By Lesroy W. Williams
Observer Reporter
(Basseterre, St. Kitts)- Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, American lecturer and writer, once said “Whenever you are on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
The St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh is certainly not on the side of the majority with a mere 40 members or so.
However, Elder Calvin Raphael Jenkins said that the Church started from humble beginnings and is growing.
Calvin Raphael Jenkins is the Elder, which, is the equivalent of Pastor for the St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh. He was born in St. Kitts and is the last of three children for Eldred and Maisy Jenkins. His father, who died in 1989, was a contractor and funeral undertaker, who left the family business for his children to manage. Elder Jenkins studied management at City University in New York. After studies he returned home to work in the family business along with his brother Peter and his sister Annette. Annette died in 2000, leaving Peter and Calvin to carry on the family business. Elder Jenkins is married to Dominican born Alithea and has three daughters, Talitha, Keziah and Taditha. They have been married for 21 years.
He converted from Methodism in 1981, when he became a member of the Assemblies of Yahweh, Bethel Pennsylvania. He spent three years at the Obadiah School of the Bible in Pennsylvania studying Theology.
He returned to St. Kitts in 1987. At that time, it was only his wife, mother and himself who were members of the Assemblies of Yahweh faith.
In 1992, the Qahal Assemblies of Yahweh from Dominica visited St. Kitts for the Celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles. It was out of that group that the St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh was born in 1992. Elder Calvin became an ordained minister of the St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh in 1996.
According to Elder Jenkins, the St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh is a Bible based group that believes in the inspiration of the Sacred Scriptures, that is, Genesis to Revelation. He said that his group believes that the foundation of the Biblical faith is Jewish. They accord much importance to the Old Testament Writings and The Prophets. They recognize the coming of the Messiah as the fulfillment of The Law and The Prophets. The Messiah he said gives new meaning and light to The Law and The Prophets.
“We affirm that the Messiah came in human form as a man, recognized as the Saviour of the world, and that he pre-existed with the Father. Only through him is there salvation,” Elder Jenkins said.
“We are a combination of Judeo-Christian beliefs but we see the foundation as the Old Covenant Scriptures but then through the light of the Messiah and His coming. We see clearly that the Heavenly Father had a name and that name is Yahweh,” Elder Jenkins said.
He said in the story of the Burning Bush (Ex 3:14-15), Moses was given by God the name “I AM”. This is what Yahweh means. Elder Jenkins said that Yahweh is the only name by which the Jews call God. He said that after consulting several encyclopedias it showed that the term God or Lord is generic.
“Yahweh is the one who causes all things to exist, the self-existent one. We believe that the personal revealed name of the Heavenly Father is Yahweh and the name of His Son is Yashua. These names are important for salvation,” he said.
Elder Jenkins said that in the Assemblies of Yahweh people are given the opportunity to preach, to conduct worship and youth activities while admitting that the ministry was not structured. The community tries to live in an altruistic way. Women however, cannot be Elders in the Church or hold key leadership positions as this is reserved for men. For example, women can be teachers but only of children. Females make up 67 percent of the congregation of the Assemblies of Yahweh.
The St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh is not affiliated to the Christian Council or the Evangelical Association of St. Kitts. They do not observe the major Christian feasts such as Christmas and Easter.
Elder Jenkins said they believe in keeping the commandments of the
Almighty Yahweh including the dietary laws of Leviticus 11, the weekly Sabbath, New Moon and Annual Feast Days of Leviticus 23 which sums up the plan of salvation and the redemption for humankind.
“The word Easter in Acts 12:4 should have been Passover. The term Easter came later on when Constantine and Rome infiltrated what was the then worship and brought in these new feasts days to replace what was originally there. We want to go with original feast days rather than what was super-imposed later on,” Elder Jenkins said.
“Christ Birth wasn’t December 25. It was more around the Feast of Tabernacles time in Zechariah 14,” he said.
