BISHOP Richard Aryee has not hidden his disdain for the actions taken by the two bishops and four other pastors who have resigned from the Lighthouse Chapel International (now known as the United Denominations Originating from the Lighthouse Group of Churches (UD-OLGC).
The six former full-time ministers of the gospel have sued the church for “abuse and exploitation” they suffered when they laid down their promising career paths and took up a calling in full-time christian ministry. Among their grievances is their claim that the church failed to pay their Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) contributions while they worked around the world to build churches, preach the gospel and raise funds for the church.
The sextet did not even mention their tier-two pension contributions, which is also mandatory per Section 63 of the National Pensions Act.
The pastors say the failure of the church to pay their pension contribution is not due to the lack of funds. Bishop Oko Mensah was in charge of a popular Saturday dawn prayer clinic for seven years. It is not the main church service but under his stewardship, he says the dawn prayer meeting generated between GH₵18,000 to GH₵25,000 every Saturday. On a monthly basis, it fetched GH₵100,000. On one particular Saturday, the prayer clinic held a thanksgiving service and raised more than GH₵50,000.
Bishop Oko Mensah says these fund-raising prowess of the prayer clinic meetings put a smile on the face of a top administrator, Bishop EAT Sackey, who once commented, “we can build the Qadesh (a cathedral at Bortianor) with the prayer clinic offering.”
But despite this, the pastors say their pension contributions were neglected, and they have also petitioned SSNIT to investigate.
Since The Fourth Estate published the story in the three-part series—“Darkness in a lighthouse”—social media platforms of pastors and worshipers of the Lighthouse Chapel have reacted with disapproval.
They rebuked the former employees for “biting the hand that once fed them.” Their social media platforms have been buzzing with loyalty to the presiding bishop, Dag Heward-Mills, who has explained the loyalty doctrine in nine books.
Photo: The doctrine of Loyalty and Disloyalty is taught extensively and conscientiously using the nine books authored by the founder. The books are the staple theological diet of students of the church’s Anagkazo Bible and Ministry Training Center, (ABMTC).
Bishop Richard Aryee, who heads the United Kingdom branch of Lighthouse Chapel International, has posted videos of the resigned bishops, when they praised the Presiding Bishop, Dag Heward-Mills, years ago. He asked his followers to share.
He also posted messages hash-tagged #IStandAgainstDisloyalty and #IStandWithBishopDag.
Some members of the church have described the six as “greedy people” who made money their motivation, instead of embracing the sacrifices that come with full-time ministry.
But it appears the condition of service of “loyal” pastors such as Bishop Richard Aryee is not the same as those pastors who are being asked to focus on heavenly rewards instead of worldly possessions.
The Fourth Estate has sighted documents of the Lighthouse Chapel International that show that, in 2016, the church paid Bishop Richard Aryee an ex-gratia of £300,000 (GH¢2,430,000 as of March 2021.)
The entire social security contribution of Rev. Seth Duncan, a former pastor, who worked for 10 years is an estimated GHS135.
The Lighthouse Chapel International branch in the UK is registered with the Charities Commission for England and Wales. The commission is an independent department that seeks to regulate “charities in England and Wales, to ensure that the public can support charities with confidence.”
Churches in the UK are required to register with the Charities Commission for England and Wales and also submit audited accounts to the commission, which are then published on its website, register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk.
For Lighthouse Chapel International, the charity is registered as number 1110619, and is run by three trustees—Clement Opoku Amaning, Jude Ekow Baiden and Edmund Ansa-Asamoah.
The Fourth Estate has obtained a financial report, published on the UK’s charity commission’s website titled, “Report of the trustees and audited financial statements for the year ended 31st August, 2016 for The Lighthouse Chapel International.”
The report states that the church raised more than £1.31million in voluntary contributions, and spent £875,435 as the “cost of generating voluntary income.”
The main disbursements made, apart from the ex-gratia, were in support of the construction of churches in Dadieso and Hohoe and the construction of the Anagkazo Bible School project in Ghana. Monies were also sent for church construction in Swaziland and Kingston, Jamaica.
The £300,000 ex-gratia paid to Bishop Richard Aryee is the highest expenditure item for 2016, more than twice the next biggest item—the contribution to Anagkazo Bible school project of £125,001.
It is also the biggest donation item from the Lighthouse church in the UK from 2016 to the last audited report submitted in 2019. The sum is also more than the entire annual staff cost in any given year, according to the reports published on the website.
In the report, the church explains the reason for the payment of the ex-gratia. It says:
“During the year under review, the Trustees having made an application to the Charity Commission resolved to make an ex-gratia payment of 300,000 to Minister Richard Aryee. The payment made to him in his capacity as a Minister to support to support him in his ministry. The payment reflects the contribution he has made to the successful operations and growth of the church since he founded it in 1993.”
Bishop Richard Aryee is not on retirement. He is still serving in the church as the leader of Muster Seed Chapel International. The Fourth Estate has reached him for a comment but all messages and calls have not been responded to.
Back here in Ghana, the church has been battling allegations of neglect of its ministers and employees in court and also at SSNIT.
The pastors who have resigned and sued the Lighthouse say the exploitation by the church took different forms: a “deceptive” policy of “Become Who You Can Become”; undue pressure to raise funds, which turned them into beggars; and psychological effects of their ordeals, including suicide attempts.
