Rev Prof Paul Frimpong-Manso, the President of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC), has said the National Cathedral is like gold that must be refined to realise its true value.
According to the GPCC president, the renewed debate should not be viewed as the end of the project.
Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Wednesday, Rev Prof. Frimpong-Manso stated, “Someone has said that truth buried to the ground will resurrect; that is our Lord Jesus Christ.”
“It was a Friday when he was brutally murdered, bruised, and crucified. The whole world thought that that was the end. But then, then came Sunday morning early in the morning when he rose up from the death, and he now lives forever, and we expect that he is coming.”
“So this is normal and very natural. If something is logical, it is fair, it is true, chastising it, opposing it, you know, fighting against it, all these things will bring the best out of it.”
Rev Prof. Paul Frimpong-Manso likened the National Cathedral to gold or a diamond, saying, “So to me, the National Cathedral is like gold. When it is dug from the ground, basically it’s nothing, or like a diamond. But when it goes through refining processes, which are purification processes, it comes back and shines brighter.”
He added, “So, for me, what has happened is good. I’m glad that the conversation has not ended, and at the end of the day, all Ghanaians will see that all things work together for good to them that love God and those who have been called according to his purpose.”
Rev Prof. Paul Frimpong-Manso added that he is pleased the current administration’s position had also given the Christian community reason to remain engaged in the conversation.
“I think I’m glad that it is back. I’m glad that the current government, with its, you know, its leaders, are all supporting it, and I know through this milling and refining process, through this dialogue, pros and cons, we will get the best out of the situation.”
“I’m glad that the idea of the cathedral is not dead”, he added.
Meanwhile, Elvis Darko, the Editor of the Newscenta Newspaper, has questioned the rationale for constructing the National Cathedral following the renewed debates surrounding the project.
According to Elvis Darko, the religious tourism logic alone does not provide a meaningful basis for the construction of the National Cathedral.
He challenged the claims that the National Cathedral could make Ghana become a major international destination for religious tourism, arguing that Ghana lacks historical artefacts or direct religious connections that could make the facility a significant global attraction.
Elvis Darko also noted that the National Cathedral was conceived primarily as a religious facility, highlighting that Ghana already has numerous large and well-equipped churches.
Speaking on the Breakfast Daily programme on Channel One TV on Monday, September 14, Darko stated, “Across Ghana, the Seventh-day Adventist Church has so many chapels. Action Chapel, Church of Pentecost—when you’re talking about real estate in terms of church buildings, I think the Church of Pentecost leads in this country. Almost everywhere you go, you see them having big, big facilities”.
“This is not where Jesus was born. The original scrolls of the Bible, you can’t find them to come and put in your museum here. So, there’s nothing meaningful about religious tourism if that is the purpose of building the cathedral,” he added.
His comment follows President John Dramani Mahama has finally stated his position on the continuation of the National Cathedral project he inherited from the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration.
According to President Mahama, even though he had made a commitment to continue projects left behind by the previous administration, the National Cathedral project was different.
Mahama explained that his commitment was to continue all national projects the previous government left behind, but the National Cathedral project was a personal pledge to God made by former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and not a national project.
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