The Feast of Tabernacles is a seven-day Biblical pilgrimage festival, also known as the Feast of Booths. Among followers, it is one of the most important holy days as it lasts the longest and normally requires a great deal of preparation and travel to attend. It is celebrated on the 15th of Tishri in the Hebrew Calendar (late September to October), the same date of the Jewish festival Sukkot, with which it shares its origin.
The Feast calls to mind the custom established by the law of Leviticus 23:40, of erecting on the roofs of houses, and even in the streets and public squares, booths of branches and foliage, wherein all who were not exempt through illness or weakness were obliged to live during the entire celebration of eight days. One of the features of the celebrations was to be, after a fashion, a harvest home, and to offer thanksgiving for the crops of the year. It is perhaps owing to this special feature that the character of the feast was one of joy and merriment. However, to the Jews, the Feast of Tabernacles was always and primarily in commemoration of their forefathers’ indwelling in tents in the wilderness and in thanksgiving for the permanent abode given them in the Promised Land, and later on, after the erection of the Temple, for a permanent place of worship. The Feast of Tabernacles is not observed by most mainstream Christian Churches.
“We have just come out of celebrating Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. What is coming next is Pentecost on June 15 and then later on the Feast of Tabernacles will be celebrated in Dominica from October 15-23, 2008,” Elder Jenkins said.
Members of the St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh consider themselves to be Messianic Jews. They believe that this Earth in the future will be restored back to its idyllic state in what is known as the Millennial
Kingdom when the Messiah will reign on the Earth and the Zechariah prophecies would be observed. The Millennium refers to a thousand year reign of Christ on Earth. Reference to this can be found in Revelation
20:1-6 and there has been much controversy over its interpretation.
Elder Jenkins is not satisfied with the impact that the Church is having on the society and thinks that more can be done. He firmly believes that Religion has brought upon itself some disrespect because of the emphasis on money and material things given by the televangelistic lifestyle. Elder Jenkins said that his Church tries not to make that mistake. Elder Jenkins believes that politics should not interfere with religion.
“As individuals you have a right to support whatever party you want. However, that must not blind you to seeing when others are wrong and speaking out against it. The politicians are servants and not masters. The Church must not support partisan politics but rather speak out on the issues of morality, crime and violence, and corruption in all its forms,” Elder Jenkins said.
Elder Jenkins said that things were different when he grew up.
“When I was growing up, things were different. The community raised a child. Relatives looked out for each other’s children. Neighbors did the same. We have gone away from that. I think that is one of the things affecting us. We have now become so self-centered and taken up with the material things of life that no one cares for anyone anymore. The North American lifestyle and its influence along with human weakness have contributed to that. Yet we should be a voice speaking out against these things,” Elder Jenkins said.
Elder Jenkins says that his Church is like a hospital where the spiritually, emotionally, psychologically and physically wounded can find healing. It is the motive of his Church to take priority in ministering to the wounded.
According to Elder Jenkins, he has found immense fulfillment in his ministry. “It’s the best thing I think I’ve ever chosen,” he said emphatically. But, there are challenges, he admits. How to keep people focused is one of his concerns. However, he doesn’t believe in what he terms the “hammer method.”
“We have got to find a way to be compassionate and reach out. While you don’t agree with what is happening and you have to keep your standards, you still have to reach out. Don’t drive people away. It’s so easy to drive people away,” he said.
Although The St. Kitts Assemblies of Yahweh started from humble beginnings and has a small congregation, Elder Jenkins has a broad vision for the future. In ten years time, he envisions having his own Church building. At present they are using the Old Women’s Training Complex in McKnight to hold services. He hopes to increase his congregation by another 150 members; to be more involved in community work; to train leaders and to have a more structured ministry.
He believes in people and it’s the people who want to serve the Heavenly Father and His followers that make his Church special. His motto is simple but profound: “Helping humanity in any way that I possibly can.”
