Synagogue church leaders urged to prevent conflict, sustain humanitarian services
The leadership of the Synagogue Church has been asked to prevent the festering conflict in the Church saying that any threat to peace in the organization may have impact on the public safety and order.
In a statement on Tuesday made available to Irohinoodua, the Oodua Muslim-Christian Youth Dialogue Group, (OMCY-DG) urged the Members of Trustees of the Church and the immediate family of the late Pastor Temitope Joshua to find a common ground to prevent a slide into conflict and instability.
In a statement signed by Rahman Adekunle and Bisi Olaofe, the Co-Secretary on behalf of the OMCYDG, the group said it is worried about the budding crisis in the Church and its implication for public safety. The group said Synagogue Church has brought honour to Nigeria through its global humanitarian services adding that reports that foreigners in the Church are being sacked diminishes the image of Nigeria and the legacy of the Church’s founder.
The OMCYDG is an association of many Christian and Muslim groups with the sole aim of sustaining peaceful co-existence among all faith in Nigeria. MCYDG said it maintained contact with Pastor TB Joshua while alive and that the late Pastor made contributions to the first Muslim-Christian summit held in Lagos few years ago.
‘We have received complaints about the threat of violence, forceful eviction of some church leaders and the threat to life of some of the members of the Board of Trustees. We are deeply concerned about the impact on public safety considering the millions of followers the Church commands in Nigeria and across the world’, the statement said. The group said peace in the Church is necessary for stability in any where the members of the Church who are in millions reside.
Adekunle and Olaofe said the late Pastor Joshua even though he was a Christian did not discriminate in terms of his humanitarian services to Nigerians, Muslims and Christians and to people of all faith all over the world. The group said it will be a huge dis-service to his honour if the legacy of the Church is destroyed on the altar of ego, family supremacy and disregard for the spiritual and humanitarian goals of the Church.
The group urged the family and the Board of Trustees to find a common group. “It should be known that Synagogue Church of All Nations, (SCOAN) is no longer a property of one person but a public institution that has grown so big even beyond its founders.”
The MCYDG said “There should be no room for persecution of anybody especially those who were with the founder of the Church for decades. The idea of inviting state security operatives to intimidate and evict members is against the culture of peaceful resolution of conflict that Pastor Joshua was noted for. This threat and use of force must stop. The whole world is watching and we look forward to a peaceful resolution of whatever conflict that may exist in the Church. This has to be done with justice and fairplay to all parties for the progress of the Church and to dignify the image of the Church’s founder.
