Religious Leaders must preach And demonstrate Peace – Peace Council Chairman

The Chairman of the National Peace Council (NPC), Reverend Ernest Adu-Gyamfi, has stated that this year’s election will test the peace, unity, stability, cohesion and resilience of the county, and has consequently charged all religious bodies to use their platforms to preach and demonstrate peace for the citizenry to follow.
Rev. Adu-Gyamfi made the call when he delivered an address at the 61st Ghana Baptist Convention (GBC) Minister’s Conference at the Baptist Women’s Retreat Centre at Ejura in the Ashanti Region yesterday.

Present at the conference were the President of the Baptist Minister’s Conference, Rev. Dr Charles Owusu Ampofo; the President, the Ghana Baptist Convention, Rev. Enock Nii Narh Thompson, and the General Superintendent, Assemblies of God, Ghana, Rev. Dr Stephen Yenusom Wengam.

FRATERNAL GREETING BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE NATIONAL PEACE COUNCIL TO THE 61ST ANNUAL RETREAT AND REFRESHER COURSE OF THE GHANA BAPTIST CONVENTION MINISTERS’ CONFERENCE HELD AT EJURA ON APRIL 16TH 2024.
The Special Guest of Honour
Guest Speaker
President of the Ghana Baptist Convention
Vice President of the Ghana Baptist Convention
President of the Ministers Conference
Former Presidents of the Ghana Baptist Convention and Ministers Conference
Director General Executive Members of the Ministers Conference
Directors of Various Departments of the Ghana Baptist Convention
Sector Heads
Association Heads
Zonal Heads
Leadership of the Local Ministers

Fellowships Ministers of various Churches of the Ghana Baptist Convention
Auxiliary Representatives
Representatives of invited Churches
Ladies and Gentlemen
Media Fraternity

I bring greetings from the Board, Management and Staff of the National Peace Council to the 61st Annual Retreat and Refresher Course of the Ghana Baptist Convention Ministers Conference being held here at Ejura. The National Peace Council would like to express our gratitude to the Ghana Baptist Convention for your contribution to the peace work in Ghana by releasing your immediate past Executive President through the Christian Council of Ghana to serve on the National Board of the Peace Council and other Ministers to serve on the Regional Peace Councils. We are grateful for your contribution to Ghana’s peace.

Your theme MINISTERIAL ETHICS, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND RESPONSIBILITY IN THE 21st CENTURY CHURCH is indeed apt in view of the current development of Peace and stability in our sub-region and country.

Last year, Ghana lost its position on the Global Peace Index as the most peaceful country in West Africa to Sierra Leone and as the second most peaceful country in Africa to the fourth position. While the church in Ghana continues to glory in the fact that we have 72% Christians in Ghana, our numbers does not correspond to the peace, stability, and cohesion that one would have expected in a country with that number of Christians.

The daily insults and hate speeches on our radio and television against elders, clergy, chiefs, politicians etc and the call for violence by political actors while the church looks on and only calls on the National Peace Council for their response is a clear neglect of the duty and responsibility of the Church. The rise of religious militants including Christians in our country who are seeking for dominance by force is a development that is of great worry to the National

Peace Council. If 72% Ghanaians are Christians, why are we on this trajectory?

The early church did not dominate Jerusalem by fighting and insulting people but through evangelism. The church of today is gradually neglecting evangelism and glorifying itself in the fact that we are the majority with each building its kingdom rather than the kingdom of God. Glorifying ourselves in numbers alone is tantamount to nothing. Let us embrace the commission our Lord Jesus Christ gave us and build healthy churches by doing healthy mission through evangelism and intentional discipleship. We, the leaders of the church have a responsibility to give direction to this country through our pulpits and with serious advocacy through our Councils instead of allowing the media and politicians to dictate the pace and the future of our country.

As you deliberate on the theme for this year’s conference, it is our hope that you will understand your responsibility as leaders and shepherds to the church and country and choose a path of progress and national cohesion for our country Ghana especially as we prepare for this year’s general elections.

Ladies and gentlemen, this year’s election will test the peace, unity, stability, cohesion, and resilience of our county. As Ministers of our churches, we have a responsibility to preach and demonstrate peace for our citizenry to follow.

Let us avoid pushing WhatsApp messages around only to show how chaotic our country is becoming but take steps to intervene where possible for the sake of national peace and cohesion.

As individual leaders and collectively as a denomination, let us lead our nation through our ministerial ethics and accountability such that after this year’s election, there will not be a single bloodshed in the country?

You have a responsibility as Ministers of the Gospel to protect the peace of our country by shaping the hearts and minds of Ghanaians towards peaceful co-existence, right behavior, and politics without insults and violence.

Thank you