Dear Editor,
In an article carried by the Stabroek Newspaper on the 12th. March, 2021 it was stated that the chaplain of the Guyana Police Force, Reverend Patrick Doolichand, was dismissed because the prayer which he offered at the opening of the Annual Officer’s Conference was, “repugnant, fallacious and of inappropriate utterance at the dignified and professional activity.” Editor, it could have been that in the opinion of the principals of the Guyana Police Force that maybe the: 1) The prayer embarrassed the Force at its dignified activity, 2) The chaplain was too blunt or forthright, 3) The chaplain washed the dirty linen of the Force in the public, 4) The prayer/chaplain was out of place, 5) The chaplain was politically incorrect, and 6) That the chaplain should have voiced his concerns in writing or outside the glare of the opening activity.
Nevertheless, what is true of the prayer is that Reverend Doolichand: 1) stood in the gap for the Force, 2) was brutally honest, 3) confessed the sins of the Force, and 4) poured his heart to the God of the Bible. Interestingly, there was no pronouncement on the veracity of these aspects of the prayer. Be that as it may, it must be noted that any preacher who is called by the name of the Lord is constrained by a higher calling to speak and act in love on behalf of the God of the Bible who called and commissioned them to so do. The modus operandi of such a preacher must be to: a) Speak the word of God, “whether the time is favourable or unfavourable.” (2 Timothy 4:1 (c) – 2 of the NRSV), b) While a chaplain is a commissioned officer of the Force he must obey God (1 Samuel 15: 22 and Acts 5:29, c) Resist being silenced/muzzled by their superiors in speaking God’s word without fear or favour (Acts 18: 9 – 11), d) Endeavour not to be a yes man or to be trapped into only saying things to please people or to sugarcoat the hard truth with the intent to placate his superiors or congregation, e) Resist the temptation to turn a blind eye or to be oblivious to the ills (moral and religious) of the organization of which he is hired to be chaplain. If he goes with the flow, then he will do so at his peril (1 Samuel 2:27- 36).
Editor, the move to dismiss the chaplain has not absolved the Force of its “sins”, rather it has backfired. Your very newspaper reported that the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces is quoted as saying that, “he appreciated the eloquent and forthright prayer of the chaplain.” It is noted that in short order the Force somersaulted and in a volte-face, issued a release indicating that the removal of the chaplain has been rescinded. What went wrong here? In closing, maybe the church has an opinion of this action of the Force towards one of their own.
Yours faithfully,
Bernel L.H. Wickham.
