University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh UNIVERSITY OF GHANA COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES SACRED SPACES AND THE PENTECOSTAL/CHARISMATIC CHURCHES IN GHANA BY BAFFOUR, KWAKU OKYERE ID: 10208878 A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE AWARD OF DEGREE OF MASTER OF PHILOSOPHY IN RELIGIONS DEPARTMENT FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGIONS JULY 2019 1 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DECLARATION This is to certify that this thesis is the result of research undertaken by Baffour, Kwaku Okyere for the award of M.Phil. Degree in Study of Religions in the Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana, Legon under the supervision of Dr. Rose Mary Amenga-Etego and Rev. Dr. Abraham Nana Opare-Kwakye. …………………………………. ………………………….. BAFFOUR, KWAKU OKYERE DATE (STUDENT) …………………………………… ………………………… DR. ROSE MARY AMENGA-ETEGO DATE (SUPERVISOR) ………………………………………….. ………………………… REV. DR. ABRAHAM NANA OPARE-KWAKYE DATE (SUPERVISOR) ii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my wife Gifty, our three children Kofi, Maame and Amobea. iii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I thank the almighty God and my employers, East Ghana Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church for this opportunity they gave me to come back to Legon for this academic work. I also thank my supervisors Dr. Rose Mary Amenga-Etego and Rev. Abraham Nana Opare-Kwakye immensely for the meticulous guidance, encouragement and support they gave me to make sure that I did a good job. In spite of their busy schedules, they found time to look at my work so that I did the right things. I am also grateful to the late professor Elom Dovlo who encouraged me to come back to school and also showed a lot of interest in this topic with regards to the selected research sites. I am grateful to all faculty members and Sister Leticia Oduro, a graduate assistant and Brother Kwabena Anning, a colleague student who in diverse ways encouraged and supported me during the course of work. Finally, I am grateful to my church, True Vine Seventh-day Adventist (English) church, Koforidua and the many well-wishers whose names cannot be mentioned here for their prayers and support during the period of studies. May the good Lord bless us all. iv University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ABSTRACT Sacred space is common to almost every religion in the world. A sacred space is a place set apart from a secular space for holy use. In this study, two classifications of sacred spaces have been given, the natural and the man-made, but this study is focused on the man-made sacred spaces. Particularly, the study seeks to examine the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches’ understanding of sacred space regarding their places of worship. This is against the backdrop of the proliferation and acclaimed growth of Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches (PCCs) in Ghana. This is a phenomenological study of PCCs places of worship (sacred space) on the Spintex Road and Abeka Lapaz areas in Accra. The methods of data collection employed were interviews, observations and participant observations, photography and a review of published literature. The study found out that the Ghanaian PCCs’ understanding of sacred space is any space ‘set aside’ through visions and dreams. These spaces are then claimed by the ‘visionaries’ and ‘dreamers’ (leaders) and consecrated as sacred spaces for worship. The study identified 63 places of worship out of which the researcher classified into tents, pave, rented, house/community, events centres and megachurches. Some of these churches can be found in very close proximity, both within residential and commercial areas with more PCC churches springing up monthly. This helps to explain the claim of PCCs to the growth of Christianity in Ghana. The research recommends that future studies on PCCs actual membership (and not the number of churches/places of worship) be done to get the real data of PCCs contribution to Christianity in Ghana. The study also recommends that Town and Country Planning Authorities should ensure that PCCs follow the laid down processes of securing land titles for their places of worship. v University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh TABLE OF CONTENT DECLARATION ........................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION .............................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................ iv ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENT ................................................................................................ vi LIST OF PICTURES .................................................................................................. viii CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL INTRODUCTION ........................................................ 1 1.1 Background of the Study ...................................................................................... 1 1.2 Statement of Problem ........................................................................................... 3 1. 3 Research Questions ............................................................................................. 4 1.4 Research Objectives ............................................................................................. 4 1.5 Scope of Work ...................................................................................................... 4 1.6 METHODOLOGY AND METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION .................... 5 1.7 METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION .............................................................. 6 1.9 DATA ANALYSIS .............................................................................................. 8 1.10 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................... 9 1.11 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ................................................................... 26 1.12 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY ............................................................................ 28 1.12 ORGANIZATION OF STUDY ....................................................................... 29 1.13 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY .......................................................................... 30 CHAPTER TWO: PENTECOSTALISM IN GHANA ............................................... 31 2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 31 2.2 Ghana’s Religious Scene .................................................................................... 31 2.3 Pentecostlism Worldwide ................................................................................... 35 2.4 Pentecostalism in Ghana .................................................................................... 36 2.5 The African Independent Churches (Aics)......................................................... 38 2.6 The Classical Pentecostals ................................................................................. 39 2.7 Charismatic Churches ........................................................................................ 40 2.8 Charismatic Churches in Ghana ......................................................................... 41 2.9 The Neo-Prophetic Ministries/Churches ............................................................ 44 vi University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2.10 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 46 CHAPTER THREE: IDENTIFICATION OF PENTECOSTAL/CHARISMATIC WORSHIP CENTRES ................................................................................................. 48 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 48 3.2 Types of Sacred Spaces ...................................................................................... 48 3.2.1 Natural Sacred Sites..................................................................................... 49 3.2.2 Man-Made Sacred Sites ............................................................................... 51 3.3 Types of Pcc Worship Spaces in Accra ............................................................. 55 3.3.1 PCC Places of Worship At Spintex Road .................................................... 56 3.3.2 PCC Places f Worship – Abeka Lapaz ........................................................ 69 3.4 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 80 CHAPTER FOUR: SACRED SPACES AD CHURCH GROWTH IN THE PENTECOSTAL/CHARISMATIC CHURCHES (PCCs) .......................................... 84 4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 84 4.2 Church Growth in the PCCs ............................................................................... 84 4.3 Contribution of PCCs Sacred Spaces to Church Growth in Ghana ................... 89 4.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 103 CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION .......................................................................................................... 105 5.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 105 5.2 Summary .......................................................................................................... 105 5.3 Findings ............................................................................................................ 111 5.4 Recommendation .............................................................................................. 114 5.5 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 115 BIBLIOGAPHY ........................................................................................................ 118 APPENDICES ........................................................................................................... 126 vii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh LIST OF PICTURES Picture 1 Monkey Sanctuary at Tafi Atome .................................... 48 Picture 2 Posuban Shrine at Mankessim........................................... 50 Picture 3 (a and b) Revival Temple of Royal House Chapel ......................55, 56 Picture 4 Broken Vessels Chapel International ................................. 58 Picture 5 Conquerous Chapel and Goshen Prayer Minstries ........... 60 Picture 6 Adonai House Chapel.........................................................61 Picture 7 Gilly’s Events Center ………………..……………… 62 Picture 8 Revival Fellowship …………………………………….. 63 Picture 9 (a and b) Christ Eden Life Ministries ...........................................65, 66 Picture 10 (a and b) Mount Zion prayer Ministries ..................................... 69, 70 Picture 11 Exceeding Faith Ministries ............................................ 72 Picture 12 The Lord’s Anointed Prayer Ministries …………………. 74 Picture 13 (a and b) Calvary Charismatic Church…………………………76, 77 Picture 14 Divine Life Chapel Ministries …………………………. 79 Picture 15 (a nad b) Winners Chapel International .....................................91, 92 Picture 16 Divine Life Chapel International ......................................94 Picture 17 Adonai House Chapel Pulpit Area.............................................96 Picture 18 Adonai House Chapel ‘Extensions of Faith …………….97 viii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AICs ……………………………………………African Independent Churches COP …………………………………………………………Church of Pentecost CG ……………………………………………………………..Church Growth GPCC ……………………………...Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches GPHC ……………………………………..Ghana Population and Housing Census HMC …………………………………………………..Historic Mainline churches PCCs ……………………………………..Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches SS ……………………………………………………………Sacred Spaces/Sites ix University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh CHAPTER ONE GENERAL INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The idea of sacred space is not exclusive to Christianity. In trying to highlight some of the sacred spaces in the Ghanaian religious space, this research also tries to underscore the idea of sacred space as one of the common religious practices of almost all religions. For a place to be made holy, Mircea Eliade, examines how ordinary places in the world are turned into holy or sacred spaces either by hierophantic experience by a specific or direct appearance of a deity or by a theophanic experience, where messages are received from deities and interpreted to others1. The heirophanies, in other words, sacred appearances, make these places ‘qualitatively different from the surrounding celestial milieu’. The sacred site, herein, interchangeably used with sacred space, sacred place, sacred center or shrine and other such parallels is, therefore, a very significant and private location.2 The sites are believed to be the center of the earth, the meeting point, the earthly microcosm of the heavenly realm and are immanently supreme.3 ‘At the center of the earth’ one gets revitalized, becomes self-conscious; gain fresh understandings into life situations. Distinguished from the everyday world, the sacred site is ‘self-perpetuating:’ it is able to withstand itself. It is unassailable’ capable of offering humankind all the security 1 Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and the Profane; The Nature of Religion (Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc. 1959), 20. 2 Harold Turner, From Temple to Meeting House: The Phenomenology and Theology of Places of Worship (The Hague, Mouton. 1979), 32. 3 Turner, From Temple to Meeting House, 13. 1 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh they need in life. This is the ideal world Eliade refers to as cosmos created out of chaos4. This seems to be a practice emerging in the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches (PCCs) in Ghana due to its growth and the creation of numerous places of worship. The Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches (PCCs) in Ghana have in recent times (2008-2018) seen a steady growth in numbers as well as places of worship and are still counting, flooding almost every available space in Ghana. Opoku Onyina, the immediate past leader of the Pentecost Church in his speech to the Church at the 43rd General session of the Church of Pentecost (COP), (May 2nd 2018) asserted that overall membership of the COP is 2,566,818 as at December 31, 2017. An approximately 9% of the total estimated Ghanaian population of 29,008, 849 as at December 31, 2017. This plainly means that out every eleven (11) Ghanaians you meet, one is a member of the COP,5 a sign of numerical growth as compared with the 2,367,293 membership for December 2016. For the Charismatic Churches in Ghana, Gifford posits that “there has also been a remarkable explosion of these new autonomous Pentecostal Churches. The word ‘Charismatic’ is used to distinguish them from the churches of recognized Pentecostal denominations like the Assemblies of God church”. These churches according to Gifford “have proliferated in Ghana as much as anywhere else. However, there is a comparatively little research on them. Even the valuable Ghana Evangelism Committee survey sheds little light on their nature, numbers or growth”.6 These churches which have not been well researched are becoming a significant segment of Christianity in Ghana that needs to be investigated. 4 Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane. 20, 32 5 Opoku Onyina, “The State of the Church of Pentecost”. A report presented at the 43rd General session of the Church of Pentecost”, Gomoa Fetteh, Ghana, May 2nd 2018. 6 Cephas N. Omenyo, Pentecost outside Pentecostalism, (the Netherlands, Boeckencentrum, 2002), 42. 2 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh In the contemporary Ghanaian PCCs, there is an emerging practice which the researcher chooses to call ‘Creating of Sacred Space’ for Worship. The beginning of this practice among the PCCs may be traced to the very onset of the establishment of their first places of worship in Ghana and is considered later in this work. Today there seem to be a perception that creation of these sacred spaces offer vital openings for corporate and individual revival, growth and convenience. This research therefore seeks to know the main of the PCCs regarding this particular practice. Furthermore, it seeks to understand the relationship between this practice and the prospects for church growth of the PCCs. 1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM There is an abundance of literature on Sacred Space, Christianity in Ghana and the PCCs. Nevertheless, not much can be found in respect of the thrust of this research. The proliferation of PCCs in Ghana raises the question of where these Christian groups worship. According to Asamoah-Gyadu in his book African Charismatics, “When chapel buildings in many parts of Western Europe are being converted into pubs, clubs, restaurants, warehouses, cinemas, museums, residential facilities (and in other instances Buddhist and Hindu temples), these secular facilities are being renovated for the use of churches in sub-Saharan Africa.”7 In Ghana, properties originally labelled for irreligious and other worldly purposes such as classrooms, shops and events centers among others are being taken over for religious purposes (places of worship) by churches belonging to the Pentecostal stream. Hence this research sought to find out 7 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, Current Developments within Independent indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana. (Leiden, African Christian Press 2005), 14. 3 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches’ understanding of sacred spaces as places of worship in Ghana. As a result, some questions need to be raised in the light of this practice. 1. 3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS This thesis seeks to answer the following questions: 1. What is the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic understanding of sacred space? 2. How can one identify and categorize sacred spaces of the Pentecostal/Charismatic churches in Ghana? 3. To what extent does the creation of sacred spaces contributes to church growth? These questions lead the researcher to the following aims and objectives of this work. 1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The objectives of this thesis are to explore the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic understanding of sacred space and to categorize sacred spaces used by the Pentecostal/ Charismatic churches in Accra. The study also examined how the creation of sacred spaces contributes to church growth in Pentecostal/ Charismatic churches. These objectives sets the scope for the research work. 1.5 SCOPE OF WORK The research is confined to the PCCs in Ghana and its focus is to identify and categorize the sacred spaces of PCCs within selected places in the Spintex Road area and Abeka Lapaz in Accra. These sites have been selected by reason of the high rate of emerging places of worship as a result of the growing population and are communities 4 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh deemed as middle and lower income earning settlers in Ghana respectively. The methodology and methods of data collection adopted by the researcher should present an objective findings for this work. 1.6 METHODOLOGY AND METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION This work adopts Harold Turner’s methodology of “A non-mathematical process of clarification carried out for the purpose of determining concepts and relationships in raw data and then organizing them into a theoretical explanatory notes or scheme”.8 As a whole, it looks at the collective past, religious and theological positioning of a group such as the PCCs and their understanding of Sacred Space especially in relation to the creation of places of worship. Harold Turner, one of the pioneers in the study of religious novelty in Africa believes that in abiding with this style, an arena of investigation which is qualitative in nature focuses on gathering extensive examples of information so that the researcher can reach the historical background of the group and also trace their developmental history with regards to places of worship and how it has influenced their growth.9 This is further explained by Merriam in Greg Guest’s book Collecting Qualitative Data that a qualitative investigator is engrossed in accepting the import people have made or how people make wisdom of “their world” and the knowledges they have in “that world.”10 This takes us back to one of our research questions (the first one), which seeks to find out the Ghanaian PCCs understanding of the sacred space. An understanding that informs the way their places of worships are created. 8 Harold Turner, From Temple to Meeting House: The Phenomenology and Theology of Places of Worship (The Hague, Mouton. 1979), 32. 9 Turner, From Temple to Meeting House. 33. 10 Greg Guest, et.al, Collecting Qualitative Data: A field Manual for Applied Research (London, Sage. 2013), 16. 5 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1.7 METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION The main procedures of data collection are interviews, photographs, observation and participant observation, as well as a review of available literature. These methods helped to get the needed data through engagements that were carried out on the field of work. A dialogue in qualitative inquiry is a dialogue where interrogations are asked to stimulate data. The questioner is generally a skilled or funded scholar, occasionally qualified, who asks questions to the examinee, in an exchanging sequence of usually short-lived queries and responses. This method elicited vital information for the research work. Photographs are important tools for many research works. If taken by the researcher in a qualitative research work then it should be reinforced by texts to make meaningful interpretation since photographs may mean different things from person to person. This method the researcher believes helped gather the needed data to substantiate the findings. Observation study can be well-defined as the way of watching and copying the movements and actions of members. It is labeled as a methodical reflection method, which suggests that the reflective procedures are practicable actions so that the investigation could be replicated11. As the name defines, “observation” approaches are all about noticing the members. No research is shown and variables are not prejudiced. Interpretations made should not upset, sway or change the setting or the members in any way. Investigators simply use all of their minds to detect members in either a normal setting or an obviously occurring situation. (London, Sage. 2013), 16. 6 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh A number of reasons exists why observation study is selected as one of the best methods of gathering data for a specific investigation enquiry. For instance if the research question asks questions of “how” or “what type”. Again in recalling our research questions: What is the Ghanaian PCCs understanding of sacred space, and how the creation of the sacred space influence church growth suggests that applying the observational method is fitting for this work. Guest et al. explains that participant observation is so varied in its practice, there aren’t any recommendations as to the number of places, events or behaviors you should observe.12 However, others define it as when the investigator interferes in the setting in a particular way. Naturally, one will have to join the group as a member of the group in other to see activities that may otherwise not be obtainable to the researcher. The notes can either be made open or secret. If they are secret, the investigator’s actual self and drive are hidden (which may not be the practice in this research except for very unavoidable reasons). In an open observations, the investigator’s actual self and assignment is made known and seeks approval for the observations. Beneficially, it offers a profounder understanding into the members. However, securing the needed time and confidentiality to gather notes could be very challenging if they are clandestine. There is also the risk that the investigator may become “excessively near” and miss fairness, bring about in partiality.13 One social –scientific researcher has observed that knowing a person’s life and taking part in it – the two key elements of participant observation – 12 Guest, et.al, Collecting Qualitative Data. 75. 13 Guest et al Collecting Qualitative Data, 64-45. 7 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh make sense only when they are accompanied by speaking and listening.14 Adopting this method will be significant to the work since the researcher will make visits to church meetings as a participant observer to allow the researcher to listen to, engage in informal conversation and participate in activities with members of the various churches for information and clarification of relevant issues relating to their understanding and creation of sacred spaces as worship centers. 