Bishop Larry Odonkor, whose social security was not paid for 14 out of his nearly 19 years of full-time ministry, signed a missionary consent form to pledge his life to “a life of poverty”. But he insists even if he signed a document to be poor, he did not sign a document to be cheated.
The six have been roundly condemned by some members of the church as well as pastors and bishops.
Bishop Larry Odonkor is one of the pastors at the receiving end of social media condemnation. Some past videos of him praising Bishop Dag Heward-Mills have been widely shared. A loyalist, Bishop Richard Aryee has made several of such posts on his Facebook page.
In one of them, his face thunders a wild, wide smile. He stretches his arms aloft, as wide as a cross. And standing ahead of him is the man whose cause he has also made his cross—Dag Heward-Mills.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story shall not be republished or broadcast, in part or in full, in any form or shape without the express permission of the Editor-in-Chief.
You can reach the writer of this story, Edwin Appiah, via email at [email protected]. You can follow him on @edwinologyLB
YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN:
Darkness in a lighthouse: Pastors recount abuse and trauma (Pt.1)
Darkness in a lighthouse Part 2: “Suicide attempts, begging pastors”
Darkness in a lighthouse (Part 3): “Bishop Dag prayed for strength for me to divorce my wife”
Can say anything about this but if it is true then the church didn’t do well at all
#join cop and you won’t regret
If this is a ground for member courting then you are wrong.
Wait till “dissatisfied clergy” gang up and use media (aside other establiment like the Christian council etc) to ravage your COP.
Then you will know how a human Institution… Just like the fourth estate can be flawed on any set agenda.
Till then… He that stand should keep watch… the ground is available to the standing and to the fallen as well.
You are dead wrong comparing COP to only God knows what will become LCI in the next 30 years. You don’t even know what to call it. LCI or what? It is a personality cult and will end like all personality cults. It belongs to one man and his family and sooner or later things will fall apart when the strong man at the center is no more. COP has no personality cult and can’t be controlled by whims and caprices of one man. It is a church not a personality cult. That is a huge difference.
You out it succinctly. God bless you
You put it succinctly. God bless you
do your research before exhibiting such buffoonish behavior. Small data you have managed to get , see you are using it to write
COP is a great church. But did you that it was founded by one man? And while he was alive, it would have been described as “one man church” ? Ignorance🤯🤯🤯 is not always bliss when it is fully on display. Read your scriptures, God will always call a man and set His mission in him. Never a committee.
If you knew this why did you and your church not quickly do the right thing but waited for the 6 to go to court. As for some of you indoctrinated fundamentalists the least said is enough…
Sorry this is an immature statement. I’m a member of COP and we don’t boast in other members of the Body of Christ allegations. Mature COP members know that we have come far by overcoming our fair share of such issues. It by God’s mercies we are here now marching on.
You are wise. God bless you Nana K
Bless you Nana K. Children of God and partakers in the blessing of Christ, let us not make this debate one denomination against the other. We are all one body.
My take on this issue is that, perhaps LCI erred in not paying SSNIT of pastors. It should rectify it asap and put the administration part of church management in order. Sometimes founders are focused on the mission assigned, it takes the support staff to make sure the right things are done in the physical realms. I am sorry Lady Adelaide please check the welfare of all pastors and make sure they are ok.
Thanks 👍
COP is worse.
Why shouldn’t we stand against disloyalty? U can choose to embrace it, but we will constantly and vehemently stand against it.
#IStandWithBishopDag
#IStandAgainstDisloyalty
I really do not understand why some people are taking stands. The SSNIT contributions aspect is a simple matter. Just reconcile records at SSNIT if there are outstandings, just pay them together with whatever penalties may have accrued. This is mostly an administrative matter.
That’s all!
Well said rev.
How can the article highlights the comments of others on social media band not these of Bishop Larry in particular.
Am still imagining Paul dragging the apostles to the Sanhedrin for how he was treated.
I won’t flaw the media house for “doing it’s work”…
But I will be suprised at how each of these bishops will want to be regarded before Christ.
How will I be told to turn the other cheek …
I will never be suprised at injustice in a human Institution be it church… But how the creme de la creme are reacting in the face of what they spoke about.
Maybe our confessions on the Bible is indeed a test on its own.
How can the article highlight the comments of others on social media and not those of Bishop Larry in particular on the same …
Am still imagining Paul dragging the apostles to the Sanhedrin for how he was treated.
I won’t flaw the media house for “doing it’s work”…
But I will be suprised at how each of these bishops will want to be regarded before Christ.
How will I be told to turn the other cheek …
I will never be suprised at injustice in a human Institution be it church… But how the creme de la creme are reacting in the face of what they spoke about.
Maybe our confessions on the Bible is indeed a test on its own.
So Bishop Okoe resigned because he had been transferred from where he was seeing money and receiving a lot of gifts?? No wonder!!!
God help our motives for ministry!!!
So Bishop Okoe Mensah resigned because he had been transferred from where he was seeing money and receiving a lot of gifts?? No wonder!!!
God help our motives for ministry!!!
