AFRICAN PLUME

“Shysters in God’s House” By Akin Ojumu That we have snake oil salesmen parading themselves in the aisles of the Church today is nothing new. Since the inception of Christianity, there have always been conmen selling nonexistent bridges from the Church pulpits. In the 16th century, Johann Tetzel was the most notorious of them all. Johann Tetzel was a German monk of the Dominican mendicant order. Not particularly known for his theological depth, Tetzel made up for his shortcomings by becoming the leading hawker of indulgences for Pope Leo X and the Archbishop Albert of Mainz. As a hawker of indulgences, Johann Tetzel built a reputation as an unseemly and despicable snake oil salesman. As stated last time, an indulgence is a penance sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church where an individual is said to receive full or partial remission of punishment for their sins. By obtaining an indulgence, a person could have some or all of their time in purgatory eliminated after their death. Purgator

“Buying Your Way Out of Hell” By Akin Ojumu After the slight detour, we now return to our deliberation on the houses of horror, erroneously called Churches, in Nigeria. In today’s commentary, the category of Churches under discussion are those I’d call the “Buying and Selling Churches.” Often attributed to the Spanish-American philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist, George Santayana, the aphorism, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” is a popular saying many of us use today. It aptly applies to the modern-day Church. A lot of the problems confronting Christianity today can be attributed to the profound amnesia of modern-day Christians. Because the Church has forgotten its history, the Body of Christ is repeating the tragic mistakes of the past. What do I mean by that? Well, I mean Jan Hus. If you are wondering who or what in the world is Jan Hus, you’ve proven my point. The fact that you’ve never heard the name Jan Hus until just now is indicative of the a

By Akin Ojumu Before continuing with the “Nigeria Houses of Horror” commentary series, I thought to share this video clip which sort of encapsulates everything that’s wrong with contemporary Christianity. The video is produced by Jubilee Media, a social media platform whose stated mission is to: ‘bridge people together and inspire love through compelling stories, create shareable, human-centric videos that create connection, challenge assumptions, and touch the soul, and ultimately to inspire people to live deeper.’ One of the most popular series produced by Jubilee Media is a dialogue session called the “Middle Ground.” Fashioned after the deliberative colloquy format, the Middle Ground brings together groups of people with shared identities and asks them a series of questions. The participants are generally presented with a series of serious prompts, such as, ‘LGBTQ people won ’ t go to heaven. Step forward if you agree.’ All participants from either side who agree with the statement

“Church or Cult, Which is Yours?” By Akin Ojumu For far too long, many have mistaken dens of demons for the Dwelling of the Divine. Tragically, the world confuses horror houses with God’s House. As we said last time, just because a group of people gather together and call itself a Church doesn’t mean it’s a Church. A Church isn’t a Church simply by the name by which it’s known. Before proceeding to discuss the next broad category of Churches in Nigeria, I think we should first clear the air and erase the confusion about what a Church truly is. Simply speaking, the Church is an assembly of dead sinners whom it has pleased the LORD to call out of damnable sinful existence into a union with Christ and into communion with each other. This is a living Church and a holy Household of those who have received the Spirit of adoption as sons and to whom God is, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15). Members of this Household of Adopted Sons are “beloved of God and called out to be saints” (Romans 1:7). T

“Sam Adeyemi’s Gospel Profits Nothing” By Akin Ojumu What makes a Church a Church, in the eyes of many people, is that it calls itself a Church. A popular misconception among the hoi polloi is to accept as a true Church any group of people gathered together under the guise of a Church. This mendacious mental image, cynically and maliciously implanted in our subconscious mind, must be expunged forthwith. It’s high time to expel the fallacious notion deep-seated in our collective psyche that any building that has the name “Church” stamped on its walls is indeed a true Church. A Church is not a Church simply because it names itself Church. Calling itself a Church does not make it a Church no more than standing in a garage makes anyone a car. It’s not what an assembly of people calls itself that makes them a Church. What defines a Church is its fidelity to Scripture, fealty to the Lord Jesus, and loyalty to God Almighty. As the late R.C. Sproul put it: “Just because a Church is a Church do

“The Parable of Dollars” By Akin Ojumu Every so often, I’m asked the question: “Which Church would you recommend without any reservation to a new Believer in Nigeria? Is there a place of worship you would suggest without the slightest hesitation to anyone looking to make a change of the Church scenery?” Whenever people come to me to ask this question, their furrowed brow, puzzled expression, quizzical gaze, fidgeting, stuttering, and trailing off in mid-sentence betray the pent-up frustration and the barely concealed exasperation that undergird the inquiry. These questions are not, in anyway, asked whimsically or facetiously. They are posed by serious Christians genuinely sick and tired of the state of affairs in their various denominations. Unlike the average penny-pinching Scrooge who keeps her eyes perpetually open for the next BOLO (i.e., Be On the Look Out) deal or the discount-chasing Couponer who seems to always know where to find a BOGO (ie., Buy One Get One free) bargain, once

