The Dominion Faith Centre, one of the newly-established churches in Anguilla, with much involvement in community life and recognition activities, has a new place of worship. It has now moved from the top floor of a building owned by Mr Albert Lake in the Upper Valley to the basement of the Fair Play Complex, adjacent to Scotiabank, about a quarter mile away.
The official dedication of the new Sanctuary was on Sunday, afternoon, September 7. The large congregation included Ministers of Government, members of the Anguilla United Front, Pastors from various other churches, and a visiting delegation from Tortola, led by Pastor Frankie Rathanum (the Preacher for the event and a friend and colleague of Pastor Dexter Welcome of the Dominion Faith Centre).
Pastor Bernard Joseph, of the New Testament Church in Anguilla, who eventually persuaded Pastor Welcome in the ministry, spoke on their close relationship over the years. He was pleased to see how Pastor Welcome had progressed in his ministry. “I saw some qualities in him and I asked him to take the ministry from me as I wanted to step aside and have him pastor the church,” he recalled. His persistence paid off – not only with Pastor Welcome taking over his church, but later on founding his own Dominion Faith Impact Centre.
Chief Minister, Hubert Hughes, was pleased to see the continued emergence of Christian churches in Anguilla and the rest of the world, but pointed out that “the Christian Church needs to examine itself…He continued: “Are our preachers preaching from the Bible today? I am not happy because I don’t think that they all are doing so. We need to go back to the Bible Christianity and this is the only way we can back on track. We have had the reformation which helped us to see the Bible more clearly…The Christian Church needs a reformation again. Something has gone wrong within Christianity.”
Mr Hughes commended the Dominion Faith Centre for its work in Anguilla and wished the Pastor and members continued success in their new place of worship. He congratulated Mr Quincy Gumbs, owner of the premises, for his work in transforming the section of his building for the new religious purpose.
Mrs Kim Cutler, Projects Officer at the Governor’s Office, urged the Pastor and members to continue to have an open door to all persons as they worship in their new location. She was grateful to them for having the opportunity to attend services at the church and to observe its work in Anguilla.
Mr Gumbs, whose Fair Play Complex houses various companies and other businesses and offices, said he was delighted to provide suitable accommodation for the church to meet the spiritual and social needs of the people of Anguilla. He pointed out that, as an active Pastor over the years, he and his team had built and established a number of church buildings in a number of Caribbean islands. He thought it was a pleasure and a further opportunity for him to have assisted in making provision for the Dominion Faith Centre.
Pastor Welcome expressed gratitude for Mr Gumbs’ assistance and outlined the vision of his church as it makes its contribution to the Christian lives of its members, and its outreach efforts in the community.
Pastor Welcome’s visiting colleague, Pastor Rathanum, who was the guest speaker, and his wife, said they were delighted to travel to Anguilla for the dedication of the new worship place for the Dominion Faith Centre. In his sermon, Pastor Rathanum stressed the importance of fulfilling the Gospel mission and the spreading of the love of God throughout the world. He spoke highly about the work of the Dominion Faith Centre and extended his best wishes to Pastor Welcome and his congregation for the continued growth and ministry of their church.
The closing prayer was delivered by Bishop Samuel Daniel of the Church of God of Prophecy, one of the many Pastors at the dedication service.
Frankie Rathanum
Dexter Welcome
