Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Jamaica Gleaner: The Miracle of Ian Boyne


Ian and his family

"Boyne was excited to share the discovery that ‘Profile’ may possibly have the distinction of being the second longest programme with a single host in the world."
"With ‘Profile’, Boyne emphasises that especially in today’s crazy and chaotic society where selfishness and self serving individuals are almost the norm, people need an outlet where they can see the other side. Where they can witness stories of individuals who are philanthropic; who beat their demons; who rise about their circumstance and are winners in their own right and chosen field of endeavour. This is why after three decades, ‘Profile” still has such immense appeal."




Editorial | The Miracle Of Ian Boyne
Published:Tuesday | December 19, 2017 | 12:02 AM

A week ago, having emerged from an induced coma and appearing to be on the mend from a heart attack, Ian Boyne, a man of deep religious faith, declared himself to be a miracle. It was for the fact that he was alive and looking forward to return to his job as a journalist.
Mr Boyne, 60, died yesterday. Some people might claim that he spoke prematurely. But from the perspective of a secularist, he may, indeed, have been a miracle - in the sense of being a man of deep and varied intellectual interests, with a capacity for sustained and concentrated effort which, for more than 40 years, he shared with Jamaicans through his journalism.
There were two critical elements to Ian Boyne's journalism, especially in the columns he wrote for The Sunday Gleaner and the discussion programmes he hosted on television: he was laden with facts and, generally, was open to debate. He may have been intellectually vain, as some will no doubt argue, but his larger aim was to stimulate discourse, hoping it would redound to the benefit of Jamaica.
Ian Boyne was not partisan, but ideological, in the sense that he brought to his journalism a specific, and, in many respects, a distinct perspective. At one level, he is a product of the times in which he came of age: the ideological period of the 1970s, when the Left and the Right contended for primacy.
Of a fashion, he was of the Left. His pronouncements were empathetic to a state that intervened on behalf of its most vulnerable citizens, and against the notion that the market had all the best answers to the organisation of an economy. So, in recent years, he often inveighed against the Washington Consensus.
But his was an ideology that wasn't the outcome merely of rational, secular empiricism. Mr Boyne, too, was a Christian scholar and pastor who ran a church. His viewpoints were shaped as much by the Bible as by the writings of the philosophers, humanists, ethicists, foreign-policy analysts, and others he so readily imbibed and often quoted in his columns, which often elicited playful ribbing from follow columnist Gordon Robinson, who conferred on his the sobriquet, 'Booklist Boyne'.
Further down in the article this was said:

...he, for 30 years, produced a weekly television programme in which he interviewed Jamaicans who had mostly risen from poverty or other adversity to positions of prominence and power. Critics will perhaps claim that some of these interviews were filled with saccharine sentimentality, but there can be little doubt that they were mostly uplifting and offered hope.
As a theologian whose entry in biblical disquisition started in Herbert Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God and the fragmentations therefrom, Ian Boyne was willing to debate the worth and value of Christianity - and other religions - in a secular world and to put these on show in his television, programme, 'Religious Hardtalk'.
Mr Boyne had a passion for Jamaican music of the 1960s and '70s and could hold erudite arguments about the artistes of the day, even as he vehemently decried the nihilism of the lyrics of many of today's dancehall performers, who, he believed, contributed to the coarsening of Jamaican society.
Another side of Ian Boyne is that he was mostly self-taught. He would have been a fine subject of one his 'Profile' interviews, to explore the basis of his catholic interests and from whence the will, or miracle, for their achievement.
It is a rare thing for a follower of a person with ties to Armstrongism to receive such public praise.  No minister or church leader has ever been "willing to debate the worth of and value of Christianity - and other religions..."   I wish I had been able to have more contact with Ian than I did.











13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ians in the place of safety from the tribulation. Kicking the bucket has its advantages.

Byker Bob said...

Is there any way we could obtain Ian's family's address? I'd like to send them a card, and perhaps some other posters might also.

BB

NO2HWA said...

BB. There is an address for CGI Jamaica on their Facebook page. I am sure they will forward it on:

24-48 Barbados Avenue, Kingston, Jamaica



https://m.facebook.com/cgijamaica/

Anonymous said...

Can you imagine 5-10-15-20-25-30 years from now any newspaper writing an article about James Malm, Bob Thiel, David Pack, Gerald Flurry, Ron Weinland or Gerald Weston, other than they were false prophets and outrageous liars.

JkLewis said...

As a member of his organisation and a Jamaican, I can personally affirm that all the kind words spoken of Pastor Boyne are nothing but the truth. He was like non-other, a man who firmly believed in the principle of practicing what he preached and leading by example. He was never ever afraid or embarrassed to admit that he was wrong or that he didn't know the answer. (If you have had a different experience with him please feel free to share)

His charismatic personality, as well as his ability to engage in a wide variety of discussions without causing offense, is truly remarkable.

