Rev. Prof Johnson Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, President of the Trinity Theological Seminary
Rev. Prof Johnson Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, President of the Trinity Theological Seminary in Accra is not happy with the conduct of some so-called ‘Prophets’ who he accuses of making a mockery of the Christian faith by their public actions and utterances.
According to him, the actions of some of these prophets are out of tune with what true Christianity is about.
“It’s almost like religion or Christianity, which is something that’s to build, has become a nuisance,” he said in comments monitored by GhanaWeb on October 30, 2021, when he appeared as a guest on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme.
“You see them sometimes kicking people, others stripping people naked, stepping on the bellies of pregnant women… if you read the theology of prophecy, from what Paul says, is to encourage, strengthen, it shouldn’t be a source of nuisance to the public,” he added.
He said he did not consider most of the so-called prophets as men of God because he was without doubt that most of them had entered the ministry for economic reasons.
“More than half of the people who consider themselves prophets, I don’t consider them to be prophets. All you have to do is to interrogate what they do in the light of Biblical teaching and you’ll realise that a lot of them are just doing it either for commercial purposes or economic reasons, of course that is not to deny that the prophetic is genuine,” he said.
He is of the view that even though the state can’t bar people from exercising religious rights and sharing their views on religion and matters related thereof, the need for regulation was also well situated.
“So as much as we need to call out these prophetic figures, for causing fear, panic, and chaos in society, we also need to exercise our civic duty in calling people to order.”
He tasked IGP George Akuffo Dampare and his team to remain resolute and stay the course in seeking to ensure that faith-based organizations get their members to act in line with the law.
“They should not be cowed by the threats in any case,” he added. He also wants especially government agencies to police members relative to those that shirk official duties to attend church service during working hours.
On October 26, 2021, the IGP and some senior police officers held a closed-door meeting with the leadership of faith-based organizations in the country.
The meeting, according to a police statement was to deliberate on how churches and other organizations can go about their operations.
“There was that sort of mutual discussion and respect for each other and all is based on how the churches might conduct their operation and activities, taking into account the position of the law,” ACP Kwesi Ofori told journalists.
“Of late, we have witnessed so many challenges, limitations and things that call for dialogue and I can say that we have agreed and key among the issues discussed is education and law enforcement.”