The Executive President of the Ghana Baptist Convention, Rev Dr Ernest Adu Gyamfi, has admonished the clergy to pursue real academic studies to obtain doctorate titles rather than searching for the one sold at the market place.
According to him, it was better to gain what you have toiled for in school than to crave for cheap, fake and questionable hand-outs from unknown sources.
Addressing church leaders and pastors of the Ghana Baptist Church at their 53rd annual convention, Rev Adu Gyamfi cautioned against the acceptance of honorary doctorate titles from institutions whose credibility cannot be authenticated.
He noted church growth was linked to the kind of human resource the church had at its disposal, adding leaders must pursue academic studies to balance the spiritual sharpness they possessed.
STRATEGY:
As part of the church’s strategy to weed out or stop its pastors from hanging on to fake doctorate titles, Rev Dr Adu Gyamfi announced it was scrutinizing all who had doctorate titles to their names.
This, he said is a way of sieving out from its stables anyone with fake, cheap or unmerited doctorate or other higher titles.
He noted with worry the extent at which many in the society were craving to have huge and exhorted titles to their names.
The President described the current craze as a ‘national epidemic’, insisting many who had acquired these unmerited titles were making nonsense of those who seek for same in real academic studies.
GREATNESS:
Speaking at the function as guest speaker, Prof Stephen Adei, former Rector at Ghana Institute of Management and Professional Administration (GIMPA), cautioned the clergy against the notion that academic excellence was testament to one’s spiritual level.
Many, he said had the wrong perception that having a title or degree to one’s name makes him or her more important in the society.
‘’The acquisition of titles and honorary doctorate is no way an explanation for one’s spiritual level or maturity’’, the Ashesi University Lecturer stated.
However, Prof Adei called on the church to rather strive to mirror Christ to the world.
CHARGE:
He charged them to pursue real academic excellence to make them a balanced people who are fit for every good work and purpose.
According to him, what makes a servant of God or Pastor complete was the knowledge one had about Christ as the Lord and Savior of Mankind.