I'm not even for one minute going to act as if he was perfect, there are a few things we would disagree on but he was never the bullish type nor was he controlling like some other COG ministers.

The entire Jamaica mourns for him. This is truly a huge loss for the nation and his congregation.

He always spoke of well of this blog and makes regular mention of Byker Bob and a few others. I will send your love to his family.

JkLewis said...

You'd be able to catch his final Religious Hard Talk Programme tonight at 9:30pm EST at https://www.1spotmedia.com/#!/live-stream/79336998495

You'll be required to register. It shouldn't take more than 2 mins or so to register.

Lake of Fire Church of God said...

I would like to point out the irony which Mr. Boyne and Garner Ted Armstrong both share. Garner Ted Armstrong's Church of God, International splintered from the Worldwide Church of God. Ian Boyne gravitated into the CGI fold. The irony is that both Ian and Garner Ted died in hospitals where both their prognosis for recovery was favorable only for both to die unexpectedly. Very strange. I am just pointing it out. Nothing more, nothing less.

Richard

Byker Bob said...

It was an honor, JKLewis that someone of Pastor Boyne's stature would pay any attention to my ramblings. My condolences to all of you in Jamaica, and especially to Ian's family. God speed!

BB

Dennis said...

I do wonder what doctors missed after 5 heart attacks in couple days, induced coma and sent home in days. But my brother in law got a clean cardiac bill of health and then came home n dropped dead shortly after.

Anonymous said...

I just went into the CGI's site and there is no mention of Ian's passing. How pathetic! One would think that this well known minister and personality in Jamaica that the CGI would at least say something on their site about him. Maybe they were pissed that he would often come here to Banned and engage with former church members by having friendly conversations and debates with us rather than condemning us in the way other church of God ministers would do. I've never met the man but from what I have seen here on Banned is that he had a lot more class and was more respectable than any other cog ministers. May Mr. Boyne rest in peace, and my condolence to his family and friends.

Craig.

Anonymous said...

it amazes me is how people place such value on "public praise": this blog is obsessed with the worship of the alleged superiority of independent thought, constantly citing the writings of the particular men they consider giants of intelect, publicly acceptable...

well, let me cite some wisdom that cannot be denied, although being demonstrably obvious, we are yet in denial about: we think ourselves to be so wise, we pontificate as if have the keys to knowledge and wisdom; we rationalize based upon extremely limited perception, then we pat ourselves on the back as if we are accomplished...

yet at the end of the day we die, literally unable to control when and how, unable to prevent it...we are unable to sustain our love ones, unable to resurrect the dead whose words and philosophy we worship; words and philosophy so vain it couldnt sustain their own lives, yet we cling to such sentiments as if there is some salvation in their utterances: ah, the vanity of vanities...

ultimately we are literally little better than interstate roadkill, especially if we have no hope of salvation from a loving force more powerful than ourselves...

Anonymous said...

Fellow members of this blog, rest assure that Ian Boyne was ready to go. In our carnal nature we might want to think this brilliant mind left us too soon. I tell you the truth, the philosophy Ian had (and which I share too) is that there is nothing worth holding on to in this world. The faith he had that he will someday return to a crown of life cannot be compared to all the wealth and comfortable lifestyle he enjoyed on this earth.

Let us not forget, when a man is sleeping he knows nothing of the time which has passed until he wakes up and looks at the time. So it is now, with Ian. The last thing he will remember is drifting off to sleep; when he awakes, he will be reigning with Christ and the other first fruits for 1000 years.

Perhaps, one who has often confessed to be borderline agnostic, it is better for him to go now than to lose the faith and lose out on that crown of life that now awaits him. Which I say confidently, was his dream. He said, "I have achieved all that I wanted to achieve on this earth and the last thing I want to do is to die in the faith".

So said, so done. He is one fortunate guy!

Erl said...

I'm humbly impressed with the favourable remarks about my dear pastor, journalist, theologian, philosopher, mentor, advisor and friend. I share the views expressed in the editorial as well as those mainly of Ananymous, JKLewis and Byker Bob. Ian Boyne (the character) will be immortalized as a result of the eternal impact he made in the lives of millions worldwide. There are mixed views of long we should have this 'miracle man' among us so more Aspirants of like ilk, would get an extended opportunity to be further mentored by him before the usually desired elderly years.
However, having heard him expressed his desire so many times in his 'religious lectures', I believe there's no better time or stage of his life for it to be fulfilled. He is one blessed soul to have had the best of both worlds and finally his immortal desire at a most crucial stage of his intellectually buttressed religious life. What better to way close an illustrious chapter with the conviction of opening a new one in the eternal Godly realm. Selah!