– Pastor Tunde Bakare advises church leaders to open buildings for isolation centres
General Overseer of the Citadel Global Community Church, formerly known as Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare has adviced pastors to donate their empty churches to be used as isolation centres.
The man of God made this known during his Sunday broadcast on Facebook. Pastor Bakare said two church buildings have already been donated to the Lagos State Government for use as isolation centres. He also said a private residence owned by the church in Abeokuta has been given out to the Ogun State Government to quarantine those infected with coronavirus. He encouraged every leader to follow in such direction rather than criticizing the government over the closure of religious centers.
Bakare warned that church leaders should desist from the act of criticism and rather support the government’s efforts at containing the spread of the pandemic by making some of their church buildings available for use as isolation centres.
“Those churches with multiple facilities, rather than their leaders criticizing the government, should collaborate with them. They must be prepared to offer some of their halls to governmental authorities as isolation centers in support of the efforts of the government,” He said
The clergyman also stressed that “I will like to bring some ethical corrections to some of the lamentations of certain people within the church over the ban of congregational worship in churches while markets and hospitals are allowed to operate.
“I am so glad that not only churches are prevented from congregating, the mosques also are locked down. The government’s order to open the market for a few days is to prevent hunger, especially in the lives of daily earners because the palliatives by the government cannot go to all citizens in their homes right now.
“Let the church lead in this campaign and support the government, rather than criticising them for all the arduous tasks they are presently confronted with.”
Sharing his thoughts on the inability of churches to congregate physically he said “There is no distance in the spirit and the church is not the building but the saints of God. So, if we cannot congregate because of the lockdown, we can be very effective in our neighborhood as our brothers’ keepers and at our various workplaces.
“COVID-19 might have resulted in a lockdown that has made congregational worship impossible for a moment but every home must become more or less a church and every office table and stall must become a pulpit. I am confident that… the church can only be stronger after COVID-19,”