1.9 DATA ANALYSIS To evaluate the data gathered during this research, a qualitative analysis is employed. This method relies on the quality of information based on the significance to the subject under study rather than on the number of answers that were collected to a specific matter. In other words deducing from a big illustrative example, the student pursued to obtain profound and close data from a comparatively lesser collection of persons. Creswell, in referring to Merriam et.al contend that information gathering and information study must be a concurrent procedure in qualitative research during which information will be examined firmly and in an orderly manner, reread frequently and constantly veiled so that a list of the main concepts that came up will be listed. Recorded meetings and the members’ answers will be copied literal, and field notes will be regularly reviewed.15 Creswell, referring to Shatzman and Strauss also state that qualitative data examination mainly includes arranging things, people, and proceedings as well as the properties which describe them. Naturally, according to 14 Sjaan van der Geest, ‘Participant Observation in Demographic Research, Fieldwork Experiences in a Ghanaian Community, in A.M. Basu and P. Aaby (eds.), The Methods and Uses of Anthropological Demography (Oxford: Clarendon Press 1998), 40 15 Creswell, J.W., Research Design: Qualitative and Mixed Methods Approaches. 3rd Edition, (London: Sage Publication, 2009), 94-106, 259. 8 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Creswell, throughout the information study process, experts in the study of different cultures for example catalog their facts using as many kinds as possible. They pursue to classify and label patterns and themes from the views of the partaker (s), then attempt to understand and explain them. This method, the researcher deems fit for the work in the sense that in the later chapters some identification and categorization of sacred spaces of the PCCs will be done for proper analysis to be done in this findings. The outcome of the methodology and methods of data collection alone will be limited in terms of available information needed for this research without the literature review. 1.10 LITERATURE REVIEW This section engages with selected works that show that a lot of literature abounds for the research topic under consideration. However, the literature review is divided into three thematic areas: Sacred Space, Christianity in Ghana, and the PCCs in Ghana. 1.10.1 Sacred Space The major World Religions which include Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Shintoism Taoism, Sikhism and Jainism have chosen places as holy or sacred and usually encourage their believers to pay visits to such sites on pilgrimage.16 In emphasizing the idea of sacred space as one of the common traits of almost all religions, a worldwide look at places such as the Wailing Wall of Jerusalem in Israel, 16 Robert H Dalton, Sacred places of the world: A religious Journey Across the Globe. (Indiana: Abhishek, 2010), 89-90. 9 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh the Kaaba in Mecca in Saudi Arabia, the Miyajima Island in Japan, a sacred site for both Shinto and Buddhists and believed to be one of the most enchantingly beautiful places on earth17 are worth stating. The declaration is that issues concerning sacred space have been in existence for a long time. Thorley and Gunn affirms this global notion of revered places, “Throughout history, sacred sites have existed in all cultures and all parts of the world18. They have always been founded upon a core set of natural features such as mountains, caves, rock outcrops, springs etc. In all cultures, sacred places are seen as crossing-over points, sited between the mundane and the spirit world; entry points into another consciousness19. Not just seen as just another place in the countryside, sacred sites carry a whole set of rules and guidelines regarding people’s behavior, and suggest a set of beliefs linked with the non-material world, often in relation to the spirits of the ancestors and a belief in gods and spirits.”20 Mary W. Helms, highlights the following as some of the sacred landscapes of the world to further support the fact that sacred space has been in existence since time immemorial : the linkages of earthen mounds characteristic of the pre-colonial eastern North America, the numerous temple complexes of Lowland Maya, the interconnected revelation sanctuaries of the Igbo of Nigeria, the sacred places where the mythic ancestors of Australia Aboriginal tribes first arose from the earth during the Dreaming, and the distribution of Neolithic chambered monuments in southern Wales are all examples of the practice. Clearly, the notion of having sacred spaces cannot be limited to temples but naturally created places as well. 17 Dalton, Sacred Places of the world, 44 18 Anthony Thorley and Celia M. Gunn, Sacred Sites: An Overview, A report for The Gaia Foundation London. Calverts, 2008 7-12. 19 Thorley and Gunn, Sacred Sites, 2008. 7. 20 Thorley and Gunn, Sacred Sites, 2008. 7. 10 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The Lourdes, a vital place of visit is well-known for its Roman Catholic shrine where our lady of Lourdes (Virgin Mary) is believed to have frequently appeared to St. Bernadette (a peasant girl) in a grotto. Millions of people make trips to Lourdes every year, strained by their faith in amazing cures credited to the sacred waters of the shrine.21 Though and important literature like the World Book Encyclopedia from which this information is gathered, its significance to this research is limited in terms of influencing Church Growth through the creation of Sacred Spaces in the PCCs in Ghana. In Africa, King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela from the Christian Zagwe family of Amhara, Ethiopia is believed to have built several churches (Churches of St. George) after receiving heavenly communications instructing him to that effect. Customary stories have it that he was aided by angels and St. Gabriel to build twelve extra-ordinary churches during a period of twenty-five years. These churches are believed to be some of the rarest architectural creations of human development since they were sliced out of rocks. The place is a pilgrimage site for Coptic Christians, 22who see this site as the “center” of their world. An assertion Eliade affirms as “every house, by the inconsistency of the sanctification of space and by the ritual of its building, is altered into a “center”. It is a space that goes beyond normal limits, fairly dissimilar in environment from irreligious space.”23 Ulrich Beier, reveals the Oson-Osogbo Holy Grove as a sacred forest beside the tiers of the Osun River just outside the city of Oshogbo, Osun State in Nigeria. Believed to be the abode of Yoruba gods, the scenery from the orchard and its winding 21 World book Inc., The World Book Encyclopedia, (Chicago, Scott Frazer 2001), 507. 22 World book Inc., The World Book Encyclopedia, (Chicago, Scott Frazer 2001), 507. 23 Eliade, The Sacred and Profane (Harcourt, Brace & World. 1972), 26. 11 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh river is dotted with preserves and shrines, monuments and paintings in honor of Osun along with other deities. 24A holy plantation seen as a sign of rareness for Yoruba people and attests towards the once common practice of creating sacrosanct woods outside all settlements.25 Campbell M. O’Neal explains how sacred forest groves speck the progressively tainted scenery of Ghana, and are thought to be the dwelling places of deities whiles in some areas they are branded as interment parks for monarchs. She further states that certain classes of trees in most Ghanaian communities are called Nyame Dua (God’s tree) and they exhume sacredness and have curative muscles.26 The revered class of other plantations is due to an animal types that lives there, most usually monkeys or leopards. Other holiness of some groves emanates from a waterway or torrent that is home to a water spirit; where the neighboring woods then become an endangered zone.27 One more holy coppice, Jaagbo in the northern Tolon-Kumbungu district, hints its ancestries to the defense of the community. Agreeing to spoken antiquity, as stated by Oduro Antwi and Okae-Kissiedu, two epidemics hit the Tolon people in the 15th century, and seers determined that the people had ignored Jaagbo, the dwelling place of twin gods. When the necessary sacrifices and rituals were performed at certain places in the forest, the sicknesses stopped.28 The dialogue so far attest to the fact that these two groups of forest conservationists’ focus in their respective articles are primarily on how the sacredness of such groves helps to protect the eco-system of our environments and not on places of 24 Uli Beier, Bakari Gbadamoshi “A year of Sacred Festivals in One Yoruba Town”, (Lagos, Marina, 1959), 2. 25 Uli Beier, Bakari Gbadamoshi, Thirty years of Oshogbo Art, (Lagos, Iwalewa, 1991), 13. 26 Campbell, Michael O’Neal. “Sacred Groves for Forest Conservation in Ghana’s Coastal Savannas.” Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography 26.2 (2005): 151-169. 27 O’Neal. “Sacred Groves for Forest Conservation in Ghana’s Coastal Savannas.” 154. 28 Oduro, K. Antwi and K. Okae-Kissiedu, Restoration and Sustainable Management of Forests in Ghana. Paper presented at the Tropenbos International-Ghana Workshop, Elmina, Ghana, 2000. 5-7 12 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh worship (‘Sacred Spaces’). However, they have established the fact that the phenomenon of sacred groves are usual and are vital to the life and people of Africa, West Africa and Ghana in particular. It is also clear that the religious practice of sacred space is not a reservation of the Christian faith. Every consecrated cosmos submits a hierophany, an outbreak of the holy that results in separating a terrain from the neighboring celestial setting and making it qualitatively distinct.29 He explains more: Jacob’s dream at Haran, he saw a stepladder getting to heaven, with angels climbing and plunging on it, and overheard the Lord talking from above it, saying: "I am the Lord God of Abraham," he awoke and was frightened and cried out: "How dreadful is this place: this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." And he took the rock which he used as a pillow, and fixed it up as a memorial, and poured oil on the top of it. He called the place Beth-el, that is, house of God (Genesis, 28, 12- 19)30. The imagery enclosed in the statement "gate of heaven" is complex; the theophany that occurs in a place sanctifies it by the very fact that it makes it open above-- that is, in a discourse with heaven, the sardonic point of channel from one manner of being to another.31 Moses’ encounter with the Lord in the Land of Midian at Mount Horeb where the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the hub of the burning bush (Gen. 3:1-5) where the Lord said unto him “ … God called unto 29 Eliade, The Sacred and the Profane, 26. 30 Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott. Matthew Henry Commentary on the Holy Bible (Tennessee: Royal, 1979). 31 Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, 28. 13 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh him out of the midst of the burning bush and said Moses, Moses. And he said, here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.”32 This in principle is what Geradus Van der Leeuw calls a place showing itself to be sacred, “The place thus selected, because it has shown itself to be sacred, is at first merely a position: man adds nothing at all to Nature; the enigmatic situation of a locality, its awe-inspiring character, suffice.”33 In other words what Moses saw and did under God’s instruction by not going further and also removing his sandals off his feet is what Eliade clarifies as “Not a worship of the stone in itself, a cult of the tree in itself. The sacred tree, the sacred stone are not revered as stone or tree; they are adored exactly because they are heirophanies, due to the fact that they reveal a thing that is no longer stone or tree but sacred.34 Both Eliade and Vander Leeuw suggests in their literature that a place is simply rebuilt to manifest a disclosure of holiness that now becomes a midpoint of desirability/assembly between man and his God. This physical center of attraction/connection is not necessary a place of worship. In the New Testament account of Jesus’ encounter with the paralytic at the sheep market, a pool which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda meaning house of mercy35 (John 5:1-4) is troubled by an angle at certain season: whoever stepped in it the first was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. The 32 The Holy Bible (Revised Standard Version) Michigan, Zondervan. 1994. 33 Geradus Van der Leeuw. Religion in Essence and Manifestation vol. 1, (New York, Harper & Row. 1963), 394. 34 Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, 12. 35 Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott. Matthew Henry Commentary on the Holy Bible. (Tennessee, Royal. 1979), 14 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh experience as a result of nature (the pool) experiencing a alteration is what Eliade calls Kratophanic or hierophanic.36 In essence, Eliade affords readers the insight into how a common or an ordinary place can be recreated to be sacred. The next line of literature review looks at the Christian land scape of Ghana. 1.10.2 Christianity in Ghana Richard Foli, in his book Christianity in Ghana informs us that 20th January, 1482 has been conventionally known as the period when Christianity was led into Ghana and indeed, to West Africa.37 On that day, a Portuguese mission of 600 men, under the skill of Don Diego d’Azambuja who had arrived in Elmina, close to Cape Cost in Ghana (then Gold Coast), a day before “hanged the banner of Portugal from the bough of a lofty tree, at the foot of which they erected an altar, and the whole company assisted at the first mass that was celebrated in Ghana, and prayed for the conversion of the inhabitants from idolatry, and (seek) the eternal success of the church which they intended to erect upon the spot.”38 According to Eliade, The Spaniards and the Portuguese conquistadores, discovering and winning lands, took ownership of the land in the name of Jesus. The raising of the Crucifix was equal to hallowing the nation, thereby giving Ghana a sort of “new birth”. For in Christ “old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Corinthians 5:17). The freshly found country was “renewed”, “recreated” by the cross.39 Further on Eliade suggests for our understanding that 36 Mircea Eliade, Patterns in Comparative Religion (New York, Bloomsbury 1972), 367. 37 Richard Foli, Christianity in Ghana: A Comparative Church Growth Study (Accra, Trust. 2006), 13. 38 Foli, Christianity in Ghana, 13. 39 Eliade, The Sacred and Profane. 52. 15 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh “the cosmicization of unknown territories is always a consecration; to organize a space is to repeat the model work of the gods.” So the sacred altar which was raised at the foot of the tree by the Portuguese (which plays a soteriological role) signifies what Eliade calls the Celestial bloc, for it is around the sacred altar the territory becomes inhabitable, converted into a world;40 a religious world known as Ghana, though this was not all that the Portuguese sort to accomplish in their quest to colonize the country. In John S. Pobee describes Ghana as homo religious due to the fact that she has a spiritual ontology and epistemology and that “In Ghana, to be is to be religious”41. Religious affiliation in Ghana is very varied and mixed. Scholars such as Max Assimeng, G. Platvoet and Gerrie ter Haar have thus variously described the scene with phrases such as “Religious zoo”42 demonstrating all manner of religious wildlife, “rainbow”43 and “religious gold mine.”44 However, there are three main religions that attract important numbers of believers, namely, Christianity, Islam and African Traditional Religion. It must be noted that these three religions do not exist in isolation for they influence each other considerably. The table below shows the religious groups in Ghana as at 2000. In the year 2000, the Ghana Statistical Service conduced a Population census and the result is summarized below: 40 Eliade, The Sacred and Profane. 50. 41 John Samuel Pobee, Skenosis; Christian Faith in an African Context (Gweru, Mambo Press, 1992), 62. 42 Max Assimeng, Salvation, Social Crisis and Human Condition (Accra, Ghana Universities Press, 1995), 14. 43 Jan G. Platvoet, The Study of Religion in Africa Past, Present and Prospects (Cambridge, Roots and Branches 1992), 47. 44 Gerrie ter Haar, Standing up for Jesus: A Survey of New Developments in Christianity in Ghana (Accra Exchange 1994), 221. 16 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Table 1. Denomination Percentage of Adherents Christian 69.0 Muslim 15.6 Traditional Religions 8.5 Other Religions 0.7 No Religion 6.2 Total 100 The results of this census reveals that Ghana is still a religious country because 93.8% of the populace are devotees to one religion or the other. This revelation has seen further support in the ensuing years’ (2010) population and housing census as recorded in the table below. Table 2. Denomination Percentage of Adherent Christians 71.2 Pentecostals 28.3 Protestants 18.4 Roman Catholics 13.1 Other Christians 11.4 Islam 17.6 African Indeginous Religion 5.8 Others 0.8 Total 100% 17 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Source: Ghana Population and Housing Census (2010) The census steered by the Ghana Population and Housing Census revealed that: From a figure of 69% in the year 2000 to 71.2% in the year 2010 representing an increase of 2.1% as adherents of one Christian affiliation or the other, there is no gain saying that Ghana’s character is plainly Christian as stated by Paul Gifford. However, according to Amanor, the influence of the joint missionary effort by Christians on the people of Ghana by the 20th century, was mainly “Christian”, however the degree to which the populace was actually Christian has been questioned since the finding by the Ghana Evangelism Committee. Their report showed that non-corresponding reality is the chief problem of Christianity in Ghana.45 Christianity in Ghana has been shaped by its current renewal as a non- Western religion,46 an assertion which scholars such Asamoah-Gyadu, Paul Gifford, Kingsley Larbi and Abamfo-Atiemo in their various accounts, books and articles have supported. Omenyo also states that there is a massive range of Churches in Ghana due to the fast spread of new churches and separations in some of the older churches. 47 So to get a fairer view of Christianity in Ghana we must first outline the major elements of churches. He uses the historical and theological groups as his catalogs (which may not be perfect),48 distinguishing the following groups of Christian churches in Ghana in the following chronological order: 45 Amanor, D. Jones, Pentecostalism in Ghana: An African Reformation (Accra, Asempa 1996), 2. 46 Gifford Paul, Ghana’s New Christianity: Pentecostalism in a Globalizing African Economy. (London, Hurst. 2004), 37. 47 Omenyo C. Nar. Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 34. 48 Omenyo C. Nar & Abamfo Atiemo: Claiming Religious Space, Ghana Bulletin of Theology; 1 (2006), 59. 18 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1. Historic Mainline Churches (HMCs) 2. Independent Churches originating in Ghana or from other African countries; 3. The traditional Pentecostal society like the Churches of Pentecost (COP), Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) and the Apostolic Church of Ghana. 4. Neo-Pentecostal or Charismatic non-denominational Fellowships such as Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International and Women’s Aglow Fellowship International; Charismatic Renewal assemblies in the main churches, for example Catholic Charismatic Renewal, Bible Study and Prayer Groups of the Pentecostal denominations; 5. The Independent Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches/Ministries/Neo- Pentecostal Under these broad typology of the Christian church in Ghana, we shall give a brief description of each of them for a better appreciation of the Christian landscape in Ghana before we limit our discussion to the PCCs. 1.10.2.1 Historic/Mainline Churches The two terms are used synonymously to refer to the older, and generally larger churches formed as a result of European Missionary activities in Ghana in the 19th Century.49 Usually these churches have a character largely tinted by that of the Western Christianity. They are : the Presbyterian church of Ghana, the Methodist church, Ghana, the Evangelical Presbyterian church, the Roman Catholic church, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion church, the Seventh-day Adventist church, the Baptist church and the Anglican church.50 49 Omenyo Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 34 50 Omenyo Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 35 19 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Together, these mainline churches claim a larger portion of the Ghanaian population and majority of them enjoy the building of huge places of worship that have staples on top of them generally implying a religious (Christian) structure. As rightly stated by Asamoah-Gyadu in his book African Charismatics “The Western European missionary heritage of these churches is obvious in their copies of Victorian-style architectural buildings, and their retention of traditional Western mission patterns of ministry, clerical accoutrements, liturgical forms and hymnody, creeds and infant baptism and confirmation as the principal means of initiation into membership.”51 1.10.2.2 African Independent Churches from Ghana (AICs) These according to Omenyo, are churches originating in Ghana around 1914 when one Prophet Wade Harris showed up in the south-western part of Ghana. Although Harris did not establish a church, he inspired the founding of the first AIC in Ghana, the Twelve Apostles Church. Several of these churches have arisen on the Ghanaian religious scene. They have neither western origin nor enjoy western support. In fact they are projected to be over four hundred different denomination which are led by prophets and prophetesses. Some major AICs that emerged later were the Musama Disco Christo Church, the Savior church (Memeneda Gyidifo), the Apostles’ Revelation Society (Apostolowo Fe Dedefia Habobo), African Faith Tabernacle Congregation, The Eternal Sacred Order of Cherubim and Seraphim Society and the Church of the Lord (Aladura). The AICs are referred to as sunsum sore among the Akans or mumu solemo among the Gas 51 Asamoah-Gyadu: African Charismatics, Current Developments within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana. (Leiden, African Christian Press 2005), 14. 20 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh meaning “Holy Spirit Churches”52. In talking to leading participants, according to Asamoah-Gyadu, the impression one gets is that the vernacular designation Sunsum sore` appears to be the best guess that Ghanaian AICs reached in the insight of themselves as re-living the Biblical Pentecostal experience.53 One common feature of these churches is that they are purely homemade churches instituted mainly by Africans for Africans with no relations with the western world.54 Lending credence to this Asamoah-Gyadu states that the Sunsum Sore` saw themselves as different from The Wester Missionary Churches (TWMCs) not in terms of being more African, but rather as being place of worship in which the Spirit existed as experience and not just as doctrine.55 1.10.2.3 Classical Pentecostal Movement These are churches which are defined in academic circles as traditional Pentecostalism and used to be categorized as being one of the AICs but their theology and character are different56. However in Ghana, their origins are traced to the Faith Tabernacle Church, which started in 1917 and later gave birth to three of the four major Pentecostal churches in the country namely: the Christ Apostolic Church, The Church of Pentecost and the Apostolic Church. The fourth major Classical Pentecostal Church is the Assemblies of God Church. Their authority association is known as the Ghana Pentecostal Charismatic Council (GPCC) which had an affiliation of over one hundred and thirty nine as at the year 2000 but currently are 227 as at January 2019.57 52 Omenyo Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 36 53 Asamoah-Gyadu: African Charismatics, 21. 54 Omenyo, Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 37 55 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 22 56 Omenyo, Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 38 57 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 54. 21 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1.10.2.4 Neo-Pentecostal or Charismatic Non-denominational Fellowships The term ‘neo-Pentecostal’ refers to an umbrella term to contain Pentecostal renewal phenomena associated with trans-denominational communions, prayer groups, ministries and autonomous churches, which came into being or fame from about the last three decades of the twentieth century.58 Their theological understanding is different from the other strands of Pentecostals who trust in the experience of the Holy Spirit. In practice, the ‘democratitisation of ministry’ is truer of the Ghanaian neo- Pentecostal, especially with respect to the emphasis on ‘every-member-ministry than that of the other Pentecostals. As their name advocates, they are not churches, but rather para church relations that inspire members to remain in their churches and, with their charismatic experience, try to bring about renewal from within. Two main examples are the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International and its female similar (not branch) Women Aglow. Their activities revolve around getting like-minded Christians around in weekly prayer meetings, evangelism tours aimed at opening new churches/branches and more importantly, weekend breakfast and dinner meetings. They are devoted to revitalization through the reestablishment of effective and fervent prayer and openness to the manifestations of Pentecostal sensations. 