.jpg)
It is interesting to hear reports
that not only is a religious leader paying
people to act sick and then claiming to have supernatural powers to heal but
sadly visits the streets in the darkness of the night to solicit for sex and
recruit ‘award winning thespians’ -
twilight girls - for their grand acts.
Anybody who would be shocked or
perturbed at this expose is like the proverbial ostrich sticking its head in
the sand, and by virtue of the many demands expected of these mere mortals,
forcing them to extremes to provide brilliant weekend entertainment away from
the hustle and bustle of the week.
Indeed, each Sunday, the faithful
that flock churches in all corners of the republic hope to see their money’s
worth in terms of; cures for more complicated illnesses, testimonies of
enrichment of members of the flock, intriguing stories of successes in secular
lives as a result of spiritual interventions etc.
Therefore as you toil away during the
week to amass enough for both yourself and tithe, the men of the cloth (if they
are still viewed that way) hit the streets in search of persons that will pull
off a spectacle – grander than the previous one effectively satisfying our
insatiable desire for grander miracles – a return on investment. I wouldn’t be
surprised if the faithful got enraged if they went to their places of worship
on two consecutive Sundays and failed to experience a “miracle.” In fact, due
to the morbid fear we all have for matters religion, they will get bored and
silently stop their attendance and probably shop for a new place to get their
weekend fodder.
It is not a surprise to hear that
churches in the city of Nairobi are managed in mafia-like structures. Tales of
killings as a result of crossing the line of a powerful church leader, reported
assaults – both sexual and physical- by bodyguards and the leaders themselves
are reported at police stations regularly. Gun trotting body guards man
entrances to churches of popular televangelists and are never shy – in a very
unchristian manner – to wield them in order to protect the celebrity church
leader against unruly and uncouth church faithful.
And doesn’t it just leave us in awe
when our pastor becomes so important and so much in demand, that he has to get
body guards to protect him from ‘satanic unbelievers’? Don’t we always thank
the Almighty for blessing our pastor abundantly?
Would I be shocked if it was
discovered that the recent attacks on churches by thieves have the blessings of
the men and women we trust as our pastors and church leaders who realize that
lately this stubborn faithful is just not giving enough to the church – to oil
the palms of the man of God? Unfortunately I would not.
Hence begs the questions, where did
the rain start beating? When did we get so obsessed with church entertainment
completely watering down the need for spiritual quenching and feeding in this
evil, depressing and stressful world? When did we make gods out of our church
leaders thereby not subjecting them to vetting and holding them accountable as
we do in our daily course of affairs whenever we invite strangers into our
lives?
It is a high time we re-examined
ourselves and stopped cheating ourselves that these persons are beyond
reproach.
The Kenyan law is very clear on
soliciting for sex, fraud, extortion under false pretences, assault. The
exposed televangelist can and should be arrested, charged and prosecuted for one
if not all these charges and none of his faithful should hit the street
protesting that the church is being targeted by the faithless or blindly
claiming that the person – “a true man of God” is undergoing trials and
persecution as did Jesus and his disciples.
The Constitution is very clear on the
rights and fundamental freedoms to be enjoyed by all within our borders.
Freedom of religion, as well as the freedom to exercise ones religion is certainly
an important one for our free and democratic society. However, the law is very
clear on the need to ensure that such is done in a responsible way without
being abused or propagating an illegality.
The same way Kenyans have become
vigilant in ensuring that the Constitution is respected, the same way we as
citizens are urged to be vigilant and ensure that the law is respected – a duty
we zealously perform - sometimes illegally, to the point of lynching alleged criminals,
is the same way we ought to ensure that these men of cloth too respect the law.
Only through these ways can religion go back
to the respectable level we so desperately need it to be.
Comments
Post a Comment