The Primate of The Church of the Lord (Prayer Fellowship), Archbishop Rufus Ositelu, turned 70 during the week. He tells TOFARATI IGE about his experience as a church leader, situation of the country and other issues
At 70, how do you feel physically, spiritually and in other areas?
By the grace of God, at 70, physically, I feel younger. I am still very agile. Spiritually, I feel endowed and blessed because of the wisdom, knowledge and understanding that God has endowed me with.
While growing up, did you envisage that you would become the leader of the church?
It never crossed my mind. I never even prayed to become a pastor; talk more of being the head of a church denomination.
Some years back, you stated that you were going to modify some of the church’s practices to align it with current trends, and to encourage youths in church. How effective have those changes been over the years?
I thank God for that because through His help and inspiration, we have been able to introduce a few changes here and there. However, the one that is very important is retaining our youths, and we started with campus fellowships. That has grown and we have our fellowships in many tertiary institutions today. Some of them have even grown into full-fledged churches, like the one in Ago- Iwoye, Ogun State. It has been very successful and we are still growing.
Change is not always acceptable by all. How were you able to deal with people who wanted to continue in the old ways?
This church is directed by the Holy Spirit, so everything we do is based on the Holy Spirit’s directive. That’s one aspect of it.
Also, when the change is what God wants, it will naturally be successful. However, there is also the wisdom of God on how to introduce change. God gave me this (wisdom) a long time before I even became a minister of God, talk more of becoming the Primate.
There is a scenario about change that I always like to share. An Anglican Church priest and a Methodist Church priest went for a seminar and new changes were introduced, which was different from what had always obtained in the past. In those churches, the pulpit is usually on the left but at the conference, they were told that the pulpit should now be in the middle. Many of the priests in attendance wanted to go back to their churches and implement the change. One went, tried it and was unsuccessful. But, the other tried and was successful. One day, the former visited the latter’s church and was surprised that the pulpit there was now in the middle. He then engaged his colleague in conversation, explaining that the elders in his church were against it when he tried it there. The other cleric that was successful replied that he used the wisdom of God to effect the change. What he did was to move the pulpit by one inch every Sunday and no one noticed it by the time it eventually got to the centre. They didn’t see the change because it happened gradually. That is the wisdom of God. When one wants to change the tradition that God wants, one would have to do it step by step.
As someone who was already accomplished in the private sector before coming to head the church, what are some of those things you learnt in the corporate world that are helping you in leading the church?
Most importantly, leadership. In the corporate world and many associations I headed while in Germany, God gave me the grace to be a (good) leader. In addition to that leadership trait, I was able to acquire some other qualities. However, there were some things I did not learn, such as integrity. It was embedded in me right from secondary school. I was not even conscious of it but my schoolmates apparently saw it in me. I was made the social prefect when I was still in form four. Back then, students (in the school I attended) were the ones in charge of selecting the social prefect who would, in turn, keep their money and coordinate other activities. I was the first person to be elected from a junior class. It was a position usually reserved for the most senior class.
Are there times you miss being in the corporate world?
Not really. The things of God are bigger than the corporate world. (In the business world), I was working with Germans and sometimes, colleagues in the United States of America. But, heading a church that has branches worldwide, one has to deal with leaders in so many other countries with different cultures. It is a wider range; much more encompassing and demanding. I don’t miss anything (in the corporate world). I feel very much at home here. I enjoy what I do and I feel blessed for the opportunity.
The truth is that sometimes, people mean well when they criticise leaders. Criticism is good and gives room for advancement. A good leader should try to see the sense in criticisms. It is important to give one’s critics the opportunity to implement some of the things they suggested, provided they are good ideas.
There was a time the current Chancellor of the church (Baba Shofolahan) and the late Primate Olusegun (Ositelu) sent a proposal to the then Primate Emmanuel Adejobi about certain things that could be done to move the church forward. Baba Adejobi then set up a committee and made the two of them the leaders. That is what a good leader does. If one has an in-depth understanding of what leadership entails, and one has the mind of God, criticisms would not be a big deal to one. But if one has other agendas that contradict what God wants, one will have problems. If one is transparent, one would not have any issues.