Reply
Did he say that was his motive for his resignation? The Bible says a labourer is worthy of his wages. These men are labourers. I’m sure you are not one of those who believe that their rewards are in heaven. What happened to these pastors shouldn’t have happened. It’s wrong in every shape imaginable. They are humans with needs; they have families with needs. I read their story and to be honest I wept. They lost everything and got nothing! And at last they are laughing stocks of supposed loyal members of the church. Let’s walk in their shoes for just one year and we will appreciate their experience better.
Bishop Dag never mistreated this six pastors in any wrong way. At best he gave them opportunities. It’s said how people with little or no knowledge at all about this issue only read what Manesseh and the six pastors and saying and just conclude. Please ask Bishop Larry and the rest to produce the tapes of the maturity camp, become whom you can become and listen to those messages before you come back and judge Bishop Dag. Until people hold your peace.
Will you work 7 days for someone and not take a salary while you have a family with needs? The founder, and other people in the administrative and other positions in the church are getting monies. Why shouldn’t they be given what’s due them? This has got nothing to do with faith; it’s got a lot to do with morals and actually doing what’s right. Read Jeremiah 22:13 🙏🏾
Thank you for the word so sweet
God bless U Della.
You wept because??? If you were very serious about this, you should have been looking at the side of the story. Why are we so emotional driven without listening to both sides first?? No wonder most of us don’t do well in life because we’ve been trained to be one way focused.
If you’re a Christian, then let this be a guiding scripture for you.
“The first one to plead his case seems right, Until another comes and cross-examines him.”
Proverbs 18:17 AMP
God bless you for your empathy.
You are lying
You did4nt read the story
What did they loose
Did the story say their wages were unpaid?
Weep for yourself
You think they are poor. Go and check
Absolutely unfair
From Bishop Okoe Mensah’s own mouth offerings from the prayer clinic went into church building project and not a Bishop’s pocket, except the fat cash gifts he Bishop Okoe Mensah was receiving until he was transferred.
We also know same of proceeds from Bishop Dags books particular the Orphanage.
Manasseh should ask Bishop Larry what happened to the proceeds of his books that was widely sold in Lighthouse church’s especially in the UK.
God have mercy on our motivation for ministry.
Let God be God
We’ve heard the sides of these agrieved pastors, Let’s wait and hear the side of Pastor Heward Mills
He’s chosen to be quite and hide behind the army of people the church has unleashed on these pastors.
Hmmmm let’s leave everything into the hands of the Ultimate Judge! With time, the truth will stand out clear.
Even Government Prime ministers and officials are held to account in the political realm here in the West. Why not in religious circles, especially well renowned ones who bully people into submission. So it’s ok for one LOYALIST Pastor to receive £300000 whilst another receives 135GHS? Very Shoddy and Suspicious if you ask me. I have no affiliation to this cultish institution but if you ask me about loyalty, it’s frail and false and demonic. Everyone is praising the figure head instead of God Almighty. That, I don’t think is what the Bible wants us to do. Go figure your scriptures people before laying judgement on the doorstep of the SIX.
Manny… most people are worshipping human beings …instead God.
We need to wk our own salvation…
The end time is near.
100% And until people realise that’s what they are doing and actually desist from it, this is the situation we face. Toouch worshipping fellow humans, especially when from the same mouth they curse as well as bless. Like I said, it’s a damn cult and I certainly not my family will be indulging in any way shape or form in this institution. Hopefully the chickens will come home to roost
SSNIT is the least and basic contribution any organization can render for its dedicated workers. If they offered to serve, the church has a duty to ensure their welfare just as the military takes care of all its soldiers in order to be at the battle front.
The assumption that they signed a piece of paper to live as paupers is a fallacy—even Christ’s followers were not permitted to live as beggars. Those condemning these pastors have simply been blinded by HUMAN WORSHIP, CULT OF PERSONALITY and PURE UNBRIDLED BRAINWASHING.
In fact to write 9 imprecatory sequels to a single book “loyalty & disloyalty” is a sure sign that it is a WRONG DOCTRINE. If a doctrine is wrong it is wrong. Let’s condemn it. It is unchristian and far from historic orthodox Christianity.
Loyalty keeps men in bondage and that’s what lighthouse has done to millions. And those praising and blindly following Dag either because they have benefited from the system should bow their heads in shame— or for his supposed “achievements” are not helping him. Who defined a church’s success by its buildings? He should face the truth that he built a CULT with the lives of precious people and REPENT.
Go back and check Priesthood from Moses (is that cult of personality?), by a Prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, go and read the order of Priesthood; this is not CULT OF PERSONALITY OR HUMAN WORSHIP. You are refusing to come out clear on ‘loyal & disloyalty’, we need loyalty in every area of our lives. and every discipline affect other discipline; this book has messages and verses from the Bible and you say ‘it is a sure sign that it is a WRONG DOCTRINE’. You don’t have a mind of building a churches and propagating Christianity, use the word of God to point to us the cult in building lighthouse churches for God. And show your readers any church that you know in history which was not started by a single man, eg what about John Wesley that started THE Methodist Church, did he not put up a buildings in all over Europe, America, Africa for churches? Do you see this as Cult? Is Christ not using Bishop Dag to building churches in our time just like the Wesley’s did, it is upon this rock Christ will build his church. Read Matthew 16:18. And Give us scriptures from the Bible to show that building churches across continent is cult.