1.10.2.5 Neo-Evangelical/Mission-related Churches 58 Asamoah-Gyadu: African Charismatics. 22 22 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The next type of churches extremely well-known in Western missionary activities in Ghana dates back to the early 1940s.59 Until recently, they had formed churches as the New Apostolic Church, the Evangelical churches of Ghana, Worldwide Evangelization Crusade (WEC) Mission, the Good News Churches of the Society of International Ministries, formerly recognized as Sudan Interior Mission and the churches of Christ Mission. They incline to have a traditional evangelical flavor- Emphasizing evangelism, church growth and church planting as against the PCCs stress on the gifts and operation of the Holy Spirit. They are not allied to any umbrella organization.60 1.10.2.6 Independent Pentecostal/Neo- Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches/Ministries These group are said to be the roughest growing stream of Christianity in Ghana – Charismatic ministries/churches. The early types were initially non-denominational Christian fellowships, which later became separate independent denominations with their leaders supposing clerical titles. These churches which were on the margins of Christianity in Ghana in the 1980 are currently moving to the center61. Today, their leaders such as Bishop Duncan Williams and Dr. Mensah Otabil, are among the prominent church leaders in Ghana.62 Among the key Neo-Pentecostal churches are the Christian Action Faith Ministries, International Central Gospel Church, Word Miracle Church (now Perez chapel), Light House Chapel, Christian Family Center, Victory Bible Church, Fountain 59 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism. 41. 60 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism. 41. 61 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s Charismatic Churches, Journal of Religion in Africa, 24.3 (Aug 1994), 241- 243 62 Omenyo C. Nar. Pentecost outside Pentecostalism, 37. 23 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Life Mission and Grace Outreach Church. These are associated to the National Association for Charismatic and Christian Churches (NACCC). Some of them are linked to churches abroad, especially United States of America, United Kingdom, South Korea and Nigeria. Most of them have branches abroad, especially in Europe and America. These group (Charismatic Churches) claim about 28 % of the Ghanaian population according to the Ghana Religious Demographic index 2010.63 1.10.3 Pentecostal Charismatic Churches According to Asamoah-Gyadu, Pentecostal Christianity, the religion of the Holy Spirit, as it 64is argued signifies the greatest actual sign of the remarkable growth of Christianity in African countries like Ghana. 65 In Ghana today, as somewhere else around the African continent, numerous autonomous native Pentecostal and autochthonous Charismatic movements that advanced in the answer to the grave denominationalism of historic mission Christianity have come to signify local displays of a worldwide phenomenon.66 The numerous answers to the existence of the Spirit in diverse socio-cultural settings and beliefs have given rise to a similarly diverse variety of churches and movements that react to the title Pentecostal, Charismatic or, in not a few cases, both.67 The advance, variety and vibrant nature of Pentecostal activities across the globe jumble any attempt to neatly classify them. According to Paul Gifford, there is moderately little research on them and even the valuable Ghana Evangelism Committee surveys shed 63 Omenyo C. Nar: Pentecost outside Pentecostalism, 37. 64 Asamoah-Gyadu, African charismatics, 27 65 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 21. 66 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics; 22 67 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics; 22 24 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh little light on their nature, numbers and growth.68 Expressions and titles connected with Pentecostalism now mean different things in different settings. In Ghana the term ‘Charismatic’ for instance, means something different from what it is in a Western European situation. In Europe, Charismatic activities are usually renewal groups operating within older and more assuredly recognized historic mainline denominations.69 Whiles in Ghana, and in other African countries on the other hand, the expression ‘Charismatic’ is used more in mention to the new trend of self-regulating Pentecostal movements. Notwithstanding their homegrown roots, they are seriously stimulated by North American neo-Pentecostal, tele-evangelistic activities with their mega-church ideas, world-dominating program for Christians and spiritual free enterprise drives that inspire societies to change their salvation into real-world everyday successes in business, education, economics and family life. A few examples of these are the Christian Action Faith Ministries (CAFM), started by Nicholas Duncan Williams in 1979 and headquartered in Accra – Spintex road, International Central Gospel (ICGC) founded by Mensah Otabil in 1984 and headquartered in Accra – Mataheko, World Miracle Bible Church (WMBC) now Perez Chapel (PC), founded by Charles Agyin Asare in 1986 and headquartered in Accra – Dzorwulu, Broken Yoke Foundation (BYF) now Fountain Gate Chapel (FGC), headquartered in Bolgatanga etc. As noted earlier, these Pentecostal Charismatic Churches focus their ministries in the regional capitals, urban and city centers though a few have tried to make inroads to some districts and municipalities. One interesting about these churches is the seemingly non-conformity to the creation of places of worship to look like that of the 68 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s Charismatic Churches, 241. 69 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 1. 25 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Western European Victorian-style architectural buildings, a phenomenon that appears not to be well addressed by most of the literature reviewed but inspires this researcher to delve into it and possibly fill in the yawning gap. In the light of the works looked at so far, the researcher is of the view that sacred space and the PCCs in Ghana should be examined in a theoretical framework that will best unearth the understanding and creation of “Sacred Spaces” as their places of worship. 1.11 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Theory of Phenomenology of Religion is the context in which this research is discussed and grounded. James L. Cox defines phenomenology as providing a way of finding out or examining the way we know the reality. 70He further explains three key concepts under his approach to outlining the phenomenological way of gaining knowledge: Hard Science, Philosophical Radicalness and Intentionality which are very relevant to this research. Two of these concepts - Philosophical radicalism and intentionality will be predominantly employed to this study. To be radical according to Cox is “going to the roots.” The root of knowledge begins with the objects or things of perception and he defines Phenomena from the Greek word Phanos to mean “that which manifests itself.”71 Explaining further, Cox believes that knowledge does not dwell in the things themselves but the mindfulness of the knowing subject. By using a proper practice within the awareness, the observer unearths a relationship between personal awareness (the act of perceiving) and the thing 70 James L. Cox Expressing the Sacred: Introduction to Phenomenology of Religion. (Harare, University of Zimbabwe Publication 1992.) 17-21. 71 Cox Expressing the Sacred 17-21. 26 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh professed (the content of perception)72. In lending credence to this, Edmund Husserl, a German philosopher to whom the philosophical movement is attributed to, defines a phenomenological technique as a vivid principle of knowledge which begins with the individual, the subject, and pursues to move outside the person into an impartial account of the world (intentionality).73 Following the philosophical radicalism, all, even the existence of the external world, must be interrogated. The crux or drive of this is to describe the phenomena and to achieve an understanding of that which is shown.74 To reach an appreciative level of these matters, the witness must hang his former conclusions about the realm, including his moods, thoughts and molds, and attempt to see into the very core of the occurrences themselves. In achieving this, the observer must effect two important events: Essence or Structure of Objects and Relation and Processes. His decisions always remain answerable to the phenomena. The process continuously requests the phenomenologist back to the basis of his knowledge. An eidetic instinct, consequently, must be tested and reviewed with respect to the phenomena (where eidetic intuition means building structures of meaning by naming objects, noting relationships and describing processes within the phenomena). In other words seeing the vibrant imports of the phenomena from their structures to pledge that the core is not, as in the words of Hershberger, ‘a mere universal’ but a ‘self-validating eidos’.75 In examining the creation of sacred spaces by the PCCs in this research, the researcher goes to the root of this practice of religion to ascertain their understanding of sacred space, find out how they create them in other to know the influence it has on 72 Cox, Expressing the Sacred, 20. 73 Cox, Expressing the Sacred, 20. 74 Cox, Expressing the Sacred, 21. 75 Cox, Expressing the Sacred, 21. 27 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh church growth. Inferring from Cox’s concept of intentionality, an act of seeing and accepting the phenomena infers that the spectator keenly guides his devotion to an objective. Opinion, therefore, does not consist of the subject passively receiving impressions on his blank consciousness. The subject rather deliberately interacts with the object of perception and interrogates them into his mind. The act of thinking thus involved directing personal meanings to intentional objects thereby making them sincerely objective. An exercise deemed fit to be employed by the researcher for this work. As this research seeks to probe the Ghanaian PCCs’ understanding of Sacred Spaces (SSs), as in reference to one of our research questions (What is the Ghanaian PCCs understanding of sacred space?) the argument here is that sacred spaces constructed by the numerous PCC group of believers dotted in and around the Abeka Lapaz and Spintex road area enable their very conception of the metaphysical to be real which helps connect the seen and the unseen by creation of a space for the sacred. 1.12 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY Popular discourses in the Ghanaian public space suggests that some pastors especially in PCCs, obtain spiritual powers (juju) from African indigenous shrines and leaders to enhance their performance and attract members. Some of these are said to be buried on the sacred sites which might create suspicion with this research and therefore hinder the collection of data. However, the researcher secured and tendered in the appropriate documents – student identity card and letters of recommendation from the Head of Religions Department of the University of Ghana to facilitate easy access to the PCCs for the needed data. 28 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Also, failure by the respondents to meet scheduled appointments with the researcher was anticipated to limit the speed and fluidity of gathering of the needed data. Nevertheless, we were faithful to our time schedules agreed with the respondents and tried to send constant reminders through the appropriate mediums until such appointments were made. The likely biases of the researcher, a Seventh-day Adventist was controlled by the theoretical framework adopted – phenomenology, with its Epoche`principles acted as a guide so as not to set out to advance one’s views on the work. From the foregoing, all possible or foreseeable bottlenecks as regards inadequacies in certain areas of the work are carefully taken care of in other areas. Thus, making the research work appropriate and useful. 1.12 ORGANIZATION OF STUDY The work is organized into five main chapters as expressed below in its order of sequence. Chapter one deals with the introduction which includes the background of the study, statement of the problem, research questions and objectives, scope, methodology, literature review, theoretical framework, limitations, outline and significance of the study. Chapter two examines the history of PCCs within the context of Christianity in Ghana whiles Chapter three is devoted to identifying and categorizing of sacred spaces of PCCs in Ghana. Chapter four examines the contribution of Sacred Space to church Growth in the PCCs and 29 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The concluding chapter, is the summary, findings and recommendations. 1.13 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY This work is important because, even though PCCs are perceived to be influencing the Christian landscape in Ghana, there has not been much study in terms of its identification, characterization and usage of sacred space. This study on the PCCs, which is focused on identifying and categorizing these spaces is a significant contribution to the literature on the development and changing models of Christianity and sacred spaces in Ghana. It also provides an important opinion about the role of sacred space in the light of African Christianity and the global church. The study looks at how the endless diversity of sacred spaces as places of worship found in the PCCs contributes to its growth in Ghana and finally, it serves as a resource material for the faith community to help them appreciate how their sacred spaces influence their evangelistic agenda and the growth of the church. 30 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh CHAPTER TWO PENTECOSTALISM IN GHANA 2.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter is devoted to the discussion of Pentecostalism in Ghana and its different trajectories such as African Independent Churches (AICs), Classical Pentecostal Churches and the Charismatic churches. This is important as a background justification for gaining an appreciation of the Pentecostal notion of sacred space which is the core aim of this thesis. For, without the knowledge of Pentecostalism in Ghana, it will be difficult to understand, identify and classify its Sacred Spaces. Therefore, this chapter looks at conceptualizing the Ghanaian Pentecostalism and its three major streams which includes the Charismatic churches. 2.2 GHANA’S RELIGIOUS SCENE According to Paul Gifford, modern Ghana is made up of about 75 different ethnolinguistic groupings, with the most numerous being the Akan, the Mossi, the Ewe and Ga.76 Supporting this, Omenyo states that Ghana is a poly-ethnic country having not less than 75 different vernaculars and languages, with each more or less related with a distinct ethnic group. 77 The Akans are 49.1%, Mole Dagbani 16.5%, Ewes 12.7% 76 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s New Christianity: Pentecostalism in a Globalizing African Economy. (London, Hurst. 2004), 37. 77 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism. 37. 31 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh and Ga Adangme 8.0%. However, the use of English as a national language has been one of the major factors that has united the country. This research used Akan since they are the major ethnic group in the country and focused on their traditional religious ideas as a springboard in our attempt to examine the Ghanaian peoples’ primal understanding of reality. Kingsley Larbi notes that one of the major factors to the remarkable success of Ghanaian Pentecostalism is that its cosmology and its soteriology align with the primal concept of the reality of the Akan. The irrepressible nature of ideas supporting the primal religion of the Akan,” who have been well studied” according to Omenyo, could be equally valid to the various peoples (PCC members) of Ghana, and indeed used as the basis of the traditional African insight of reality as a whole. Vital to the Akan religious thoughts is the belief in the variety of spirits in the universe. Like most Africans, they have a great sense of what Larbi calls “two inter- penetrating and inseparable, yet distinguishable parts”, namely, the world of spirits and the world of man. Corroborating this, Max Assimeng states that “… until the scope of the African’s conception of divine ‘darkness’ is reckoned with, one cannot claim that one is studying the religious awareness of the traditional peoples of West Africa’. This statement according to Omenyo applies perfectly to the Akan whose idea of causality or what scholars call Mystical Causality; that is nothing happens for nothing which in Akan is biribi nsi Kwa leans heavily on the spiritual. Besides purely organic causality of sickness, for instance, no interpretation of causality that does not include elements like fated destiny, punishment by infuriated ancestors and witchcraft can be fully acceptable.78 78 Asamoah-Gyadu J.K, “Spirit and Spirits in African Religious Traditions,” in Interdisciplinary and Religio-Cultural Discourse on a Spirit-Filled world. Accra, Ghana Publishing 2013), 41-42. 32 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The phrase ‘it is not an ordinary occurrence’ (ennye Kwa) is always the thought in the face of any life crisis. This medicine (aduru) and medical treatment, for instance, have a strong religious connotation. This orientation of the Akan makes the role of the diviners and traditional priests in Akan society very important. Traditional priests, among other things, function as doctors, counsellors, pastors, prophets, and intermediaries between the seen and unseen world. Among the Akans, for instance, it is said of a traditional priest that owo ani, meaning ‘he/she has eyes’, in other words, he/she can see what others cannot ordinarily see. Also, they are believed to have tumi or power beyond what the ordinary person possesses. These perceptions of the traditional priests make their roles very significant in the lives of most traditional Africans. Kofi Asare Opoku, observes that priesthood is a very highly respected office in West African societies. John Ekem also notes that the most important definition of the priesthood in Akan Religion is that of prophecy. He examines the etymology of the Akan word for priest (Okomfo) and argues that: The root “Kom” … denotes the act of prophesying and authentically about Present and future events under the inspiration of deities. Viewed in this General regard, an Okomfo is one who prophesies with full authenticity through Divine inspiration. Traditional priests and priestesses interviewed confirmed this interpretation, adding that an Okomfo’s credibility depends much on the truth or falsity of prophecies that he or she utters. Therefore, the noun akom has more to do with prophetic utterance (Akan: nkomhye=prophecy) than mere possession and cultic dancing. The latter only serves as a vehicle for the former. 79 The traditional role of akomfo (plural for Okomfo) in promoting holistic wellbeing of individuals, groups and the entire states as custodians of traditional spirituality among most West African groups, particularly among the Akans is 79 John K.D. Ekem, Priesthood in Context: A Study of Priesthood in some Christian Primal Communities of Ghana and its relevance for mother-tongue biblical interpretation (Accra, SonLife Press 2009), 28. 33 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh undeniable. The African Indigenous Churches (AICs) were the first to build the bridge between primal religion and African Christianity by taking resource from the gospel to deal with this typical African religious practice.80 These were led by individual charismatic leaders who were described by scholars as ‘African Prophets’ in the early part of the 20th Century due to their style of ministry, particularly prophecy. According to Omenyo, key among them was Wade Harris, who began in 1910; Sampson Oppong, who ministered around the 1920s; Garrick Braide, who worked around 1914 and 1918; Joseph Babalola, who worked around 1928; and Simon Kumbangu whose ministry lasted only for one year, in 1921. These prophets attracted large followings due to their detailed remarkable manner of ministry, indicative of a traditional priest using Christian resources, thus making them suitable to both some conservatives and Christians. Baeta affirms that such prophets are believed to possess powers of healing, of revealing hidden things, of predicting the future and having the power to curse or bless efficaciously. The AICs have successfully set the pace for the gospel in Africa and in Ghana for the role of the traditional priests to be revered as ‘solution men’ at the ‘solution centers’. This is the way successive Pentecostal/Charismatic churches have followed, attracting many adherents in Ghana and thereby creating numerous places of worship (sacred spaces) for their adherents 80 Cephas N. Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37. 34 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2.3 PENTECOSTLISM WORLDWIDE One of the global Christian movements started by non-Europeans is the global Pentecostal Movement.81 The originator of this movement was a black ecumenist from the United States known as William Joseph Seymour. Asamoah – Gyadu defines Pentecostalism as the kind of Christianity that trusts in, upholds and vigorously endorses the involvement of the Holy Spirit as part of the usual Christian life and worship.82 Its most characteristic component is the Holy Spirit baptism, which is thought, must be demonstrated in ‘talking in languages’.83 In this research, the expression “Pentecostal/Charismatic” is usually used for the Pentecostal regeneration sets working within notable mission denominations and parachurch trans- denominational groupings such as the Full Gospel Businessmen Fellowship84. Also, the term ‘Pentecostal/Charismatic’ will be used to encompass Pentecostalism in its various streams and diversities. In some occasion, the term ‘Pentecostal’ will be applied specifically to the historically older and more firmly established denominations and ‘neo-Pentecostal’ to different streams that may be categorized as charismatic. Today it is hard to talk about world Christianity without reference to Pentecostalism. In 2008, the Templeton Foundation, through the University of Southern California, made available US$3.5million for research on Pentecostalism worldwide, a sign of how important this stream of Christianity has become a worldwide religion.”85 David Martin, states that the amazing growth of Pentecostalism and its related gumshoe of Charismatic Christianity signifies the major worldwide move in the 81 Walter J. Hollenweger, Pentecostalism: Origins and Developments Worldwide (Massachusetts, Hendrickson Publishers 1997), 18. 82 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 25. 83 Asamoah-Gyadu J. Kwabena: Journal of Religion in Africa; Leiden 35.1 (2005), 3. 84 Asamoah-Gyadu J. Kwabena, Journal of religion in Africa, 3. 85Ogbu Kalu, African Pentecostalism: An Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). P. 19 35 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh religious marketplace over the past 40 years.86 It claims a quarter of a billion people internationally, being the greatest widespread form of non-Roman Catholic Christianity, claiming one out of every eight peoples from the Christian populace of closely two billion, and one in every twenty-five of the worldwide population87 . However, Ogbu Kalu, has argued that the development of Pentecostalism/Charismatism in modern Africa may not be statistically established in a precise manner but it is very evident and has reshaped the religious setting in Africa including Ghana.88 2.4 PENTECOSTALISM IN GHANA Although there is this assertion that not all the rise of the phenomena of Pentecostalism globally may be connected to the North American initiatives89, it will be proper to situate Pentecostalism or Charismatism, as it is commonly known in Ghana in a setting in order to have a closer look at how the phenomena emerged within Ghanaian Christianity. Pentecostalism in Ghana is part of the wide global phenomenon of Pentecostalism. In this study, the researcher adopts an intercultural definition of Pentecostalism. This definition is applied because it offers a general overview which helps to depart from approaches to the study of Pentecostalism that present “African participants as mere clones, consumers or imitators of innovations that originated outside their context.”90 86 David Martin, Pentecostalism, 197. 