The Seventh-day Adventist Church made an appeal to the Ghanaian Parliament Jan. 8 asking that the government recognize the church's Sabbath, or Saturday, day of worship when state assignments are being made, including examinations.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church made an appeal to the Ghanaian Parliament Jan. 8 asking that the government recognize the church’s Sabbath, or Saturday, day of worship when state assignments are being made, including examinations.
Peter Mensah, president of the church in Ghana, and Joe Hagan, director of public affairs and religious liberty for the church in the region, met in Accra with the speaker of parliament, Peter Ala Adjetey. The meeting was to sensitize the concerns of the Adventist Church, and to follow up later with the appropriate parliamentary subcommittee, Hagan says. “We [met] the leadership of parliament and prayed for them.”
State exams are currently held on Saturday, and some employers are demanding Saturday as a working day. The church in Ghana was successful in its appeal to the government in the past to ensure voting does not take place on Saturday, and church leaders say they are hopeful that parliament will respect their current request.
“With tact and diplomacy we can succeed in getting the Exams Council to make room for our students,” Hagan says. Adjetey assured the church that parliament would consider the appeal within the scope of its constitutional mandate.
“We believe the right to freedom of religion is subject to the equal rights of others,” Mensah says. “Many of our members suffer discrimination in the area of Sabbath.”
Mensah appealed to both the Ministry of Education and the Western Africa Exams Council. The problem is also prevalent for the church in other Western Africa countries. Hagan says that the issue of Saturday exams can be jointly approached throughout Western Africa. “While Ghana petitions to the local WAEC, countries like Nigeria, Gambia and Sierra Leone should also do the same in their places,” Hagan says.
The church is using existing legal framework for parliament to make provisions for Adventists in religious freedom issues, according to Hagan. “Ghana’s constitution supports that. But it must be done in humility and with religious tolerance for others.” The church in Ghana is also consulting with several human rights bodies on the issue.
“The theological accuracy of our message alone can’t win people,” Hagan adds. “We need to communicate our message in a way that makes our church relevant to society. If society will take us seriously, we should not build walls around us, but rather build bridges of understanding and cooperation.”
The Adventist Church in Ghana has more than 250,000 members in nearly 750 church congregations.