Religion

Christ is Risen! Alleluia!

EASTER MESSAGE FROM THE BISHOP OF BRIDGETOWN

Easter is a sacred and powerful reminder that light overcomes darkness, love conquers hate, and life triumphs over death. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is not just an event in history—it is the foundation of our hope.

This year, as we celebrate Easter, we do so in the face of real challenges. Our nation has felt the sting of rising violence—lives lost too soon, families grieving, communities living in fear. These acts tear at the fabric of who we are as Barbadians: a people of peace, dignity, and unity.

Yet Easter calls us to a different way—a higher way. We are called to be pilgrims of hope, walking together toward healing, reconciliation, and peace. Hope is not passive; it moves us to action. It invites us to see the face of Christ in each other, especially in those who are hurting, marginalized, or forgotten.

To be Easter people is to reject violence in all its forms and to work for a Barbados where every life is valued, and every voice is heard. It is to teach our children the power of forgiveness, the strength of compassion, and the courage of faith.

As pilgrims of hope, let us hold fast to the promise that the Risen Christ walks with us. He is not in the tomb—He is alive, and His love is alive in each act of kindness, in every effort to bring peace, and in every heart that chooses hope over despair.

May this Easter season renew us all and bless our beautiful nation with peace.

Happy Easter, Barbados! Christ is Risen! Alleluia!

The Most Rev. Neil Scantlebury, Bishop of Bridgetown

Religion

NEW POPE ELECTED

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, an American born in the state of Chicago, is the new Pope. He is the 267th Pope and the first American pontiff in the 2000 year history of the Catholic Church. The new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics was elected after two days of secret deliberations.

Prevost is a missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and led the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops.

Prevost, 69 has taken the name Leo X1V.

Religion

REQUIEM MASS FOR POPE FRANCIS

A Requiem Mass for Pope Francis was held yesterday evening at the St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Cathedral. Catholics turned out in large numbers at the Jemmotts Lane location for the Mass celebrating the life of Pope Francis.

The Pope died on Easter Monday at the age of 88.

*Bishop Neil Scantlebuy as he incensed the photo of Pope Francis*

The Roman Catholic Bishop, Neil Scantlebury during the mass incensed a photo of Pope Francis. He was joined by clergy from other churches, Anglican Bishop of Barbados The Rt. Rev. Michael Maxwell, Moravian Rev Cicely-Athill Horsford and Anglican Priest Rev Dr. Michael Lashley

*From left, Fr. Clement Paul Anglican Bishop of Barbados The Rt. Rev. Michael Maxwell, Moravian Rev Cicely Athill Horsford and Anglican Priest Rev Dr. Michael Lashley*

Religion

BISHOP NEIL SCANTLEBURY REFLECTS ON THE PASSING OF POPE FRANCIS 1

Catholics to pray daily for the repose of his soul

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgetown joins Catholics and people worldwide in mourning the passing of His Holiness Pope Francis I, who died today at the age of 88. He had been ill for some time.

Bishop of Bridgetown, The Most Reverend Neil Scantlebury, said today: “He was the first Pope I ever met face-to-face and I remember his firm handshake, his warm smile, his simplicity. He was so humble, so real, so jovial, so holy.”

Bishop Neil added: “One of my enduring memories of Pope Francis is when he came out onto the balcony of the papal apartment after he was elected in 2013 and he stood before a packed St Peter’s Square and asked the people to pray for him—and a profound silence fell over the entire space as the people prayed for him. Fast forward to March 27, 2020, when he who stood alone, in silence, in that same Square and prayed for all of us during the height of the COVID pandemic—when he made his statio orbis. And then, just yesterday, Easter Sunday, he is wheeled out onto the same balcony where he began his pontificate, and gives us—the Church and the world—his final blessing. He was a true shepherd. May he rest in peace.”

Bishop Neil also hailed the depth of the insights shared by Pope Francis in documents like Laudato Si’, Amoris Laetitia and Evangelii Gaudium. He said: “Pope Francis was so full of mercy in his perspective, from the very start when he likened the Church to a ‘field hospital’, to his championing the care of the Earth, to the hailstorm of criticism he received for saying ‘Who am I to judge?’. He was big-hearted, he was courageous, and his call for us to unflinchingly minister to the ‘fringes of humanity’ still resounds.”

The Diocese of Bridgetown will have a Requiem Mass for Pope Francis, details of which are still being finalised. Prayers for the repose of his soul will be offered daily, and special prayers for the election of a new Pope will also begin soon.