Jamaica's Christian community has been challenged to be more expansive in its ministry and not to be complacent or indifferent to the plight of fellow citizens.

President of the Jamaica Methodist District, the Reverend Dr Byron Chambers, told thousands who gathered inside the National Indoor Sports Centre in St Andrew yesterday that national, regional and international trends demand of Christians that they take a more intentional and focused approach to their ministry than ever before.

According to Chambers, despite the challenges of lawlessness, indiscipline, crime and violence, and a breakdown in moral values, the Church cannot be true to its mission and spurn those whose morality, ethics and lifestyles may be different from theirs.

"If we say, as others do, 'we don't talk to terrorists!', who will? How will their lives be transformed?" he asked, adding: "We had better talk, for that's how the change which we desire will come about."

The challenge to the Church, said Rev Chambers, is not to lose the purpose of its call and to that end it cannot be a "spiritual ghetto".

Jamaican Methodist pastors have been in ministerial sessions since last Thursday for the 193rd annual meeting of the Jamaica District and their 13th annual conference under a revised constitution.

This year's meeting is being held with a special focus on families.

During yesterday's official service, Chambers noted that many frustrated Jamaicans, including Christians, were clamouring for the imposition of the death penalty with the cry "hang them high" getting louder in response to the country's high murder rate.

A better Christian approach, he suggested, would be for the collective church community - ordained and lay - to minister, even to the murderers, to help them be transformed into better persons rather than to engage in prejudice, scorn and condemnation.

"Do you have hope for murderers?" he asked.

Referring to the new president of the United States, Barack Obama, Chambers said his message of 'Yes, we can' had clearly inspired many people. He added, however, that the change Jamaica and the world seeks cannot be realised apart from godliness and a dependence on "God's amazing grace".

Sunday's service also had presentations from Excelsior, Morant Bay, St Andrew and York Castle high schools on the 'School family' and from Alison Anderson, CEO of the Child Development Agency, on 'Families in community'.