87 David Martin, Pentecostalism, 198. 88 Ogbu Kalu African Pentecostalism: An Introduction, (Oxford: University press 2008), 34 89 Ojo, Matthews, The Growth of Charismatic Movements in Northern Nigeria, (California, University of California Press 2002), 94. 90 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 1-3 36 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The researcher supports other scholars (Ogbu Kalu, Kwame Bediako, Asamoah-Gyadu, Cephas Omenyo, Ojo Matthews and many more) that Pentecostal occurrences in Ghana and other parts of Africa emerged strongly out of the indigenous initiative.91 According to Asamoah-Gyadu, the intercultural perspective has inferences for what it means to be Pentecostal because it calls for a broader, more all- encompassing definition of Pentecostalism than one finds in the thinking of some Western authors.92 Asamoah-Gyadu gives a working definition of Pentecostalism in his book African Charismatics as: Christian groups which emphasize salvation in Christ as a transformative experience wrought by the Holy Spirit and in which pneumatic phenomena including ‘speaking in tongues’, prophecies, visions, healing and miracles in general, perceived as standing in historic continuity with the experience of the early church as found especially in the Acts of the Apostles, are sought, accepted, valued, and consciously encouraged among members as signifying the presence of God and experiences of his Spirit.93 Pentecostalism as it established in Ghana, is generally defined to include the African Independent Churches (AICs), the Evangelical Pentecostal Movements also known as the Traditional Pentecostals and a third element which is the ‘Charismatic Renewal movement or the Neo-Pentecostal movement.”94 These three parts of Pentecostal manifestation will be briefly discussed in the context of their understanding, identification and classification of Sacred Spaces and to indicate how they have influenced church growth through the creation of these numerous sacred spaces in recent times. 91 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 1-3 92 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 1-3 93 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 1-3 94 Kingsley Larbi, Pentecostalism: Eddies of Ghanaian Christianity, (Accra: Blessed Publication,2001), 57 37 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2.5 The African Independent Churches (AICs) The period between 1920 and 1930 saw the rise of several African Independent Churches (AICs)95 and the very early ones leapt up from the trips of some aforementioned native prophets such as Sampson Oppong and William Wade Harris. The Twelve Apostles Church, the earliest of the AICs, directed by John Nackaba and Grace Tani, emerged from the William Wade Harris’ tour in the Western Region of Ghana in 191496. In Ghana, the AICs are known as the Sunsum sore (Akan) or Mumu Solemo (Ga), meaning ‘Holy Spirit Churches.’ Baeta states that they are ‘Spiritual Churches because their activities are intended to show that, in their veneration, the assemblies concerned take part in various activities which are meant to ‘summon’ the Holy Spirit of God or are to be understood as signs of his descent upon the worshipers97. The AICs were largely started by former members of the principal churches who severed from their parent churches.98 Others came from other branches of other spiritual churches or were introduced by refugees from Nigeria.99 The main ones are The Church of the Twelve Apostles, The Musama Disco Christo Church, The Savior Church (Memeneda Gyidifo), The Apostles Revelation Society, African Faith Tabernacle (Apostolowo Fe Dedefia Habobo), The Eternal Sacred Order of the Cherubim and Seraphim Society, 95 Omenyo Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism 37. 96 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37. 97 Christian Beata, Prophetism in Ghana: A Study of some ‘Spiritual’ Churches in Ghana. (London, Cambridge University Press), 36 98 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37. 99 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37 38 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Church of the Lord (Aladura). 100 The AICs display revival affinities and stress faith healing. Their worship is exciting and full of lively music. In seeking to please the African’s deep devout and divine quest and search for true spirituality, Omenyo states that they have in many ways sought to connect at the wave-length of the African through their worldview.101 Hence the attraction (and in some cases total desertion) of some members of the mainline churches to the AICs. In explaining why people are attracted to them, one member is quoted as follows: ‘we may not all be eloquent in printed theology, but we express faith in our ritual, adoration and arrangements. Our services are alive with warm expressions of joy as we clap and dance in rhythm with the new spiritual and local songs. Needless to say, people come because they feel at home.’102 Surely, a character that has influenced a trail for the PCCs in modern times. 2.6 The Classical Pentecostals The origin of Pentecostalism in Ghana can be traced to the Faith Tabernacle Church (1917), later known as Christ Apostolic Church. 103 Mr. Anim, the originator, who was later known as Apostle Peter Anim, is usually considered as the father of Pentecostalism in Ghana. In Ghana, as it is directly traced to the Faith Tabernacle Church104, it later established three of the four major Pentecostal churches in Ghana namely: the Christ Apostolic Church, The Church of Pentecost and the Apostolic 100 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 3,7 101 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37 102 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37 103 Larbi, Pentecostalism, 32. 104 Omenyo, Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism, 37 39 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Church. The fourth main traditional Pentecostal Church is the Assemblies of God Church. 2.7 Charismatic Churches There seems to be some uncertainty between the terms ‘Pentecostal’ and ‘Charismatic’. According to Asamoah-Gyadu , it is now generally accepted that the phrase ‘Charismatic Movement’ in its original norm denoted to the drill of spiritual gifts and the baptism in the Spirit in the older, ‘historic’ or ‘mainline’ churches since the 1960s.105 With the growth of ‘nondenominational’ Charismatic churches and organizations a decade or two later, the term was widened to include all those movements outside denominational or ‘classical’ Pentecostalism where spiritual gifts are used.106 It is often challenging now to differentiate between ‘Pentecostals’ and ‘Charismatics, and they are often as many theological and liturgical differences between classical Pentecostals themselves as there are between them and Charismatic churches. Terminologies like ‘neopentecostals’ and neocharismatics’ have been used to refer to these later churches, but hear we will simply call them ‘New Pentecostals’ because of their relatively recent roots in the last quarter of the twentieth century.107 Michael Walker, in his book God and The Spirit, states that “The Charismatic Movement is the most current Christian religious movement to have arisen in the 1960s.” A position which is supported by Gifford that amongst the most salient features of African Christianity in the last decade has been the spread of new independent 105 Asamoah-Gyadu J.K. African Charismatics, 144. 106 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 105 107 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 103 - 104 40 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Pentecostal churches.108 He uses the word ‘charismatic’ to distinguish them from the churches of established Pentecostal denominations like the Assemblies of God. Most onlookers reflect the Charismatic Movement, the practice of Pentecostal occurrences or spiritual gifts in ‘mainline’ Protestant church, started in the Episcopalian Church in the USA in 1960, and the Roman Catholic Church in the same country in 1967. The devotion of the western world fixated on events concerning the resignation of Dennis Bennett from being rector of his church in California, often held as the beginning of the Charismatic movement in the Western world109. But this experience, for all its importance, was the deduction rather than the start of a campaign that had already been around for decades in the western world and some cases much longer that. Gifford states that these churches have improved in Ghana as much as anywhere else and there is wide investigation on Charismatics. 2.8 Charismatic Churches in Ghana On the Charismatic Movement, McGee writes that: The term charismatic movement is here understood in its most common usage to designate what Donald Gee in the late 1950s called “The new Pentecost” namely the occurrence of distinctively Pentecostal blessings and phenomena which is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit (BHS) with spiritual gift of 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, outside a denominational and/or confessional Pentecostal frame work. What McGee tries to assume is that being Charismatic is to live out (or minister) the various graces, favor and blessings of the Lord in a fellowship of believers or an environment that is not subjected to traditional or structured church setting alone. A 108 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s Charismatic Churches; Journal of Religion in Africa (August 1994). 241-265 109 Fanning Don, “Pentecostal Charismatic Movements”: Trends and Issues in Missions (2009). Paper 7 http://diitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgm-missions/7. 41 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh practice that is fast attracting the most important look of Christianity in the country, particularly in the municipalities. Charismatic churches or Ministries emerged in the late 1970s as the latest form of Christianity in Africa. They are homemade movements but have drained much inspiration from North American Televangelism as Evangelical/Charismatic renewals, leading to the founding of various Town Fellowships all over the country. These are some of the fellowships which metamorphosed into churches or completely new independent neo-Pentecostal churches known as Charismatic churches/Ministries in Ghanaian parlance.110 The movement is sometimes labelled as the third wave‟ of the twentieth-century renewal‟. The AICs and foreign Christian Undertaking related Pentecostal denominations are the first and second waves respectively.111 According to Asamoah- Gyadu, their messages of inspiration, which attempt to recognize the source of defeats in the lives of the people and reassure them that “it could be well”, entreaties very much to Ghana’s upwardly mobile youth,112though not entirely restricted to the youth alone these days. This world view also links up with the overall African traditional belief that religion must serve concrete necessities.113Their churches are situated largely in the city centers and their audience are mega-size, meaning a noticeable sign of achievement. Dovlo corroborates that the Evangelical fellowships existing in the country around or before the 1970s were the initial source of membership for the neo-Pentecostal Churches who were located in the southern part114. Such Fellowships included the 110 Omenyo, Pentecost outside Pentecostalism. 26 111 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 18-26. 112 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 181. 113 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 111. 114 Daniel Eshun, A Study Of The Social Ministry Of Some Charismatic Churches In Ghana: A Case Study Of The Provision Of Educational And Healthcare Services By Four Selected Churches ( MPhil Theses University of Ghana, Legon. 2013). 42 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Scripture Union (SU), the Youth Ambassadors for Christ Association (YAFCA) led by Rev. Owusu Afriyie, the University Christian Fellowship (UCF), the National Evangelical Association (NEA), Brother Enoch Abgozo’s’s Ghana Evangelical Society (GES), Rev. Isaac Ababio’s Hour of Visitation Choir and the Evangelistic Association (HOVCEA). A major spur that gave rise to Ghanaian Charismatic Churches was the coming on stage of Archbishop Benson Idahosa. He held a crusade in Accra in 1977, marked by signs and wonders and great miracles.115 The crusade according to Asamoah-Gyadu heightened the spiritual revival tempo in the existing Evangelical Fellowships, especially in Accra and Tema. Kingsley Larbi lends credence to this assertion that Idahosa offered scholarships to wiling young men and women to be trained for the ministry in his All Nations Bible School and graduates were asked to begin their ministries. 116 Some of the initial beneficiaries were Nicholas Duncan-Williams of Christian Action Faith Ministries (CAFM), Christie Doe-Tetteh of Solid Rock Chapel (SRC), Godwin Normanyo, of Fountain Life Ministries (FLM), Charles Agyin Asare of now Perez Chapel and Cephas Amartey of the now-defunct Liberty Temple Valley (LTV). Ogbu Kalu argues that Idahosa rewrote African Pentecostalism in five ways: “He brought prosperity gospel, episcopal polity and televangelism, the megachurch with mega projects, theological education and sponsoring of students for ministry and the spread of the gospel and finally the deliverance theology throughout the African continent.117 115 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 103 – 104. 116 Asamoah Gyadu, African Charismatics. 105. 117 Ogbu Kalu, African Pentecostalism: An Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). P. 19 43 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh According to Paul Gifford, due to their very welcoming associations, their linkages and even their similar theology, it is remarkable how each of them pays much effort to establish its own Bible school sometimes even before building a church.118 A functioning Bible school is a mark of success, a focus of unity and a spur to effort. However, this trend has taken a new paradigm due to the emergence of the different types of places of worship as sacred spaces that can be cited almost everywhere that seems to be their focus. Their belief in the manifestation and power of the Holy Spirit’s urge to take dominion/possession of their world emboldens them to create or reconstruct places of worship in classrooms, theatre halls, on top of financial institutions etc. 2.9 The Neo-Prophetic Ministries/Churches In Ghana, another type of Pentecostal Christianity has been growing since the 1990s known as the Neo- Prophetic Churches or neo-prophetism. By Neo-Prophetic Churches it means the up-and-coming prophet-led churches in Ghana’s charismatic churches/ministries (CMs).119 This new religious movement, according to Paul Gifford ‘grow mainly because of their claim to have the answers to the ‘most persistent existential problem, economic survival.’120 Quayesi-Amakye is of the view that they operate under the sphere of the Ghanaian charismatic movement and have rejuvenated albeit in a more ‘elitist’ form some of the practices of the African Independent Churches 118 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s Charismatic Churches. Journal of Religion in Africa (August 1994), 241-265. 119 Joseph Quayesi-Amakye, Journal of the European Pentecostal Theological Association. 35, 2 2015. 162-173. 120 Paul Gifford, Ghana’s New Pentecostalism in a Globalizing African Economy (London, Hurst & Co. 2004), 9. 44 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh (AICs).121 Whiles this is partly true, both Omenyo & Abamfo Atiemo and Quayesi- Amakye believe that such new movements appear or show up periodically, in diverse degree and shades with new features, to the demand of the time. The deeds of these churches flourish on the material predicament of the great crowds of Ghanaians.122 This assertion is supported by Omenyo & Abamfo Atiemo that “while this is partly true it seems that new movements often emerge to serve the religious needs of people in specific generational brackets, socio-economic class and of a Religio-cultural orientation.”123 What the two scholars are positing is that ‘It is a question of finding space for oneself when the culture and worship styles of dominant or older movements often emerge to serve the religious needs of people in specific generational brackets, socio-economic class and of a Religio- cultural orientation’.124 These churches emphasize evil and the quest to solve it among believers. In this sort of prophetism, the person of the prophet is vital because it is the prophet who is looked upon for a divine word and direction in the eradication of the evil.125 The phenomenon being discussed as ‘neo-prophetic’ includes churches as the Alive Chapel International of Prophet Salifu Amoako, King Jesus Evangelistic Ministry of prophet Emmanuel Kwaku Apraku, Great Light Worship Center of Prophet Toner Asamoah Boateng (Apae Live), Owusu Bempa’s End Time Power Ministry and Ebenezer Adarkwa-Yiadom’s (Opambuor, prophet 1) Evangelistic Ministries. 121 Joseph Quayesi-Amakye, Prophetism in Ghana Today: Study on Trends in Ghanaian Pentecostal Prophetism (Scotts Valley, CA: Create Space Publishing, 2013), 7. 122 Joseph Quayesi-Amakye, Prophetism in Ghana Today. 167 and Cephas Omenyo & Abamfo Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space; The case of Neo-Prophetism in Ghana. Ghana Bulletin of Theology. 1. 1, 2006. 55-564. 123 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space, 55 124 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space; 55. 125 Joseph Quayesi-Amakye, Prophetism in Ghana Today. 166. 45 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Their advent usually obscures the issue of classification of African founded Pentecostal/Charismatic type of churches. This is mainly due to a variety of origin, leadership style, theology and organizational ethos.126 Hollenweger presents the following reasons such as “there is no dependable summary of the charismatic rebirth in the third world….The problem of establishing the amount and character of the charismatic renewal is virtually difficult, first, because the scene is shifting all the time; secondly, because there is no established definition of the charismatic renewal; and thirdly, because it is almost impossible to get correct statistics and description.127 The prophets engage their clienteles in many prophetic ceremonies which are strange and therefore raise some questions concerning their biblical realness. Music plays a very critical role in the Neo-prophetic churches in Ghana because it provides the arena for inferring their theological insights. An insight that needs to be assessed to ascertain the veracity and its response to the developmental needs of the Ghanaian economy. 2.10 CONCLUSION Having looked at the religious scene in Ghana, the worldwide spread of Pentecostalism, the Ghanaian Pentecostal landscape as well the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic understanding of sacred spaces, it is evident that they emphasis the ministries empowered by the baptism of the Holy Spirit and Charisma – gifts of grace. Inspired (by the Holy Spirit) to take ownership of any available space such as 126 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space. 56. 127 Walter Hollenweger, ‘Charismatic Renewal in the Third World; Implications for Mission’, International bulletin of Mission Research. 1980. https:/journals.sagepub.com. Accessed 30/05/2019. 46 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh classrooms, top of petrol filling stations, walkways, abandoned factory warehouses and altering drinking halls for places of worship, the PCCs are a force to reckon with in Ghana. Though three main religions – Islam, Christianity and Traditional religion attract many adherents in Ghana, it is the Christian population that has emerged as the dominant religion on the landscape. This is evident in the numerous places of worship scattered around in the major cities which needs interrogation for a better appreciation of the PCCs understanding of sacred space as places of worship. From very humble beginnings they eventually grow to become mega worship centres. The work now looks at the next chapter which will identify the sacred spaces of the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches (PCCs) as a worship centre in the selected research sites. 47 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh CHAPTER THREE IDENTIFICATION OF PENTECOSTAL/CHARISMATIC WORSHIP CENTRES 3.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter identifies worship centers of the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches (PCCs) as their sacred spaces with the use of pictures taken from the research sites in Abeka Lapaz and Spintex road, both in the Accra Metropolitan area. This is however preceded by a discussion on the types of sacred sites – with specific reference to natural and man-made ones. 3.2 TYPES OF SACRED SPACES Sacred places can be natural sites, such as springs, ponds, rocks and termitaries (an anthill built and occupied by termites).128 They can also be constructed (man-made sites) places of worship such as worship centers, sanctuaries, altars and shrines such as the great anthropomorphic legba in Benin, Togo and Haiti,129 or the Lapka shrine at Labadi, Accra. As some sacred sites are famous for the one-time or single encounters with the sacred, others are famous for their multiple or perpetual encounters or their ability to elicit experiences similar to such encounters. Irrespective of the reason behind the identification or creation of these places, once they are declared as sacred sites, from near and afar people visit them with the hope of acquiring similar experiences. 128 Tatyana Gardener and Daniela Moritz, “Creating and Representing Sacred Spaces” In Gottinger Beitrage Zur Asienforschung HEFT 2-3 2003. 2. Peust & Gutschmidt Verlag. Gottingen. https//www.peust_und_gutschmidt.de 129 Tatyana Gardener and Daniela Moritz, “Creating and Representing Sacred Spaces” 2003, 2. 48 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Generally speaking, all the ceremonies that are linked to a supreme being or the cults of the ancestors take place there, such as, initiations/baptisms, prayers, worship, consultations/prophetic guidance, offerings among others. 3.2.1 Natural Sacred Sites The term ‘natural sacred site” has been related with the sacred lands of native and customary societies and is used widely to differentiate among artificial cathedral and, for example, a normal sacred rocky ridge.130 Natural sacred sites consist of all- ordinary landscapes including elevations, hills, woodlands, groves, trees, rivers, lakes, waters, grottos, islands and springs.131 Sacred forests, for instance, and orchards are established worldwide, especially in the Far East, India and in Africa. In Ghana and other parts of West Africa, groves are spots of forests stretching from few acres to major forests and may contain of only a few trees, stones or a river. In Ghana, prominent examples of natural sacred sites include the Mole National Park in the Northern Region, Wli Waterfalls in the Volta Region and the Tafi Monkey Sanctuary also in the Volta Region. Others include commemorative battlegrounds, noble burial sites or the habitation of the deities and other spiritual entities of the customary convictions.132 The spoken history of the Malshegu people in the Northern Region of Ghana, for instance, tells of their bane by Arab slave traders in the 18th century. A plea to the Kpalevorgu deity, whose oracle is demonstrated in the form of a rock under a baobab 130 Anthony Thorley and Celia Gunn, “Sacred Sites – An Overview” (London, Calverts 2008), 6. 131 https://sacrednaturalsites.org accessed 10/06/2019. 132 Telly, Edward M. “Sacred Groves, Rituals and Sustainable Community Development in Ghana.” In Conserving Cultural and Biological Diversity: The Role of Sacred Natural Sites and Cultural Landscapes, edited by Thomas Schaaf and Cathy Lee. Paris: UNESCO, 2006. (PDF) 49 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh tree, eventually assisted the Malshegu people to success.133 Today, the Malshegu grove is sheltered by this native community. They believe that Kpalevorgu offers them with rainfall, fruitful crop reaping and fruitfulness. Tafi Atome monkey sanctuary (a sacred natural grove) is situated in the Volta Region of Ghana. As the household of the Mona and Patas monkeys which are found in the end patch of the forest, they are believed to be messengers of the deities.134 This claim held by the ancestors who arrived at Tafi Atome some 200 years ago,135 is a tradition that serves as a check on the natives not to kill the monkeys. Picture 1. Tafi Atome monkey sanctuary, a sacred natural grove in the Volta Region of Ghana. Source: Internet 133 Oduro, K. Antwi and K. Okae-Kissiedu, eds. “Restoration and Sustainable Management of Forests in Ghana.” Paper presented at the Tropenbos International-Ghana Workshop, Elmina, Ghana, 2005. 134 Amedzofevillage.com. Accessed 10/06/2019 135 https://sacrednaturalsites.org accessed 10/06/2019. 50 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Though sacred sites are usually placed on normal landscape topographies, they are usually decorated with man-made objects and traditionally different or specific symbols, which usually signify a combination of the normal realm and mortal alterations. 