Let the Word of God dwell in our heart richly.
May the Lord be with you!
dv
Man, give us a break. The fact that a book has verses from the bible doesn’t make it Godly. Remember the devil himself quoted verses to Jesus. The loyalty and disloyalty book and it’s sequels are full of eisegesis (the interpretation of a text (as of the Bible) by reading into it one’s own ideas) instead of exegesis (critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially of scripture.). The former- eisegesis- is a very common feature in Bishop Dags messages especially his favorite staple- loyalty & disloyalty. No one has discounted the fact that God has used Bishop Dag to bring many to Christ, the fact that he’s been used by God doesn’t preclude him from fault and sin. It is dangerous when we, followers elevate ministers of the gospel to the pedestal of “faultlessness”. This is what all you loyalists are doing with impunity. God cannot be mocked, and non can steal His glory and go scot-free.
Who declares who a sinner.
Has anyone addressed your sins today?
Who made you a judge over another man’s servant
Joshua who is praise who, what is a cult. Read your Bible carefully before you comment on issues. Didn’t Satan betray the trust our Heavenly Father put in him. Was he was not disloyal to God. What about Korah, Abiram and Dathan who rose up against Moses. Didn’t Absalom chase his own father David the king. Are this not stories in the bible. Romans 15:4, say we should learn from the things that have been written. Now concerning SSNIT. PLEASE ASK BISHOP LARRY AND THE REST TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH. ASK THEM THE SSNIT CONTRIBUTION THAT WERE MADE WHO MADE THE PAYMENT ON THEIR BEHALF, IS IT BISHOP DAG, ANY OF HIS SECRETARIES, AN ADMISTRATOR OF THE CHURCH OR THEY THEMSELF. THEN COME BACK AND COMMENT. YOU DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT IS GOING SO PLEASE DONT COMMENT IGNORANTLY
Exactly Josh.. Exactly! Instead of they paying back the SSNITS which clearly hasn’t been paid, they’re ostracizing those unfortunate pastors who’ve resigned.
Doesn’t SSNIT sue employers who haven’t paid their SSNIT contributions how come LCI has not been sued if it is indeed true that there are arrears
100% and I lady the Real God of heaven will offer them justice. These charlatans who run this organisation have degraded the name of Jesus, but their supporters are so blinded they cannot see anything other their figurehead. It’s a damn shame, the humanitarian aspect of this issue has been overlooked. How would they feel if they were denied their basic human rights.
Go and build yours let’s see.
Did you say Loyalty keeps men in bondage? It is an unfortunate statement to make. You are showing your lack of knowledge on the subject. How can you make such a lose statement. I’m asking myself a lot of questions you know.
Are you married?
Do you have children?
Have you employed people?
Do you have friends?
If you’re not married, are you in a relationship?
Are you a Christian and belong to a church?
If you’re not a Christian, what do you believe in?
Do you have a God or a god?
Don’t you require loyalty in all these relationships?
I really do not understand why some people are taking stands. The SSNIT contributions aspect is a simple matter. Just reconcile records at SSNIT if there are outstandings, just pay them together with whatever penalties may have accrued. This is mostly an administrative matter.
Exactly. Simple matter. Just pay the thing.
I couldn’t agree more with you! You are right on! I asked same question concerning the book on loyalty and disloyalty and the seven or so sequels. I consider that approach as a form of control mechanism. Every man of God must demand loyalty, not for himself, but for God. He must direct the sheep to the only Shepherd who died for their sins.
What’s the point of putting up church buildings and neglecting your responsibility of attending to the needs of those who co-labour with you?
What’s the use of huge church edifices if lives are not transformed but rather destroyed as in the case of these pastors?
Are you commenting because it’s a free platform or because everyone is also commenting??? Have you read any of the loyalty books before?? The way people are talking without even knowing what’s in the book shows your ignorant behaviours and lack of knowledge. No wonder the bible says the people perish.
By the way, are you really talking about lives being transformed and you can categorically say Bishop Dag or the Lighthouse Church has not been a major player??? I think most of the people on this platform need to go get their facts right before talking or even read wisely and think critically before commenting.
Truth be told, the church will need to change some of the things it does and the earlier the better. The catholic church accepted it had issues with historical abuse of children by priests, the church of England accepted it had issues with institutional racism…it doesn’t make them less powerful albeit in both cases they both tried to sweep cases under the carpet. Loyalty is to the highest authority ie your Pastor or Bishop. Lives have indeed be shappened and transformed but this does not absolve the church from any possible faults. You cannot say the Catholic Church or the Church of England (Anglican) church has not transformed lives but these same organisations had a culture of abuse and racism they are still working on. Major players can even make mistakes.
Who said this pastors where not taken care of? I feel very sad that people with little or no knowledge of this issue are those commenting. Is it because the church has decided not to defend it self. The truth will eventually come out and we will see who is lying and who telling the truth. Even peter denied knowing Jesus, so if these six pastors today are denying that their SSNIT was not paid them. Vindication is in the womb of time
Very simple: I stand with the Prophet, Bishop Dag Heward Mills
My stand is also very clear: I stand with Bishop Dag Heward Mills. People are just commenting blindly but the truth will surely be known it’s only a matter of time. I’m fully persuaded. If you don’t believe in the domination that’s fine but do not tarnish or defame Bishop Richard Aryee. You do not know how he’s built the churches. Do not spread lies about something you don’t have a clue of. I stand with Bishop Richard Aryee too.
