By Adeola Ogunlade
The Senior Pastor of PRAISE ARENA, Kingdom Light Christian Centre, Lekki Lagos, Pastor Jummy Adetoyese-Olagunju, has thrown his weight behind the suspension of reopening churches by the Lagos State Government saying it poses serious threat to the lives of people.
Adetoyese-Olagunju who said this while reacting to the indefinite suspension placed on the reopening of churches by the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Thursday in Lagos, said that the initial order for the reopening of churches was of great concern to him and some church leaders due to the increase in COVID-19 cases.
He noted that studies across the World has shown that in some Countries, the rise in the infections and death rate were traced to some religious organization where people gathered in large numbers thereby fueling the infections.
He said, “opening the religious centers at a time we have such increase in Lagos State is like walking into COVID-19 death trap and no church leader will be happy to see their members dead when the pandemics is eventually over.
“In Africa, we are socially connected based on our culture hence you can’t sustain too much social distance in the churches for too long because of the sense of divine security that may result in non-compliance with the much needed safety precautions” he said.
He charged church leaders to go digital by exploring the possibility of using social media for their services which is also an opportunity for the church talking over the air waves.
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“In our church, our online services on Facebook moved from 250 view to more than 30,000 views and 8,000 ThruPlays when we explored ways to reach wider audience across the Country. Necessity is the mother of inventions”, he said.
“Although not having the traditional congregational services affected church finances, but we are happy that more people are able to hear the transforming messages through wider outreach via online services on the social media, which is the essence of the great commission. God who knows our sincerity will reward our efforts in due season”, he said
He stated further that rather than seeing this as a setback for church growth, it should be seen as opportunity to invigorate the house church as it was done in the early church when services was from house to house; “It was not a big gathering and that was how the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ spread round the whole World.”
On the clamour for corporate worship and prayer in the Church as antidote for COVID-19 and justification for reopening of the church; Adetoyese-Olagunju said that the Priest in the Bible days ensured that people who had contagious diseases were isolated and quarantined outside the city until they were certified healed.
He assured that the pandemic will go away, everything the Church would have lost will be divinely provided by God Almighty and the gospel would reach more souls, but we only need to exercise some patience and give the much needed support to the Government.
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