The Church of Pentecost has handed over a bus Terminal to the Ghana Private Road Transport Union in Asamankese.
The project is worth over Gh¢4,000.00 and was constructed within one week for the people of Asamankese.
History
History has it that the Church of Pentecost was first started at Asamankese before extending to other parts of the world.
The Church’s beginnings are linked to the ministry of Pastor James McKeown (1900-1989), an Irish missionary sent by the Apostolic Church, Bradford, UK to the then Gold Coast (now Ghana) in 1937 to help a group of believers of the Apostolic Faith in Asamankese.
According to the history, In June 1937, Rev. James McKeown was seriously ill with malaria and was kept in his room at Asamankese for some days without medication in accordance with the rules, beliefs and practices of the Apostolic Faith. The District Commissioner took McKeown to the European Hospital – currently, Ridge Hospital – in Accra where he fully recovered after ten days of hospitalised. On his return to Asamankese, he was confronted by the leaders for having violated the rules and principles of the church by seeking for medical attention at a hospital instead of depending on faith healing.
In June 1938, a general meeting was held by all members from the country to discuss the situation but the leaders at Asamankese refused and condemned McKeown for lack of faith in prayers for divine healing.
Due to doctrinal differences based on divine healing, the group split in 1939 into the Christ Apostolic Church and the Apostolic Church, Gold Coast. The latter saw great expansion under McKeown.
In 1953, a constitutional crisis led to the founding of the Gold Coast Apostolic Church led by McKeown
After independence of Ghana in 1957 the Gold Coast Apostolic Church was renamed the Ghana Apostolic Church.
The split in 1953 did not end the crisis. New conflicts compelled the then President of the Republic of Ghana, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, to advise the leadership of the Ghana Apostolic Church, to adopt a new name.
Therefore, on August 1, 1962, the new name, The Church of Pentecost which was suggested by Apostle Alphonso Wood legally replaced the Ghana Apostolic Church.
Support for Environmental Care Campaign
Speaking at a ceremony organised by the church to hand over the terminal, the General Secretary of the Church, Apostle Alexander Nana Yaw Kumi-Larbi, called on Ghanaians to support the church’s nationwide campaign to complement the government’s efforts to improve sanitation.
Dubbed “Environmental Care Campaign”, the year-long campaign, which is a collaboration among the Church of Pentecost, Zoomlion Ghana Limited and the government, is designed to create awareness of land pollution, water pollution, air pollution, sound pollution and the importance of cleaning the environment.
Commissioning of Office
The Church also used the day’s occasion to commission a new Area office Complex for the church in the Asamankese Area.
Funding for the Area office was raised from the church’s Area office’s offering and grant from their headquarters.
The office complex project took the church 13years to construct.
Mr.Paul Nyarko,the Vice Chairman of the Oda-Asamankese branch expressed his appreciation to the church for recognizing the contribution of the area to be upbringing of the church.
The Chief of Asamankese, Osabarima Adu Darko III who commissioned the office complex for the church in Asamankese Area charged the church to bring more offices, Health centers, Schools and developmental projects to the Area.
General Secretary of the church, Apostle A.N.Y. Kumi- Larbi commended the area for constructing the office for the work of God.
Source: The Evening Mail
