History Of Rastafari In Antigua

The Rastafari movement in Antigua and the smaller Caribbean islands are direct offshoots of a larger and more established Rastafari movement in Jamaica. It first emerged in Antigua at the beginning of the seventies with a small group of Ganjah users around the island who subsequently formed part of the first Rastafari community in Antigua and Barbuda.

As the culture gradually spread across Antigua and the wider Caribbean, many of its followers began to embrace the ideology, and religious belief of many Rastafarians in Jamaica, who worship the Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie as king of kings, Lord of Lords, and God of Gods.

Unlike Jamaicans who saw the Emperor when he visited the island and acknowledged him as God, most Antiguans never even heard the name. Very few people in Antigua and Barbuda knew anything about Emperor Haile Selassie until the emergence of Rastafari on the Island.

The claim of Selassie's divinity was not accepted by many in the emerging Rastafari community, so it was rejected by those who believed in the Christian religion definition of God described in the Bible. However, it was fully embraced and acknowledged by those who believe that Selassie is God of Gods.

There's a clear distinction between man and God for Rastafarians who strongly believe God is not a man of flesh and blood, but It's not so clear cut for others! There are many Rastafarians who acknowledge that God is a living man, and they are those who worship and praise Emperor Haile Selassie as their divine God, so It was hard to reconcile the ideological differences given the divergence of religious beliefs.

The Rastafari movement struggled to define itself in the conspicuous absence of a guiding philosophy or established doctrine. Subsequently, different interpretations of biblical scriptures and unflinching religious beliefs begin to create division in the growing community.

The ideological divide was widening amongst the brotherhood over the questionable divinity of Emperor Haile Selassie, and the irreconcilable differences led to the emergence of neutral, moderate, and extreme fractions in the Rastafari community.

The unity, love, and respect that existed at the beginning of the Rastafari movement began to evaporate slowly as one group attempted to assert authority over the other and proclaim they were the only true Rastafarians.

Read part 2 of Rasta In Antigua documentary.