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The Police in the last two days invited for questioning, the leaders of Christ Embassy Church, Ghana branch over gathering by the youth of the church who flagrantly ignored the COVID-19 safety protocols during a Church event dubbed "Pneumatic Night" at Trade Fair Centre, Accra last Friday, 30th April 2020.
 
I will be very disappointed in Ghana Police Service if they fail to prosecute the head pastor of Christ Embassy Church and his associates. I  don't understand the reason why a Church that should have a moral responsibility of doing the right thing will end up acting lawlessly. Why should a Church which is to hold the principles of good behaviour flouts covid-19 protocols without seeing anything wrong with it? Could this be one of the Principles of Christianity?
 
Ghana seems to be one of the few countries where rules of essence are taken for granted all in the name of Religion. I mean why should clergies who are supposed to know better infract a whole National Law which aimed at protecting us from infecting coronavirus? What could be their source of motivation for disobeying state directives? These Churches must learn from the Catholic Church, Methodist, Presbyterian Church, the  Pentecostals etc.
 
The attitude of Christ Embassy Church is a Gross disrespect of state Laws and must not be condoned. This is one of the reasons why Karl Marx strongly opposed Emile Durkheim's definition of Religion and defined it "as the Opium of the Masses".
 
It is very sad the way some Churches in Ghana are shifting from standard behaviours putting the healthy relationship between the Church and the state into disrepute. The head Pastor cum main organizer of the event, Chris Oyakhilome is on record to have denied the existence of coronavirus and preaches against the protocols. What a man of God! Where actually can we find the Church of Common Sense? Pastor Chris statement of record clearly gives an indication that this lawless act by his congregation was simply deliberate and a test of state powers.
 
It is worthy to note that apart from all who attended the event and were captured in the video not wearing nose masks, there was no physical distancing as the congregants sat or stood very close to one another. There were also a lot of screaming, chanting and dancing to the "church music" which was considered a super spreader event for Coronavirus. It is very clear the manner in which the leadership of the Church wanted to expose the lives of the members into getting covid-19 maybe with the trust and intention that  God is able to curb or cures all forms of viruses and ailments.
 
I'm aware even before it happens that some churchgoers may call me names for writing this article condemning a religious organization without necessarily thinking about the danger that this lawless religious act poses on the state. Let me state it empathetically that "Whenever Religion Causes Problem, it is the state that suffers the Consequences". I remember very well stating this in my first-degree thesis "Religion, Law and National Security in Ghana: The Role of Religious People in Contemporary Selected Security Matters...", 68 pages book. This is the reason why the state must be responsible enough to ensure that its laws are obeyed by Churches.
 
Again, "Secularism and Religionization of National Security in Ghana" by Dr Seth Tweneboah(my thesis supervisor) as well as "The Church and Politics: A Calling into A Political Domain-Myth or Reality" by Hon. Rev. Dr Mii Amoo Darku clearly portray the situation at hand.
 
#CoronavirusIsStillReal
"Still the gods are not to be feared because We Are Children of the Highest God."
 
I'm Frank Blay (Political Blay)
Your situational Writer.