Boulevard Baptist Church hosts ‘Men’s Breakfast’

For more than 30 years, Boulevard Baptist Church, located at 20 Washington Boulevard in Kingston 20, has been hosting a ‘Breakfast for Men’ only on the last Saturday in January. This year’s iteration took place on Saturday, January 31, and it was a full house.

“Yes, any number higher than 60 on a Saturday morning is good. We wish it to be more in the future, so we have to continue to work at that. Our best year had 115 men,” Deacon Dwayne Beckford, coordinator for the Brotherhood, told The Gleaner.

The over 60 mostly mature men were treated to traditional Jamaican food and beverages, which were sponsored by the men of the Brotherhood in cash and kind. The main cook was a man, and “the women, based on the genesis of the breakfast, assisted with the food preparation”. They also were the servers.

The idea of a men’s-only breakfast came from the men’s fellowship Brotherhood and the women’s fellowship (Women’s Federation) because it was observed “that the spouses of the women were not coming out to church, so the idea was to invite these men to a church activity, hence the free breakfast to start the year. Hence the name “Breakfast for Men”, Deacon Beckford said.

The objective is “to provide a space in which men can relax, fellowship, listen to the speaker who would present on a current and/or topical issues and for them to discuss the same topic. It is to inspire men to be involved in their family/community/society, and, by extension, let them see that Christianity is a lifestyle”.

“The young men/youth were downstairs at the car wash as this was an opportunity for the Youth Fellowship to earn some funds for their activities (that has been going on for over 10 years). Some came for the meal but went back down. The challenge has always been, however, to have more men in church. Some speakers also bring out more young men than others. Some men would come with their sons, and, depending on age, grandsons,” Deacon Beckford shared.

Church member Nicholas Coote was present, and he told The Gleaner that the breakfast “does serve a purpose because it should set the tone and vision for the Brotherhood for the year … It was a good social activity”.

And was the food a bribe to get the men to gather Saturday morning? “Definition of bribing, it’s trying to buy an unfair advantage or outcome. There was no advantage to gain, so no bribing,” he said.

CRITICAL ROLE

The guest speaker was businessman Wayne Chen, who was introduced by Beckford himself. When he was asked to give feedback to Chen’s presentation, he said: “Very good and well presented as he took on a historical introduction of the origins of the native Baptist leaders and their sacrifices, the legacy of slavery/colonialism and its effects on our education system. Some ideas on how we can overcome the challenge. The question-and-answer session was quite engaging and lasted for about 45 minutes.”

Yes, the roles that the formerly enslaved, the American George Lisle and Moses Baker played in the development of the native Baptist Church in Jamaica, the contribution of Thomas Burchell, William Knibb, James Phillipo, and Sam Sharpe to the pre-Emancipation and post-Emancipation movements to better the lot of the enslaved and newly freed people were broached, likewise those of national heroes Paul Bogle and George William Gordon.

“There is no doubt that those three Englishmen - Phillipo, Burchell, and Knibb - played a critical role in the development sustainability of the free villages in the early stages of Emancipation. The impact is resonating today by, I will say, a set of Jamaicans who have been resilient, forward-thinking, and successful … ,,” Chen told the gathering.

“But certainly, connecting the dots as we go, understanding the lessons of history is important. But connecting the founding of the free villages and the culture and the mindset that they developed, even as we have national discussions around resilience now, it’s critical to understand how they got there in the first place … So, how are these Baptist men of old relevant to the Baptist men of today?