“Be kind in words, action” – Pres Ali urges at Palm Sunday service

President Dr Irfaan Ali joined worshippers for Palm Sunday service at the Roman Catholic Church of Ascension in New Amsterdam, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).
During his address to the congregation, the Head of State encouraged persons to live a life that not only reflects the messages of Jesus Christ but also enriches others.
“We must live [life] in such a way that it adds beauty to our country, it adds beauty to our world… and simple things that we can do, like offering each other a smile, like saying ‘good morning,’ ‘have a good day,’ ‘how are you’ – being kind in words is a great charity. Being kind in action is a great charity. It is part of humility. It is part of simplicity. It is part of the teachings of Jesus Christ.”
“And as we enter this Holy Week, it is very important in a fractured world… that we do our little bit in our little communities, in our own homes, to propagate peace, to promote peace, to promote harmony, to promote love, to promote togetherness, that we take collective responsibility in removing vices in our society,” he stated.
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week in Christianity. Celebrated on the Sunday before Easter, it commemorates Jesus Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, where he was greeted by cheering crowds waving palm branches. Hence, churches observe Palm Sunday with a procession of worshippers carrying palm branches as they head to church for the formal service.
According to the Head of State, this is a very significant day and reminds of some subtle events that still hold significance today and are important lessons for everyone, at all levels, to learn from.
One such lesson, he noted, is that of servant-hood, which is especially significant this Holy Week.
“As we reflect on this week, we must contemplate the whole concept behind servant-hood. And when we look at the symbolic nature of what took place and how you relate that to servant-hood, you will see that the donkey that was used was not only to demonstrate simplicity and humility, but it was also in those times the most significant animal that was associated with the ordinary people.”
“It was associated with everyday life. It was that image that removed, that take the load of people, take the burden, take heavy load, move heavy weight, and that is exactly what Jesus did. He removed burden. He took the load off of people and as human beings, we have a responsibility to do every single thing we can do to take the burden off of people, to take the load off of people, to make life easier lighter, and to do so in a simplistic way, to do so with humility, to do so with honour, to do so with dignity, to do so in the interest of service without any motive, without any motive. And that is what is significant,” the President noted.
He went on to urge persons to reflect and ask themselves whether their lives and presence add to the burden or remove the burden from others’ lives.
President Ali explained that it is important that persons carry themselves in a way that gives hope and enables others to be positive. These are things, he added, that must be contemplated on in this Holy Week.
The President was joined by Senior Minister with Responsibility for Finance and the Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh; Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues; Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha; and Regional Vice Chairman, Zamal Hussain, along with the Regional Executive Officer (REO), Narindra Persaud.