I don’t have leadership challenges. People have one challenge or the other but I don’t have any. It’s not that I’m perfect but God has given me the grace. I don’t have any problem at all.
In this part of the world, some church leaders see criticism as a war against them. What do you have to say to such people in terms of using criticism to get the best for their organisations?
If people criticise one, it will help to bring the church into a much greater light. That’s what criticism does. Those criticising one may have bad intentions, but one can get the best out of it. People sometimes criticise one for their selfish reasons; not for the advancement of the church. But, if one takes the positive aspects of the criticisms, it will work for one. One has to develop a thick skin to absorb all manner of things. No criticism can move me.
When we were creating dioceses, some people said I was just dividing the church anyhow. An elder then asked me to list the churches (branches) that had been pioneered during my tenure, so it will shut critics up. So, I told the church administrator, Bishop Kole Fabusoro, to list about 200 of the new churches that were pioneered and led to the creation of more dioceses. In the course of my birthday celebrations, some (of those new) churches will also be listed. We have done so many foundation laying and church dedications. It got to a stage that we stopped pioneering because we did not have enough ministers to ‘pastor’ those churches. We have churches all over the world. Before this administration, we only had churches in Sierra Leone, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Liberia and the United Kingdom. We had no church in the United States of America. But, by the grace of God, today, we have at least, three or four standard churches and many house fellowships in the USA. Now, we have two churches in New Jersey, and two in New York (Brooklyn and Bronx).
By the time those churches were listed, the elder who came to me said, ‘Well done. This will silence the critics that had bad intentions’. There was a time we sent students in groups of two and four to pioneer churches. As we speak, we have about 20 churches without full-time ministers. That’s why we stopped (creating new churches) because we don’t have enough pastors. The new ‘harvest’ of ministers from the seminary is not even enough to fill the vacancies already on ground. So, why should we create trouble for ourselves? However, that was the thinking of man. When we stopped (creating churches) officially, because of lack of manpower, God continued the process. One of our members could just demand to have a church in their town. The person would provide the land, build the church and the faith home (where clerics reside). That is how the pioneering of churches continued till date. So, you can see that criticism can sometimes bring enlightenment and improvement.
Talking about planting churches, a particular church was recently in the news for sacking some pastors because they did not meet their target. Do you think pastors should be assessed based on the number of members they bring to the church?
No, pastors should not be evaluated based on such conditions. The Bible teaches us that if a Christian (whether a member or pastor) is derailing, such people should be brought back to the right path using discipline and love to achieve that purpose. Discipline is mainly to correct, not to despise. A leader should not take decisions based on their personal opinions but according to what is stated in relevant guidelines. The church has a printed guideline that every minister has. Even when we discipline them, we state the guideline they flouted that warranted the correction. Even then, we can still look mercifully upon the defaulter in the manner of the sanctions that are meted out. But, when one attempts to discipline people without leaving room to reabsorb them (that is not good). In the past, when we disciplined and reabsorbed some ministers that misbehaved, some ministers blamed me for taking them back. But, the situation was that many of those who misbehaved had good qualities but they had challenges. So, even when they had gone for several years, they still came back and performed better than some of those that did not misbehave and were in the system all along.
Meanwhile, how does one measure performance? Some of those people that were suspended actually abused me and his senior colleagues in the ministry. Some people felt bad about such things and did not want the offenders to be brought back into the organisation, but things like that don’t affect me. The Bible teaches us to reabsorb people into the fold when they come back to their senses. It is the quality of their work that makes them better; unlike people that did not misbehave but did not improve in terms of winning souls for Christ.
Anything we do (in running churches) should come from the point of view of the scriptures, and not commerce.
If you were asked to wish for three things on the occasion of your 70th birthday, what will you wish for?
The number one thing I would wish for is for God to give me more wisdom to lead His people. Second, that God should give me good health because one needs sound health to do a lot of things. Lastly, I want God to make provisions so I can carry out all the wonderful things I have planned for the church.
