MEGA EVENT:: RCCG Opens Convention With Ordination of 8,622 Deacons

A GROWING church should be one that continues steadfastly in
fellowship, study and prayer. Each believer amongst them
should grow and become strong in the Lord. The church that
will grow must be a studying church, a sharing church and a
praying church with manifestations of signs, wonders and
miracles, just like the early church.’—Pastor Enoch Adeboye.

THE Redeemed Christian Church of God, reputed to be the
fastest growing church in the world, will this morning ordain a
total of 8,622 deacons and deaconesses to flag off the 62nd
annual convention of the church which started in 1952 as a
daily prayer group under the leadership of Rev. Josiah
Akindayomi (1909–1980) after he had been involved in several
other churches. He was a member of the Cherubim and
Seraphim Church.

Members of the Redeemed Christian church of God from all

over the country arriving for the 62nd Annual Convention at

the RCCG headquarter,s KM 46, Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

Photo: Lamidi Bamidele

Thirteen men, including the then Brother Josiah Akindayomi

(founder), Brother J.A. Fakunmoju, Brother Makun (the first
ordained pastor in the church). Brother J.A. Adekoya, Brother
S.K. Padonu and Brother S.A. Olonode, Brother Fadiora,
Brother Ilenusi, Brother Okuwobi and Brother Fetuga started the
group. The other three brothers were Brother Adefeso, Brother
G. A Adefunwa and Brother Matiluko.

The 13 brothers continued to worship at 9, Willoughby Street,
Ebute Meta, Lagos having been excommunicated from the
Cherubim and Seraphim Church. In the course of their
fellowshipping they needed to have their own identity.

Thus, the group was first called the Apostolic Faith of South
Africa. Though it had no link with South Africa, it was
documented in a booklet published by the church to mark its
50th anniversary that the first name given to the church was a
“classic example of the innocence of Rev. Akindayomi…
Sometime later, after learning that Nigeria is not in Southern
Africa, he changed the name of the group to the Apostolic Faith
Mission of West Africa.”

But all those names soon gave way to the current Redeemed
Christian Church of God after a divine encounter the founder
had with God. He was said to have been woken up in a trance
and given its current name though he was not a lettered
person. Bro. Olanode one of his lieutenants who was educated
was said to have interpreted what the founder copied from the
vision as REDEEMED CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF GOD.

In the early 1970s, Akindayomi started to look for an educated
successor who was not at that time a member of the church.
He chose Enoch Adeboye, a lecturer in Mathematics
Department at the University of Lagos, who joined the church in
1973. Adeboye initially became one of the interpreters
translating Akindayomi’s sermons from Yoruba to English. He
was ordained a pastor of the church in 1975, and his
appointment as leader of the church was formalized by the
posthumous reading of Akindayomi’s sealed pronouncement.
Andrew Rice, writing in ‘The New York Times’, described the
RCCG as “one of (Africa’s) most vigorously expansionary
religious movements, a homegrown Pentecostal denomination
that is crusading to become a global faith”.
Global faith

According to Daniel Ajayi-Adeniran, a pastor of the church, “In
every household there will be, at least, one member of
Redeemed Christian Church of God in the whole world.”
From that humble beginning, the church has grown by leaps
and bounds to have branches in over 180 nations of the world
including parishes in Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon and in nearly all
seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates. According to
figures released last year, the church now has 18 regions in
Nigeria with varying number of provinces spread across the
country.

This morning, the leadership will ordain deacons and
deaconesses after an unusually expanded screening process to
weed out undeserving persons.
Ordination is the process by which individuals after a period of
training, are identified for consecration, that is, set apart as
clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The
process and ceremonies of ordination vary by religion and
denomination.

To avoid undesirable elements from infiltrating the ranks of the
ordainees, Pastor Adeboye made the process more transparent
by the publication of the screened candidates, urging members’
involvement, declaring: “we have posted the names of
members who have been screened for ordination, so that
whoever has any reason why they should not be ordained
should write a letter to us on why such a person should not be
ordained, we will then investigate and if the findings are true
such a minister would not be ordained.”

Last year, General Overseer of RCCG, Pastor Enoch Adeboye
presided over a similar ceremony where 8,850 men and women
were ordained as deacons and deaconesses to assist the
leadership of the church in the smooth running of the ever-
growing church.

The ceremony is scheduled for 8.30 a.m. The only other event
for the day, House Fellowship Leaders & Workers meeting is
billed for 8.30 p.m. and it will be followed by Council meeting.

source: naijagospel