3.2.2 Man-made Sacred Sites Thorley and Gunn assert that man-made sacred sites can be a exact emphasis or location within a broader and maybe vigorously interrelated sacred landscape founded on a natural topographic feature such as a highland, hill, rock, cavern, tree, plantation, jungle, spring, well, river, lake, sea, an island etc.136 There are numerous man-made sacred sites such as cathedrals and temples, palaces, mosques, reconstructed mountains such as the Atwea buor in the Sekyere Central District of Ashanti Region and Aburi prayer mountain in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Majority of these do not appear to emerge in ‘natural’ feature, but in detail, some are. For instance, the Chartres Cathedral in France is constructed above a normal spring and the great pyramid of Giza in Egypt sits on a natural ridge of Sandstone.137 They are noted as carrying unusual appearances of nature, normal occurrences and environmental steadiness which are usually overstated with artificial signs or artefacts such as rock-carvings, images, holy or sacred objects as evidenced in the Posuban shrine at Mankessim in the Central region of Ghana138 in picture 2 below. 136 Doran H. Ross, “Come and Try” Towards a History of Fante Military Shrines 137 World book Encyclopedia www.quora.com Accessed 10/11/2018 138 Rebecca Shumway, The Fante Shrine of Nananom Mpow and the Atlantic Slave Trade in Southern Ghana in African ceremonies, Beckwith Carol and Angela Fischer, (New York: Henry Adams 1999), 7-12. 51 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 2: Posuban shrine at Mankessim, a man-made sacred site in the Central Region of Ghana Source: Internet Since they are partly or solely man-made structures like menhir, temples, churches or way-side shrines, they are usually a memorial of a vital current or past event, legend or myth. This assertion is supported by Rebecca Shumway in her article: The Fante Shrine of Nananom Mpow and the Atlantic Slave Trade in Southern Ghana.139 She opines that the name “Nananom Mpow” literally means “The Grove of the Ancestors’, and to every Fante it is known as the sacred site where the three founding fathers of the Fante land – Oburumankoma, Odapagyan, and Oson – were 139 Beckwith Carol and Angela Fischer, African Ceremonies 2. New York: Henry Adams 1999, 7. 52 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh buried.140 As a man-made site, it is accorded all the reverence, awe and protection it deserves by the chiefs and people of Mankessim. These two major types of sacred sites – natural and man-made have been discussed under three main groupings by Anthony Thorley and Celia M. Gunn as descriptive, spiritual and functional. The first, a descriptive sacred site, is a precise emphasis within a broader and perhaps vigorously interrelated sacred landscape founded on a natural topographical feature such as a mountain, rock, cave, tree etc.141 it is usually decorated with artificial signs or objects such as paintings, holy or religious objects. The description informs the choice of a person/church member to a sacred site or religious center.142 Tanner supports that an institutional sacred site with no human intermediaries such as the Kabba at Mecca fits this descriptive type and so it is the only example of this type of sacred site where Islam centers its religious life, making it mandatory for every Muslim to accomplish once in their lifetime.143 To him, it is there that all Muslim pilgrims personally experience a face- to-face encounter with Allah. The second, a spiritual sacred site, is a place of divine conversion for individuals or the public in the form of healing, initiation, rites of passage, vision quest etc. Corroboratively, Tanner asserts that authorized Christian shrines all have institutionally dedicated priests in appearance who process the requests made by adherents who come there. In other words, they are independent sites which have gained popularity as a result of the help people derive from them.144 In Ghana, many Christian sites are like this in nature. They usually center on a notable charismatic person or leader and their 140 Doran H. Ross, “Come and Try” Towards a History of Fante Military Shrines in African Arts, 2007 141 Thorley and Gunn, ‘Sacred Sites’ An overview, 72. 142 Tanner, R.E.S., “Pilgrimage in Sub-Saharan Africa. A study in the Development of Religious foci” Journal of Social Sciences 7, 2 (2003): 127 143 Tanner, R.E.S., “Pilgrimage in Sub-Saharan Africa.” 127. 144 Tanner, R.E.S., “Pilgrimage in Sub-Saharan Africa.” 127. 53 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh popularity usually comes from public opinion due to the “solutions” people get from such sites. The third, is a functional sacred site referred to as special places where relations, both social and in the whole community, can be spoken and confirmed usually through a precise method of observances such as request, melodies, hymns, dance, sacraments or ritual.145 Similar practices exist in many PCCs in Ghana where singing, drumming and dancing by church members are actively expressed during normal and special prophetic, healing and anointing services. A feature noted by Marlene De Witte as the performative and entertainment aspect of their service146as evident in picture 8 of the Lord’s Anointed Prayer Ministry. The creation of sacred sites by religious bodies varies from one denomination to the other. Some African Independent Churches (AICs) and PCC leaders claim “it was revealed” to them to construct a particular type of worship place at a specific time.147 As stated by Betty Awuah, a prayer team member of the Lord’s Anointed Ministries at Abeka Lapaz, their present place of worship was revealed to her in a vision.148 In that vision, she and the members of her church were led by bodiless feet from their old worship place at Abelenkpe to the current site at Abeka Lapaz near Prudential Bank. 145 Thorley and Gunn, “Sacred Sites – An Overview” 6. 146 Marlene De Witte Marleen De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Space, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. Vol. 32.3 2008. 690-709. DOI:10.1111/.1468-2427.2008. 00805.x 147 An interview granted the researcher by Betty Awuah, a Prayer Tower/Team member of The Lord’s Anointed Ministries at Abeka Lapaz, near Prudential Bank. Sunday 17/03/19, 1:23pm 148 Betty Awuah, Lord’s Anointed Ministries member. Sunday 17/03/19 54 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3.3 TYPES OF PCC WORSHIP SPACES IN ACCRA In Ghana, cities like Accra which are multi-religious have pious groups progressively contending for public presence.149 Such groups do this with striking buildings, mass congregations, and optical signs such as huge billboards, banners and posters.150 Building has a great impact on any defined space, and in view of the hot weather condition in Accra, many constructed spaces are open. Only cooled edifices and rooms have shut windows.151 As a result, many of the buildings, houses and churches/places of worship have open louvres as gaps. In Accra, the PCCs are usually noted and condemned for needless noisemaking due to heavy sounds that emanate from their places of worship among many sources of loud sounds. A Christian observer may say that many of the buildings being constructed in Accra are churches. In their desire to succeed with huge buildings as places of worship and supported by increasing worshipers, many PCC churches eventually succeed in obtaining a piece of land and put up a big structure.152 Minor churches that cannot pay for huge structures use old cinema halls, storerooms, teaching spaces or isolated homes to come together for worship. PCC’s robust taste for advertising places of worship and clerics account for their clear graphic presence in Accra’s landscape.153 Accra’s appearance have, therefore, become spaces of religiosity154and the PCCs have markedly established their strong public presence. Thus, for the PCCs, since they see 149 Marleen De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Space, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. Vol. 32.3 2008. 690-709. DOI:10.1111/.1468-2427.2008.00805.x 150 K. Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics: Current Developments within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana, (Brill, Leiden 2005), 118. 151 De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Spaces. 693. 152 De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Spaces. 693. 153 K. Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, 118. 154 De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Spaces. 699. 55 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh the Spirit of God at work outside material space, any space can be turned into a worship space.155 3.3.1 PCC Places of Worship at Spintex Road Situated in the Ledzorkuku Krowor Municipal District of the Greater Accra region, Spintex got its name from Printex Limited, a popular factory on the road which was formerly a Limited Textile Manufacturing Company.156 The name originally denotes the road which is parallel to the Tema Motorway and has become generically used when describing the area along the route. The Spintex road is purposely selected for this research because it falls within the first and second-class classification of settlements according to income levels in the region and has a phenomenal growing number of new PCCs. In this study, the designation first and second class refers to the high -income zones whiles the second- class covers the middle-income areas. The third class, however, refers to the low- income earner group. The road covers a length of 4.94 Kilometers which splits at different points along the way into the various communities, especially from Tema community 18 junction which led the researcher into communities 18 to 20 for further work. The main road starts from the Accra Mall roundabout through to the last traffic light that joins the main Nungua road from La. The road is dotted with many factories, companies, warehouses, financial institutions, hotels, restaurants, high rising buildings (Plazas), shopping Malls and churches especially those of PCCs. 155 De Witte, Accra’s Sounds and Sacred Spaces. 699. 156 Lekmagh.org/about-lekma. Accessed 27/03/2019. 12:23pm. 56 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Among the various places of worship identified as belonging to the PCCs are the “Megachurches”, “Churches on Cash”, “House/Community Churches”, “Tent churches”, “Events Center Churches” and “Classroom churches”. Picture 3 is the Revival Temple branch of the Royal House Chapel, one of the numerous megachurches at Spintex Road Costal Junction. Picture 3A. The Revival Temple, Branch of Royal House Chapel – A ‘Mega Church’ Source: Author, 2019. Being identified as a Mega Church means it should always record a church membership attendance of 2000 every Sunday. However, Revival Temple records between 450 – 600 members every Sunday. Picture A is the side view of the church 57 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh building which is facing the main (Costal) junction on the Spintex Road whiles the Picture 3B is the main entrance to the auditorium of the place of worship. The picture of the Apostle General of the church is added as a form of advertisement to prospective clients. This is a common feature of many PCCs in Ghana. Picture 3B. The main entrance into the Revival Temple, Branch of Royal House Chapel – A ‘Mega Church’ Source: Author, 2019. They are identified as “Megachurches” because they are well-built, in terms of their imposing sizes and not necessarily based on their membership or figures associated with church attendance. Their imposing size and attractiveness draws the attention of commuters from a distance. These places are described by believers as 58 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh “have been taken over by a supernatural being (God).” Church members explain this is as a result of the religious experience they had during and immediately after the Apostle General (Rev. Sam Korankye Ankra) and other ‘men of God’ invoked the ‘new Spirit” of God to take over the place. Members explain that the place was originally unholy because it was a Nightclub called Bombastic Night club. Therefore, the invocation of the ‘new Spirit’ by the men of God was meant to replace old unholy spirit that was ‘sitting on the land’.157 Another category, “Churches on Cash” is coined by the researcher to designate (rented) places of worship which may be located on top of financial houses and business centres such as banks, salons, supermarkets, pharmacy shops, travel and tour agencies etc. The Spintex road is dotted with numerous factories, shopping malls, boutiques, pharmacy shops, salons etc. And on top of these buildings, the researcher noticed some PCCs have rented and designated these shops as sacred spaces of worship. Below is an example of such type of PCC known as the Broken Vessels Chapel International. 157 Isaac Otoo, a deacon of the Revival Temple, RHC branch at Costal Junction Spintex Road. 59 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 4. Broken Vessels Chapel International – ‘Church on Cash’ Source: Author, 2019 The Broken Vessels Chapel International at Spintex as seen in Picture 4 is situated directly opposite the Shell Bus Stop Taxi Rank on the Spintex road. It is a rented space on the 2nd floor of a number of shops and offices, serving as a place of worship. The establishment of this place of worship according to the head pastor, is divine. The meeting days are on Sundays 9:00 to 11:00 am and on Wednesdays 6:30 to 8:30 pm prompt. A remarkable feature of this church is their time consciousness. The 60 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh mission and vision statements of this church are clearly posted on the main entrance of the auditorium. A sign they claim tells of their seriousness with the Kingdom business. Other ‘Churches on Cash’ identified by the researcher for the purposes of this work are the Conquerors Chapel International and the Goshen Prayer and Deliverance Ministry on the Spintex road shown below. A casual look at the building in which these churches are situated may suggest that they are ‘mega churches’. However, the apartments beneath these churches indicate that the churches are sitting on finance houses hence the designation ‘Churches on Cash’. 61 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 5. Conquerors Chapel International and Goshen Prayer and Deliverance Ministry Source: Author, 2019 The next category is “Tent churches”. They are those that fall within the canopy type of structure. However, the PCCs are resorting to the more descent types known as the McKay Tent the Adonai Hose Chapel near the Shell Bus Stop area on the Spintex road, uses one of such. The McKay type of tent is erected like building with roofing trusses, windows, doors and well-fitted plywood for the ceiling to make it look like a well-built house. Below is an example of the McKay tent being used by the Adonai House Chapel at Spintex road. 62 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 6. Adonai House Chapel – A ‘Tent Church’ Source: Author, 2019 The cost of importing such a canopy (MacKay Tent) is about GHc 300,000.00 as of April 2019. The Senior Pastor, explains that theirs was a donation from a member who lives in the United Kingdom. It was in appreciation of an answered prayer. This type of worship center, however, has no office space for the pastor, no place for the children and no place of convenience for members as well as visitors. Ventilation is not the best even though there are ceiling fans fixed in it. To improve ventilation, the head pastor is contemplating fixing two air conditioners (2.5 horse powered) by the end of 63 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh April 2019. The house in which this tent type of worship place is situated also belongs to a philanthropic member of the church who does not charge any fee for rent. Another category is the “Events Centre Churches”. These are places where numerous events such as weddings, funerals and fun games are held. Some PCCs such as the Believers Fellowship Ministries, a branch of the Revival Temple of the Royal House Chapel at Coastal junction, Spintex road worship under a canopy at the Gilly’s Haven Events Garden. As stated by the Reverend Minister, Aba Quianoo “We start our service at 7:30 am and end by 9:30 am so the place can be ready for other events of the day as presented to us by the owner.” Usually, the canopy used by the fellowship is erected by the Center Manager/workers for them to use. All the does each morning is to reconstruct the place with prayers and anointing by Olive oil before the service. Below is the picture of the place of worship under discussion. Picture 7. The Events center where a church meets for worship on Sundays Source: Author, 2019 64 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 8. Revival Fellowship – A ‘Tent Church’ in a rented Events Garden Source: Author, 2019. 65 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 8 above is the scene of the fellowship during church service. It is a rented Space at the Gilly’ Haven Events Center at Tema, community 18. The same space is shared by members of the church as they meet each Sunday from 7:00 to 9:00 and other clients who use it for a wedding/ funeral/birthday party among others. The only difference is that it is used at different times for different purposes. The only thing the church does before worship is to consecrate the place with anointing oil and to invite the Holy Spirit to descend upon the place before worship. Picture 7, on the right is the address and contact to the events center indicating the days and periods that the place can be hired. This fellowship meets at the center at a time which does not fall within the allowed period for events. But as Rev. Abba Quianoo stated, “it was the grace of God that got us this place.” “Soon we will be moving to our permanent site.”158 The “Classroom Churches” (also rented spaces) are designated as such resulting from the usage of either public or private schools’ by many PCCs. An example is found in picture 9A, a place that is used as places of worship especially on Sundays between the hours of 7am and 9am. During such period of worship, a banner is displayed to enable the public to identify the worship center as a sacred place. According to Reverend John Morrison “God is a Spirit and it is the spirit of God which directed him to come and pitch his tent here on this ground.”159 Below is the arranged class room as the place of worship in picture 9A. 158 Rev. Abba Quianoo is the resident pastor in charge of the fellowship, a branch of the RHC, Revival Temple at Tema community 18. 159 An interview granted by Rev. John Morrison of Divine Life Chapel. 24/03/2019. 147pm 66 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 9A. Christ Eden Life Ministry, a Classroom Church. Source: Author, 2019. The Christ Eden Life Ministry (in the picture above) depicts the main entrance to the particular classroom being used by this church for service every Sunday. 67 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 9B. Christ Eden Life Ministry, a Class room Church. Source: Author, 2019 As one of the numerous class room churches identified at the research site, Christ Eden church members see this place of worship as an acceptable place for any spiritual activity they like to undertake. As noted earlier in this work, Spintex road has many split outlets that lead to many communities especially from community 18 junction into the Tema metropolis. Tema is situated 30 kilometers east of Accra, the principal city of Ghana and its administrative head office is the Tema Metropolitan Authority (TMA), which has 25 suburbs usually known as Communities with the most popular and busiest including communities 18-20. Tor, a Ga word meaning Gourd (usually used as precious 68 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh containers for various purposes) was corrupted by the white settlers and Akan traders from Torman to Tema. Discovering the city in the 18th Century by migrating Ga settlers known as “Kpeshie’, they were peasant farmers who initially settled between the Chemu lagoon on the east and the Sakumono on the west to cultivated Gourd, tomatoes and also did some fishing farming. The successful thriving of the Gourd plant led to the naming of their new found site Torman meaning ‘City of Gourd’. As an industrial hub, Tema has over 500 industries and over 30 financial institutions with 72% of the population being economically active. In the Ghana Districts Analytical Reports (2014), Tema has a population of 292,773 within the three sub-metropolitan areas of Tema West, Tema East and Tema Central. Communities 18 to 20, area of concern for this research, are located in the western part of Tema. A visit to these communities revealed that the majority of the Christian churches belongs to the Pentecostals/Charismatics. In this communities, tents, rented and well-built edifices are used as sacred places of worship. Similar situation can be found in the second research site – Abeka Lapaz as discussed below. 3.3.2 PCC Places of Worship – Abeka Lapaz Abeka is an urban area in the Accra Metropolitan District in the Greater Accra Region. It has become a hub for second-hand goods.160 A Fanti name in Ghana, Abakan, translated as first born, has been corrupted to be Abeka161 and Lapaz the largest city in Bolivia, known for its markets where relics such as powders, amulets, talismans, and Ilama Fetuses are sold.162 This Fetuses are buried under the foundations of many 160 Salomey Appiah, Daily Graphic, June 13, 2016. Graphiconline, Accessed 18/10/2018. 161 Anane J.O. Advanced Akan Dictionary (Kumasi, Prisebs Publishers 2000), 121. 162 The Word Book Encyclopedia vol. 2 (Chicago, Fitzer publishers 2001), 73. 69 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Bolivian houses as sacred offerings to the goddess, Pachamama for prosperity. These names Abeka and Lapaz seem to have been put together to reflect the vibrant commercial nature/of the two cities of Bolivia and Lapaz in Ghana. In an article published in the Daily Graphic newspaper, Salomey Appiah describes the N1 highway section of Abeka Lapaz as the center of brisk commercial activity which draws a lot of business enterprises such as banking and other financial institutions, social centers, training institutions, shopping centers as well as mosques and many Pentecostal Charismatic Churches (PCCs). Abeka Lapaz was purposely selected for this research due to the huge number of the inhabitants. Abeka has a population of about 300,000 and a high number of churches are sited in the community. According to the 2010 Population and Housing Census (PHC), the inhabitants of this community engage in petty trading and 163 fall within the class of low income earners Among the numerous selected PCCs places of worship that were visited were “Mega Churches”, “Churches on Cash”, “Community/House Churches”, Tent Churches” and “Classroom Churches” among others. Eric Edem, an Associate Pastor of the Mount Zion Prayer Ministries, one of the mega churches located behind the Abrantie spot at Abeka Lapaz noted that from a humble beginning as a prayer camp, they now have branches in Santa Maria in Accra and Akim Oda in the Eastern Region. With a congregation of over 650 members coming to worship every Sunday, the upper terrace has an entirely different look, in terms of the seating, ventilation and decoration from the lower terrace, which houses the youth ministries. Below is the picture of Mount Zion Prayer Ministry in picture 10A. 163 Ghana Statistical Service, Population and Housing Census Report (PHC) 2010. 29 70 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 10A. Mt. Zion Prayer Ministry International at Abeka Lapaz –A ‘Mega Church’ Source: Author, 2019. Picture 10B below is the upper auditorium of the same place of worship – Mount Zion Prayer Ministry International. 71 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 10B. The upper auditorium of Mount Zion Prayer Ministry. Source: Author, 2019. What attracts members to this church (according to Pastor Edem) is the prayer and deliverance service, which comes off every Friday evening. The prayer and deliverance service is a response to proffer solutions to the many spiritual challenges that bedevil church members, as well as members from other denominations. Members 72 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh thus see this place of worship as sacred because healings and deliverances are experienced. Also, this place provides a comfortable environment for member, thus, drawing a lot of middle-income class earners into the church. Below is the picture of the Mount Zion Prayer Ministry place of worship. Pictures 10A and 10B are the main entrance and the upper auditorium respectively. The upper auditorium has good seats, air conditioners and modern public address system. Unfortunately, there is only one entrance for human beings and one for vehicles which is a security concern. The lower auditorium (used by the youth and children) is not well decorated as the upper. The “Churches on Cash” or Rented Places of Worship as Sacred Spaces is a term coined as noted earlier to identify churches located on top of finance houses, grocery and pharmacy shops, hairdressing saloons, gaming shops and boutiques. At the Exceeding Faith Ministries Church at Abeka Lapaz adjacent the Prudential Bank junction, Pastor Akonnor is of the view that locating their place of worship on top of the Forex bureau and a grocery shops was by the leading of the Lord, and the kind gesture of the Reverend Owusu Manu, the Senior Pastor. According to him, such a location affords them the opportunity to easily reach/invite not only the low-income earners but also the few middle-income earners from the financial houses. As a result, certain ministries are tailored to meet the needs of such a busy class of people between the hours of 5:30 to 7:30am, three days in a week. Below is a picture of the Exceeding Faith ministry situated on a number of shops at Abeka Lapaz. 