Edith, you can stand with Bishop Aryee too but FACT is he was paid £300,000 and that is no secret, if you can log on to charities commission these are public information available easily to you. Whether its a payment too much or too little is another conversation to be had another day. So ill gladly suggest don’t exhibit your ignorance to the world…..study to show yourself approved!!!!!!
What’s your point
Your aim on trying to destory a ministry that has been standing for years will not come to pass!
I don’t believe anyone is our to shame anyone. I’ve read in many places that the pastors involved tried to resolve this in private but LCI was not ready for that. If the church had been the true church, all these public exposure wouldn’t have happened. The head of the church JESUS, has a way of ridding HIS CHURCH of all who profess his name but do it for themselves. You can’t cheat the church of God forever. You can’t blow dust in the eyes of the church forever. God, the owner of the church, He who is FOREVER WORTHY OF OUR LOYALTY, will not be quiet forever, over what’s being do in his name.
9 books covering every angle of loyalty & disloyalty is as cultish and Hitlerish as it gets- no discerning personing can deny this.
Summary: Fake pastors scamming naive employees. They are untouchable. I remember Dag bashing some of the pastors for asking for a raise in salary.
They are just in for the money 🤑
£300,000 what a wow. I would stand with Dag for 10% of that money. Haha, it appears to me , there are some Mafias amongst the the bishops , this will include Aryee and EAT Sackey , Nterful, Eddy Addy and of these don’t like you, they will get Dag to dislike you too. Reforms needed. Look, just pay them off to avoid all these coming out.
Hello, please can you ask Bishop Larry and Bishop oko how much they used to take as salary and ex-gratia, maybe your findings will reveal to you they took more than that ooo. Also find out they type of cars they were using while in active service for the organisation!!!!
As for this forth estate and all who work for it , you will soon be a thing of the past . May the Lord hold you guiltless in this matter
May the Lord hold you guilty and never allow your heads to go down in your graves guiltless
Maybe the church paid Bishop Richard £300,000 because of the money the UK rakes in in terms on the funds for the bigger UD. but truth be told it means some other “senior” bishops have received similar amounts if not more. This again means that church feels obliged to support their pastors and bishops financially so with the SSNIT issue in court, its safe to say let the courts analyse all the evidence and bring this whole furore to an end.
If anything the £300,000 payment to to Bishop Richard proves the church is interested in the upkeep of their ministers and a credit to them per the arguments of total neglect and “cheating” of the aggrieved six.
Broda Kofi,
There are may of them who are struggling wai, this payment of £300,000 is a secret that just came out. I can only imagine the rift it will cause in the Lighthouse camp of pastors and bishops, the jealousy and the division it will cause with the majority asking how only one man can receive such an amount whiles they lay in the mud struggling.
Please analyse the amount across 27 years of service. Since 1993….If you do the calculations it will make more sense to you
It will only make sense and demonstrate fairness if and only if other Bishops have received the same level of payments. Otherwise they have some serious issues to ponder.
Do the maths please
I hope your Pastor has not sent you on this mission.
You and your Fourth Estate won’t last. I give you few weeks
Mark my words.
I’m a member of the church, I can say that what these men are saying is true.
It is not Christlike to let men on whose backs you make money to beg you for their SNNIT.
They tried to speak to the church for almost a year and no one would talk to them. Treating them as though they’re not human beings. Larry was told he was a volunteer so they don’t need to pay his SNNIT.
Where is the love as a church? How did we get here, you try to bully people because you’re big, it will only cause anger in these men, they have broken their backs for you all their youthful lives, transfer upon transfer, leaving their wives with no profession and their children with no classmates, THEY ARE NOT ASKING YOU TO DASH THEN MONEY,THEY ARE ONLY ASKING FOR THEIR SEVERANCE AND YOU RUBBISH THEM .
They didn’t just get up and brought it to social media, they’d been trying to talk to the church , THEY HAD COME TO THE PLACE WHERE THEY HAD SIMPLY HAD IT. After 20years they decided to just walk away with nothing, their benefits unpaid for and they were not trying to take the church on, they were just asking for their SNNIT so they can walk away quietly to start a new life and you deprive them of that ? THIS IS WRONG!!!!!!!
GOD HATES OPPRESSION AND ABUSE which comes from stronger people.
When the Labour lawyer, wrote to the church, the same attitude was given him, that’s just how the church operates and they have done it to people who have been sooo afraid to take them on .
Let us stand for what is true as Christians and say that yes, we love our church but THIS IS WRONG AND NOT CONDONE IT cos if this is done to you, you would know know painful it is.
Thank you!! Finally someone with sense
Word!!! Church members are quick to stand with Bishop Dag than with God and justice/ fairness
How do you give one man , who has never been on missions £300,000 when others have worked hard all their lives in villages and haarrrrrd terrains, why not also give the apostles who go round the world preaching and planting churches, breaking their backs, I thought the pastors signed a a contract of “poverty” Did Bishop Richard Aryee not sign one? How did he come out of that poverty contact to receive £300,000?
