One of Toronto’s oldest churches, St. James Cathedral, celebrated its inaugural Bob Marley Mass on Sunday in observance of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on March 21. Reverend Canon Dr. Stephen Fields wrote the hymn. Fields said that the church’s leadership had earlier arranged the Snell Lectures, which included theologian Dr. Brian Walsh, who linked Leonard Cohen’s works to the Bible and stressed the existence of a Cohen Mass.
Filed stated, “I thought, ‘What about Bob Marley?’ to myself because, [in] one of his songs, to paraphrase, he says he has so much things to talk about. I thought let me do some research, let me do some reflecting, let me do some praying and then let me attempt to write a service that draws upon his work. For yes, he has so much things to say to us today – church and unchurch.”
- Advertisement -
In his sermon, Fields expressed his belief that none of the members of the congregation had ever dreamed of living long enough to enjoy Bob Marley’s singing in a St. James Cathedral or other Anglican church.
“That’s because we grew up in a world held bound by the chains about which Bob Nesta Marley spoke and sang about, chains that not only bound our hands and feet but shackled our mind and have held us captive. And today, still do so. Bob Marley’s music embodies a spirituality and a theology rooted in his faith. To speak of Bob Marley’s theology is to explore how his body of work reflects his view of God, what he knows of God, of humanity, the world, and we see him both as a musician and a prophet, a prophet of the oppressed.”
According to Fields, the core of Marley’s theology is the faith in Jah, the Rastafarian name for God that is derived from Yahweh.
He explained, “Songs like Jah Live express his belief in God’s nearness, a theme that we Christians hold dearly. Marley understood Jah as one who was engaged in the affairs of the oppressed and was actively working for justice and freedom. This belief infused his music with divine urgency. While Rastas and Christians may differ in some ways, Marley is calling upon God as imminent, liberating, a force that echoes throughout the Christian’s view of our understanding of God’s presence. In human suffering, we share something in common, we speak of a God as being present in flesh and incarnate, in another prophet, Jesus Christ, who came that all may have life and have it in abundance.”
According to him, Marley’s voice was prophetic and spoke to the biblical principles of justice, hope, love, and liberty. “Each song serves as a meditation on God’s activity in the world, the human condition, and the call for transformation. Marley’s haunting, biting, and subversive lyrics often reflect a yearning for freedom and equality mirroring the narrative in the bible of God’s preferential concern for the downtrodden, the oppressed, the outcast, and the marginalized.”
According to him, Marley experienced both bodily and spiritual liberty.
The Barbados-born priest expressed gratitude to the Most Reverend Colin Johnson, a former Toronto bishop, and his 45-year mentor, D.H. Kortright Davis, a theology professor at Howard University School of Divinity, with whom he shared the initial draft of his Marley ceremony for a critical evaluation.
They provided Fields critical comments, which he integrated into his thoughts when he informed them that he planned to “go outside the box.”
Additionally, he expressed gratitude to Bishop Andrew Asbil, the church’s dean, the Very Reverend Dr. Stephen Hance, and “56 Hope Road Limited,” which is home to the Bob Marley Museum and Primary Wave Blue Mountain Music, for their assistance. He thanked Moka, a Caribbean fusion band from Toronto under the direction of Garth Blackman, for providing the service’s music, which featured seven of Marley’s well-known songs. Fields said he met the artists through seasoned event coordinator Joan Pierre.
The reggae superstar’s religious viewpoints and songs served as inspiration for the service, which included the Eucharistic Prayer, the people’s prayers, the prayers over the gifts, and the prayers after communion.
Nathaniel Dett Chorale’s creative director, Dr. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, responded, reflecting on how Marley’s music still speaks to the body, mind, spirit, and ambitions of the downtrodden and disadvantaged. He also discussed the significance of spirituals in the lives of oppressed Black people.