73 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 11 Exceeding Faith Ministries, Abeka Lapaz – Rented ‘Church on Cash’. Source: Author, 2019. 74 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Exceeding Faith Ministries has about 60 members. Though they worship in a rented space, they have been exempted from paying monthly rent charges. According to the resident pastor, Akonnor, the space has been donated to them for use, temporarily. As shown in ‘picture 11, the place of worship is situated on top of a boutique where foreign clothes are sold. It has only one entrance into the place of worship, a phenomenon that is common with the PCCs (‘churches on Cash’) in the selected sites of this research. In reconstructing the place for worship, special prayers were said and the use of anointing oil was administered to dedicate the entire place for use. This exercise is believed to have invited the presence of the Holy Spirit to descend and ‘take possession’ of the place permanently. A practice that was corroborated by Reverend Isaac Opoku popularly known as “Obotuo”164 (the sniper), the senior Pastor of In Him is Life Ministries, a PCC which is five minutes’ walk from the Abrantie Spot in Abeka Lapaz. He states that special services are held for all government workers, market women and all who may want to be ministered to, between the hours of 4 to 8am.165This phenomenon has helped the PCCs in drawing in many worshippers’ whiles raking in the needed financial gains. Though they are quick to dispel monetary gains as motivation for siting their churches when asked. It appears to be one of the cardinal reason for siting their places of worship. 164 An interview granted by the head deacon elder Dua who also doubles as the assistant Pastor at In Him is Life Ministries, Abeka Lapaz. 17/03/2019, 1:37pm. He narrated the story that explains why Rev. Isaac Opoku is nicknamed Obotuo. In the early years of their ministry, Rev. Opoku pointed his finger at a bird on a nearby tree and proclaimed in Akan me bo wo tou pey meaning I will shoot you down. As he pointed his finger at the bird simultaneously as the proclamation went forth, the bird dropped dead hence the name Obotuo ie. The sniper. 165 An interview granted the researcher by the senior pastor of the In Him is Life Ministries, Abeka. 17/03/2019, 2:04pm 75 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The Community/House churches are designated as such due to their location within certain gated houses but may not necessarily be worshiping in somebody’s house per say. A PCC such as the Lord’s Anointed Ministries is situated within a gated house, opposite the Prudential Bank at Abeka Lapaz. Although it is located in a gated house, the place of worship is a reconstructed two bed room house which belongs to one Nana Adwoa. According to the Pastor, a revelation from the Lord directed them to relocate from Abelenkpe, a suburb in Accra. 166Locating such places of worship is only possible through the help of the signboard and sometimes through the noise produced from their prayer, clapping and singing activities, which is a common feature of the PCCs. The designated names of these sacred spaces (places of worship) by the researcher stems from the names of their locations and their physical appearance. This enables the work to be categorized to suit the various designations given them. Below is an example of the House/Community church, the lord’s Anointed Ministry. 166 An interview granted the researcher by Rev. Kwadwo Agyemang-offei at the Lord’s Anointed Ministries, Abeka Lapaz. 17/03/2019. 1: 23pm. 76 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 12. The Lord’s Anointed Ministries – A ‘Community/House Church’. Source: Author, 2019 Picture 12 above is the Lord’s Anointed Ministries which has most of her features similar to that of an AICs. These include drumming, clapping, dancing, and prophetic as seen in Picture 12 where they affirm the Holy Spirit in their worship. As a functional sacred place of worship, relationships, both interpersonal and communal living, are expressed and affirmed. As noted by the Senior Pastor, Rev. Akonnor, members are allowed to freely express themselves in dance, songs and chants as specific forms of spiritual revelations are experienced and shared with members. Such a functional sacred place of worship is full of life and activity, a phenomenon that attracts many people to the church to experience what the ‘Spirit has revealed about them”. 77 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Among the Tent churches identified at Abeka Lapaz was the Calvary Charismatic Center (CCC) located at Apenkwa-Flattop. This PCC was founded by Rev. Ransford Obeng through a vision God gave him in 1984 to start a non-denominational English church. Headquartered in Kumasi (capital of Ashanti Region), the church can now boast of many branches all over the country.167 The Apenkwa branch is one of the 536 CCCs in Ghana. The church has a regular membership of 183 adults who worship in the Mackay tent every Sunday morning. Fitted with air-conditions and well cut-out windows, carpets and ceiling fans, it has a marked difference from the similar tent at Adonai Chapel near Shell bus stop at Spintex road. The CCC has a place (Lamb Shelter) for the children ministries as well as a spacious parking lot for church members as shown in the pictures below. Picture 13A. Calvary Charismatic Center, a Tent Church. 167 An interview granted the researcher by Deaconess Esther Agyeiwaa on March 17, 2019 at 2:36pm https://cccgh.org/aboutus 78 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Source: Author, 2019. Such (McKay) tent churches are well secured, with doors and locks to prevent rodents and street hawkers, who appropriate the place for their nefarious deeds, thereby maintaining the sacredness of the place of worship. Picture 13A is the main entrance to the place of worship, and picture 13 B below is the side view of the CCC as well as the place of worship for the Children. Though other tent churches identified by the researcher at Abeka are not secured and do not have enough spaces for cars to park as compared to this (CCC), worshipers in those tents still hold the view that the presence of God is present with them, even if it is an open tent. Picture 13B. The side view of Calvary Charismatic Church’s children’s section. Source: Author, 2019 79 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh In most of the PCC places of worship, little attention is paid to the children’s place of worship. This defect is admitted by many of the respondents interviewed by the researcher. Majority of the ‘mega’ churches had descent places of worship for the children but almost all the tent, ‘churches on cash’ and events center churches identified do not seem to have places for children. It appeared to the researcher that much attention was focused on the beatification of the adult auditorium to attract the very ‘influential’ in the society into this category of PCCs. Other PCCs identified during the data collection revealed the display of photographs of their founders, that of a warrior welding a sword, the image of Jesus, sometimes the Bible, serving as the weapon for combatting evil forces on the walls within the main auditorium and the backdrop of the pulpit. Such images convey a sense of hope, and faith in the ‘Spirit’ to church members or visitors. In some places of worship it is a globe and flags of other nations that are hoisted to show that the church has gone beyond the shores of Ghana or has international branches. 3.4 CONCLUSION Critiques of sacred things or sacred spaces (natural or man-made) would accept that the PCCs need places of worship. The special measurements of these places of worship at both research sites – Spintex and Abeka Lapaz ranges between 20 feet by 30 feet or 12 feet by 20 feet for Tents, 12 feet by 14 feet for rented rooms or shops and 40 feet by 65 feet for the mega churches. The cost of renting these spaces for worship 80 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh are relatively high at the Spintex road area than that of Abeka Lapaz. The reason is that Spintex is a middle-income earning community whiles Abeka Lapaz is low-income earning community. An office space measuring 40 feet by 60 feet cost between GHS 500.00 and GHS 700.00 for a month. A similar space costs between GHS 800.00 and GHS1, 200.00 a month at Spintex. These functional sacred places (as noted earlier) are special places where contacts, both personal and communal are made and affirmed usually through many means. These include melodies, hymns, dance, sacramental or ritual activities and confessions. A feature thus seen in the Exceeding Faith Ministry and confirmed by Rev. Akonnor that “it is the communal love of members towards each other, the prayer vigils on each Friday night and the deliverance services offered to members for the solution of their problems that make us venerate this place of worship where God has taken over.”168 Both members and the leadership assert that their place of worship (through the ministries they offer to members) is a functional place of worship that enables adherents to have meaningful encounters with their God. Such religious foci according to R.E.S. Tanner ‘provide for the gathering of religious items to take home as personal ideals are attached and may be handed on to others.’169 These objects were identified as “Extensions of Faith” in the form of Olive oils, salt and honey at Adonai House chapel, Spintex Road, are sold to members as a testimony to the solutions to their problems. From the discussion so far, the tents, rented (whether on top of shops and finance houses or events centers) and the well-built places of worship at the Abeka Lapaz and Spintex Road captures the general descriptions of sacred spaces of the PCCs. 168 Pastor Akonnor, resident pastor of Exceeding Faith Ministries, Abeka Lapaz. 17/03/2019. 1:35pm. 169 Tanner, R.E.S., “Pilgrimage in Sub-Saharan Africa.” Journal of Social Sciences 7, 2 (2003): 127 81 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The issue of security at these places of worship, especially with regards to the tents, and that of the top of shops, and finance houses and the lack of parking space for cars are concerns that have been raised by church members. Picture 14. Divine Chapel Life Ministry, a Tent Church Source: Author, 2019 There are occasions when there is no service, members are obliged to carry valuable church properties for safe keeping somewhere else, because, the place of worship is unsafe due to other activities of other people. During the second visit of the researcher, the researcher noticed that on Thursday afternoons when no spiritual activity took place, the place of worship was taken over by petty traders, who ate and slept there. 82 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Some of the mega churches identified at the research sites had extra rooms for the sale of Christian literature and groceries to the church members and the general public especially on major event days. A practice that is seen as a way of making the place of worship capable of taking care of the physical needs of the members as well. The research now looks at the influence of such sacred spaces on Church Growth in the Ghanaian Christian landscape. A discussion that is engaged in the next chapter of this research. 83 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh CHAPTER FOUR SACRED SPACES AND CHURCH GROWTH IN THE PENTECOSTAL/CHARISMATIC CHURCHES (PCCs) 4.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter examines the understanding the Pentecostal Charismatic Churches (PCCs) have of sacred space through the creation of places of worship and how it contributes to their exponential growth, and consequently, the growth of Christianity in Ghana. In chapter three, the field study showed that PCCs in Ghana worship in different structures such as classrooms, rented houses, tents, mega churches, shops and events centers. The analysis in this chapter seeks to show how these types of worship centers of the PPCs help to bring sacred places to close proximity, hence contributes to church growth in Ghana. 4.2 CHURCH GROWTH IN THE PCCs Many Christians have a fair understanding of the term ‘Church Growth’ even though one gets the impression that not all the implications of the term are well understood. Interacting with respondents of PCCs about this term, one gets enough responses to show that many are of the view that ‘Church Growth’ refers to an increase in church membership. However, such a definition is termed by missiologist and church growth scholars as ‘abrasive’ and ‘numeratory’.170 One of such scholars, Peter 170 John Mark Terry Missiology, An Introduction to the Foundations, History and Strategies of World Missions (Tennessee, Broadman and Holdman Publishers 1998), 484-487. 84 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Wagner defines Church Growth as “ a discipline which examines the nature, expansion, growth, purpose and well-being of Christian churches as they tell to the effective execution of God’s Instruction to “make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:18-20).171 This definition affirms that of Donald McGavran’s, the man believed to be the originator and designer of the methods of the Church Growth Movement from the 1930s.172 He states that, “The goal of church growth studies is not merely correct facts as to the quantity of growth. It is not sufficient to see the structure clearly-though that must be done. The goal is through evaluation of the facts to understand the dynamics of church growth”. Richard Foil’s concern is that the term ‘Church Growth’ suggests that there is an overriding understanding with numerical increase of church membership. He is of the view that the term leaves out more that needs to be said.173 He states that if Christians (PCCs) will continue to have genuine concern for Church growth then it is relevant to show that the church growth thinking includes the starting with a number of growing churches, and then carefully finding out the reasons that bring about the growth. This will help to identify the valid factors that can be tested in other churches to ascertain their validity for their usage in similar churches. Inferring from above definitions, our quest then is to ascertain the reasons for the upsurge of the PCCs places of worship (sacred spaces) within the Abeka Lapaz, and Spintex road, areas of the Accra metropolis which fall in line with the aims and objectives of this research. 171 Terry, Missiology, 484-487. 172 Donald McGavran, Understanding Church Growth, (Michigan Eerdmans, 1970), 123-4. 173 Foli, Christianity in Ghana, 115. 85 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh McGavran identifies three main kinds of Church growth as, biological, transfer and conversion.174 Biological in the sense that babies are being born to families in a church at a rate faster than the elderly leaving the church or dying. A kind of growth which will not bring the (other) nations to faith. Transfer growth is an increase in certain congregations at the expense of others. From rural to urban or from populated to new lands opening up. Such growth never extends the church and some members may get lost along the way. The conversion kind of growth is the only kind by which the goodness of salvation can spread to the ends of the world. With this kind of growth, people come to repose their trust wisely in Jesus Christ and are immersed and added to the church. Murray Meoman supports McGavran that it is a movement that is not lateral from one (same) church to the other, but upward from the territory of gloom into the kingdom of God’s beloved son.175 (Col. 1:13). Other creative classifications relevant for discussion in this work for purposes of identifying and designating the kind of growth being recorded among the PCCs on the Ghanaian Christian landscape owing to their increasing number of places of worship as sacred spaces. Credit is given to Ralph Winter and Peter Wagner for discovering and popularizing four (4) creative classifications namely: Internal, Expansion, Extension and Bridging Growths.176 What the internal growth means is that within the fellowship, growth is where membership is conscious of deepening religious experience as stated by Isaac Obuobi that “You feel charged in the Spirit during our prophetic and healing services in our Church.”177 An experience that finds support in the words of Troy Benitone, “The problems of our churches are spiritual problems that must be addressed 174 Donald McGavran, Understanding Church Growth, (Michigan Eerdmans, 1970), 123-4. 175 Murray Meoman, Types of Church Growth, home.su.edu/~hculbert/powerpt/definecg.ppt 176 Meoman, Types of Church Growth. 177 Isaac Obuobi is a deacon at the In Him is Life Prayer Ministries, Abeka Lapaz who granted an interview to the researcher on 24/03/2019. 86 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh with spiritual solutions, not by Church gimmicks.”178 This position by Troy seems to lend some credence to the mystical causality, a world view of the Akans or the PCC members in Ghana which has aided in the sighting of numerous sacred spaces as places of worship, where their spiritual solutions can be found. Foli submits that with internal growth there is an unmistakable vitality about the church,179 an experience you gather from PCC members as you observe and participate in their services. Expansion growth also known as the numerical growth is when new members are received into fellowship thereby increasing the numbers. The church expands as it converts new members, a description akin to the conversion growth propounded by McGavran. The only distinction is that older members who have grown in the church who decide to be added are added to the church and the very new converts are those who expand the church. The third of these classifications is the extension growth which is the planting of a daughter church among their own kind of individuals in the neighborhood, area or province. This is a strategy that is used to spread the scope of work to touch such persons, who are not in contact with any church. This type of growth is evident in the ministries of the Revival Temple (in Pictures 1&2) of the Royal House chapel branch on the Spintex road which has birthed a daughter (as in pictures 4&5) in Community 18, where a fellowship meets in an events center as their sacred space for worship. Fourthly, the Bridging Growth, on the other hand occurs when a church sets out deliberately to cross a linguistic or strong social, ethnic barrier, and, in effect, plants a church in a new culture. 178 Howard Culbertson ‘Problem of our Churches’ Home.su.edu/~hculbert/powerpt/definecg.ppt, (Assessed 7/2/2019). 179 Foli, Christianity in Ghana, 120. 87 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Roy Pointer identifies two very important dimensions of church growth that also needs mentioning in this work. Numerical and Conceptual. Numerical (akin to expansion and conversion growths of Wagner and McGavran) is the recruitment of individuals into active membership of the church. They are incorporated into the fellowship of believers and share in its corporate life of worship and witnessing.180 Conceptual growth according to Pointer is the personal and corporate development of the Christian understanding of faith. A degree of consciousness that a community of faith has with regard to its nature and mission to the world. 181 Having identified the various kinds and classifications of church development, it can be stated that the type of growth being experienced in the PCCs is a blend of the various classifications identified by this research – numerical and conceptual growth Available statistics from the Ghana Population and Housing Census (GPHC) suggest that 94.8% of Ghanaians profess one religion or the other, with just a few who do not belong to any religion. The 2010 Ghana Population and Housing Census indicates that the Christian populace in Ghana is 71.2%, out of which the Pentecostals (PCCs) are 28.3%. When compared to the 2000 Ghana Statistics on Population Census it shows that 69% were Christians in Ghana, out of which the Pentecostals were 24%.182 This shows an increase of 4.2 % among the Pentecostals and 2.2% for Christianity. The 4.2% increment results from the fact that PCCs do not wait to properly construct and dedicated church buildings before they start a church. Besides, they also see church planting as a mark of church growth. This seem to support the assertion that the 180 Roy Pointer, Roy Pointer, How do Churches Grow? (Basingstoke, Haunts: Marshall Morgan & Scott, 1984), 26. 181 Pointer, How do Churches Grow? 126. 182 Ghana Statistical Service, Population Data Analysis Report: Policy Implication of Population Trends Data, vol.2, file:///C:/Users/EGC/Downloads/2000_phc_data_analysis_report_volume_2.pdf (Assessed 2/2/2019), 69. 88 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh membership percentage of the Historic Mission Churches (HMC) has decreased immensely over the years, giving way to the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches and Ministries.183 This drift of members from HMCc and other faiths to PCCs contributes to what Asamoah-Gyadu describes as the “Pentecostalization” of African Christianity, including Ghanaian Christianity. He states that, ‘the growth of the Pentecostal movement is the most significant expansion that has happened within Christianity in Africa south of the Sahara since the turn of the twentieth century’. 184 This remarkable advance may be traced to invitations given to Ghanaians by PCCs, for renewal-oriented activities intended to endow persons in the Spirit, evangelistic and healing crusades, anointing services, and harvest and tithes, which are now being advertised on bill boards, bulletins, and, even, on huge banners located at vantage points in communities, and sometimes in the places of worship of many HMCs. As such programs draw many people to these PCCs, the need for places of worship become inevitable thereby raising the question of church growth as being a normal concern for the ordinary church member. 4.3 CONTRIBUTION OF PCCS SACRED SPACES TO CHURCH GROWTH IN GHANA In discussing the contribution of PCCs worship centers to church progress in Ghana, the creation of worship centers is considered to be very relevant in 183 J.K Asamoah-Gyadu, An Introduction into the Typology of African Christianity In Apawo Phiri- Werner – Kauda – Owino (eds) Anthology of African Christianity. 261-264 184 J.K Asamoah-Gyadu, I will Put My Breath in You, and You will Come To Life’: Charismatic Renewal in Ghanaian Mainline Churches and its Implications for African ‘Diasporean Christianity, In A. Adogome – R. Gerloff – K. Hovk (eds.), Christianity in Africa and the African Diaspora: The Appropriation of a Scattered Heritage, Continuum International, (London 2008), 193. 89 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh contemporary Ghanaian Christianity. The PCCs understanding of sacred space - deemed as a holy place, consecrated or reconstructed space from a secular space to a holy space for ministry to adherents is key. In Ghana, many PCC members believe that the growth of a church is not only determined by how big or how beautiful or ugly it is, or how strategically located it is, but to a large extent, how the sacred spaces address their needs. They are ready at any time to take the church to the people, even if that means improvising for the time being. Thus, the PCCs are creating sacred spaces in almost every available space, not only to spread the gospel to many communities in the country but also to offer unique ministries to address the needs of members in such space. A phenomenon that seem to be benefiting from the Akan worldview of ‘Mystical Causation’ that is ‘nothing happens without a cause’. This attributes any physical, economic, spiritual or social challenge in life to evil spirits and witchcraft. In a similar way, PCCs have a strong belief in the power of the Holy Spirit and His associated gifts. This is evidenced in the words of most of their Bishops, Prophets, Apostle Generals and founders. For instance, Rev. Abba Quianoo of the Revival Temple at Coastal Junction at the Spintex Road stated that “we step on a place and take possession of the territory in the name of God, start from where two or three are gathered then it metamorphous into a large church.”185 This is an example of the third classification of church growth noted earlier - the extension growth type. This strategy is pursued to spread the space of their activities to reach people who are not in touch with any church. Rev. Quianoo again stated that “a lady from the Seventh-day Adventist Church worships with us every Sunday morning but reverts to her church every 185 An interview granted the researcher by the associate Pastor of the Revival Temple, Royal House Chapel, and Coastal Junction on the Spintex road. 90 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Saturday.”186 Such a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church may have been attracted to the fellowship due to its proximity. It may also be as a result of the ‘solutions’ she receives at that PCC, though she still goes back to her church. What this suggests is that membership count may be on the increase on certain days at PCC meetings, but the actual steady growth, in terms of increase in church members’ record, may not be real. Therefore ‘conquering territories’ for the PCCs include the recording of high participation in church activities, which may suggest numerical growth. In their quest to take territories and influence public life, contemporary PCC Pastors in their sermons challenge their youth to make a difference in every conceivable area of life: education, information, sports and business. These messages presented at such meetings inspire and also draw many Ghanaian youth to their meetings. The trooping in of the Ghanaian youth into their meetings forms part of this count used for numerical growth. The ‘theology of dominion’, a term coined by Asamoah-Gyadu to describe this phenomenon as demonstrated in the purchase of lands for church buildings, sustained prayers and fasting are undertaken to ward off negative supernatural interests.187 Eastwood Anaba, the founder of Fountain Gate Chapel states that, “To spread the gospel, there must be an ejection of the heathen from the possession of the land. Believers must move in quickly to take possession.”188 He further states that “The experiences of the Spirit, Christian ethics, prayer and other such related acts of the Christian life and ministry all constitute ways in which God’s End-Time Militia has been brought into being, to break the hold of Satan and demonic powers over God’s 186 Rev. Abba Quainoo, resident pastor at Revival Fellowship at Tema Community 18. 