Charismatic churches oppose bill to regulate churches

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The Charismatic Bishops' Conference of Ghana stated that members of Parliament had attempted to legislate against churches suspected of defrauding their flock on the pretext of faith.

"… we do not support any idea of ​​legislating or controlling the beliefs, beliefs or religious beliefs of our citizens," said the bishops in an official statement on the subject.

The bishops said Ghanaians go to churches and prophets to find solutions to the myriad of problems they face as citizens.

"The problems faced by Ghanaians are often not solved in practice by the authorities. When people are hopeless, they turn to their prophets and to their God for salvation of what the national authorities should have and could have solved, "said the bishops.

The charismatic bishops have instead asked Parliament to pay attention to the many problems that Ghanaians have been forced to solve through prayer.

The Conference of Charismatic Bishops of Ghana is composed of bishops of different Christian denominations and cathedrals from all parts of the country.

Last Wednesday, lawmakers asked the House to consider enacting a law to crack down on so-called men of God and their churches, who are being exploited.

MP for Mfantseman, Ekow Hayford, called for the creation of an independent body "backed by law and devoid of any policy", which would investigate and control church activities.

Hayford also called on the media to scrutinize the content. He added that the media must be wary of the "Men of God" to whom they offered their platform.

The public, he said, should "also be vigilant and cautious in identifying the religious groups and churches with which they are badociated".

However, the communiqué of the Ghana Conference of Charismatic Bishops explained that the government can not legislate to regulate Christian belief.

"It would be a flagrant bias against the Christian faith and the Christian churches that pastors, prophets or churches be chosen for such legislation. Anyone proposing such things should know that it would only be logical, that such proposals should immediately include legislation on how all other religions in the country should be practiced.

"This legislation would logically extend to the way Muslims, traditional healers, bad priests and all other religions are practiced in the country," said the charismatic bishops.

Already, the moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG), the very Rev. Prof. Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante also spoke out against the decision to regulate church activities.

According to the Reverend Mantis, when pastors or church leaders behave badly or go against the laws of the state, they should be treated according to law and treated as guilty of the law.

Read the full statement of the Ghana Conference of Charismatic Bishops on the proposal to legislate against false pastors and churches.

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CONFERENCE OF CHARISMATIC BISHOPS IN GHANA

REGULATORY LEGISLATION OF THE CHURCHES

Over the past few days, the Ghana Bishops' Conference has noted with concern discussions suggesting the introduction of legislation to "control the so-called pastors, pastors and churches". Members of Parliament proposed to propose a law allowing the state to repress the "abuse of the faithful" by the so-called men of God.

We, the Conference of Charismatic Bishops of Ghana, would like to state that we do not support any idea of ​​legislating or controlling the beliefs, beliefs or religious beliefs of our citizens. Our position on this discussion is informed by the following:

1. The government can not legislate to regulate a person's Christian belief. It would be a flagrant bias against the Christian faith and Christian churches that pastors, prophets or churches be chosen for such legislation. Anyone proposing such things should know that it would only be logical, that such proposals should immediately include legislation on how all other religions in the country should be practiced. This legislation would logically extend to the way in which Muslims, traditional healers, bad priests and other religions are practiced in the country.
2. We suggest that Ghanaians should be allowed and encouraged to use judgment when sponsoring churches and prophets.
3. It must be recognized that Ghanaians are patronizing churches and prophets who seek solutions to the myriad of problems of our country today. The problems encountered by Ghanaians are often not solved in practice by the authorities. When people are hopeless, they turn to their prophets and their God for salvation of what should and could have been solved by the national authorities.
4. The churches and prophets rising in Ghana can be despised today, but can become national institutions tomorrow. In recent years, some "despised churches" have emerged and become the center of Christianity in the country and on the continent.
5. The PNDC Law 221 was promulgated for these purposes in order to regulate the proliferation of churches. Under the PNDC Act 221, each church had to establish a list of 500 members or it would not be allowed to operate because it was considered too small to be authentic. Such a (unsuccessful) law against the church would have erased all known charismatic churches that began at that time. Indeed, churches that hold an important place in Christianity in Ghana are threatened by such misplaced legislation.

6. We will encourage Parliament to show kindness and pay attention to the problems that Ghanaians are forced to solve through prayer. We suggest that Parliament be concerned about urgent problems in Ghana, such as:

1. The absence of good roads across the country and the terrible accidents that occur because of our very poor narrow roads and highways. The legislation concerning bad drainage and severe floods is of great concern to our country today.
2. The decline in the quality of education in the country. Instead, let's legislate about the widespread and permanent leaks of exam papers in the country that characterize Ghanaian education today.
3. Let us reduce the epidemic of armed robbery and killings in the country.
4. The government should ensure that new hospitals, such as the Legon Hospital, remain unused and deteriorate, the poor health care situation in public hospitals where patients have to bring their own private nurses to look after their patients. patients.
5. Let us deal with the legislation concerning unfinished and abandoned construction and housing projects scattered throughout the country.
6. The spread of slums in Accra and huge garbage dumps in the city is also of great concern. Laws to regulate the spread of these slums in the city would be much appreciated.

7. Indeed, any attempt to regulate or determine who and what is acceptable in Christianity or in the church would be considered a statement of hostilities between the Church of God in Ghana and the Government of Ghana . We do not think it would be helpful for our beloved nation.

viii. May God bless our nation and make us great and strong. Thank you.

Conference of Charismatic Bishops of Ghana

In Genesis 41, Joseph, son of Jacob, became Prime Minister of Egypt through his supernatural gift of interpreting dreams. In interpreting Pharaoh's dreams, he saved the nation and the world by revealing God's will and plans for the King of Egypt and his people. The dreams he interpreted showed the government of Pharaoh the agricultural policies to be implemented to save the nation and the world from great famine. His directives made Egypt the most important nation at the time, many seeking to buy what she had acquired through prophetic revelation.

Today, God still wants to save by his prophetic words. The Conference of Charismatic Bishops of Ghana is convinced that, thanks to the prophetic words of God, Ghana will also be directed and directed towards development. He is committed to seeking these prophetic words and visions and to making them known to the Government and people of Ghana. We believe that in these prophetic words the country will be saved from trouble and brought to prosperity

The Charismatic Bishops' Conference of Ghana is composed of distinguished members of the senior clergy, men and women of integrity and integrity in the ministry of Jesus Christ, who have been consecrated as bishops. Over the years, these men and women have accomplished a great deal in leadership, management techniques, practical achievements and hard work.

The Bishops' Conference of Charismatic Bishops is hosted by bishops including a cathedral and an office building in all parts of Ghana – Wa in the Far West region, Bolgatanga in the Far East region. , Tamale in the Northern Region, Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region, Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, Sekondi and Takoradi in the Western Region, Cape Coast in the Central Region, Koforidua in the Eastern Region, Hohoe in the Volta Region, Accra and Tema in the Greater Accra region. The Conference is made up of 10 denominations operating in these regions.

The Ghana Conference of Charismatic Bishops was founded by Bishop Dag Heward Mills, whose ministry now includes more than 3,000 churches on every continent. It is chaired by Msgr Kwame Yirenkyi Ampofo. Its secretary general is Reverend Kwasi Deh.

Contact:

Reverend Kwasi Deh

General secretary

Conference of Charismatic Bishops of Ghana

Tel: +233 24 432 3782

Email: [email protected]