ACCRA DIOCESE COMMISSIONS 193 SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS

Story: Sarah Naa Merley Mensah, Accra

The Accra Diocese of The Methodist Church Ghana has commissioned 193 Sunday School Teachers following their successful completion of a 5-month course aimed at enhancing their capacity as members of the Church’s Children’s Ministry.

The course which was organised by the Accra Diocese in partnership with the Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF), a non-denominational organisation committed to endowing Child Evangelists with Biblical based training, spanned February to June 2022.

Commissioning the graduands at a Graduation and Commissioning Service held at the Wesley Cathedral, Accra on Saturday, July 02, 2022, the Superintendent Minister of the Accra Circuit, the Very Rev Dr Nana Kwesi Bart-Plange who was representing the Methodist Bishop of Accra, the Rt Rev Emmanuel Borlabi Bortey advised them to handle the task with consistency and rejuvenated ideation to spread the word of God to children. He asked the teachers to openly discuss the subject of sin with the children and the "need for salvation", adding "sin deforms but Christ transforms”.

The Lay Chairman of the Accra Diocese, Sis Agatha Ennin Osei, who is also a Sunday School Teacher at the Rev Joseph Thomas Clegg Memorial Methodist Church, Kaneshie commended the graduands and requested them to deepen teaching on Methodist Traditions and Practices in addition to the knowledge gained from the just ended training.

The Director of Children's Ministry of The Methodist Church Ghana, the Very Rev Kenneth Arthur-Sarfo, encouraged the teachers to work towards attaining “Operation 50/50” which seeks to put the number of children and adults in the Church at par by 2026. This agenda, he explained, will ensure steady growth in the Church. Very Rev Arthur-Sarfo cautioned the teachers to be mindful of the security of the children under their care.

The graduands who were drawn from the various Circuits within the Diocese were awarded certificates and presented with the Holy Bible.  

Course Coordinators, Evangelist Beryl Badger of the Adabraka Circuit and Sis Abigail Rachael Hagan of the Accra Circuit, were recognised for their tireless efforts throughout the period of the course. They were presented with separate citations and undisclosed amount of money. Other persons who had contributed in diverse ways to the work of the Children’s Ministry were also recognised for their efforts.  

Present at the Service was the Accra Diocesan Coordinator for the Children’s Ministry, the Rev John G. Bortey Jnr and his counterpart from the Northern Accra Diocese, the Very Rev Patricia Cobblah. Others were the Very Rev Isaac Etuah-Jackson, the Superintendent Minister of the Abossey Okai Circuit and Diocesan Officers of the Children’s Ministry.