Christian Council Hits Hard At Some "Shamed" Pastors

The General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana, Rev. Fred Deegbe, has described as very shameful and regrettable media reports of some pastors alleged to be involved in all forms of unethical practices that disgraced the body of Christ.

Speaking to PEACEFM News in an interview, the Christian Council�s Chief Scribe, opined that these recent occurrences of immoral behavior could also be attributed to the fact that most churches are not obliged to belong to any council.

�If they are not members of your council what do you do? Even if they are members of the council, every member body has a way of dealing with its members�It is not a requirement for a church to belong to any council in this country at all�The councils are voluntary Associations, there are some who choose to belong and some who choose not to belong,� he said.

According to him, since the council was not a law enforcement body, the only thing they �could do was to also name and shame� those involved.

�Since all churches were subjected to the laws of this land, the law must deal with such persons...The council will pronounce on what is supposed to be the standard morality, the biblical standard that we should follow. At the end of the day, it is a private thing, it is a matter of choice,� he stated.

Rev. Fred Deegbe was commenting on the report that the Head Pastor of Jesus Blood Ministry at Ogbojo Manchester near Weija, a suburb of Accra, Prophet Nana Kwasi Yirenkyi, popularly known as �Jesus One Touch�, is in the grips of the law for allegedly committing incest with his 10-year-old daughter who lives in with him. Prophet Yirenkyi is currently in the custody of the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ministries Police Station in Accra and is assisting in investigations.

"Insulting In The Name Of God"

In a related issue, another highly regarded Man of God in the Ashanti Region, was clearly heard raining insults on members of his congregation prior to an offertory. Prophet Ebenezer Adarkwa, aka Prophet One, who was recently in the news for engaging in a war of words with Bishop Obinim, described worshippers who usually are in the habit of giving �small coins� as an offertory to God as �fools.�

But Rev. Deegbe said such men of God are not cultured.

�People tolerate abuses, all kinds of things, because of what they think they are going to get out of it�That is completely unacceptable for someone to stand in front of his congregation and insult them like that, the person is not even cultured,� he told Peace News.

According to him, if people were discerning enough, they would stick to their Bibles.

�I cannot imagine how a pastor would go to church; insult people regarding how poor they are�and people will still attend that church. It amazes me, but unfortunately, that is the power of religion�.that also shows how vulnerable people are; they are so vulnerable and helpless that they think God can only help them through a pastor, which is not true�Who knows what powers they are using, but it is between those who worship there and those who lead them�� he added.

Source: Alex Ofei/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana