"God does not live in cathedrals" – says Professor Gyampo in Akufo-Addo

General News on Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Source: 3news.com

2018-11-27

Professor Ransford Gyampo, Director of European Studies at the University of Ghana, advised Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to rethink the country's priorities and reconsider the government's decision to build a national cathedral.

In an open letter to the president, the badociate professor acknowledged the president's determination to do something for God by facilitating the construction of a national cathedral, but did not recognize that it was a priority for the country.

His letter followed President Akufo-Addo's enthusiastic defense of his administration's decision to build a national cathedral in the capital, Accra, which will be located on 14-acre public land.

Despite resistance from part of the public, including the minority in Parliament, the president insists that the cathedral will be "built to the glory of God".

But Professor Gyampo pointed out that "to the extent that this could be a monumental legacy that would survive you, you are very conscious of the fact that our God does not reside in cathedrals".

He noted that the construction of a national cathedral could wait a little longer, the time that the government is using to make life more comfortable for Ghanaians before.

"I think that the best national cathedral that can be built for God, who loves his children and cares about their well-being, despite their human weaknesses, is a solid infrastructure that makes dialysis machines accessible to people suffering from renal and generally improves. Health care; offers quality education to fight ignorance; generates jobs to lift people out of poverty and economic misery; and makes people comfortable in life by solving the general poverty and development projects that may even push godly people into hell, "reads the letter.

Professor Gyampo therefore hopes that the resources for the construction of a national cathedral will be reallocated to the government's flagship intervention programs, such as Free High High School, to improve the lives of Ghanaians.

"Thank you for telling the very distinguished people gathered to raise funds for this well-intentioned project, to redefine priorities and to channel the funds to be mobilized to contribute to the financing of the free establishment of the SHS or the 39, improved health care. Let them channel their energies, their reputation, their relationships and their resources to attract investors to the country, so as to improve the quality of physical life of the people. "

He hoped that the President, along with several other people sharing his opinion, would listen carefully and cancel his decision to build a national cathedral now.

Below the complete letter:

Building a National Cathedral to the Glory of God – A Letter to the President

Your Excellency, I send you greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Christ, whom we serve.

As you may know, well before becoming our president, I was a resilient citizen and not a spectator. Fortunately, I'm still not a spectator under your presidency.

People like me are eternally grateful to you, as well as all the leaders of the Fourth Republic of Ghana, for the various roles played in deepening our democracy in a way that has allowed our political freedom to defend our spirit without fear. nor favoritism. The worst that can happen to those of us who speak in our minds has been the insults of some unreasonable people, but we hope that these unethical vituperative statements are weak to plunge us back into the dark days of the culture of silence. .

Mr. Chairman, with the utmost respect for you, you have lived in the United Kingdom. I'm sure you drove on the Clifton Suspension Bridge that some people thought they were building more than 200 years ago. You have driven under tunnels built across the mountains and under the sea. You have seen how the rail infrastructure and medical care were developed in the UK. You know how strong their educational infrastructure is. You know their very advanced health system that improves life expectancy.

Just like you, Your Excellency, I am also a Christian and even a Pentecostal Christian who believes in the power of worship that stems from a heart of gratitude like yours. I can understand your sense of gratitude and your determination to act for God by facilitating the construction of a national cathedral.

Sir, to the extent that this could be a monumental legacy that would survive you, you are well aware that our God does not live in cathedrals. Unfortunately, all the great men of God who built their own homes, bought their sighted vehicles, sent their children to schools abroad, etc., before building cathedrals for worship, did not not daring to say it.

Indeed, Mr. Chairman, some members of the Committee charged with facilitating the construction of the National Cathedral are renowned men of God who first made life pleasant for themselves and their families, before they were able to do so. they do not think of building churches or cathedrals for God. Knowing that God does not live in cathedrals, they are content to organize religious services under trees and in school buildings until they are comfortable with life. Before building their cathedrals, they had cars, mansions and their children were well sorted in terms of education. Why can not we apply the same principle to the nation?

Your Excellency, the omnipresence of cathedrals in Ghana and the many places of worship, such as forests, mountains, Independence Square, mega-churches, dominion houses, etc., reduces your good intentions of facilitating the construction of another national cathedral facing imperious unresolved issues, a mere religious luxury and a political legacy of the cbad.

Mr President, any impartial Ghanaian who has ever had personal exchanges with you knows that you are not the typical African politician. You have always had good intentions for your people and you feel a deep gratitude to the Lord who led the 2016 election battle for you.

In this regard, I believe that the best national cathedral that can be built for God, who loves his children and cares about their well-being, despite their human weaknesses, is a solid infrastructure that makes dialysis accessible to people with kidney disorders. diseases and generally improves health care; offers quality education to fight ignorance; generates jobs to lift people out of poverty and economic misery; and makes people comfortable in life by solving poverty in general and development that can push even the stakes to land in hell.

David, like you, also had good intentions and wanted to build a cathedral so that God could express his gratitude. But for some reason, God said no. Your intentions, Mr. President, may be pious, but I think the timing is wrong for the moment.

Therefore, thank you for telling the very eminent people gathered to raise funds for this well-intentioned project, to redefine priorities and to channel the funds to be mobilized to contribute to the financing of the free implementation of SHS or improved health care. Let them channel their energies, their reputation, their relationships and their resources to attract investors to the country, in order to improve the quality of physical life of the people.

When that is done and people are able to do it, a Ghanaian, one or two of them, out of gratitude, would build a national cathedral for God. For the moment, let us rethink our priorities and get by with the place of independence, sir. If the hangars are fleeing, let's correct so that we are not at the mercy of the weather, especially when it's raining.

I teach a course entitled Strategies for Africa's Development and the work of MICHAEL Todaro is often useful as educational research. Michael Todaro describes the characteristics and types of things that countries do when they are underdeveloped and argues that today's developed countries have experienced the same difficulties as today's developing countries. But it highlights some of the things being done by today's developing countries, but not by today's developed countries, as it may slow the pace of our efforts to fight poverty and development. According to Todaro, one of these things is how we, as a developing country in Africa, prioritize scarce resources.

I think God would question our sense of priority and our judgment with regard to diverting the attention of the main governance to think about facilitating the construction of a cathedral. God does not expect any spiritual but physical intervention to deal with fundamental development challenges, including careful planning and management of scarce resources, as well as good governance that results in development results. tangibly reflected in the pockets of ordinary people.

Mr. President, I know that you are a listener and therefore pray that your zeal in this regard will be altered by some of the issues raised not only by me, but by other well-meaning Ghanaians, including your own party and named personalities. complain about this, unfortunately, behind the scenes. Thank you sir.

Regards,

Yaw Gyampo