By Ricardo Wells

FORMER Anglican archdeacon Father I Ranfurly Brown yesterday sidestepped several questions on marital rape amid raging public discussion on the issue, insisting on the need for intense research prior to any national commentary.

“No, I don’t have any views on it. Not right now, I have to study what is going on before I make any response on it,” Fr Brown told reporters outside Nassau Straw Market.

Debate on the issue was reignited by the calls for spousal rape laws from United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women Dubravka Šimonovic during a press conference last Friday.

The public has watched with great interest how members of the religious fraternity have handled the renewed discussion on the topic, given the Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) opposed the Ingraham administration’s efforts to outlaw spousal rape in 2009.

Former BCC President Dr Ranford Patterson said in 2013 the organisation would support such legislation if it emerged again.

However, later that year some pastors were up in arms over false rumours the Christie administration’s amendments to the Sexual Offences Act would sneak in provisions that criminalised marital rape, highlighting the religious community’s divide on the issue.

Current BCC President Bishop Delton Fernander has refused to  give his personal view on the issue, but insisted he would poll members of his organisation to see what their current positions are.

Despite his refusal to address marital rape, Fr Brown didn’t mince words when it came to his views on how the church has, in recent years, approached its role in community development.

Asked about the level of crime being experienced in Over-the-Hill communities, Fr Brown stated: “Our community is sort of quiet now, and I think whatever problems we have, it goes around, you know, from community to community. But, basically I feel like the church ought to be a little more responsible with crime.”

Encouraged to clarify his statement, Fr Brown said: “I always tell (the church), political parties don’t have children, only church people. And so we have a great responsibility to make sure that our children our brought up in the right way and that we have the kind of examples that we ought to have so that they can follow some model in their lives.”

He continued: “I remember when I was younger, a few years ago, we use to look at persons and say I want to be like him or I want to be like her, and I think that takes us back to the fact that we need models around our communities to cause our children to look up to them.

“This time is a time when the church is challenged as to what it is doing other than following tradition and not causing what it ought to be doing to come alive in the lives of our people and in our communities. 

“Giving away all of these free foods, and in some communities it may be necessary, but what happens the rest of the year? What are we doing in our communities the rest of the year?

“I would like to challenge everyone to cause ourselves to be involved in the lives of people throughout the year and not find ourselves focusing on who can give the most turkey and who can give the most ham.”

Fr Brown concluded: “And be to our people, an involved organisation and involved community so that we can bring forth some new characters in our community.”

In early 2016, Fr Brown was removed as an Anglican archdeacon by Bishop Laish Boyd for what the latter described as “several notable infractions.”

Chief among which was his refusal to apologise to former Prime Minister Perry Christie for comments he made after the funeral of businessman A Bismark Coakley in August 2015.