Let us know God for ourselves oo, following church will cost us our faith in God. The secret place with God is key.
Give a man who is not on mission just to confirm to you Bishop Richard is a missionary from GH he was not born in your UK. Please gather all facts correctly before you comment
How do you give one man , who has never been on missions £300,000 when others have worked hard all their lives in villages and haarrrrrd terrains, why not also give the apostles who go round the world preaching and planting churches, breaking their backs, I thought the pastors signed a a contract of “poverty” Did Bishop Richard Aryee not sign one? How did he come out of that poverty contact to receive £300,000? Unless there is something we don’t understand .
Let us know God for ourselves oo, following church will cost us our faith in God. The secret place with God is key.
Church please come out and speak, your silence is speaking against you.
as a member of the church, you’ll prob know Bishop Richard was a missionary to the UK and the thriving UK and Europe branches have been built under his tutelage over the years by the grace of God. Missionaries are not only those sent with all due respect to Atebubu or Santrokofi. Missionaries are sent to New York, London, Paris et al. I double you are really a member as you suggest. Like I said if anything, this proves the church does really look after their Bishops and Pastors. The church doesn’t need to reveal how much and when it paid any sums to any Pastors or Bishops unless they are required to do so by law as in the case of the England Commission.
But then again even in the popular the prodigal son story in the bible the father choose to give all he had to the one that stayed with him, that’s the one he deemed was loyal to him, not the one that took his inheritance and frittered it away. Hope this helps, those who feel they are in a good church continue and be blessed, there are so much ordinary members will not be privy to and this is very much in consonance to every organization. The church cannot hold a AGM with all their members and hold an open forum. The SSNIT issue is in court and once the courts decide that will be final. NOW LETS GO WIN SOME SOULS FOR CHRIST, and not pour all our energy into this unless you are part of the legal teams for either party. GOD BLESS!
You don’t seem to understand that there are many missionaries who are struggling badly, if they had basic needs taken care of, there would be no problem but it doesn’t seem to be so , please don’t say what you don’t know, with all due respect, many- of them are not taken care of and are grieved, this payment to Bishop Richard will cause jealousy and division and a rift in the camp of the pastors and bishops who have also worked hard but are struggling. There’s nothing wrong with a father having favourites but the rest should at least have basics so there’s no problem.
The prodigal son took his inheritance so what was left wasn’t his, don’t forget that, he understood that and asked to be a servant.
Some of These pastors worked for 20 years and got nothing and were willing to leave without asking for anything , another was so depressed he almost took his life whiles most of them suffered abuse . Where is the love? Where is Christ in all this？ Who is saying , we are brethren , come and let’s talk., whose arms are open to give them a hug and a listening ear, who is there to just say I understand? Nobody wanted to talk to them and their due which they’ve worked hard for was refused them ,. Now that’s not fair, especially because it’s a church. We are Christians and should say the church has done many good things but this one，is wrong , that’s all, we should also think about healing for these human beings who are also part of the body of Christ cos they can loose their faith out of pain instead of leading our members to post things against them , Christians throwing curses and bishops OPENLY calling them to come down into the mud waiting for a fight, this is sad, I’m sure we have filled the eyes of Christ with tears, causing division in the church just because these people decided to speak up, If the church had listened to them, they wouldn’t have come to social media. The church should accept that they have lost compassion , we all feel it. Most of these people posting bad things are young Christians in the church who don’t even know these pastors and have never heard their side of story, just doing what their pastors and bishops are telling them to do, what are we teaching our CHRISTIAN children ? Let the pastors ‘even misbehave’ but as a church, just keep meeting them with love and peace because the church is supposed to be the bigger person so the devil will have no place. Many pastors have left the church abused and hurt with broken hearts and have been too afraid to speak up, if you haven’t been on missions, please be silent, you just don’t know what they go through, a rich church must take care of its pastors, I think Christ will be happy with that. My heart is broken and I’m too sad.
Its unfortunate all this had to be played on social media I agree, the church probably thought they could crush these little “ants” but the dent has been done on the church by these accusations. I know many people on missions, you are encouraged to find work as alot of them are lay at least from what i know now so if you strongly feel the call of God to sell the gospel in Bamako, you’ll need to find work for your upkeep and all others that come with it, learning the language and the cultural practices. It seems these pastors were full time but I think the church should as a good will paid them their SSNIT if INDEED they didn’t. And to point out some of their grievances are frivolous, its the first time in my 33 years on earth heard someone cutting their scrotum to end their life!!!! seriously???? let the courts decide but I’m pretty sure any good will gesture the church could have paid them is all lost after the embarrassment they have caused and still causing the church. Lets all try to draw closer to God and know him more and let love lead.
Kofi,
NO MAN CAN DENT THE CHURCH because it is not a physical church. THE CHURCH IS THE BODY OF CHRIST and THIS BODY OF CHRIST IS REPRESENTED BY LOVE . Christ has already taken the dents for us. We know it is a church of God when we love one another.
