Bishop of Lagos West Anglican Communion, The Rt. Revd. James Odedeji, spoke with Ovwe Medeme, on his life as a cleric, the tithing debate and sundry issues ahead of the 18th anniversary of the Diocese. Excerpts:
How has the Diocese progressed over the years?
Well, we thank the Lord. This Diocese was inaugurated 20th of November 1999. I’m lucky to say I was here but not in this capacity. And the Diocese has grown in leaps and bounds. We have expanded so well.
We started with about 120 churches and two other Dioceses have been created from us. Like I said, we have invested greatly in church planting. As we speak, we have more than 300 churches.
When we started, clergymen were 80 but today we have over 300 clergymen. We have also invested in humans. We have encouraged so many of our youths and a lot of them have benefited from the generosity of this Diocese.
Our vision when we started was to be the leading Diocese and that we have done. Most Dioceses in Nigeria look up to us, not only for help but for whatever is noble and gracious.
Emphasis has been seriously laid on the spiritual growth of members and youth empowerment. And we have equally planted many churches since I came on board. And a lot of clergymen have gone for further studies to enhance their performance.
The women have done so well too. They’ve embarked on so many projects that would add to the growth of the church. A lot of correctional centres have been built to cater for those who are unemployed.
We have engaged in scholarship schemes for indigent students. And these we will continue to ensure that it is going on well. I insisted when I came on board that all our quarters must have a youth chapel.
When I came on board, we had about two or three. But as I talk to you, we have about 21 chapels that are functional and they’ve gotten their places of worship as well. So those are the things that gladden one’s heart.
A lot of people believe being a cleric comes with a lot of perks. What are some of the challenges you have faced as a bishop?
Opinions are like noses, everybody has their own. The call to bishopric is not a call to comfort; it’s a call to service. And if you are privileged to be lifted by God, it is to impart a generation, to add value and to make sure that at the end of the day, I say it without any fear of contradiction, we are responsible to people but we are accountable to God.
So what people term as comfort might not be there if you want to serve your God. I joined the ministry 28 years ago and I had this idea that I have never subscribed to maximum comfort; perhaps the minimum comfort.
How much food do you need to survive? The office attracts a lot of pressures. Everybody sees you as a solution. Everybody believes that you have all the power, not knowing that all power belongs to Jesus.
So those are the challenges. As a bishop, your phone rings virtually every second. But you still have to pray for God’s wisdom and discerning Spirit so that you will be able to do the work according to His will.
The theme is arise and shine. How can you relate that with the state of the country today?
Well, the expectation of God is that Christians should arise. We should not settle for less. And when you arise, what you are saying is that you will shine, you will live a life that will impart on the people.
It is like the issue of the man called the prodigal son. He had wasted a lot of years; he had wasted a lot of resources. And at a time, he discovered that he has not been fair on himself. So he decided to arise. That’s what we are looking at. Arising shows that you are waking up.
Arising is saying that you should not settle for mediocrity. And when you rise, definitely, you will be obvious. Your activities will be evident and you will be able to do that which God has configured you to do. The purpose of God for us is to make impact.
That was why Jesus Christ described Christians in Matthew 5 as the salt of the earth, as the light of the world. And he said, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and when they see it, they will glorify God.
And God is ready for his children to manifest His glory to uncover the glory that God originally meant for his people. When everything was created, they were all handed over to man.
So man should be in dominion. Because a situation where you are beneath instead of being on top, you need to arise and take your rightful place in the community God has placed you.
What motivated you to go into the ministry?
The idea of going into the ministry as at the time I came in was basically the call of God upon my life. I had many choices as at that time. I had a personal conviction of coming to the ministry to work for Him. And people at that time thought I didn’t know what I was doing.
Because I was very young and they were of the opinion that I should go into the world first and return when I’m old. And I believe so much that I can use my youthful age for the Lord. Some of us, when we entered, it was not because of money or anything. We just felt God is calling us to make a difference.
It was a time when the Anglican Church would not allow Pentecostal practices. It was a time when people believed that you just go into the church, you clap and you go back home. But some of us felt God is saying something different, that God should be more involved in the activities of His creatures.
What was it like joining the ministry at a young age?
Those of us that joined that time, we thank God that none has fallen by the way. That is to let you know that it is the call of God upon us and that is what we refer to at all times.
I spoke yesterday with some group of people and I said there are things I will never call people to do. One of them is coming to the ordained ministry of the church. It is personal. And if God has called you and you have difficulties, you can still go back to the one who called you. And that is the best that can happen to anybody. We have three types of callings. God calls people. The church itself can call you. Maybe they see some gifts in you and you are carried away with that. Then you have problems, who will you meet? You can also call yourself.
If unemployment is biting so hard and you believe that going into the ministry will secure some things or you. But the point is that, after 10 years, the difference will be there among those three categories of people that have been called to the ministry.
So we thank God that we came in, not because of any other thing or that because we didn’t have other choices, but we believe it was God. And God has manifested that these past 28 years I’ve been talking about.
What’s your position on the tithing debate?
I’ve listened to a lot of debates going on in the recent past and I’m of the opinion that the bible is very clear. The difference between our set up and other denominations is that the tithe is not for the priest. The tithe is for the church. In fact, most of our churches, the highest income they have is from the tithes. If I have to take the tithe of this cathedral, we will not be able to maintain the premises because the bulk of the money that my Cathedral collects is from tithes.
And tithe is scriptural. It is biblical and the condition is there that if you want God to rebuke devourers and we must allow food to be in the store. So, it might be rocking some other denominations but not the Anglican Church or the orthodox churches because the tithe is for God and the tithe is being used for the gospel.
The tithe is being used for evangelism. As a bishop of this Diocese, I’m not entitled to the tithes of the people. I don’t touch it. They don’t give it to me because it is exclusively for the use of the church.
If it is a one man church, everything comes to you; your wife is probably the treasurer. It is not like that in the Anglican Church. In the Anglican Church, three people sign a cheque. How does the money belong to the pastor? So the Anglican Church is so different. And that is why we thank God that we have been in existence for more than 150 years and we are still very solid.
My stand on tithing is that whatever is scriptural should not be open to debate. It is unfortunate.
But a lot of people don’t share that view…
There was a time I read a particular article on the papers where somebody said the pastors are enjoying the tithes, they are spending the tithe. I want to say that sometimes, erroneously, when people see pastors wearing a good shirt or a good shoe, it does not mean that he has used the tithe to buy it.
Sometimes if you serve God, God will service you. When people come with their diverse troubles and challenges and you pray for them and God answers because He has called you for that purpose and they return with gratitude to God and something private is given to you and you use it to buy a shoe, some people might say it is tithe money.
Many times, people offend God. That’s the way I see it. I have one or two vehicles in my premises that were given to me to use. I cannot tell you how much they were bought. Somebody just felt this man is fantastic. God is using this man. He is not particular about what he wants to get but about what he wants to give.
So for you now to see my wife tomorrow with a new shoe and you say it is the tithe money, sometimes we are offending God. And God understands that human beings are limited in everything. So my own idea about tithe is that it should be paid. Know where you pay your tithe.
