#9. Validating Voices: Joanne Richardson-Gough on Language, Worship & Jamaica’s Global Impact

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What does it mean when your mother tongue isn’t recognized in your own country? In this captivating conversation, Jamaican cultural advocate and ethnodoxologist Jo-Ann Richards Goffe takes us on a journey through language, identity, and spiritual expression that transcends borders.

Jo-Ann introduces us to ethnodoxology—helping communities worship through their indigenous languages and artistic expressions. From workshops in West Africa to translating the New Testament into Jamaican language, her work challenges colonial legacies that positioned English as “superior.”

We explore:

• How ethnodoxology empowers communities to worship using their own languages and cultural art forms
• Why Jamaica’s native language still struggles for recognition despite independence
• How music across genres—reggae, dancehall, revival—carries spiritual and cultural meaning
• The role of cultural figures like Louise Bennett-Coverly in advocating for Jamaican identity
• Jamaica’s outsized influence on global culture through music, sport, and literature
• Jo-Ann’s personal journey from being fined for speaking Jamaican at home to leading its validation through worship and music

This episode is a moving reminder that “when you validate a language, you validate the speakers of that language.”

Connect with Jo-Ann Richards Goffe

• 🌍 Website: joannfaithrichards.com
• 🎶 Ministry: crew40-4.com
• 📖 Books:
  • Godincidences!: A Jamaican Woman's Journeys with God
  • Auntie Jo-Jo Goes Vegan
• 💿 Albums:
  • Kom Mek Wi Worship
  • Kom Mek Wi Worship 2: Di Revilieshan
• 📺 YouTube: @joannrichardsgoffe
• 📸 Instagram: @joann_faith_richards
• 👍 Facebook: facebook.com/joann.richards.357

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