Considering that the church has branches in several countries with different cultures, are there some doctrines that are accepted in Africa but not in Europe, America and other places?
There is a difference between doctrines, practices and observances. Doctrine is general all over the world. Doctrines are statements of faith, and have nothing to do with the continent the church is on. The difference comes in the areas of practices and observances. Some practices are biblically correct but not practicable in other parts of the world though that also has a caveat because nothing is impracticable when one has the means. For example, when our church started in the UK, we had a very big building and we could not use the heater for some reasons. As a result of that, congregants were wearing shoes (as against the church’s practice of not wearing shoes when in the church) because of the weather. God deals with the heart and knew the situation on the ground then did not permit them not to wear shoes inside the church. Even Jesus said it’s not just one’s action that counts; one’s thoughts alone can ‘convict’ one. For example, if one sees a lady and imagines raping her, that person has already committed the offence in his mind.
Church leaders are believed to swim in money, while some of them say they actually have to make a lot of sacrifices. What is the reality for you?
There are different types of churches and denominations in the world. In most cases, the richest ministers of God are from Pentecostal churches; one would not find the ministers of orthodox churches on that list. In that case, practices and observances are different. One is money centred, and they are actually called ‘churches of prosperity’, because that is what they preach mostly. As rich as the Catholic church is, have you ever heard of an archbishop of church owning a private jet? No! Not even the Pope has one. God is taking care of our ministers but they may not be considered as wealthy in the physical sense.
What are some of the sacrifices you have made as the leader of the church?
One of them is having to deal with how things are not functional in this country. The weather is also a big challenge but I am ready to do anything for Christ’s sake. I don’t mind being drenched in sweat in the course of doing God’s work. The way things are (done) in Africa, and Nigeria particularly, is very uncomfortable, even when one has money. Sometimes, appliances and equipment could get spoilt and they would not be repaired for months because of my busy schedule. I don’t spend money carelessly; I am very prudent.
Whenever I am travelling abroad by air with my money, I use first-class. But, if the church is sponsoring my trip, I use economy class. However, most Africans I know do the exact opposite. Whenever they spend their money, they try to be frugal; but when spending the church’s money, they do so lavishly. As a matter of fact, it was the Primate in Council that ‘forced’ me not to use economy anymore. They said even if I did not want to use first class, I should use business class. That decision is documented. They even insisted that they would contribute money from their purses if the church could not bear the cost.
After that resolution, the first time I asked for a first-class ticket, I could not, in good faith, spend so much money on a trip when the church had many unfinished projects. So, we settled for economy premium. I am always content with whatever I have. Even at home, I eat whatever I am served, just like the Bible admonishes. Even when my children demand for different dishes, I just tell my wife to serve me whatever is available. If we follow what the scriptures say, we would find life easy.
My late mum was also that way. At a point, I had to seize her pension, because whenever she collected her pension, she would share it among people who approached her with different challenges, before getting home. She was so simple.
There are quite a number of Aladura churches, especially in Africa. As a member of the United Aladura Churches, what steps have been taken to unite these churches?
The experience, so far, has been good but it can be better. When they came to me in 1998, they wanted to revive (an association called) Isokan Aladura, and they didn’t want the then leader anymore. I prayed over it and God told me what to do, which was to establish the United Aladura Churches. God actually gave me that name, and people accepted it. However, when they went to register it with the Corporate Affairs Commission, the name was rejected. Because we were eager (to get it done), we told them to come up with a name and they suggested the ‘Conclave of Aladura Churches’. They put it down and assured us they would register it. We then went to open a bank account that is still functional but when they went back to the CAC, they were told that their computer had accepted the name they initially rejected.
The aim was to come together to correct the wrong impressions some people had about white garment churches. It was also to provide insight and talk to ourselves about the bad conduct of some white garment church members. We said we would come together and tell our members to desist from atrocities. That way, if any independent white garment church does anything wrong, we would be able to boldly say they are not part of us. We cannot stop wearing white garment because some people are bastardising it. It is better to bring ourselves in tune with the word of God, as that is the only way we can eradicate those atrocities. We are not yet there but there have been significant changes.