When a man feels cheated or comes to his wits end , or comes to a place of worthlessness and attempts suicide, his grievances looks frivolous, he looks almost foolish and like a child so I’m not surprised you see things that way. A church with the LOVE OF CHRIST will at the first response to such an accusation will first be of CONCERN, will encourage the members to speak so they can fish out the people doing evil to the children of God . When one or two people speak against a big church, it could be overlooked but when it is more than two, IT IS WORTH LOOKING INTO and deserves IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATIONS , encouraging more people to speak and NOT TO FIGHT THE PEOPLE SPEAKING because we have too many YOUNG AND VULNERABLE PEOPLE IN THERE, OUR CHILDREN!. All these pastors mentioned that they were abused, is it not a POINT OF CONCERN FOR THE CHURCH? WHERE IS THE LOVE? We hear everyday how pastors abuse members, some having children with them and the members are forced to leave whiles the pastors continue their work, abusing more people. What if what these pastors are saying is true? What if other people come out later to say they were also abused? We have shamefully totally missed it as a church.
I’m puzzled because, I’m wondering , you won’t talk to them and if they are speaking out you’re fighting them, why? WHY IS THE CHURCH FIGHTING ? WHY ARE THEY TELLING THE INNOCENT MEMBERS TO POST THINGS ? WHAT HAVE THEY GOT TO HIDE? Is this how the love of Christ works, I thought out of love and concern by the church the Bishops will ask the members to reach out in love to these pastors, which is what Christ will do, meeting them with love to bring them back in but not this shameful thing we are doing, causing division in the church.
I believe Christ will use this to prune his church,, . In a church Where there’s no love, Christ exits, and when he goes, he will take his sheep out of that church and put them under shepherds who will listen and love them. NO MAN CAN DENT OR CLOSE THE CHURCH DOWN, Christ will arise and reform his church because it belongs to no man but him. We now look like the world as a church, BISHOPS OPENLY CALLING FOR FIGHTS IN THE MUD, that’s why unbelievers don’t find us attractive enough to come to church. Some of the greatest forms of abuse is happening in the church and the men of God have shut their ears to it because it is not done to their children.
May the Lord have mercy on us!
May we look for God for ourselves and not follow men of God to find him. YOU ARE THE CHURCH, STAND FOR LOVE AND START LIVING AS CHRIST WOULD.
I expect Christians to say #WESTANDFORLOVE# these are our brothers, let us listen to them, let them vent, let the church listen to them and if they have done something wrong out of pain, let’s forgive them and open our doors for them anytime they’re ready to walk in, let us not stigmatize them , every time people have to leave out church, the treatment is tooo bad,
Let’s open our arms to them, THAT WILL BE THE CHURCH OF CHRIST and we will be teaching our children great virtues. It’s time for a change in the church. If we handle issues with love, we will never fail cos love never fails, we’ve totally lost our way.
Lord help us!
SISTER ROSEMOND I HAVE READ ALL YOUR WRITE UPS.YOU HAVE PROVEN YOU ARE A TRUE DISCIPLE OF CHRIST JESUS.I REALISE WHO IS RIGHT IS NOT WHAT YOU ARE AFTER BUT THAT YOU WANT US TO PRACTISE WHAT SCRIPTURE TEACHES.THAT HAS BEEN MY POSITION AS WELL.GOD BLESS YOU ABUNDANTLY.I PRAY OTHER READERS UNDERSTAND US.
For once, I agree with Paul Adom Otchere. This is indeed crass journalism.
This information is public knowledge.
As a charity every expense of Lighthouse Chapel and every Charity for that matter is available via Google on the Charity Commission website.
He must be a very bad thief to publish his thievery on the Charity Commission website. If that is what this publication seeks to portray.
Besides, 40% of this money is going to pay taxes which means he only receives £180,000 less national insurance contributions.
A man works in an organisation for 30 years + and of which more than 10 years is as a volunteer from what I hear.
Builds this organisation from just his wife and children to one that is all over Europe, Asia and even America. Literally from His living room.
And the church rewards him with £300,000 less taxes and you publish this as news?
No wonder Joy FM got rid of this journalist.
In my view, this Bishop Richard deserves £10M ex gratia payment. That is what I call a fair reward.
After 30 years, possibly without any benefits other than a basic salary and you pay a man who oversees an organisation bigger than Unilever £180,000 ex gratia payment and Manasseh says we should be unhappy.
£180,000. Indeed. That is £6,000 a year over 30 years. A real pittance indeed. To put this in perspective, a branch manager of a bank in the UK earns at least £15,000 bonus a year. What deception is this? Please we are in the UK for goodness sake.
Please only uneducated people will pay attention to such baseless sensationalism. There isn’t a single value in this news apart from the baseless sensationalism it portrays.
If the news was that the church rewarded this man poorly, then maybe, it will have some value.
Very very shameful indeed.
Have the other Bishops received the same ex gratia payments? The point of the article is one of fairness. LCI fails to pay statutory pension in Ghana but happy to pay £300k ex gratia to a serving Bishop. Where is the EQUITY?
Do you think this sum would have been declared if it was paid in an unregulated charitable sector?
Ignorant and shameful rebuttal.
Your alliances have rid you of good reasoning.
Do you know the mission of this organization? Do you know the vision?
Do you really know how these funds are generated?
Do you know the value proposition?
Do you know the state of the very contributors of these funds?
He deserves £10m ?
Brain matter misappropriation!!!
