Some Common Issues Cameroonian Churches Must Address
By Hans Ngala
It is a truism that there is no shortage of things that can make us to fill uneasy in our churches regardless of what church one attends. Church is supposed to be a place where we come together to worship God and the Bible says that this ought to be done in an orderly manner, so that non-believers would not wonder what we are doing (1 Cor. 14:26-40).
The Bible is supposed to be the Rulebook for Protestants especially (in Cameroon these would include Baptists, Presbyterians and most Pentecostals), but a close examination of some of the practices in these churches and perhaps Roman Catholics –shows that there are some of these actions that are akin to mere “religiousity” and not grounded in Biblical truth.
Here are a few of them:
- Singling out those who brought tithes and offerings and not everyone
It is not uncommon to hear pastors or “prophets” asking those who have brought their tithes and offerings to get up (and sometimes to come forward) so that he can pray for them. The impression this gives is that those who have not given (genuinely because they lack), cannot also be prayed for. It gives the impression that we value finances more in God’s house but this should not be so. We should give cheerfully and not out of compulsion, reason why Jesus celebrated the widow who came and gave her very last coin in the Temple.
- Asking people to stand up and dance or to make a noise for Jesus
Worship is a matter of the heart and not so much about displays of emotion. Let’s assume that you go to church and you’re jumping and shouting and clapping but there is an unconfessed sin (which you know of) and you don’t ask God to cleanse you of this sin but are busy clapping and singing at the top of your lungs, this will not please God who sees all this as “filthy rags”.
Rather than getting people riled up, worship leaders should seek to make worshippers to seek God’s face , to repent and to worship God. However, it should not be as if those who choose to sit and meditate are not worshipping God. Jesus gave the example of two people who went up to the Temple to pray and one stood and glorified himself while the other simply asked God to be merciful to him, a sinner. Some people may just be dealing with a lot and need to be seated to better talk with God, so do not prompt them to stand because you or others, are standing.
- Asking people to pray aloud and the cacophony of collective prayer
“Bee praying” as Fr. Tata Humphrey Mbuy, a Roman Catholic scholar defines it, is the practice of everyone praying at once during worship. This practice has its origins in the Pentecostal movement. While there is no Biblical basis for this type of prayer, it has become commonplace in most Protestant churches now.
It often involves a worship leader prompting worshippers and telling them to pray about specific issues. It is understandable that the Bible says we do not know how to pray or what we ought to pray for (Romans 8:26) but there is hardly any Scriptural evidence that “bee praying” was practiced by the New Testament church. The passage in 1 Corinthians 14 from verse 26 to 40 clearly indicates that Paul wanted the church to do things in an organized fashion. There is hardly anything ‘organized’ about 1,000 people all yelling at the top of their lungs in prayer. A non-believer would hardly make sense of it too. No wonder Jesus said when you want to pray, go into a room, close the door and pray (Matthew 6:6) and He Himself had the habit of going out in the mountains to pray (Matthew 14:23 ). This supposes two things:
- That Jesus wanted to be away from other people who would distract Him during prayer
- That Jesus knew that prayer was supposed to be a solemn affair, hence He needed the serenity He would get in the mountains
- Thinking that worship is supposed to last 5 hours on Sunday mornings
The average Cameroonian Sunday service lasts at least 3 hours, with some churches lasting 5 hours and some Pentecostal churches either lasting all day or having several services within the day.
This mindset that the more time we spend in church, the more we are praying is not true. The intention is good, but the reality is that after two hours, most people are already exhausted and not paying much attention. Keeping the Sabbath holy definitely includes going to church and worshipping God, but to keep people in church with lengthy church programs that sometimes include special numbers (songs that individuals want to present), announcements upon announcements, lengthy sermons and lengthy prayers is not the best. It is better if church leaders can preach for 30 to 45 minutes, and announcements are done for a few minutes and prayers for another 30 minutes. People will leave from the church still alert and able to attend to other activities for the day and not tired , having no recollection of what the sermon was about as is often the case most times.
