The Most Reverend Professor Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, the Presiding Bishop, Methodist Church-Ghana, has urged politicians to refrain from using disparaging languages against one another, and rather maintain respectful and constructive dialogue to ensure peace and tolerance.
Prof. Asamoah Gyadu said seeking leadership positions was not about resorting to insults, rather it required a strong demonstration of influence and integrity in presenting one’s vision and capabilities to Ghanaians and allowing them to evaluate the message to decide their support accordingly.
The Presiding Bishop was speaking with the media on the sidelines of Ghana’s celebration of Lausanne Movement’s 50th anniversary, on the theme: “Let the Church in Ghana declare and display Christ together,” in Accra.
The celebration was also to honour the life and leadership of Rev. Gottfried Osei-Mensah, the first Executive Secretary of the Lausanne Movement, for his service to the national and global mission movement, and to launch a Ghana missions collaborative action process over the next decade.
Prof. Asamoah-Gyadu said Politics was fundamentally about governance, which involved presenting oneself as a candidate for election to serve the public.
He said they had observed that some politicians attempt to undermine their opponents through negative tactics, including insults and harsh language, adding that such approaches were unconstructive and detract from a healthy and respectful political discourse.
The Presiding Bishop said participating in a democratic process entailed a commitment to govern responsibly if elected and to accept the outcome with composure if not.
He said democracy was not solely about winning, but it involved both victories and setbacks.
Prof. Asamoah-Gyadu said the core mission of the Lausanne Movement, established at their first Congress, was to advance world evangelisation.
He said as a Movement, their aim was to present Christ to the world, focusing on the transformative power of His message and the salvation of humanity.
The Presiding Bishop said evangelisation involved proclaiming the message that “Christ is Savior, Transformer, and Lord,” such that when people respond to the gospel, the transformation should be evident in their lives.
“In a nation facing challenges such as corruption and environmental degradation, many question why, despite the prevalence of churches, these issues persist,” he added.
He said their duty was to ensure that the gospel was conveyed in a way that helped people to understand that proclaiming Christ went beyond words, ensuring that the proclaimed word became evident in their own actions.
“If people are living the life of the Christ, you will see it in their workplace, you will see the way they relate to each other, you will see it even in our politics” he stressed.
Apostle Jude Hama, the Chairman of the National Association of Evangelicals in Ghana, said Ghana was present at the genesis of the Lausanne Movement, fifty years ago, and that there were delegates from Ghana at the first congress on World Evangelisation in Lausanne in 1974.
He said the 1977 GHACOE Women’s Ministry was impactful and fruitful, giving birth to several integral gospel initiatives.
Apostle Hama said the Ghana Evangelism Committee’s (GEC) “New Life for All” Programme equipped and mobilised the churches for their Christ-given mandate and promoted collaboration among the churches.
He said going into the future, they trusted that the two essential missiological documents of the Lausanne 4th Congress in Korea, namely, the “Seoul Statement” and “The State of Great Commission Report,” would lift the Church in Ghana to the next higher level to effectively declare and display Christ together.
GNA