There have been controversies over recent statements credited to Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), on issues bordering on pastors growing beards and marriage, among others.
People have passed comments on the social media to either agree or disagee on the position of the cleric, who many believed was quoted out of proportion.
However, Nigerian Tribune reporter who covered the meetings where Pastor Adeboye spoke to his pastors on those controversial issues, presents excerpts of the Man of God’s message to his pastors:
ON MATCHMAKING COUPLES FOR MARRIAGE
Speaking during the Ministers Conference held last week at the Redemption Camp, Kilometre 46, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, the Man of God, admonished his pastors to abstain from the practice of matchmaking couples to avoid adverse repercussions.
“They want me to warn you not to get yourselves entangled with marriage among your members. It is not your duty to arrange marriage between one brother and one sister.
“If you join them together by your arrangement, you cannot arrange for them to be fruitful. If by your arrangement, you join a brother to a witch, that brother is going to curse you for the rest of his life.
“You should not be involved with marriage by proxy. Somebody is in the UK and somebody is here in Nigeria, and you want to help them do arrangee marriage, don’t forget what one of the youths said: the fact that you are in UK does not mean that you are OK.
“Don’t be entangled with the issue of who marries who. Your duty is to pray, teach your children to seek the face of the Lord and tell them they must be sure it is God. Because every marriage has its ups and downs.
“If you are the one who arranged it, you’ll bear the consequences.”
ON BEARDED PASTORS
The holiness preacher took a swipe at some of his pastors who wear beards like members of the Islamic State (ISIS).
“I don’t believe in the Theory of Evolution. That something came out of the ocean, became like a lizard, after sometime the lizard took to the trees and became a monkey and the monkey became a gorilla and the gorilla became a man!
“Let’s assume it’s true. It is not a man that became a gorilla. So when I suddenly see a man who used to look like me – clean shaved, nice face, suddenly begin to look like a gorilla, I shake my head.
“In Open Heaven recently, we discussed that God set aside Levites  and asked Moses to tell them to shave themselves. But today, even pastors now wear ugly hair and call it identity. They now look like representatives of ISIS.
“You’re not representatives of the youth. Youths do things to get attention. Many youths don’t know where they are going. They take consolation in the constancy of their fathers.
“But if Daddy does not know where he is going. It is stupidity to call what is fashion now what was used in the 60s.
“The youths don’t respect elders that look like them. They wonder if the elders know their age.
“You are supposed to be the guiding light. I don’t want my pastors to look like people coming from the training camp of Al-Qaeda.
“God who made me your father didn’t make mistakes.”
ON NATIVE SONGS AND HIRING GOSPEL SINGERS
Adeboye, popularly known as Daddy G.O. also ordered parishes to focus more on singing choruses in the language of the locals where churches are situated in order to give them a sense of belonging.
“I’m reminding those on the mission fields, I’ve said before and I’m saying it again, it does not make any sense if you say you want the locals to become members if the church if you spend all the time singing Yoruba songs or Ibo songs or Hausa songs.
“These people have their own songs. If you are dwelling among them, sing their own songs. And many of you here can testify to it when I come to the East, I’ve always told the people that sing to me Ibo songs I want to hear.
“When I’m in the South sing to me in your native tongues. The songs are deep, they are sweet. Don’t go to Port Harcourt and you are singing “Kabiyesiye” you don’t even know how to sing it correctly anyway.
“And then I’m in America and you are singing (font let me tell you what you’re singing). There’s nothing wrong if you put just one chorus that is from your native land just to remind those who are there not to forget home.
“That’s OK. And then you spend the whole worship session singing songs that the natives don’t even understand. What’s the purpose? The most ridiculous thing is that in some of our meetings, they go and import a foreigner. And the fellow will come and start trying to sing Yoruba songs. And they sing the song upside down.
NO MORE EXTERNAL GOSPEL SINGERS TO RCCG PROGRAMMES
He also warned against hiring non-RCCG gospels singers to events organised by the church based on spiritual and moral grounds.
“In any case from now on, in all our conventions abroad, I want to see only musicians from RCCG. No matter how good you think other people are, my children are better. Far far better.
“Not only are they better, at least, we know about their moral standing. It is one thing to be able to sing. It is another thing for you to be destroying families.
“I don’t want anybody in my altar that I can’t guarantee his or her stand in the Lord. Do I here an Amen to that. How many of you still love me? Raise your hand and say “Father, help your son.”
ON RETIREMENT AND FULL TIME PASTORS
Adeboye also stated that the Governing Council had made some adjustments on the age to enroll as full time pastors in the mission.
“They had looked at the issue of employment age, You know in RCCG, if you are not full time by the age of 50, it means you are going to remain part time for life.
“They took a look at that policy today and said well there is a way around it, but it only means if you come to full time after 50, there’ll be no retirement benefits. But you can still have your gratuity.
“So, those of you who might be over 50, and you want to come into full time, the door is open now.”
ON REGULAR MEDICAL CHECK-UP FOR PASTORS
To prevent sudden death among ministers in the church, the G.O. said the council had advised ministers to go on regular annual medical check-up.
“They want to seriously advise that the moment you reach the age of 40, you should have regular annual  medical check-up. Because, people react to tension differently.
“So, the issue of stroke among children of God is becoming too frequent.
“We have therefore decided that you should be seriously advised that once you are 40 and above, have regular, medical cheek-up.”
RCCG SETS UP COMMITTEE TO EVALUATE COMPLAINTS
He also stated that the mission had set up a committee to look into complaints from ministers with a view to addressing them.
“The mission is to set up a Complaint Investigation Committee. So, if you have any compliant, if you think you’ve been forgotten, you have been overlooked and so on, we now have a committee that will constantly look into your situation examine your complaints and make necessary recommendations to the General Overseer.
ON WARNING AGAINST INTRODUCTION OF TRIBALISM TO RCCG
Pastor Adeboye also informed the ministers to guide against introducing ethnicity into the affairs of the mission, saying anyone who does that will die.
“I want you to tell all your friends who might not be here. I had prayed a prayer and I prayed the larger with all that is in me that anyone, whoever he or she may be, who tries to introduce tribalism into RCCG shall die.
“Like Ananias and Sapphira died, suddenly and prematurely anyone, whoever he or she may be, high or low including the General Overseer himself, anyone who tries to introduce tribalism into RCCG will die suddenly and prematurely.”
and then