Archbishop: Put family life first

RC Archbishop the Most Rev Jason Gordon used the occasion of the funeral of former president the late George Maxwell Richards to urge the nation’s parents not to neglect their family life.

Speaking to reporters after the funeral at NAPA, Port of Spain on Wednesday, Gordon urged parents to emulate the fatherly love shown by Richards as attested to in the eulogies given by his children Maxine and Mark Richards.

“I think in today’s world that is an incredible example for all the fathers of our nation to emulate.

So he leaves us a challenge, for our fathers to really participate in the bringing up and the life of their children,” Gordon said.

“I think that of all the many things he has contributed to us as a nation, that certainly is one of the pieces of the puzzle that we’ve not really highlighted, and one that I think is a wonderful and outstanding contribution.

“I think our family life has seen a serious challenge all around. A big part of that in our country has been the absent fathers in the home, and now more and more the absent mothers.”

Gordon said the first responsibility of any parent is to actually be a parent.

“All the external accolades you might have will never make up for the parenting we were supposed to do and were entrusted to do for the children.”

Newsday asked about any simple measure we can do to stem this inadequacy in parenting. “We live in a very fast-paced world right now.

I really empathise with parents because between the activities of the children and the multiple activities of the parent, there’s very little time left for family life. Unless you make family-life a high priority it’s easy to get caught in all the activities.”

He lamented too many cases of husbands and wives straying from each other, and also from their children.

“It really takes a conscious commitment to move towards a family life where the relationships are intact and where there’s the foundation.”