God’s Power in God’s Church

Leslie A. W. Shyllon1

“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”2

Manifestations of power find common denominators around the globe and more so within the African continent. These include the ever-widening chasm between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’, civil wars, violent conflicts, terrorism, rise of religious fundamentalism and growing intolerance, systematic sales of small arms and light weapons, and the glorification of violence by the media and entertainment industry.

The ‘Furious 40s’ were years which most people prefer to forget. However, a reflection of the past two decades (i.e. the ‘80s and ‘90s), especially in Africa, leaves no doubt as to the lessons learnt by humanity from the aftermath of the 40s! The atrocities perpetrated by supposedly modern and enlightened peoples are almost too ghastly to recount. The wholesale extermination of Jews in Germany. The incredible torture of men and women in concentration camps. The total destruction of cities by massive bombings. Death of uncounted millions of women and children in the name of ethnic cleansing. Hacking and maiming of arms and limbs to secure ‘blood’ diamonds. Terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 on the United States of America. These are terrible insights into the utter depravity of human society.

Peace pacts and international agreements mediated by the United Nations, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, European Union, African Union, Economic Community of West African States, Mano River Union and others, have made significant in-roads in the pursuit for peace with varying degrees of success. However, more than ever before there tends to be a clarion call for holistic peace at all levels of society. There is a fundamental urgency for a social, political, economic and religious panacea that would rid society of all forms of destruction. Thus, society is seeking new influences, methods and forms of overcoming violence and the misuse or abuse of power. Some such influence and leadership must come from the church because “no one can truly rebuild who has not been built by God; the person who wants to reconstruct must first be reconstructed by God.”3 For the church to rise to this challenge, it is necessary to examine the place of power in the church.

God’s Power in God’s Church

Power has been defined by W. Phillips Shively as the ability of one person to cause another to do what the first wishes, by whatever means.4 Power may be exercised as coercion (forcing a person to do something they did not want to do) or as persuasion (convincing someone that that is what they really wish to do). During the period of the early Church, Rome meted out its might on the Christians who were seen then as enemies of Rome. Either by coercion or persuasion Christians faced an unsavoury ordeal in Rome in determining their allegiance and commitment to ‘the ultimate power’ – CEASAR or CHRIST! Many Christians stood their grounds refusing to deny Christ for they believed and were fully convinced from scripture5 and experience, that God in Christ was the source of ultimate power which he had so freely given to the church. Thus, the secret for her resilient survival through the ages as aptly reflected in the words of Tertullian: “As often as we are mown down by you, the more we grow in numbers; the blood of Christians is the seed”.6 This famous quote has now traditionally been couched as “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.”7

Indeed, the Bible has been the source of inspiration, strength and power of the church from its humble beginnings to present times. Men of fame and valour, reflecting on the power of God to the church through God’s word, had some things to say. Napoleon said, “The Bible is no mere book, but a living creature with a power that conquers all that oppose it”.8 Abraham Lincoln said, “I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from the saviour of the world is communicated to us through this book”.9 George Washington said, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible”.10 Therefore, the church needs to be at the fore of interrogating and redefining power in a time when violence, economic imbalances and political instabilities are prevalent.

Realities of the Times

Church Politics – The church must be a place of unity, credibility and impartiality, a zone or community of peace and hope at all times. However, within the church partisan politics has in most cases become the order of the day in return for favours and being in the good books of those who matter. Political undercurrents in church leadership during elections, the failure of leaders to address the needs of young potential clergy and youths have contributed to sectarianism within the church.

Church and Secular Politics – Christians have a tendency to engage in negative criticisms towards governments. There is also an invisible but powerful barrier towards political participation and governance. Even in times of national elections, many withhold their franchise. If the church has to effectively assert its God-given authority, there has to be a paradigm shift from that of negative criticism and passivity to that of constructive engagement and dialogue. Whereas some Christians within the echelons of political leadership have compromised and involved in despicable practices, particularly within periods of military interregnums,11 there must be a total change of attitude and character.

Season of Change –No one can stop the wheels of history from turning. This is particularly so as Christendom faces challenges of unity between mainline mission churches and African/Indigenous Pentecostal Churches. In Sierra Leone meaningful gestures have been made to bridge this unpleasant gap. For example, the consecration of Bishop Frederick Abu Koroma of Flaming Evangelical Ministries (the first consecrated Pentecostal Bishop of Sierra Leone), witnessed the convergence of other Bishops of various Christian communities in Sierra Leone in a Pentecostal Church. This was very symbolic especially at this time of post-conflict transition and reconciliation in Sierra Leone. Would the church in Sierra Leone sustain and improve on such gestures for posterity?

The Church and Civic Education – The need for a revisiting of fundamental rubrics that foster peaceful co-existence, the rights and responsibilities of citizens cannot be overemphasized. Christians have profound obligations to both the celestial and terrestrial realms. In other words, you must not be so heavenly minded that you are of no earthly use, neither must you be so carnally minded that you are of no spiritual or heavenly value! There must be a balance. As partners in progress for peace and sustainable development, the church must give attention to and include meaningful civic educational programmes and human rights issues in their agenda.

Inter-Religious Networking – The signs of the times are evident that no one is an island. Media presentations reflect on a daily basis the aftermath of religious tensions. This reinforces the fact of the appalling level of cooperation and understanding between Christians and non-Christians. Therefore, as theologians, church leaders and Christians in general, we are faced with an urgent task to re-model our relationship with members of other faiths or religious convictions. We must reflect on the growing threat of Al-Qaeda, Sharia and other forms of religious violence within our societies. In this vain, there is a dire need for creating appropriate linkages and channels of cooperation, which would foster peaceful co-existence.

In conclusion, it is my humble submission that the issues raised are not entirely exhaustive or conclusive, but are considered as provocative eye openers for further deliberation as to the way forward. Pertinent additions can be made to the list of the realities of the times facing the Church today. However, it is my desire that subliminal issues would emerge as we engage in formulating proposals and recommendations for this all important subject of interrogating and redefining power.

NOTES:

1 Leslie A. W. Shyllon is lecturer in church history and peace and conflict studies at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, West Africa.
2 Lord Acton 1834-1902, letter to Bishop Mandell Creighton, 3 April 1887, in Susan Ratcliffe’s Oxford Quotations and Proverbs (Oxford University Press, 2001), 218.
3 Kwesi Dickson, All Africa Conference of Churches, 1997.
4 W. Phillips Shively, Power and Choice – An Introduction to Political Science, 5th Edn. (McGraw-Hill 1997), 6.
5 Compare Matt.16:18-20, 28:18-20 and Luke 10:19. These references are very popular within Christendom as basis of God’s power and authority given to the church.
6 Earle. E Cairns, Christianity through the Centuries – A History of the Christian Church (Zondervan 1981), 20.
7 Ibid., 20.
8 L. Golley-Morgan, How Can a Divided Church Unify a War-torn Nation? (Golley-Morgan Books, 1998), 55.
9 Ibid., 55.
10 Ibid.
11 In Sierra Leone, certain church leaders, out of opportunism, revenge, ethnicity and other human factors described the coup of Johnny Paul Koroma as ‘the finger of God at work!’ They even referred to him as ‘John the Baptist’, who had come to pave the way for the final redemption of Sierra Leone. They politicized their pulpits and organized prayer chains for the new ‘Head of State’ who, according to them, had dedicated Sierra Leone to Jesus. Little wonder many quizzed after the reinstatement of President Kabba whether these ministers were ‘false or fire’ prophets.