187 J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, Sighs and Signs of the Spirit; Ghanaian Perspectives on Pentecostalism and Renewal in Africa (Akropong-Akuapim, Regnum Africa 2015), 20. 188 Eastwood Anaba, Breaking Illegal Possession: Dislodge the Enemy and Possess the Land! (Accra, Design Solutions, 1996), 49. 91 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh creation, seize opportunities and spread the influences of the Spirit over the most mundane things in this world.”189 Thus to choose a specific edifice as a worship center is often inspired by the Holy Spirit through divinations and visions.190 Anaaba also stated that “Territorial conquest to be champions are not just physical activities, it also shows that there is a link between physical and spiritual territories.”191 It is also not a reference to only physical land for establishing places of worship, it refers to something more than geographical space. This world view held by Ghanaians is a major contributing factor to the growth of the PCCs in Ghana. As at 2015, the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches, (the umbrella body) had over 200 Pentecostal and Charismatic denominations in Ghana constituting over four (4) million of the adult Christian population in Ghana.192 This has happened within their fifty (50) years of existence as a body in Ghana. Currently, the number of registered churches with the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) has reached 228 as at April 5, 2019 making them the largest church Council in Ghana (whereas the Christian Council of Ghana, CCG is made up of only 29 members) in terms of populace and membership. They have well- furnished offices in the 10 out of the 16 regions in Ghana, and constitutes 28.3% of the Christian Community in Ghana.193 They claim to be the leading prophetic voice, advocate and gate-keepers of the nation.194 In many communities, they (PCCs) are so 189 Asamoah-Gyadu, Sighs and Signs of the Spirits, 19-21. 190 De Witte, Accra’s Sound and Sacred Spaces , International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. Vol. 32.3 2008. 690-709. DOI:10.1111/.1468-2427.2008.00805.x 191 Anaba, Breaking Illegal Possession. 49. 192 Frederick Acheampong et. al, “Pentecostal Political Leveraging: The Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council and Electoral Advocacy in Ghana.” In Religion and Sustainable Development, Ghanaian perspectives, edited by George Ossom-Basta, Nicoletta Gati, Rabiatu Deinyo Ammah (eds.) (Citta del Vaticano urbaniana University Press 2018), 168. 193 Gpccghana.org/history-and-background. Accessed 29/04/2019 194 Gpccghana.org/history-and-background. Accessed 29/04/2019. 92 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh close to each other (in terms of citing their worship centers) within the same vicinity but instead of entertaining the fear of “sheep stealing”195 from one church to the other, they would rather confidently impress on you to see it as church growth. As noted by Pastor Richard, “though there lots of churches around, it’s quite a healthy competition for the Christian community.”196 Supporting this, Pastor Philip states that “It has rather contributed to the overall Kingdom agenda of growth.”197 In other words the proliferation of many sacred spaces as places of worship among the PCCs is a sign of growth and a spur on their effort towards the great commission in Matt. 28:19-20. Again, PCCs believe that it is not the issue of ‘sheep stealing’ because they bring other people into the church as they carry out their spiritual mandate of spreading the ‘kingdom agenda’. The PCCs’ claim of being the gate-keepers of the nation, Ghana,198 may be evidenced in their devotion to prayer, the ‘Spirit’ and the way they are emboldened to take possession of any mundane space within a community and consecrate it for holy use through the appropriation of the power and gracious gifts (Charismata) of the Holy Spirit. The popular assertion or belief among them is that “If you step on a place, you take possession of it.” “As the Spirit directs or reveals to you where (sometimes how) 195 *Sheep stealing is a situation where Christian leaders who get access to the member of another congregation or fellowship manage to draw them to his or her congregation or fellowship without the knowledge of the leadership. It is considered as a negative practice that shows breach of trust. 196 Richard Ackon, an Associate Pastor of the Light of the World Chapel International, Tema Comm. 19 who responded to our questionnaire on April 7, 2019. 11:30am 197 Philip Nyarko, the Associated Pastor of Christfield Ministries at Tema Community 19 who granted and interview for this research. April 7, 2019 at 12:55pm. 198 Gpccghana.org/history-and-background. Accessed 30/04/2019. 93 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh to establish a place of worship, you act accordingly to establish the place of worship at the exact space or location for ministry.”199 The personal and corporate understanding of a sacred space by the PCC adherents is reflected in their usage of the worship center and not necessarily the type of structure. As they would tell you “the structure did not influence me, it is the word that is taught here,”200 others like Hubans would state that “even if it were to be a tent, I would have still worshiped here since I find God’s presence here.”201 As stated by De Witte, “PCCs see the Spirit of God at work beyond material space; any space can be turned into a worship space.” Asamoah-Gyadu corroborates this by observing that for them the “authority of such ‘divine building permits’ or land entitlements issued by the Holy Spirit outweighs any human permit or prohibition.”202 And since in urban spaces, people want needs met quickly, ‘anyplace’ created to offer ‘solutions’ to such needs will be patronized, a phenomenon that contributes to the general church growth by the PCC worship centers. The Church Administrator, Charles Wogbe at Winners Chapel International Church in Tema Community 19, (under the Spintex Road field study, see picture 15A below), asserts that spiritual deliverance and empowerment to church members is a major factor for the setting up of these places of worship among the PCCs. Also powerful men of God administer prayers in tongues, prophecies and offer spiritual solutions for them. In responding to one of the researcher’s questions on church growth, 199 Pr. Bernard Mantey, founder of the Adonai House Chapel, Spintex Shell Bus Stop. Was interviewed on 24/03/2019 by the researcher. 200 Associate Pastor of the Liberty Revival Ministries, Community 20, interviewed at 1:43pm on 14/04/ 2019 by the researcher. 201 Pr. Hubans is the resident pastor of the Hosanna Temple , a branch of the Perez Chapel in Tema Community 20 202 De Witte, Accra’s Sacred Spaces and Sound, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. Vol. 32.3 2008. 690-709. DOI:10.1111/.1468-2427.2008.00805.x 94 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh a respondent stated that “Yes, the place of worship is contributing to our growth spiritually because our Pictures 15A. Winners’ Chapel International, Tema Community 18 Source: Author 2019 prayer team members are always on ‘fire’ every Friday night to intercede on behalf of the church.”203 Picture 15A above is the Winners Chapel International, Tema Community 18, showing the signboard which has the name of the church inscribed boldly on it. A purchased place of Worship. The congregation is made up of 1,800 members at the moment, but initially they were only 14 members who worshiped in a rented place before moving into this well secured place. 203 Alfred Teye, a member of the Winners Chapel international who granted an interview to the researcher. 14/04/2019.12:17pm 95 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Pictures 15B. Winners’ Chapel International, Tema. Source: Author 2019 Picture 15B above shows that the place has very limited parking space and only two places of entrance into the auditorium, an architectural defect that raises security concerns. The sanctuary team makes sure that the sacredness of the place is maintained through prayer and constant cleaning services. He further stated that “God is everywhere where two or three are gathered in His name so I didn’t really consider the style of the structure to worship in, even though, admittedly some people may consider the structure for worship.”204 A response that seems to be affirming Asamoah-Gyadu’s 204 The respondent is the administrator of the Winners Chapel International, Tema Community 18 96 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh description of PCCs worship centers as any public place where space can be found.”205 A description which indicates that the meeting places of the average PCC has no religious symbols like stained glass windows, crucifixes, pictures of Jesus, angels and communion tables as is often found in traditional mission churches and AICs. Rather, on a carpeted floor in front of auditorium, there is a simple podium, sometimes a few potted plants, where the platform wall often has inscription of the name of the church such as found in Divine Life Chapel Ministries in picture 16 below. Picture 16. Divine Life Chapel International, Spintex Road Source: Author 2019. Source: Author 2019. 205 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics 118. 97 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 16 above shows a simple podium (held by the founder Rev. John Morrison) with potted plants of Divine Chapel International. Beneath the banner is the picture of the founder in a combative mood for a spiritual warfare. Though in a tent type of sacred space as place of worship, members of this church feel happy to be worshiping in a place as this not because it is a tent, but because of the conviction that God chose the place in a dream for them. In the words of Rev. John Morrison, “three (3) people dreamt about the venue before his spiritual fathers – Bishops Shamback of Kotobabi and Oppong Kyekyeku of Kumasi came to anoint the place with olive oil for spiritual protection and growth.”206 From a small beginning of six (6) at old Sheashi, near the Gethsemane funeral home, they are now eighty (80) in number (a sign of numerical growth within eight years) due to the ‘solutions’ they offer to members. As a result, they have secured a land at Amrahia near Dodowa where they intend to have a permanent place of worship. For a PCC member, a personal experience of the Holy Spirit in a place of worship is the key – a theological shift that may be linked to the PCCs belief in the ‘unmediated access to God made possible by the experience of the holy spirit. According to them, in the Historic Mission Churches, Ghanaians have been searching in desperation for Christian solutions to the problems of suffering, evil and ill-health, but in the PCCs, the emphasis on faith healing, deliverance and protection through the power of the Holy Spirit has brought succor to many. The Holy Spirit provides help to various problems irrespective of the sacred space of worship, being it a tent, rented place or a magnificently built place. 206 Rev. John Morrison, founder of the Divine Life Chapel International who granted the researcher an interview at his church at Spintex Road on March 17, 2019. 1:47pm. 98 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Again, appropriating spiritual emblems, objects or ‘extensions of faith,’ such as Olive oils, salt, honey, communion wine, handkerchiefs, stickers of founders or prophets - for spiritual solutions have attracted many Ghanaians to PCCs places of worship. Captured in Harold Turner’s collected essays, Religious Innovation in Africa, the negatives, faults or excesses ( the dispensing of divinely revealed herbal pills as purgative to patients) of the AICs have been well repackaged for ministering by the PCCs to attract large followers.207 In some PCCs such as Adonai House Chapel in picture 6 above, “extensions of faith” are openly displayed at the back of the church for sale on shelves for members. These objects are procured and administered as directed by the pastors, bishops and prophets of the PCCs. The efficacy of these objects is anchored on the belief that the man of God has anointed them. This renders it “special” or “extra ordinary” from the same emblems sold on the common market. The PCC members therefore believe these contribute to spiritual growth among the PCCs and the Church in Ghana as a whole. 207 Turner, From Temple to Meeting House, 9-10. 99 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 17. Adonai House Chapel pulpit area. Source: Author, 2019 Picture 17 above is the pulpit area where music instruments, and backdrop banner displaying the name of the church and where church members converge for special prayers during church service when the preacher invites them for prayers. 100 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Picture 18. Extensions of Faith on display at Adonai House Chapel Source: Author, 2019. The picture 18 above is the back seat area of Adonai House Chapel where the various “extensions of faith” (anointing olive oil, salt and honey) are displayed on shelves for sale in the church. The prices of these objects range from GHc50.00 minimum to GHS150.00 maximum and members are to buy only when the spirit directs the founder to inform members.208 While the honey (Sweet Jesus) is for the sweetening of ones Christian life, the oil and salt are to combat and secure the lives of the users/members and their properties against evil spirits, witches, and curses. The usage 208 Pr. Bernard Mantey, founder of the Adonai House Chapel, Spintex Shell Bus Stop. Was interviewed on 24/03/2019 by the researcher. 101 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh of these ‘extensions of faith’ by adherents are scripturally supported (based on PCC ‘hermeneutics’) as demonstrated by the pastors to members before giving the items out to members. The sale of these extensions of faith increases during special church events such as prophetic revivals, seminars, breakthrough prayer sessions, watch night vigils during Easter and December 31st night vigils when adherents and non-adherents come to church to renew their commitments and vows to their Lord. Since many of these pastors of PCCs stress evil and the need to negate it among members, They are believed to possess the ‘divine’ word and direction in the negotiation of evil with these extensions of faiths. The belief in administering of these “extensions of faith” and their perceived efficacies have drawn many people to these PCCs to have their problems solved thereby contributing to some growth in their membership. Though PCCs were critical of the AICs practice of these curative aids and materials, their drift into those same areas underscore the vital part these extensions of faith play in the worldview of the Ghanaian.209 For some adherents, the miracles they experience as a result of these aids, have drawn many followers to these PCCs that worship in their tents, rented homes, classrooms and spaces on top of shops and finance houses. In a country where contact with professional therapists, psychologists and psychiatrics and medical personnel is often unattainable or unknown, the PCCs and their places of worship provide the needed haven for people. Adherents go to these places in periods of want and worries for what they consider to be divine care. In most instances, promises from PCC prophets provide the needed emotional support that helps 209 Joseph Quayisi-Amakye, Journal of the European Pentecostal Theological Association 35, 2. 2005. 4 102 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh to still disordered minds to embrace the future with assurance. In this case, these numerous places of worship are not simply contributing to the tremendous growth in the PCCs but the health and development of the nation. 4.4 CONCLUSION The basic understanding of church growth by many PCCs is the increase in church membership which is the general concern of many church members. However, critics of this definition prefer that church leaders/administrators interrogate the dynamics of church development to come out with the causes of such growth. As the Ghana Pentecostal Charismatic Churches (GPCCs) celebrate their fiftieth (50th) anniversary this year (2019), with their core mandate of “pursuing the unity of the body of Christ to propagate the gospel and to meet the spiritual and socio-economic needs of its members”,210 they believe the Christian landscape is bound to experience a phenomenal numerical growth with numerous types of places of worship springing up. Also, as many Historic Mainline Church members and adherents of other faiths join the PCCs due to proximity and convenience among other reasons, many are those whose membership allegiance may still be with their mother (HMC) churches even if they still identify with the PCCs superficially. Lending credence to this, Asamoah-Gyadu states that “Pentecostal/Charismatic Christianity is a stream of Christianity that emphasizes experience and so those who seek ‘membership’ do not have to go through catechism.”211 This is a phenomenon that may mislead PCC leaders to have the impression that their membership is growing. 210 Gpccghana.org/history-and-background. Accessed 30/04/2019. 211 J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics, Current Developments within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana. (Leiden, Koninklijke 2005), 12 – 13. 103 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh In the Akan worldview, spirits and witches are the causes of all mishaps hence the creation of places of worship to offer solutions to them would increase in “any available space.” In the words of Asamoah-Gyadu “the difference between a Pentecostal /Charismatic Christian and the one who is not is that, for the PCC, the Spirit is an experience whiles for the other it is simply a doctrinal concept.” So to experience worship and solution to one’s problem, many people in Ghana are bound to join the PCCs though they may remain nominal and the PCCs will continue to see themselves as the major contributing force to the growth of the Christian community in Ghana. Their understanding of sacred spaces as any space under the direction of the Holy Spirit created and consecrated for worship and to minister to the needs of church members and the needs of people of Ghana is critical. In as much as these ministries require spaces as places of worship by appropriation, the Christian landscape will continue to see numerical and transfer growths. 104 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh CHAPTER FIVE SUMMARY, FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION 5.1 INTRODUCTION We have, in this study, attempted to draw attention to the fact that sacred space occupy an important place in many religions of the world. And to show that despite their relevance, religious people have different understandings, as expressed in the context, of places of worship by the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches. It is this differences in understanding that has influenced the way PCCs set up their places of worship. The study examined the Ghanaian Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches’ understanding of sacred space in the context of worship centers, and how it has influenced the creation of numerous places of worship in Abeka Lapaz and Spintex Road. This study was organized into five chapters. This chapter gives the summary of the study, major findings, recommendations and conclusion. 5.2 SUMMARY This study has outlined the history of Pentecostalism from a global perspective, the various stages where the African Independent churches (AICs) emerged to give rise 105 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh to the classical Pentecostal Churches such as the Church of Pentecost, Christ Apostolic Church and Apostolic Church of Ghana. The thesis also examined the emergence of para-church groups such as the Scripture Unions (SU), which were largely found in second cycle institutions, and the Ghana Fellowship of Evangelical Students (GHAFES), whose activities were usually found on tertiary campuses. These groups eventually gave rise to the neo-Pentecostal/Charismatic movements, with emphasis on the gifts and roles of the Holy Spirit in the spread of the gospel. The study noted that a majority of these groups used such as classrooms, science laboratories, town halls among others as their places of worship. A further discussion was done on the activities of the neo-prophets and their ministries in the Ghanaian Christian milieu. The emergence of Neo-Prophetism in the 1990’s212 in Ghana revealed that their character, flair, and importance were supposedly Pentecostal yet different noticeably from the typical Pentecostal tradition. Some of these include Prophet Amoako, Prophet Salifu Amoako and Prophet Emmanuel Kwaku Apraku (“my daughter”). The work identified that the emergence of neo-prophetism in Ghana is a phenomenon that complicates the issue of typologies or categorizing the African founded Pentecostal/Charismatic type of churches founded by Ghanaians. The reasons for the difficulty according to scholars such as Hollenweger and J.S. Pobee include continuous changing scene, accepted definition for Charismatic renewal, and y difficulty in getting precise data and report on them. 213 The work also looked at the seemingly ambiguity that exists between the terms ‘Pentecostal’ and ‘Charismatic’. Scholars like Asamoah-Gyadu, Michael Walker and 212 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space: The Case of Neo-Prophetism in Ghana. Ghana Bulletin of Theology 1. July 2006. 57. 213 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space: The Case of Neo-Prophetism in Ghana. Ghana Bulletin of Theology 1. July 2006. 57 106 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Paul Gifford who largely agree posit that the Charismatic Movement is the most contemporary religious movement to have emerged in the 1960s214 and that defined Pentecostalism to include the African Independent Churches (AICs), the Evangelical Pentecostal Movement/Classical Pentecostals and the Charismatic renewal association or the Neo-Pentecostal movement.215 These three strands of Pentecostal expression were discussed in the context of their understanding, identification and classification of sacred spaces and how the creation of such spaces has influenced church growth. The ministries of Charismatic Churches in Ghana and their places of worship were discussed. Prominent amongst these churches are the Christian Action Faith Ministries, Royal House Temple, Fountain Gate Chapel and the International Central Gospel Church. These churches originated from para-church groups and started from humble beginnings with very few members who worshiped in classrooms, cinema halls and ware houses. However, some now have their permanent places of worship and are springing up in almost every available space in Ghana. In chapter three, there is identification and categorization of the PCCs in the selected areas of research of Abeka Lapaz and Spintex road. These areas which have population sizes of over 250,000 and a sizeable number of industries and businesses within the Accra metropolitan area have seen enormous rise in siting of places of worship by PCCs. This section of the study revealed two main types of sacred sites – natural and man-made. Natural sacred types include ponds, groves, forests, outgrowths, mountains, and trees. The focus of this research was however on the man-made type which includes temples, shrines, church buildings, tenets and rented places. The study 214 Cephas N. Omenyo & Abamfo O. Atiemo, Claiming Religious Space. 