SISTER ROSEMOND I HAVE READ ALL YOUR WRITE UPS.YOU HAVE PROVEN YOU ARE A TRUE DISCIPLE OF CHRIST JESUS.I REALISE WHO IS RIGHT IS NOT WHAT YOU ARE AFTER BUT THAT YOU WANT US TO PRACTISE WHAT SCRIPTURE TEACHES.THAT HAS BEEN MY POSITION AS WELL.GOD BLESS YOU ABUNDANTLY.I PRAY OTHER READERS UNDERSTAND US.
Ex- gratia payments are made by an employer as compensation when one leaves employment, which is over and above what one is entitled to be paid in their contract of employment. Bishop Aryee has received an ex gratia but still continues to serve/employed……..no questions raised…
Some Bishops leave and have to go to court to get their statutory pensions paid and they are called out for being ‘REBELS’ and ‘DISLOYAL’ . The hypocrisy here is crystal clear!!!
Also you are wrong in saying the ex gratia payment is subject to national insurance contributions because it was not because of the year in which it was paid.
Note that it was only from April 2020, that an employer was required to pay national insurance contributions on any part of a termination payment that exceeds the £30,000 threshold.
There are so many pastors and church workers who have contributed to Richard Aryee’s ‘success’ who don’t get paid a dime because they are lay pastors/volunteers.
I have been taken aback by the attack of people who once saw these six ministers as family. Many are portraying these ministers as greedy persons who are set to destroy LCI. Unfortunately, those who have released venom against these men know little about these men; at least l can speak about my brother Oko and Larry.
I have known Oko since our days at Presec, through Action Chapel International, our days at KNUST where we were room mates for three years in Indece Hall, a relationship that span over 32 years. For Larry, though not as close as Oko, l have also had to opportunity to know him for over 28 years and l must say these are men of conviction and value and not greedy people that the onslaught from some persons seem to portray.
The issue as stake is a legal mandatory obligation that every organization operating legally in this country must have towards its employees where full time or contract staff- SNNIT contribution. Is it true that there are outstanding payment by LCI for these men who gave their all to the church. If that is the case, why are they being insulted all over by even ministers of the gospel and tge educated who are supposed to analyse issues objectively?
It is true that LCI gave them some opportunities to expose them. However are we saying that without LCI, these men would have amounted nothing in life? These are graduates who graduated with good classes at KNUST and truth be told they had other financially rewarding opportunities that would have made them financially grounded in life and especially like those in their profession. They chose full time ministry of which none of them regrets. Great opportunities were presented to them, but they chose ministry and they also contributed their quota to LCI, even if it was cleaning a washroom of LCI for a day. So those who are attacking them so not know Oko and Larry.
By the way, these ministers have decided to move on and resigned. You may not agree with them, but please respect these people as someone child, brother nephew, father ust like any of you.
No one will dispute the impact Bishop Dag has made. But he would not have had that impact without persons and other ministers like the six who have worked hard for LCI.
Do not demonize these men because they left LCI. This is because like many ministries the leaders also left other churches. LCI is no different because Bishop Dag Eastwood, Ampea Koffie all came from Action Chapel and were not demonized all over the place as is being done by LCI members now.
Please let us look at the issues raised by the six. Are they factual? If so, the right thing must be done by the church.
One of the common sayings at LCI is “forgiiiiiiiiiive” (an exaggerated pronunciation of the word “forgive” ), yet the church has shown no forgiveness in its dealings with the six ex-pastors. Where is the love you preach LC1? Why deny these 6 what is rightfully and legally theirs?
Glad to know that Bishop Sackey didn’t say that they could buy new Bentleys or build his own houses with offerings from the Prayer Clinic.
Glad to know that Bishop Sackey didn’t say that they could buy new Bentleys or build their own houses with offerings from the Prayer Clinic.
I was in that church for 5years as a shepherd, we planted and church under the Asokwa head church at Chirapatre in Atonsu. It was that doctrine of staying loyal that made me quit after five years.
You are allowed to complain of anything you see not going well.
We started the church with 20plastic chairs, 2 old speakers, one old mixer, 2microphones, an old organ, an offering basket, pulpit and a banner, since we were in a classroom we were eager to acquire a land but when the effort failed to get a land around, we had to hire a place that is more better than a classroom but the leadership of the main church never helped though they took every single money we take during church service and record it.
Until now that brand has been closed due to inability to acquire a good place for gathering.
I remember when we spent 2 years in the classroom, the head pastor (lay minister) made us organize a program so we can raise money and add on the the equipment they gave us initially to plant the church, we were able to raise some money and bought a set of drums, but we didn’t have a place to keep them so the man hired a room nearby to keep the church belongings, he wrote to the main leadership of our progress and demanded a refund of the money he used to rent the room and they refused to pay, the reason been that, they didn’t tell us to buy drums and additional chairs so if we can’t get a place to keep them and he has hired a place, the cost should be on him,
Meanwhile every lay minister in light house church is paid nothing not even some allowance, they work as volunteers in the name of winning souls.
As lay minister in a branch, you are not allowed keep even 1% of your offerings for local development, you have to lobby if you need something for the local church and sometimes it delays so much but the main church keeps developing at the expense of the poor ones in the small churchs
The church is for Christ.
If we sign up to work for the church it should be volunteering, this six pastors are evil and they want destroy the work of God….. But it won’t stand.
So, it means their focus was the money not the work.