The Catholic Church Has Not Lost Its Relevance – Palmer Buckle   13-Mar-2013

Palmer Buckle       As Roman Catholic cardinals continue to vote to elect a new Pope, the Archbishop of Accra, Most Reverend Charles Palmar Buckle has told the BBC, the debate over whether the Catholic Church has lost its relevance is farfetched. There’s a raging debate about the need for reforms in the Catholic Church, hence the need for a leader who is dynamic and open to modernity. The Conservative nature of the Catholic Church has been identified as one of the main reasons for the movement of many Catholics to the Charismatic faith in Ghana. The Catholic faith is said to have however seen the fastest growth in Africa. Most Reverend Buckle spoke about what appeals to the youth who join the charismatic churches and the consequential effect when they grow up. “They are attracted by the music, the bible quotation, the way of have you accepted Christ as your personal saviour, they are attracted by preaching Christ without the cross... “I have been a young person before, we are all attracted by that but when you begin to grow older and wiser and you realize that you cannot run away from suffering, pain, discipline, the cross of life, they begin to come back and come and sit quietly in the back having lost their youthful exuberance”. Meanwhile, lead pastor at Cedar Mountain Chapel, Assemblies of God at East Legon, Reverend Dr. Steve Wengam says the charismatic and Pentecostal churches have played a significant role in impacting worship activities of the Orthodox churches. According to him, although there are problems with some churches within the Charismatic circle, there has been sustained growth in attracting members from the orthodox churches. Reverend Dr. Wengam however said there is no struggle between Orthodox and Charismatic churches.