Sierra Leone gained its independence from Great Britain on April 27, 1961. This Golden Jubilee has attracted many Sierra Leoneans, including Christians who glance at the Bible to highlight the meaning of the Jubilee, a period of relative freedom and rest, redemption. of land, property accumulation, etc. It was Winston Churchill who once pointed out that “the further back you go, the further you can see.” The church has played a very important role in the development of the Province of La Libertad and must renew its interest in education to regain its adored place in society.
Should we celebrate 50 years of independence?
At 11:55 pm on April 26, 1961, the Union Jack (the flag of Great Britain) was lowered amid a dark background with only a dim light penetrating the flag as it descended. When the green, white and blue horizontal stripes (the national flag of Sierra Leone) were hoisted, it was the dawn of a new ear: April 27, 1961. When Clifford Fyle composed the National Anthem, the first line describes Sierra Leone as the ‘kingdom of the free’. The date April 27 was a deliberate choice, as it was the same date the Tax Hut War began in 1898. This rally was led by Bai Bureh / Kebalai, who wanted their people to be free.
As Sierra Leoneans look back over the past fifty years, they can easily identify the good, the bad, and the ugly. This has led to a thorny debate in the nation. Should we celebrate 50 years of independence? That is the question. Some say no and others answer affirmatively. Since people are generally the product of their social or economic class, ethnicity, gender, education and, paradoxically, prejudices and interests, these factors and others could influence the conclusions they reach. Whatever the opinions of the people, it is clear that the nation would need to take stock of its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It wouldn’t make sense to repeat past mistakes. They must be corrected and one area for the church is to renew its commitment to quality education.
Meaning of the jubilee in the context of Christianity
Lev. 25 specifically describes the picture of the importance of the fiftieth year in the lives of the Jews. This is the equivalent of seven sabbaticals (a total of forty-nine years) plus one year. The fiftieth year, among other things, must be rest; a period when the land is restored and slaves are free and when people eat what was planted the year. This is a time to renew the ideals of freedom that the abolitionists (Granville Sharpe, Williams Wilberforce, Thomas Clarkson, and others) held for Africans.
Liberty Province / Granville Town / Establishment of the colony in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone did not get the name “Province of Liberty” by chance. When Lord Chief Justice Mansfield outlawed slavery in Britain in 1772, all the slaves who managed to set foot on British soil finally became free. The number of freed slaves in Britain increased after the British lost the American War of Independence won by the thirteen colonies. Slaves who fought on Britain’s side were promised freedom and land for their services. They joined their ‘brothers’ when the war ended in 1783 and the increasing number of slaves soon posed a social problem. Freedom never meant equality with British citizens and they suffered discrimination. Many lived by begging and some were thieves. Britain began looking for ways to end this social threat caused by poor blacks, a generic name given to these Africans who came from various cultural backgrounds. This degrading name is also self explanatory as they were black who were poor.
A botanist, Dr. Henry Smeathman, who was then working in modern-day Sierra Leone, provided an opportunity that abolitionists seized with passion. He recommended Sierra Leone as an area of immense fertility. His flourishing description of this fertile land that could be inhabited was accepted by abolitionists who could have acted on their own but with limited funds. They approached the British government for help in sending poor blacks to Sierra Leone, a request that was immediately honored as the government wanted to end the socially threatening cause of poor blacks.
In April 1787, about 411 (including some white prostitutes) under Captain Thompson sailed to Sierra Leone and arrived during the rainy season in May 1787 under the auspices of the Committee for the Relief of the Poor Negroes formed by Granville. Sharpe. The settlement was called the Province of Liberty because it provided for those who were free, including ownership of the land (though not the exact amount promised). It was also named ‘Granville Town’ in honor of Granville Sharpe’s contribution to its well-being and resettlement. The first governor of the Province of Liberty in 1787 was an African, Richard Weaver. In fact, it was the realm of the free.
Freetown
It was quite unfortunate that King Jimmy burned down Granville Town / Province of Freedom in 1789. There were disagreements between the British and the Temne over ownership of the land. Arrangements were made with Koya Temne’s deputy head, King Tom and Regent Naimbana. The former believed that the ‘payment’ made in 1787 was a one-time affair, but the latter considered the land to be communal property and expected a periodic rent. King Jimmy, who succeeded King Tom, burned down the settlement when disputes broke out.
However, the destruction of the settlement did not end the dream / vision of the abolitionists who began working on plans to rebuild Granville Town. The initial move that was made was to send Alexander Falconbrige to Sierra Leone and rally the remaining poor blacks in 1791. Some of the slaves who fought in the American War of Independence went to Canada and 1,190 of them traveled directly to Sierra Leone. from Nova Scotia in 1792. This group founded Freetown, the current capital of Sierra Leone. Once again, it was the realm of the free.
Christian missionary activity intensified in the colony as a result of the presence of the settlers. It is worth noting that there were three different sets of Christian denominations among the inhabitants of Nova Scotia. These included the Methodists, the Countess of Huntingdon Connexion, and the Baptists. They praised God under the famous Cotton Tree in Freetown.
The church and education in ‘Athens of West Africa’
Sierra Leone was simply “primus inter pares”, the first among equals in the 19th century. Christian mission corps were fundamental in Freetown. The country produced the first educated elite group in the subregion as a result of educational institutions opened by various denominations. Examples include:
Educational institution Designation Year
Fourah Bay College Anglican 1827
Sierra Leone Anglican High School 1845
The Annie Walsh Memorial School Anglican 1849
Catholics of Saint Joseph 1866
Methodist High School for Methodist Boys | 1874
Methodist High School for Methodist Girls | 1880
The Albert Academy Brothers United in Christ 1904
It is amazing to note that all the directors of Fourah Bay College between its inception in 1827 and 1948 were ordained ministers of religion. The church should renew its role in education, as the Bible encourages one not to remove the old mark from the earth.
In general, there were several educational institutions that provided training not only to the people of Sierra Leone but also to those from other West African countries. Freetown was to West Africa exactly what Athens was to the ancient Greeks. As the leading area for Western education, it realistically earned the name ‘Athens of West Africa’.
West African Antioch: Sierra Leone’s role in religion
The disciples were called Christians for the first time in Acts 11:26. Followers of Jesus Christ were first called Christians as a result of their Christlike behavior. Freetown could reasonably be called the Antioch of West Africa because of its pioneering role in the spread of the Christian gospel. The Church Missionary Society (CMS), for example, was founded in 1799 and became the missionary arm of the Church of England with Sierra Leone as its first mission field. All of the denominations listed in the previous section built churches in the 19th century that still exist in the current generation.
Conclution
This focus of this reflection is on the role of the church in the area of education that must be renewed. Is it any surprise that Sierra Leone’s elementary school in particular has been declared the best school in the last two years? Is it any surprise that the current principal of the school, Mr. Akiwande Josiah Lasite (whose sacrificial service began in 1971) has recently won the Integrity Award from the Anti-Corruption Commission? The school has returned to the direct control of the Anglican church.