It was reported in the news article Vice President promises closer partnership with the church, that Vice President John Dramani Mahama’s government would be working with Christian churches to ensure the youth become “morally upright and disciplined”.
It begs a number of questions but let’s just get the cynical jibe out of the way first – what went wrong with you guys?
My first thought on reading the report was to wonder why he felt Christianity was more suited to delivering morality then any of Ghana’s other religions.
Of course, I might be too hasty and his next stop might be his local mosque to make the same statement, then off to the Buddhists and traditionalists….but somehow I think not. I think this government previously betrayed their position of trust as custodians of the secular state and are doing it again.
The secular state allows religious freedom by not aligning itself with one religion. Past statements from the President, such as all Ghanaians should read the bible, show bias especially when exhortations to read the Qur’an are noticeably missing. In truth, they should not be making these statements in the first place which shows a lack of understanding about their function as Honourable Public Servants.
I then wondered why we felt religion was uniquely positioned to deliver morality. Is it merely because fear of an external authority forces people to be good? Most of us have gone long beyond these flawed arguments.
I think it was Daniel Dennett who discussed the relationship of religion to morality. He said that the religious reinforcement of morality was like the scaffolding around a new building. It is essential in the construction of the building but there comes a point where you no longer need it. Our society now knows that killing and stealing is wrong without having to read it in religious book first. I’m not suggesting we remove religion but I am suggesting that we no longer need it to, primarily, deliver morality.
I maintain the entire Christian morality project has failed in Ghana. We see churches becoming more aggressive in attempting to force it yet at the same time people complain immorality is increasing. I believe you cannot instil moral values in a vacuum and through fear.
Instead of teaching spirituality and a genuine understanding of theology, the churches focus on behavioural change. Behavioural change without inner transformation is temporal and bound to fail.
Some friends explained that morality, to many Ghanaian pastors, simply means no alcohol, no smoking and no sex outside marriage. With this incredibly limited understanding of what morality is, I would question their assumed authority on this issue. Could this be another reason why the project has failed?
Mahama’s comments were almost certainly political. In Ghana’s culture of enforced Christianity, he understood what was needed to maintain his status. His decision to make the announcement in the Assemblies of God Church, whilst the American treasurer was present, so was sycophantic as to be embarrassing.
What is clearly needed is a civic debate on what we believe morality is and how to encourage it. Religions, including the Christian churches, have a role to play in this debate. What we don’t need is politicised, knee-jerk responses based on old methods which have blatantly failed.
Once more, you’ve hit the nail neatly on the head, Namesake.
Morality isn’t really linked to church: as you said, we have more churches than ever and yet – they say – more immorality than ever.
Truth be told, I don’t even think morality is what is at issue. I think the issue is the loss of a sense of honour. Nobody does things for the sake of doing things any more. It’s all about money now and THAT is what has permeated everything and ruined things. People are motivated more by personal gain than by a greater sense of good. Sadly churches are complicit in this, turning Jesus’ message about love into one about personal gain.
Honour is dead. The Church will barely let you see its corpse much less ressurect it.
El Vice Presidenté was either misguided, vote shopping or both.
“I think the issue is the loss of a sense of honour.” – that’s a very insightful comment. I think you’ve nailed it now!
My two cents.
A lot of the countries who claim to be circular states still have a dominant religious sect within them. So whether we like it or not, the majority is going to have a big say in the way things are run in what they would see as their country more than anybody’s.
So the vice president aligning himself with Christians in his attempt to reform a largely wayward youth is just him vote hunting as Kobby pointed out and being sensible since Christians are in the majority. It doesn’t make his statement right, far from it but he really couldn’t ignore the majority Christian population by saying he would bring change through a mini Islamic revolution. How does that sound to you? Not from a personal view but from a political one. Because that’s what it would be if he had made such a statement.
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Duke – you are right that Christian South cannot be ignored. What about the mainly Muslim Northern Region? Perhaps he believes they do not have a problem with ‘morality’?
The government was keen to court the Muslim vote during elections. They must therefore have some clout.
The correct procedure would now be for the vice president to go to representatives of other religions and ask for their help. Although my point is that I’m not convinced religion, especially in its present form, is going to be any help.
Endorsing another religion’s ability to effect moral change is interesting and goes to show how politicians can be…they’ll even deny their own mothers.
I want to know if homosexuality falls within the immoral bracket. #justsaying
For Churches morality is basically reduced to drinking, smoking and having sex outside marriage or gay sex. Well, I have known a lot of people doing this and having a strong sense of morality, if we understand morality not in a superficial way.
In the opposite I find that a lot of people that go to Church every Sunday and pray all the time are really corrupted.
I don’t understand why preachers try to convince people that all things realted to having fun are inmoral ! Why did God give us wine and tobacco and sense of pleasure? Is not that part of the creation?
PLEASE CARLOS, GOD CREATED SEX, WINE AND ALL FUN YOU MIGHT THINK ABOUT BUT THEY ARE NOT TO BE ABUSED. THATS THE PROBLEM