By Akin Ojumu Alarmingly, the vast majority of contemporary Christians minimize the existential threat false teachers pose to the Church of God. With a shrug of the shoulders, Believers of our day trivialize the grave peril the rapidly burgeoning false teachings represent to the Body of Christ. In this commentary, I will yet again attempt to blow the trumpet and sound the alarm on the clear and present danger of false teachers and their false teachings. My prayer is that God’s people, when they read this, will be jolted out of the hypnotic spell they are under. It’s my sincere hope they’ll snap out of the bewitching slumber they’ve been put. Folks, you must understand that false teachers are like disease carrying and transmitting vectors. They are rampaging pestilence laying waste the faith of many who name the name of Christ. The fact that some who worship in the houses of horror where false teachers preside are still hanging on to the faith is actually in spite of, and not because of

By Akin Ojumu Beloved Family, Dearest Friends, Feisty Foes, Cherished Classmates, Neighborly Neighbors; Lend me your ears, I pray thee this day. Today, I speak not to foment theological tango, incite doctrinal disputations or provoke political polemics. Those are for another day. The pause button on rabble-rousing will be lifted when the party balloons deflate. The saber-rattling will resume when the celebration glitters settle. I come here today to pray that the kind words you heaped on me be multiplied to you a thousand fold. May the good wishes you send my way be returned in ceaseless ways. I’m here prostrating to express my profound gratitude to everyone for allowing me to occupy your thoughts today. I go down on my knees to say that your prayers are received with a resounding gong of Amen. I want you to know that the birthday compliments are greatly appreciated from the bottom of my heart. Be reminded that you are all venerable men and be assured that you are all honorable women.

By Akin Ojumu Slowly but surely, our biological clock continues to tick until it runs out of juice. As the arms of the time machine in all of us pass through the various milestones of life, our feelings shift from the eager anticipation of the early young age to anxious trepidation of old age. When we were kids, we couldn’t wait to become adults. Now as adults, many of us wish we could turn the clock back and be kids again. This is especially the case when we reach the middle age. Generally defined as being between the ages of 40 and 60, the middle age is the penultimate period in the biological clock immediately preceding the onset of old age. This period in life comes with its own unique set of challenges. For some people, it can be an emotional rollercoaster of unimaginable proportion. Just as in the teenage years, when we experienced physiological and psychological changes of rapid growth spurts, sprouting hair is unusual places, raging hormones, deepening voices, and outbreak of u

By Akin Ojumu Very often, folks who write critical commentaries that expose the false teachings, false doctrines, and the myriads of shenanigans that go on in Christendom wonder whether their messages are breaking through the din of distraction and deception that seem to have deadened the discernment of many believers.  From time to time, those who earnestly contend for the purity of the Christian faith ponder on the success, or lack thereof, of their thankless efforts of unmasking idolaters masquerading as Christian pastors. Defenders of the fidelity of Christian beliefs frequently ask themselves questions such as: “Can anyone hear me?” “Is anybody out there listening?” “Am I making any difference?” “Is anyone reached?” “Are the charlatans reading this?” “Do what I write and say make impostors queasy and uneasy?” Most of the time, the response to these questions is…crickets! All they get is an eardrum shattering silence. Nevertheless, there are those precious rare moments when the wol

By Akin Ojumu To anyone paying attention, Satan’s agenda to corrupt the Church is an open secret. Keen observers of these things are not unaware of the intentions of the prince of darkness to infest Christianity. In Nigeria, one of Satan’s leading agents in his destructive scheme is Mother Esther Ajayi, the founder of Love of Christ Generation Church, Cherubim & Seraphim (Worldwide). Ever since this mistress of Satan busted into the scene, she has deployed a well-worn strategy, which is to ingratiate herself with the Body of Christ in Nigeria. Satan understands that the best way to bring the Church down is to erode its foundation. First, he blurs the lines by making it difficult to tell the difference between a true Household of Faith and den of demons.  Next, Satan targets the leadership of the Church by putting them in compromising positions. He makes sure that his agents receive the necessary legitimacy by having them hobnob with respected leaders of the faith. Wittingly or unwi

“Worthless Commands and Feckless Demands” By Akin Ojumu Brash egotism is an affront to God’s transcendence and our insolent pomposity is a slight to His magnificence. It is vanity to issue directives and decrees to the One who holds the universe by the power of His might. Demonstrating this misplaced brashness and misguided hutzpah was Kenneth Copeland, the grand poobah of the Word of Faith movement himself, when back in March 2020, at the very early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, he stood in the empty chamber of his massive auditorium to address his followers virtually. Brimming with hubris, he pronounced judgement on COVID-19, saying: “Standing in the office of the prophet of God. I execute judgement on you COVID-19. I execute judgment on you Satan. You destroyer. You killer. You get out…you break...break…we break your power. You get off this nation. I demand judgment on you. I demand…I demand…I demand a vaccination to come immediately. I call you gone. I call you doggone. You come