55 215 Asamoah-Gyadu, African charismatics. 34. 107 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh identified three main types of man-made sacred space as places of worship for the PCCs. The Tent, Rented Places and Buildings. The noted trend of growth for these churches is that, 2 or 3 members can start by identifying a place for prayer fellowship. This can be in a rented place, where they can recreate for holy use and gradually as their numbers increase, they move onto a permanent location. Respondents from some of the PCCs revealed that it is not the nature of the place of worship per say that draws them to PCCs, but the ministries they receive at the place that is important. These responses indicate that as long as PCC Pastors, Bishops, Founders and Apostle Generals would want to address any challenge both mundane and spiritual in the life of their members, the creation of many places of worship will continue to flood the Ghanaian Christian landscape. The study further discussed the spiritual dimension of how the various places of worship are established either through a dream or visions. Sometimes, prophetic revelations and visions through the ‘Spirit’ are deemed more validating than statutory approval for the siting and building of sacred spaces as places of worship for the PCCs. Chapter four of the study dealt with sacred spaces and church growth in the PCCs of Ghana. The study identified a simplified definition and understanding of church growth among PCCs as a mere increase in membership. This simplistic definition is criticized by church growth scholars such as McGavran, Roy Pointer, Ralph Winter, Peter Wagner, and Troy Benitone, as being too ‘abrasive’ and just ‘numeratory.’ A concern that is shared by Richard Foli, that the average PCC Christian had a concern for church growth hence the need to ascertain all factors that lead to growth rather than rely on just numerical increase of members. Troy Benitone posits that the problem of our churches is spiritual216 and nothing else. Roy Pointer’s concepts 216 See page 85 Troy Benitone ‘Problem of our Churches’ in Murray Meoman, Types of Church Growth, 1983. 108 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh of Church Growth as Numerical and Conceptual is similar to expansion and conversion growths of Wagner. According to McGavran, the recruitment of individuals to active membership of the church, incorporating them into fellowship of believers, and encouraging them to share in its corporate life of worship and witnessing is conversion growth as well. Conceptual Growth according to Pointer is the personal and corporate development of the Christian understanding of faith. A degree of awareness that a community of faith has with regard to its nature and task to the world. Having identified the various kinds and classifications of church growth, the chapter also discussed the contribution of sacred spaces to church growth in Ghana. Many PCC members strongly believe that the growth of a church is not only determined by how big it is or how beautiful or ugly, or how strategically located it is, but to a large extent, how the sacred spaces are appropriated to address their needs. The PCCs have sacred spaces in almost every available space, not only to carry out the Great Commission in Matt. 28:18-20 to various communities in the country, but also to offer some unique ministries to address the needs of members in such spaces. A phenomenon that seem to be benefiting from the Akan/Ghanaian world view of “causal order” that nothing happens without a cause, where any physical, economic, spiritual or social challenge in life is attributed to evil spirits, witchcraft, and supernatural forces. As a result, the trust in the power of the Holy Spirit and its gifts by PCCs is evidenced in their quest to take territories and influence public life. Contemporary PCC messages/sermons from their preachers challenge their youth to make a difference in every conceivable area of life: education, information, sports business among others. The ‘theology of dominion’,217 a term coined by Asamoah-Gyadu to describe this 217 Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics. 32. 109 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh phenomenon. The PCCs have a firm believe in taking possession of their territories. They fast and pray over lands purchased for the purpose of constructing church buildings in order to ward off negative supernatural influence. . Eastwood Anaba, the founder of Fountain Gate Chapel states that “To spread the gospel, there must be an ejection of the heathen from the possession of the land.”218 Believers must therefore move in quickly to take possession. The chapter identified that the number of registered churches with the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) has reached 228 as at April 5, 2019.219 As the largest church council in Ghana (whereas the Christian Council of Ghana, CCG is made up of only 29 members) in terms of population and membership, they have established and equipped offices in the 10 out of the 16 regions in Ghana with 28% of the Christian community in Ghana. They also claim that because they are the lead prophetic voice, advocates and gate keepers of the nation they are encouraged to set up churches in many communities, and in close proximity to each other within the same vicinity. Appropriation of spiritual emblems, objects or ‘extensions of faith’ such as anointing (Olive) oils, salt, honey, communion wine, handkerchiefs, stickers of founders or prophets for spiritual solutions has attracted many Ghanaians to PCCs places of worship. The belief in the potency of the anointing oil by PCCs is tied to the content of the bottle of olive oil. Noted as ‘anointing oil’, it is believed to neutralize devilish works, and cause promotional and preventive effects for believers.”220 The 218 See page 89 Eastwood Anaba, Breaking Illegal Possession: Dislodge the Enemy and Possess the Land! (Accra, Design Solutions, 1996), 49. 219 See page … Fred Acheampong et. al, “Pentecostal Political Leveraging:” In Religion and Sustainable Development, Ghanaian perspectives, edited by George Ossom-Basta, Nicoletta Gati, Rabiatu Deinyo Ammah (eds.) (Citta del Vaticano urbaniana University Press 2018), 168. 220 Joseph Quayisi-Amakye, Journal of the European Pentecostal Theological association 35, 2. 2005. 4 110 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Ghana Pentecostal Charismatic Churches (GPCCs) celebrates their fiftieth (50th) anniversary this year (2019), and their desire is to continue to propagate the gospel and to meet the divine and socio-economic needs of its followers and other citizens in the country in general. As such, the Christian landscape is bound to experience a continuous exponential growth in the creation of sacred spaces. 5.3 FINDINGS The study found out that sacred spaces are common to almost every religion in the world. The Ghanaian PCCs’ understand sacred spaces, is a place set apart from a secular space for holy use by a group of individuals or believers of a particular faith. The creation of these sacred spaces is usually believed to have been directed by the Holy Spirit through dreams, visions and prophecies either by men of God or ordinary church members. This seems to be one of the reasons for the upsurge of many PCCs places of worship in ‘any available place’ in Ghana. The research work identified 63 different PCCs places of worship in all the selected research sites. At Abeka Lapaz 27 PCCs were identified and 12 were close to the popular entertaining center (Abrantie spot) whiles 15 were located within the Apenkwa/flattop area. At the Spintex road area, 33 PCC places of worship were identified and 10 were near to the Shell Bus Stop whiles 13 were close to the Shell Signboard area. From the main junction on the Spintex road that leads to Communities 18-20, the researcher identified 15 PCCs. Other findings of this research work were the various types of PCCs identified and classified into three main types as: tent churches, rented churches, and mega 111 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh churches. The tent, event center churches and ‘churches on cash’ in some areas are sometimes rented spaces whiles the mega churches are usually owned by the churches. These types of PCCs were identified in all the two selected research sites but only 15 were selected for purposes of this work. The study also identified that the dominant religious ethos of the average Akan, the believe in ‘mystical causality’ which underpins every natural occurrence, challenge and mishap in life influences the setting up of any type of sacred space by ‘men of God’ in order to offer solutions to the problems of life. PCCs’ have programs such as deliverance seminars, break through night vigils, and converging of saints seminars in attempt to provide divine solutions to mundane problems and also win people into their fold. It is at such meetings that the sale of ‘healing aids’ or ‘extensions of faith’ take place and prophetic utterances are given by men of God. The challenge here is that such prophetic utterances tend to define the lives and future of the PCC members; as such many of PCC’s members, refuse to do anything without first consulting ‘men of God’ for ‘divine direction and advice The research identified that church growth is a major concern of respondents because the increase in membership is a spur on their efforts. It encourages them to look for more sacred spaces as places of worship to keep their ‘sheep’, irrespective of the type of space available to them, as they expand into new areas. Most of the respondents affirmed that it is not the type of building used as sacred space or place of worship that pulls them into a fellowship, but to a large extent, the ministration they receive from these places of worship. As pointed out, church numerical growth is identified as one of the main factors that contribute to the setting up of these sacred spaces on any available space. 112 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh The study further found out that the level of noise produced by PCCs during their worship services is alarming and needs to be regulated or controlled by the appropriate state institutions such as the environmental Protection Agency (EPA) These authorities would be seen as neutral arbiters in situations where offended communities’ reactions are rather misconstrued by the PCCs as demonic. In Ghana, since many residential areas are close apart, and most houses lack adequate insulation, the uncontrolled noises from the PCCs worship centers are a source of worry to residents and therefore demands the necessary attention and action. Also the regulatory activities of authorities must be extended to danger prone areas such as petrol or filling stations that houses churches. Although many of the places of worship (on top of finance houses, boutiques, pharmacy shops, etc.) identified in this research seem to be serving the spiritual needs of the people, they pose a number of security threats to their various communities as well as to their membership. Most of these churches have little or no space for multiple exit points. A cases in point is the Broken Vessels Chapel International which sits on top of six different shops at the Spintex Road. Another finding that was identified by this work is the inadequate exit points for most of the PCCs places of worship. This is a security threat that needs to be addressed by church leaders, to avert deaths resulting from stampede in the case of any emergencies. From the above findings identified, the following recommendations are offered. 113 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 5.4 RECOMMENDATION In the light of the study, the following recommendations have been made with respect to the PCCs understanding of sacred spaces as places of worship; how these sacred spaces are created, how they are categorized into various types, and how they contribute to church growth in Ghana. The research suggests that further academic study be conducted on PCCs membership to gather the real data on the church through periodic audits. This will help in conducting proper data analysis among religious groups such as the Ghana Evangelism Committee, the Ghana Pentecostal Charismatic Churches of Ghana and other international organizations. The study showed that PCCs over rely on ‘Divine Permits’ for the acquisition and constructing of their places of worship. Therefore, the research is recommending that Town and Country Planning Authorities ensure that church (PCC) leadership should follow due processes in securing proper land documentations for the construction of places of worship in other to avoid confrontations and lawsuits. The study suggests that PCCs that use the top of financial institutions, boutiques, saloons, pharmacy shops and supermarkets as places of worship should create more doorways into their places of worship as emergency exits so that in the advent of fire outbreaks or other emergencies church members can evacuate the place of worship safely. The environmental Protection agency (EPA) and the Ghana National Fire Service should conduct safety checks on PCCs to know their safety standards. Another recommendation is that PCCs, most especially, the ‘mega churches’, should provide health (clinical) services as part of their ministries to their clients as a scientific means of helping them to get healing rather than attributing every physical 114 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh challenge to witches, wizards and demons. Since these ‘mega churches’ have enough rooms in their imposing buildings, some can be allocated for such ministries so as to provide holistic salvation ministries for their clients. As part of the findings of this study, it is recommended that further studies be conducted into coordination and regulation of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches (GPCC) with regard to the types of places of worship that are being established and being used as sacred spaces for the their members. In as much as the PCCs see increase in membership and the emergence of numerous places of worship as ‘growth of the kingdom’, the activities of their founders/pastors should be regulated The study also recommends that government agencies must come out with public education programs for churches and groups to be aware of the levels of sounds/noise they can make as they exercise their freedoms of religion and association in their establishments. These recommendations can help regulate activities and growth of the PCCs as they continue to create more places of worship on the Ghanaian Christian landscape. 5.5 CONCLUSION The selected areas of study in this research – Abeka Lapaz and Spintex Road have an average population size of 200,000 each as captured in the 2010 Ghana Population and Housing Census report. These areas are noted for their commercial and industrial prowess. Apart from contributing to the Ghanaian economy in terms of revenue generation and provision of employment opportunities for the masses they have become places where churches (PCCs) have sprung up in all manner of forms. Sacred worship spaces are classified into three major types as tents, rented spaces and 115 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh buildings. Some of the tents are located in rented compounds whiles some of the places of worship are located on top of finance houses, supermarkets, boutiques and pharmacy shops. The mega sacred spaces are usually huge in size, well decorated, fitted with air conditioners and the necessary musical equipment. They are easily identified by their signboards that give explicit directions to their location as well as banners that advertise their numerous well-tailored programs that seem to address the challenges of members and visitors. The study concludes that as far as PCCs are concerned, sacred spaces, as their places of worship, will form a major part of their continue growth process in the years ahead. Having established the facts concerning man-made sacred spaces as the type under consideration in this research, the PCCs have defined their places of worship. Their understanding of a sacred space is underscored in the reason they believe every available space can be turned into a holy space for use, irrespective of the type of space or nature of the structure. In Ghana, as noted by Asamoah-Gyadu, “properties originally designated for secular, commercial, and other mundane purposes continue to be reclaimed for use as places of worship by new churches, most of which belong to the PCC stream.”221 It is not surprising that the Ghanaian scene is described by Omenyo as a “religious zoo” 222 where almost everybody belongs to one religion or the other. If it is a ‘Christian zoo’ and for that matter a ‘PCC zoo’ then there is no gain saying that many places of abode (places of worship) will be needed for the 4million members of the PCCs of the Ghanaian Christian population. 221 J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, African Charismatics: current Developments within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism in Ghana (Leiden Koninkljike 2005), 10. 222 Cephas N. Omenyo, Pentecost outside Pentecostalism: A study of the Development of Charismatic Renewal in the Mainline Church in Ghana. (The Netherlands, Boeckencentrum, November 2002), 24. 116 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Therefore, PCCs or churches in cities and places as selected for this study should see their presence and activities as complimenting the efforts of other Christian denominations in the overall church growth agenda as they create all kinds of places of worship for the people. 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Interview guide for pastors, deacons, administrators, members. Appendix B. Record of visits to churches for Observation and data collection. Appendix C. List of persons interviewed. Appendix D. List of Churches visited. Appendix E. List of photographs taken. 126 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Appendix A. Interview guide for Pastors, Administrators, Deacons and Church Members A. Interview schedule for Pastors/Administrators 6. What is your understanding of sacred space/kronkron bia/kronkron we`/tefe korkoe? 7. What made you to choose this place to be used as a place of worship/ministry? 8. How did you pitch/construct/build this place for worship? 9. Is this place a contributing factor to the growth of your church/ministry? 10. Why did you pitch/construct/build this place of worship this way? B. Interview schedule for deacons/deaconesses 1. How do adjust/create this place for worship? C. Interview schedule for prayer team members 1. In what way do you contribute to maintain the sacredness/kronkron ye of this place? D. Interview schedule for church members 1. Why did you to choose this place to come for worship? 2. Did the type of structure/building influence your decision to come and worship at this place? 127 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Appendix B. Record of 12 out of the 27 churches visited for interviews, observation and data collection at Abeka Lapaz PCCs 1. Sunday March17th, 2019 – Visit to the Lord’s Anointed Ministry. To locate their place of worship and also participate and observe their worship. 2. Sunday March 17th, 2019 – Visit to the Exceeding Faith Ministries, to observe prayer service and interview some deacons, members and leadership 3. Sunday March 17th, 2019 – visit to Mount Zion Prayer Ministry. To interview selected respondents. 4. Sunday 17th, 2019 –In Him is Life Prayer Ministry for interviews. 5. Sunday 5th April, 2019 – The Eagles of Christ Mission Church in the evening during a prayer service to interview the prayer team members as well as leaders. 6. Sunday 7th April, 2019 – Christ Purpose Mission, for interview and worship with them. 7. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – Peace Chapel at Abeka Lapaz for interview and Observation. 8. Sunday March 24th, 2019 - Christ Anointed Mission at for interview and observation. 9. Sunday April 14th, 2019 – Peace Chapel for interviews and observations. 10. Sunday March 3rd, 2019 – Calvary Charismatic Church for interviews, observation and data collection. 11. Sunday March 10th, 2019 – Christ Way Chapel Ministries for interviews, observation and data collection. 128 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 12. Friday March 16th, 2019 – Christ Way Chapel Ministries for observation to confirm data collected. (b). Record of 20 out of the 33 PCC churches visited for interviews, observations and data collection at Spintex Road. 1. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – first visit to Divine Life Chapel at Spintex Road for observation and interview. 2. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – visit to the International Life Gate Chapel (Transformation Center) at Spintex Road for interviews, observation and data collection. 3. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – visit to Adonai House Chapel, Spintex Road for interviews, observation and data collection. 4. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – visit to the Revival Temple at Spintex Road for participant observation, interviews and data collection. 5. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – visit to the Broken Vessels Sanctuary at Spintex road for interview and data collection. 6. Sunday 24th March, 2019 – visit to the Praise Revival Sanctuary for observation, interviews and data collection. 7. Wednesday 27th March, 2019 – second visit to Divine Life Chapel Ministry at Spintex road for some interview clarification, observation and data collection. 8. Sunday March 31st, 2019 – visit to Gilly’ Haven Events Center for interviews, observation and data collection. 9. Sunday April 14th, 2019 – visit to New Anointing Ministries for observation and interviews. 10. Sunday April 14st, 2019 – visit to Winners Chapel International for interviews. 129 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 11. Sunday April 14th, 2019 – visit to Shining Gospel Church for interviews. 12. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Cornerstone Evangelical Ministry for interviews and data collection. 13. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Heavens Way Ministries for interviews and data collection. 14. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Light of the World Chapel International for interviews and data collection. 15. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Agape Restoration Church for interviews and data collection. 16. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Christfield Ministries for observation, interviews and data collection. 17. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to liberty Ministries Church for interviews, observation and data collection. 18. Sunday April 21st, 2019 – visit to Perez Chapel, Hosanna Temple for interviews, observation and data collection. 19. Sunday March 3rd, 2019 - visit to Goshen Prayer and Deliverance Ministries for observation and interviews and data collection. 20. Sunday March 3rd, Conquerors Chapel Mission for observation and interviews and data collection. 130 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh Appendix C: List of Persons Interviewed (a) Abeka Lapaz 1. Pastor P.A. Nkrumah, The Lord’s Anointed Ministry, Abeka Lapaz 2. Rev. Kwadwo Agyeman-Offei, The Lord’s Anointed Ministry 3. Rev. C. A. Akonnor, Exceeding Faith Ministry 4. Rev. Eric Edem, Associate Pastor of Mount Zion Prayer Ministry 5. Pastor Ken Nyame, Christ Purpose Mission 6. Rev. Isaac Opoku, In Him is Life Prayer Ministry 7. Boateng Prince, church member of The Lord’s anointed Prayer Ministry 8. Bettey Awuah, prayer team member, The Lord’s Anointed Prayer Ministry 9. Ama Grace, Deaconess, Lord’s anointed Prayer Ministry 10. Pr. Y. Dua, deacon at In Him is Life Prayer Ministry 11. Gerald Abbey, church member at In Him is Life Prayer Ministry 12. Anthony Arthur, church member at In Him is Life Prayer Ministry (b) Spintex Road 1. Rev. Mrs. Abba Quainoo, Assistant Pastor for Revival Temple, 2. Rev. John Morrison, founder of Divine Life Chapel 3. Apostle Ben Laud, founder of Transformation Center 4. Pastor Bernard Mantey, founder of Adonai House Chapel 5. Rev. Ransford Abossey, senior pastor of Praise Sanctuary 6. Eric Osei Bonsu, Deacon at Transformation Center 7. Courage Gabor, church member at Transformation Center 8. Yaa Pokua, church member at Adonai House Chapel 9. Isaac Otu, deacon at Revival Temple 131 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 10. Yayra Akpetey, head deaconess at Revival Temple 11. Rev. Okine Nettey, Broken Vessels Chapel International 12. Pastor Quaw Richard, Light of the World Chapel International 13. Pastor Eric Hubans, Perez Chapel International, Hosanna Temple 14. Pastor Yaw Philips, Christfield Ministries 15. Pastor Chris Allotey, Christ Eden Life Ministry 16. Bro. Nicolas Teye, Administrator at New Anointing Ministries 17. Rev. Forster Agyeman, associate Pastor at Liberty Revival Ministries 18. Mr. Charles Wogbe, Administrator at Winners Chapel 19. Pastor Isaac Annan, Shining Gospel Church 20. Sister Vera Appiah, secretary at Cornerstone Evangelical Ministries 21. Pastor Collins Anaman, founder of Heavens Way Ministries 22. Pastor Ebenezer Yawson, Associate pastor at Agape Restoration church 132 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 133