The sudden change in political administration in Ghana last July has resuscitated freedom among Ghanaians and has alleviated much of the political uncertainty. Lt. Gen. F. W. K. Akuffo released at least thirty-two political detainees, lifted the ban on party politics, and has promised to restore civilian government by this July. Elections for a new president and parliament are slated for June 18.
Since winning independence from the British in 1957, Ghana has been under two civilian governments and two military administrations ushered in by coup d’etats. Over the past seven years, under military administration, the country experienced its worst inflation and depression, food shortages, and labor unrest.
Only a year ago, there seemed to be little hope for peace, agreement, and reconciliation between the armed forces and civilians. The former military ruler, Gen. I. K. Acheampong, had declared that his proposed union government concept (armed forces, police, and civilians forming a cooperative government) had received overwhelming approval from Ghanaians in a March 1978 referendum.
Most Ghanaians greeted the general’s announcement with suspicion since he had violated referendum stipulations. The electoral commissioner had instructed that all ballots be counted in public at each polling station, but Acheampong (when his plan was believed to be falling behind in the tally) disregarded the commissioner’s regulations and ordered that all ballots be counted in army barracks.
Opposition from top civilian politicians intensified. The division between the army and police and the civilians grew wider, making a clash appear inevitable. Alarmed at that prospect, some military officers within the government demanded and obtained the big general’s resignation and retirement from the armed forces. Two years of hectic student demonstrations and nationwide strikes against military dictatorships have ceased. But although the struggle for a return to party politics may be over, the struggle for ideal political philosophies continues to haunt the nation. At least seventeen political parties have been formed since lifting of the ban on January 1.
Their ideologies range from liberal democracy to radical Marxist-Leninist socialism. West Africa (in its Jan. 29 issue) reports that one such party, called the People’s Revolutionary Party, has vowed to establish people’s revolutionary armed forces and police and people’s revolutionary militia to “liberate Ghana from the vicious yoke of imperialism, neocolonialism, fascism, capitalism, and semi-feudalism.”
These events have convulsed the economic, political, and, in some instances, the social institution of Ghana, but have not affected the spiritual vitality of the church in Ghana, nor have they deterred it from aggressive evangelism. Christians in Ghana are witnessing more than ever. Believers flock into churches for all night prayer meetings and Bible studies.
Church leaders are searching for new ways and means to resolve some of the theological problems that face the country. The Christian Council of Ghana, founded in 1929, is exploring measures to cope with educational, social, and spiritual needs of member churches.
John Bergen’s idea of a “Worker’s Bible College” has generated special interest in Bible education among the working evangelicals in the cities. Bergen, a Sudan Interior Mission missionary, has organized an evening Bible college in Accra (and its twin city, Tema) which allows Christian workers to attend Bible college after a day of labor. Enrollment is increasing each quarter. Some evangelicals are calling for Bible schools of this variety in all major cities in the country. But a lack of teachers, finances, and facilities are major deterrents.
The church, through the political and social crisis of the past seven years, has learned to rely increasingly on prayer. One church leader declared, “The changes in the administration and the peaceful atmosphere in Ghana now would not have been possible without Christians praying.”
The political turmoil in Ghana for the past few years has challenged the church to reevaluate its view of the church’s relationship to the state and the role it should play in social justice. For example, a conference of Ghana’s bishops last year called on the government to facilitate and encourage free, frank, and open discussion on the form of government for the country. The bishops also requested that the type of government proposed for the country should be predicated on all fundamental human rights. The church in previous years showed little concern for social justice; but it is now an issue that stares the church in the face.
Although Ghana enjoys freedom of religion and phenomenal church growth, evangelicals face several problems. It is only by the grace of God that the common Ghanaian is able to earn his daily bread. Economic statistics indicate that to feed a family of average size for one day costs more than a laborer’s daily wage. The high cost of living has affected financially missionary endeavor. Church-planting missionary couples in northern Ghana could expect to pay rent of more than $400 a month. Scarce foreign exchange currency has made the importation of literature and other religious goods difficult.
Evangelicals have yet to find answers to such plaguing problems as polygamy, the disinterest in marriage among Christian youth unable to afford a Western-type wedding, and the low educational profile of most preachers and church workers.
Catholicism is also a major challenge. Roman Catholics make up 12.5 percent of the entire 9.5 million population of Ghana. The liberal Catholic stance on polygamy and on some cultural practices woos more converts each year.
Strong agitation by some religious leaders for the “africanization” of Christianity (incorporating African traditions into Christianity to make it more palatable to the African) is causing major concern for many evangelicals who seem to be groping for theological defenses.
The Presbyterian Church of Ghana celebrated its 150th anniversary in August and September of last year. The massive celebration included an exhibition at the Accra central library, an official opening of the church’s new press center, and a special service at the National Sports Stadium, attended by head of state Akuffo (a member of the church, educated in Presbyterian schools).
The moderator of the Presbyterian Synod, in his anniversary address, stressed that the church needs to educate people to the virtues of life through modern means of communication, such as radio and TV, rather than talk too much about the morals of the state. But, he added, the church cannot educate people on morals and virtues alone without the cooperation of the state machinery.
Unlike other evangelical churches, the Presbyterian Church of Ghana has caught a vision of the need for vocational education for Christian youth. It has instituted vocational centers in some parts of the country to train youth in skills such as carpentry, masonry, and agriculture. Such training has long been neglected by the church in Africa—the very areas of study that will determine the economic and social course of that turbulent continent.
The proliferation and mushrooming of indigenous (Ghana-based) churches is perhaps the greatest threat to Protestant and Orthodox churches in Ghana. Such churches have grown phenomenally because most Ghanaians find their manner of worship compatible. The beating of drums accompanied by energetic hand clapping, foot tapping, and dance exactly suit the Ghanaian. Strict, cold, liturgical worship services evoke scanty impact, if any. In most Presbyterian and Baptist churches, the Western hymnals remain shelved at the back of the pews for show. Churches no longer use them as frequently as they did less than a decade ago. The hymns have been replaced by short choruses composed from everyday experiences of the people in their own culture that reflect vital, relevant faith in Jesus: a change needed for generations.
