The Ebenezer congregation of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) at Kyebi has marked 165 years of its existence with a special thanksgiving service on Sunday.
The service was used to dedicate a 12-unit two-bedroom apartment named after Odehyee Susana Akosua Buor Gyankroma for her missionary work, which led to the establishment of the PCG in Akyem Abuakwa and many parts of the country in the era where the Christian faith was unknown.
The multi-million cedi project, which started in late 2017, was funded by Mr Kwabena Boateng, a businessman and descendants of Odehyee Susana Gyankroma and notably among them is Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, the Minister of Finance.
Odehyee Gyankroma was the mother of Nana Sir Ofori Atta, a late Okyenhene, who gave birth to the legendary Paa Willie of Ghanaian political history and Mrs Adeline Yeboakua Akufo-Addo, the former first lady of Ghana and mother of President Akufo-Addo.
According to Church history, Odehyee Susana Gyankroma was among the first royals at Kyebi to be baptized together with her husband Okyerema Yaw Boakye, who was a drummer at the then Okyenhene’s palace in 1876, much against the Akyem Abuakwa state since Christianity was not accepted at that time.
Having been baptised into the Presbyterian faith, the couple thus became missionaries winning souls for Christ, as a result, they were banished from Akyem Abuakwa and suffered persecution for standing for the faith and in the process lost a four-month-old baby who fell from her back while she was running away from their persecutors at Akyem Asuom.
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Right Reverend JOY Mante, Moderator of the PCG, who preached the sermon earlier, described the sacrifices of the woman as a significant contribution to the growth of PCG, in particular, and Christianity in the country which would never be forgotten.
He commended the church for honouring the memory of such a woman who stood for the faith at the peril of her life and hoped that it would inspire others to stand for the faith, adding that Christianity was not all about money and prosperity.
The Moderator condemned the current trend of preaching riches and Christianity as against hard work and noted that God indeed rewarded hard work and sacrifices in the interest of the church to generations unborn.
Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori-Panin, Okyenhene who spoke on behalf of the ‘Ofori-Panin fie’ said the story of Odehyee Susana Gyankroma was relevant in today’s Christianity and that “tells us that there should be something more valuable to life than riches and positions by standing for the faith for the benefit of unborn generations.”
He said the touching story of “this woman who is my great grandmother has been a pivot of grace and blessing for the Ofori-Atta family and I can say that for her great-grandson to become the President of Ghana today and many of them holding high offices of service to country and God is because of her singular act of defending the faith in the face of persecution even as a royal.”