Many Nigerian Christians seem to have more respect for their pastors than even for God. How does that make you feel?
It is not good but there is a reason for that. Many Christians are actually limited in their knowledge of the Bible, so they hold in high regard their pastors who are well versed in the scriptures. If such pastor wrongly interprets the Bible to them, they are likely to get away with it because of the limited knowledge of the members. That is why a lot of people see their pastors as the next to Jesus Christ. They believe everything they tell them. The solution to this is for Christians to study their Bibles more and get to know the mind of God better.
The pastor is supposed to be a guide. The Bible is there for anyone to read and meditate upon.
Nigeria is a very religious country, yet there are so many crimes. Where is the disconnection from?
Many Nigerians are churchgoers, not practising Christians. A true Christian would practise what is written in the Bible. But, a churchgoer has other agendas for going to church. It could be because the person is looking for a job, spouse or any other thing. That is what is causing many of the problems we have today because many people are not sincere.
What can church leaders do to change the situation?
I must confess that the situation has been changing gradually but not fast enough. They (church leaders) must continue to clearly preach the word of God. He knows our needs and will provide them at the right time. Like the beggar at the Golden Gate (in the Bible), all he wanted was alms but God gave what he actually needed, which was healing.
The 2023 general elections are fast approaching. What message do you have for political leaders?
My advice is for them to change for the better. They should stop deceiving the people. They should not give people alms; rather, they should provide basic amenities such as good schools, hospitals, road and other infrastructure that even they, as politicians, can use.
Most importantly, they should have the fear of God.
You have often spoken about restructuring and fiscal federalism as the panacea to many of the country’s problems. Which kind of leader do we need that can implement such changes?
We are not practising true federalism. Everything does not need to be at the centre. We need to decentralise governance for progress to be faster. If we practice true federalism, there will be healthy competition among the states. The type of leader we need is one who is intelligent, well exposed, has a good track record and fears God. Also, the leader must be courageous, so that they can handle certain people who are regarded as the powers that be in this country. If they do the right thing, history will remember them nicely.
As the elections are coming, politicians will start visiting churches for campaigns. What truths should clerics tell them about the way forward for the country?
Some religious leaders are doing that already, while some cannot because of what they are getting from the politicians. Some religious leaders receive favours from government and cannot speak the truth to them.
Meanwhile, it is not as if they (leaders) are not hearing the truth, they just don’t act on them for whatever reasons. There are times I have spoken to leaders about doing certain things, and they tell me about some of the constraints they have. Some of those reasons actually made sense because a leader cannot lead in isolation. He has to be supported by the people working with him and other citizens.
What is your favourite food and how often do you eat it?
My children would tell you that I love pasta (especially macaroni) the most. I also like pounded yam, as well as ikokore with cold eba. However, there is no food I cannot eat. I don’t force my wife to prepare any particular meal.
Do you cook?
As a student in Europe and even in Nigeria, I used to cook. I actually started going to restaurants when I started working. I know how to manage things.
When you’re not wearing the white garment, how do you like to dress?
I dress normally. When people see me attending conferences, they always marvel because I dress in suits, jeans and T-shirts. I dress anyhow I feel. I am a free person and I don’t put myself in any box.
How do you unwind?
Reading and writing. I love to do a lot of research and it has been profitable for me. Just a few weeks ago, a professor in the University of Ibadan contacted me to shed light on an ongoing argument about the history of African instituted churches. Meanwhile, I had just written an article on that topic before his question came up, so I sent him the article. He was impressed and called me a walking encyclopedia.
If I have the time, I also like to play table tennis with my children. I used to win them but they have started beating me now.
Is there anything that age has stopped you from doing?
Not now but I know it will come. It is natural. Also, I am gradually introducing some changes to the church, but they have nothing to do with age.
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