The decision by the CTL to have racing on November 29 and December 13, as an experiment, and also to commemorate 50 years of horse racing at the Caribbean's premier track, Caymanas Park, has resurrected the debate over gambling and the significance of Sundays.

The Jamaica Association of Full Gospel Churches, the Jamaica Council of Churches, the Jamaica Association of Evangelicals, the Jamaica Pentecostal Union, the West Indies Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and the Church of God in Jamaica collaboratively have called on the Government to encourage Jamaicans to work "honestly" as opposed to gambling.

Promote honest earnings

"We cannot build our society on gambling. We must affirm the dignity of our people and encourage them to use their God-given gifts and abilities to work for an honest "bread" and for the development of our society.

The statement accused the Bruce Golding government of not having consulted with them before making the decision.

"Over the years, successive governments have considered the Church a significant stakeholder in nation-building and, as such, have sought dialogue around issues deemed to be of a sensitive nature to the country and or to the Church's self-understanding and mission."

Consequences

The statement continued: "However, in recent years, governments, inclusive of this present one, seem uninterested in maintaining or building on this tradition, given the ways it has gone about implementing matters of known sensitivity to the nation and the Church."

The churches argue that the decision to have horse racing on a Sunday violates the day as "traditionally and culturally, that day was treated as a sacred space when many went to church or rested" and as it leads to a continuation of gambling, which has negative consequences for the society.