theory. With quick and easy access to information, Jamaicans are becoming increasingly aware of the steep, slippery slope of the LGBT global agenda, and recognise the safeguards entrenched in our country's buggery law. They understand that the prerequisite and precursor for the introduction of same-sex marriage is the repeal of the buggery law, and Jamaicans have no tolerance for the idea of same-sex marriage.

Many Jamaicans are also aware that the slippery LGBT slope involves the indoctrination and resocialisation of our children largely through the LGBT-driven, Comprehensive Sexual Education (CSE) curriculum now being rolled out in schools across the United States.

But there's pushback. More and more parents are raising the alarm and demanding that the sex-ed programmes be halted and removed from their schools. One parent asked, "Why is my child being taught how to have anal and oral sex, masturbation, and the option to choose whatever gender they want to be? What about the parent's right to educate our kids about sex and sexuality?" It is reported that one confused third-grader asked, "Daddy, am I a lesbian because I like the girls in my class more than I like the boys?"

So enraged are parents that a global protest movement is now emerging. This past Monday, April 23, the Sex-Ed Sit-Out campaign called on parents in the United States, Canada, and the UK to pull their children from public schools on that day. "We are uniting with parents across the globe to demand that our rights as parents be respected regarding the teaching of sexuality and sexual orientation. - Hands Off Our Kids!" a parent activist demanded.

Describing the sex-ed curriculum as age-inappropriate, graphic and harmful, parents in some US jurisdictions are threatening legal action against school districts if they refuse to pull the CSE programmes. Others say that they are prepared to pull their children from public schools altogether. "Stick to the biology of reproduction or we will pull our children our to schools permanently," an angry parent exclaimed.

 

WARNINGS

 

There are warnings being issued as well about the stealth strategies being used by LGBT groups and their sponsors to infuse CSE into all subjects - history, science, etc., as well as into anti-bullying and 'human-rights' material and training. That warning is also for us here in Jamaica and the Caribbean.

I'm not sure if Mr Holness fully recognises the dangers of his ill-informed and half-baked theory of evolution, and the impending and inherent risks to the Jamaican society now that he has eased the LGBT door open.

No sooner than he declared that Jamaicans are "evolving", British Prime Minister Theresa May jumped on it, announcing that she was willing to assist Jamaica with the introduction of same-sex marriage. Wow! If only the response to reparation for slavery and colonialism could be so quick!

As a predominantly Christian nation, there is one, and only one, theory of evolution that the majority of our people subscribe to, which is: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth ... . God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them ... . God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number ... ."(Genesis 1 NIV).

Mr Holness' flawed theory needs to be quickly and permanently debunked.

- Betty Ann Blaine is a child advocate and founder of Hear The Children's Cry and Youth Opportunities Unlimited. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and bab2609@yahoo.com.