Prime Minister’s Corpus Christi Message 2021

I wish the Christian community a Holy and enjoyable Corpus Christi holiday.

As Prime Minister it gives me pleasure to bring greetings to the community on behalf of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on a day which is cherished, historically, with reverence and sacredness, by a large section of our population.

Corpus Christi is set aside on the Christian calendar to honour the Holy Eucharist which was observed at the last supper before Christ was crucified.

Today, as we commemorate Corpus Christi, let us remember the significance of what the body of Christ means to Christians, and its representation of God’s unconditional love for mankind.

In his last hours on earth, Christ was severely tortured, his body disfigured, yet he never turned from the mission, given by the heavenly Father – the message of a new and eternal life for man, should he turn away from a life of sin.

Today, many see their daily lives as recurring difficulties, one of ups and downs, failures and small successes; for them life is taking them on a painful journey.

These feelings, we all know, are caused to be intensified in this period — but remember that the fundamentals of the Christian beliefs are teachings of hope bolstered by abiding faith.

There is the promise of Jesus that each one of us will find out, eventually, that God is everywhere. He is in every human activity; he is here with us now.

Reaching out, requires that, from time to time, we withdraw into our inner selves, into solitude, silence, detachment and submission to God’s will.

In a day like today, we all can personally communicate with God.

Let us return to the preaching of Christ, at the same time follow through in our mission as a nation.

Let us search for the Love, within us for ourselves, our family, our friends, our community and this great nation.

Let us, as a people, also adhere to the word, “Discipline”, in our National Watchwords, and follow the protocols of the Ministry of Health, so we can all boast soon that our country is Covid-19 controlled on our way to becoming Covid-free.

The control of this virus is in our individual hands. Just as Christ had his mission on earth every citizen should accept his/her individual responsibility in following the Health care regulations, to counter the spread of this virus.

In spite of the everyday critics, your Government has built an infrastructure to fight this virus, with the necessary public health measures, and a national commitment to secure vaccines — when, and wherever available.

As a citizen, do your part.  

Work alongside others, collectively, to defeat this virus, yet maintaining all of the protocols we know will keep us safe.

We can no longer pretend that this fight is for others, and not me, and that the virus will not reach me, and simply go away.

The Covid-19 virus is everyone’s business, and each one must do his\her part in winning this war.

Fellow citizens, let us all share, and celebrate with the Christian community a happy, peaceful Corpus Christi holiday.