Christians must speak on national issues — Bishop Osei-Bonsu

The Catholic Bishop of Konongo-Mampong Diocese, the Most Rev. Joseph Osei-Bonsu, has challenged members of the Christian community to speak out on national issues, especially matters of politics that affects the wellbeing of citizens.

“We need to have the courage to speak out when necessary,” he stressed.

He said it was the duty of Christians to speak out and condemn practices that went against the practice of Christianity, citing the phenomenon of same sex marriage.  

“I must commend the Noble Order of the Knights and Ladies of Marshall, a Catholic-friendly society,  for the press statement that it issued in Accra in February 2013 condemning homosexuality and lesbianism, and urged the Noble Order to commend Parliamentarians on a good job done on the “Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values 2021,” currently before Parliament.

“At the same time, the Noble Order should challenge the President of the Republic to make known his position on the subject of same sex marriage, just as one Bishop Joseph Osei-Bonsu of the Konongo-Mampong Diocese did in his “Open Letter to the President” of  April 3, 2023,” he said amid applause from the audience.

Conference

He threw the challenge when he delivered the keynote address at the Ashanti Central Regional Conference of the Knights and Ladies of Marshall last Saturday at Jamasi in the Ashanti Region.

The conference was on the theme: “Examining the Significance of Spirituality and Religion in the Life of the Marshallan”.  

He urged Marshallans to also champion the cause of justice as they could not close their eyes to injustice.  

According to him, justice was necessary not only in the judicial system but also in dealings with fellow human beings.  

“There should be no room for discrimination on the basis of sex, social status, political affiliation and ethnicity,” he said. 

Politics

Most Rev. Osei-Bonsu, who is also the Supreme Spiritual Director of the society, urged the Marshallans to get actively involved in political activities of the country.

“As citizens of the nation, Marshallans have every right to be involved in the political life of the country.

They should be actively involved in politics.

They should join political parties, take part in voting, seek key positions in political parties, in government, district assemblies,” he stated.

He, however, challenged the Marshallans to try to transform the world of politics by infusing Christian values into politics.  

 “They should strive to become members of Parliament, President, etc.  

If they refuse to vote, or show indifference to political issues, other people will vote and take decisions which will affect them, for good or for ill,” he stressed.

Corruption

He said in line with the spirituality that Catholics professed, they also had to tackle the canker of corruption in the country.

“Spirituality is incompatible with bribery and corruption which is endemic in our country,” he said.

Most Rev. Osei-Bonsu cited examples of bribery and corruption among police personnel, employers, tutors/lecturers, traders, health professionals and media practitioners, who sought favours before rendering  services or allowing offenders to go scot free.