Good News Theological Seminary graduates 50

The 21st Graduation Ceremony, which took place on the campus of the Seminary on Saturday, 8 th of July, 2023, was the first graduation ceremony to be held after the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, it was a highly anticipated one. The ceremony, which was well organized and well attended, was held under the theme: “BEING A FAITHFUL SERVANT OF CHRIST IN AN EVER-EVOLVING AND DYNAMIC SOCIETY” (1 Corinthians 4:2). Rev. Prof. Eric Nii B. Anum was the Guest Speaker, while Rev. Father Kwesi Ellis of the St. John’s Anglican Church, Ashale Botwe, Accra, deputized for the chairman for the ceremony, His Eminence, The Most Reverend Dr. Daniel Okoh (Chairman, Governing Council Of Good News Theological Seminary), who could not attend for personal reasons. Rev. Dr. Jonathan Adjabeng of the Cross Mark Baptist Church in Accra was the Commissioner. In all, Fifty (50) individuals graduated from various programmes as follows:
• Thirteen (13) from the Bachelor of Theology Programme,
• Thirteen (13) from the Diploma in Pastoral Ministry Programme, and
• Twenty-four (24) from the Certificate in Pastoral Ministry programme.

The acting chairman for the ceremony declared the ceremony opened around 10:00 am after a beautiful procession by dignitaries and graduands. He urged all present to participate in the ceremony, noting that it was an important day in the lives of the graduands. His declaration signalled what would go on to become a spectacle of a ceremony.

In his opening address, the President of the Seminary, Rev. Prof. Thomas A. Oduro gave a brief profile of the school and then presented a report of the Seminary’s activities over the past academic year. He mentioned among others that the Seminary had recently published a 566-page book titled History of African Independent Churches. He indicated that the book contained two biographies and fifteen histories, beliefs, and practices of some African Independent Churches written by students. He encouraged all those who wanted to know more about African Independent Churches to purchase copies from the Seminary and other platforms. He went further to mention some projections for the Seminary in the ensuing years and asked for support from all well-wishers to help them become a reality. Some of the projections he mentioned are:
1. Funds to complete a staff duplex, which is the only building that needs completion on campus
2. To set up a Research Fund
3. To set up the Centre for AIC (African Instituted Church) Studies, and
4. Funds to buy metal shelves to shelf piled up books at the Seminary’s main library.

He informed the gathering of the election of His Eminence, the Most Rev. Dr. Daniel Okoh, as the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria an ecumenical body of Christians. Finally, he presented the graduands for the various awards.

In his speech, the Guest Speaker, Rev. Prof. Eric Nii B. Anum emphasized that the theme for the ceremony, which was in line with the mission statement of the Seminary (to produce servant leaders for Africa), as stated in its statutes was very relevant for the present times. He emphasized the fact that societies require not just leaders, but leaders who are faithful servant leaders. He specifically mentioned that there were only two types of leaders, and the graduands could be either one.
According to him, they could either be “faithful or faithless leaders, genuine or fake, faultless or faulty, true and false, accepted or forsaken leaders.” He, therefore, urged the graduands to do self-evaluations in order to situate themselves within the description that best suits them. He concluded with about 8 recommended actions that would position graduands for success in their various endeavours. He, therefore, urged them to do the following faithfully in their communities:
1. Be available and accessible
2. Be abreast with current strategies for reaching the market place - creativity and innovation
3. Be sure they are not carried away by mis-information – they should employ reading, analytical and research skills to obtain genuine information.
4. Be focused and not be like every body else; be smart and not dull and lazy.
5. Be inclusive, impartial and connected to the society at large.
6. Be approachable, trustworthy and credit-worthy.
7. Avoid unnecessary pettiness and divisiveness and unwarranted waste of time on conflicts.
8. Be respectful and good mixers, ready to give rather than take.

The following students received special awards from the Seminary:
1. EDWIN WEAVER’S MEMORIAL AWARD – (FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE) DIPLOMA IN PASTORAL MINISTRY – Nwokolo, Godswill Chiononso
2. EDWIN WEAVER’S MEMORIAL AWARD – (FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE) BACHELOR OF THEOLOGY – Adrah, Benjamin Kweku
3. HERBERT AMOAH’S MEMORIAL AWARD – (FOR SPIRITUAL MATURITY) – Osita, Bright Ifeanyi; Abuah, Chukwudumebi Daniel; Atsu, Kennedy Kofi.
4. REV. PROF. EMMANUEL MARTEY’S AWARD – (IMPRESSIVE WORK IN AFRICAN CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY) – Adrah, Benjamin Kweku and Nunoo, Joseph Nii Acquah.
5. THE PRESIDENT’S AWARD – (IN ADMIRATION OF THE SPIRIT OF VOLUNTARISM, INITIATIVE, AND EXCEPTIONAL LEADERSHIP QUALITIES).

Nwokolo, Godswill Chinonso; Aroh, Chioma Juliet; Achukwu, Sunday David; Djohouro, Santos David; Yeboah, Emmanuel. After the conferment of the awards, the commissioner charged the graduands to be faithful stewards in the various societies they are called and privileged to serve in. By so doing, he remarked, they would give good accounts of their stewardship, and thus prove that they had received holistic training.

The chairman in his closing remarks referred to the various speeches and activities and then concluded that it had been a good time in the presence of the Lord. The ceremony ended at 1:00 pm.