The Tribune

By FELICITY DARVILLE

HE is a Fox Hilllian to the core. The village where he was born has remained his homestead for his entire life. It is one of the oldest African settlements in New Providence and one where a tradition of celebrating Emancipation has survived for two centuries.

In Fox Hill, the young boy affectionately called “Junior” would climb up a guinep and dilly tree, and he would ride his bicycle all the way to the Southern Recreation Grounds just to hear Sir Lynden O. Pindling speak.

The young Junior thought he might be a comedian when he grew up, because he was so good at making people laugh. He pondered being a politician, inspired by the black Bahamian movement towards Majority Rule. But there was “an anointing” on him as a young child, the elders said. His childish but God-centred chatter, the games he played in his back yard with friends from Sandilands All Age School and Southern Senior High School, and his enthusiastic involvement in Sunday School, gave early signs of his prophetic calling.

Junior would grow up to become Bishop Dr J Carl Rahming, a steadfast in the Fox Hill community, and one whom people still flock to today. I visited him this weekend at his church, St Paul’s Baptist Church, the third oldest church in Fox Hill. St Paul’s, a 153-year-old church, came out of the oldest church in Fox Hill, Mt Carey Baptist Church.

The young Junior started taking the lead in Sunday School as a youngster at Mt Carey, and continued with zeal as his family moved to St Paul’s. He was an exuberant young man, and serves in various capacities for the church. He was lead bass player in the Christian band “Sons of Thunder”, and he was a committed Sunday School teacher at a very early age. His call to ministry became more insistent during his term as youth director of the Bahamas Baptist Training Union.

In response to this divine call, he attended Baptist Bible Institute and Universal Bible College, Inc after graduating from high school. At the age of 24, he was ordained as a Deacon of St Paul’s. Under the tutelage of the late Rev Leroy Roker, his path to becoming a pastor at St Paul’s seemed clear. J Carl was an industrious young man. So while he served as church deacon during week nights and weekends, he found gainful employment during the day. He became a cook and worked in the hotel before becoming employed at Chelsea pottery where he would make plates, figurines and other items for painting.

All along, his faithful service to St Paul’s continued. He was 15 years old when he delivered his first sermon in Fox Hill. He spoke on the Bible verse John 3:16. He received such a rapturous applause from the elders that it solidified his decision to enter pastoral life.

However, his first calling as a Minister for the Baptist Church was not on his stomping grounds. Rev Roker, his beloved mentor, asked him to take up the mantle at Progressive Baptist Church, Brougham Street West.

When the newly ordained Rev Rahming went to Progressive, there were only six consistent members. He ministered to the people of Brougham Street through this church and its community programmes for 12 years. By the time he left, there were more than 70 committed members and an active and growing church well revived as Rev Roker had asked of him.

He left Progressive only because his beloved mentor had left this Earthly plane. When Rev Leroy Roker died, he was the fifth pastor of St Paul’s. Every leader before him was also a Roker - all relatives committed to growing a church of family, Fox Hillians and the wider community. Rev J Carl Rahming would become the first leader of the church who was not related. Rev Roker considered J Carl as a son, and so did the entire church. They welcomed him home and there began a 41-year career of distinction as a spiritual and community leader in Fox Hill.

His doors were always open. It would be no surprise to find his church office open every hour of the day. He wanted to be there to help with guidance and advice, and to use his comedic nature to help people laugh and see the bright side, even through the toughest of trials.

Through the years, Rev Rahming’s ferverence for God and riveting messages have brought many to the fold. The church was able to grow and also expand its edifice during the 41 years he pastored it. Many people who were not church members also came to the church for help. He never turned them away. If he could not help directly, he would find someone who could or give the best advice he could. But he never turned away anyone, especially the hungry or those in need. On one occasion, he suggested to a visitor that his qualms may better be dealt with by the Fox Hill Member of Parliament. The man exclaimed that he may have an MP, but Rev Rahming is the Mayor of Fox Hill! The name stuck ever since. And while more people came for assistance, somehow Rev Rahming found a way to touch them all.

His messages from the pulpit called for a love for God; His forgiveness of sins; His promise of salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ; our oneness and equality in the eyes of God; our God-given right to freedom; and the God-imposed obligation to love each other as ourselves. As his church grew, so did his responsibility. He was ordained as Bishop and he also received an honorary doctorate degree from Baptist Christian University.

Bishop Rahming gained recognition as a well-versed, articulate, dynamic, humble, compassionate and well loved church leader. He was sought after as a guest preacher throughout the Bahamas and the world, especially in the USA, where he gained popularity at affiliated Baptist churches in Atlanta, Georgia and Detroit, Michigan.

A good leader knows not only how to lead, he says, but when to give up the reins and allow a younger leader to rise up.

After 53 years of exemplary pastoral service, Bishop Dr J Carl Rahming is stepping down as leader of St Paul’s the church where he spent practically all his life. But he is not doing so without a strong chain of command. There are seven ordained Ministers, four licensed Ministers and a dynamic team of Associate Pastors, Deacons, Auxiliary Leaders and administrative officers. His support team includes the chair of the retirement committee, Rev George Bodie, and co-chairs Rev Scott Glinton and Minister Denise Johnson.

Bishop Rahming says the church has conducted at least 11,000 weddings and countless baby christenings in its 153-year history. During his tenure, he has ordained more ministers than ever before in the church’s history. He will announce his successor in the coming weeks.

His family life has been just as important to him. His wife, Minister Evangelyn Rahming, has been by his side since she said “I do” 62 years ago. They are the parents of six children - Anton, deceased; Senator Reuben Rahming, former MP; Lolita Michelle, former NIB executive; Carl, a Customs officer; Kimberley, an insurance executive; and Carla, a Walmart executive.

Bishop Rahming invited the public to join him in a service of thanksgiving as he demits office at St Paul’s Church on Sunday, December 3, at 3.30pm under the theme: “Celebrating a Faithful Servant of God”. The public is also invited to attend a thanksgiving banquet in his honour on Friday, November 24, at Breezes hotel. Tickets are available for purchase at the church on Bernard Road just before the Fox Hill Park, or by calling the church office at 435-2372.