Carrying the Gospel to the Interior: Jesus Explosion in Guyana

For over two decades, the Jesus Explosion has ignited hearts in Trinidad and Tobago, bringing a vibrant charismatic expression of Catholic faith to thousands.

Now, that same fire is spreading beyond local shores. Lesley Taylor-Gouveia, Coordinator of the Jesus Explosion, shared with Altos the story of their mission in Guyana—one that highlights both the hunger for God’s Word and the resilience of those who bring it.

A mandate beyond borders

“The mandate of Jesus Explosion is Mark 16:15, which is go to the whole world, preach the gospel to all people,” explained Taylor-Gouveia. She credited the zeal of their Spiritual Director, Fr Ian Taylor, for the movement’s openness to mission: “If he knows somebody is in need of hearing the Word of God, he’s ready to jump on a plane, jump on a boat, and head there.”

The expansion to Guyana began in 2017 with an event in Georgetown. The impact was immediate. “From that, there was such an explosion of interest from those in the Interior that they asked us to come,” she recalled. Since then, the mission has been welcomed repeatedly, with at least five visits to the Interior communities.

Building faith without priests

The remoteness of Guyana’s Interior poses particular challenges for the Catholic faithful. “In the Interior, they have not had a priest for the last three years, and that is in Region One, which is 26 communities,” Taylor-Gouveia explained. A priest from Georgetown visits once a month, but the geography makes it impossible to reach everyone.

Here, lay leadership has proven vital. “Much of the success of the Catholic Church is on the shoulders of the laity,” she said. The hunger for faith has borne fruit: “From this last visit, three youth ministries have been set up. I think that’s wonderful.”

The journey into the Interior

Taylor-Gouveia contrasted the ease of churchgoing in T&T with the difficulties faced in Guyana. “When you hear people say, ‘It’s too far for me to go in Trinidad,’ you really stop and you say, ‘Come to the Interior, then you will be able to tell me if anything is too far’.”

Reaching some communities requires arduous travel. “The Sisters of Charity gathers up everybody… the minibus is officially taking 15 people, [but] 24 fit in comfortably. We’re in the dirt roads.”

In one village, she recalled, the car could not pass, forcing them to trek by foot along a narrow track through thick terrain. “When we got there, she (Religious sister) said, ‘This is the church.’ And it was just a beam of wood, thatched roof, no walls, no windows, wooden benches carved up by the villagers, and a pulpit.”

A pilgrimage to Jonestown

One of the most sobering moments of the mission was a visit to Jonestown, infamous for the 1978 tragedy in which more than 900 people lost their lives. “It was emotional, and it was a moment of reflection,” Taylor-Gouveia said. “To think that a person who purported to love God and to preach the Word brought such a device… 909 people lost their lives because they followed a man, and he obviously put himself before God.”

She drew on the words of John the Baptist: “I must grow smaller, and he must grow greater.” For her, the lesson was clear: evangelisation must always point to God and not to self. Standing at the Jonestown monument, she described it as “very impactful… just that memory of knowing what had happened there was very difficult.”

Life emerging from death

From tragedy to hope, the mission symbolises a reclaiming of life in places long associated with despair. As Altos’ anchor Neil Parsanlal observed, “Here it is, a place that brought so much death. We now have Jesus Explosion—Jesus coming alive in the Interior in a place like Jonestown.”

For Taylor-Gouveia, the mission is not just about spreading the gospel but also about encountering the depth of human faith. “The yearning and the hunger to really hear the Word of God and to build community in the Interior is what has propelled us.”

She left a parting invitation: “I invite you to come on the next mission.”

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