Nigerian Archbishop Exhorts Clerics to Speak Out against Evil, “but not with hate”

Abuja, 06 February, 2021 / 12:15 AM

A Nigerian Archbishop has exhorted Clerics to exercise their prophetic role as “ministers of God,” speaking out against evil in society but doing so without giving into feelings of hatred.

“As ministers of God, we have the duty to speak out in the face of evil, sometimes with righteous anger but not with hate,” Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama said Sunday, January 31.  

Archbishop Kaigama who was presiding over Holy Eucharist at Archangels, Durumi Catholic Church of Nigeria’s Abuja Archdiocese added, “A true prophet speaks in the voice of love, comforting the afflicted and bringing hope to the people.”

He cautioned against preachers who are driven by greed.

“Today we have many people who claim to be prophets, who tell their audience only what they want to hear; some posing as solution experts for all kinds of challenges, and appear as political puppets or social commentators,” Archbishop Kaigama said. 

Preachers driven by greed for material possessions, the Archbishop went on to say, “stir up division and tension among the people.”

Such preachers, he continued, “tilt towards syncretism, combining religious faith with traditional superstitious/fetish practices, all in a bid to gain acceptance and cheap popularity among their members, while others emphasize miracles and prosperity, but not the true conversion of hearts that leads to a genuine love of God and neighbor.”

Some of these prophets are influenced by influential persons who manipulate them to “say the kind of things they want to hear,” the Local Ordinary of Abuja Archdiocese noted.

Referencing the Old Testament, the 62-year-old Archbishop highlighted the essential role of genuine prophets.

“A prophet was one called to speak on behalf of God,” he said, adding that a prophet’s “most basic function was to communicate the will of God to people; analyze political and social situations in the light of Yahweh’s demand of justice, loyalty and faith.”

Through his words and testimony, a genuine prophet advised “people on the plan of God,” Archbishop Kaigama said.

“To such false prophets,” he said, “God issues a warning in Deuteronomy 18:20: 'Those who presume to say in my name what I have not commanded them to say, shall die.'”

In his message, Archbishop Kaigama urged Religious leaders to “not only point fingers of blame at government leaders or political authorities as the only culprits of anti-social behavior and vices.”

“Even in our Churches or Mosques, one can find flamboyantly dressed and pious looking men and women who need conversion, a change of heart which can move us to make life more meaningful for all and to make the Nigerian project a success,” the Nigerian Archbishop said January 31.