The Tema Diocese of the Methodist Church of Ghana on Sunday inducted a new Bishop with a call on the Methodist family to live by the dictates of their name to ensure social revival and national development.
The Right Reverend Samuel Ofori-Akyea was arrayed with the Bishop’s Garments and given his Staff of Office in the presence of both National and Diocesan leaders of the Methodist Church as well as the Clergy and Lay Leaders from the 17 Circuits that form the Tema Diocese.
In a sermon at the St. Paul Cathedral, Community One, Tema, the Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church Ghana, The Most Reverend Dr. Paul Kwabena Boafo, insisted that, “God established the church for a purpose. Wherever the Methodist has been, it is to spread spiritual holiness, and this we will not go back on it.”
“That is why for us as a church, we stand strongly against any form of teaching that would come within our country and within our schools that would be against the teachings of Bible, our culture, and who we are,” The Most Rev. Dr. Boafo said.
The Cleric was thankful to the Government for listening to the people of Ghana, “But as a church, we want to caution that this CSE should not rear its ugly head under any guise. We would stand up against it under any form it comes as a church.”
The Most Rev Dr. Boafo informed that the Methodist people would stand for Biblical truth, so government should ensure that the issue was buried forever, never to crop up again, because the Methodist family was prepared to fight it with all their might.
The Most Rev. Dr. Boafo, in his fury against the effects of strange cultures, hinted that “It will never be part of us. Anything that will come which has an agenda of LGBTQ, we will not accept in any form and it should not come within us.”
He insisted that the church stood for Biblical truth; “We are evangelical, we are charismatic, and that is what we preach. We preach the Bible and the truth in the Bible. Things that would inure to our benefit and bring out holy living; that is what the people called Methodist would stand for.”
Reflecting on the theme for the Methodist New Year which was, “Teaching everyone to live like Jesus Christ,” the Cleric said, “And if we want to live like Jesus Christ, then we would want to follow and obey him from his word; what he has told us in his word.”
He admonished the new Bishop as well as other leaders of the church to provide good leadership as God used them to bring development and revival to the people.
He added that “Leadership is a very important commodity in our church to give a sense of direction and to facilitate things that would go on and go on well. Nations and organizations spend a lot of money on training leaders because they know the lack of it would be detrimental to their cause. Because they believe that poor leadership destroys institutions.”
The Most Rev. Dr. Boafo observed that Ghana needed leaders who would be true to the standards of the constitution and to the laws and culture of the people.
“As a nation, we need leaders who will listen to us; we need leaders who can bring about development. And so the moment they begin to do other things, that is when we will also come out with the prophetic voice to bring them in line, ”he said.
The Rt. Rev. Ofori-Akyea, who has been the Secretary of Synod for the Tema Diocese for the past six years, takes over from Rt. Rev. Thomas Brown Forson, who steps down after six years of service to the diocese.
Prior to his appointment as the Bishop of the Tema Diocese, the New Bishop served the Lord for 32 years in the Methodist Ministry at various positions and circuits and dioceses.
The Rt. Rev. Ofori-Akyea is married to Joyce, the Deputy Director of Nursing at the La General Hospital, Accra, and they are blessed with three children.
By Alexander Nyarko Yeboah, GNA
