Anglican Bishop gripes over explosion of churches

The increasing number of One-man-churches, run by persons motivated by financial gains and materialism in the country is a great source of worry to the mainstream Christian Churches in Ghana, the Anglican Bishop of Kumasi, Rt. Rev. Daniel Yinkah Sarfo has observed. According to the Anglican Bishop, one of the major challenges currently facing Christianity in the country is the daily increase in the number of the so-called men of God, who rather engage in exploiting people, under the guise of preaching the gospel. Rev. Yinkah Sarfo, who expressed these concerns during the official inauguration of the Satellite Extension Programme of the Academy of Mission and Theology of the North Carolina College of Theology at the Christian Hope Ministry, located at Ohwim, in Kumasi, said the situation had cast a serious slur on the image of the religion in the country. The Satellite Extension Programme is a, collaborative Theological Distance Education between the Christian Hope Ministry in Kumasi and the North Carolina College of Theology to train pastors and evangelists in Ghana. The Anglican Bishop said much worrying is the fact that the so-called spiritual leaders and miracle churches do not focus on the spiritual development of their members and to bring them eternal salvation through the preaching of the true gospel of Jesus Christ, but their main reason, according to him, is to take undue advantage of its members to enrich themselves. He warned that the spate of exploitation of the vulnerable in society must stop, and therefore called on church leaders to relentlessly and constantly seek the common good of their members. The church, he said, must be seen to be pursuing an agenda that would ensure quality of life for all, and citizens motivated to work hard and live morally upright lives. Rt. Rev. Yinkah Sarfo therefore, described the decision by the North Carolina College of Theology, in the United States of America (USA) to extend its branch to Kumasi, as a positive one, saying "it would help in the training of mature and divinely inspired men of God, who will sustain evangelism and the genuine work of Jesus Christ�. The Co-ordinator of the Satellite Extension Programme, Dr. Harold Hope, said the aim of the satellite programme, which he said was the first in Africa, is to provide prospective Evangelists and men of God in Ghana, the opportunity to enrich their knowledge in evangelism and priesthood through Distance Learning programmes. He said students of the programme would be taken through an extensive theological programme to enable them relate well with God, bear good and lasting fruits and to be able to serve God well. Dr. Hope stated that amongst the courses that would be offered by qualified students would include Associate of Biblical Studies Theology, Bachelor of Biblical Studies, Master of Biblical Studies, Doctorate in Biblical Studies and Christian Biblical Counseling. The Dean of Kumasi campus of the School, Rev. Dr. Dr. Francis Akwaboah, lamented the increasing spate of immorality amongst the youth in the society. He also chastised political and leaders of the country for paying lip service to their promises to seek the welfare of the ordinary Ghanaian. Rev. Akwaboah, therefore, called on the Ghanaian citizenry to rely on God, saying "God is the only solution to the world's troubles and afflictions." The Dean of the Theological School disclosed that the school had already started admitting students to pursue the various courses offered by the institution.