A fast-rising ministry with it footprint around the world, Holy Spirit Mission was 50 years old yesterday. The General Superintendent (GS) of the ministry, Bishop Charles Ighele spoke with ADEOLA OGUNLADE on the ministry, its impact, challenges, the state of the church, and the need for church to regulate itself.

On how the ministry started 50 years ago, Ighele said, “The man God used to start the Holy Spirit Mission, Bishop Michael Marioghae, was deeply rooted in the Anglican Church. He was a preacher. The Anglican Church used him to give birth to some secondary schools including the famous James Welsh in Delta State in 1957 and Anglican Boys Grammar School also in Delta State in 1965. He was also a one-time principal in one of the best Anglican girl’s schools in the country.”

He noted that Marioghae’s Anglican background was deep. His father was a catechist in the Anglican Church. At a stage, he got baptized in the Holy Ghost, and this marked the beginning of his problems with the Anglican Church. People who wanted Holy Ghost Baptism came to meet him in his house and many got filled with the Holy Spirit. The Anglican Church of that time could not tolerate this.

“The disagreement was a front-page national issue. It was in the course of all these that the headquarters of Benin and Delta Dioceses of the Anglican Church in Benin City summoned him and he was told to renounce the person of the Holy Spirit on a Sunday service and that the Holy Spirit only operated in the time of the Apostles- the likes of Apostle Peter, Paul and the rest. He refused and he was booed. He and his wife were then excommunicated from the Church. It was at this stage that the Lord told him to start a ministry.”

When it was time to name the church, Bishop Marioghae asked, “What is the nickname that is being used to mock and abuse you?” Ighele said: “Holy Spirit people”.

Ighele was advised to add the word ‘Mission’ thus ‘Holy Spirit Mission’, was born.

Marioghae and Ighele had become inseparable, “I accompanied him to where he ministered in an Anglican Church. He was happy to see that the Anglican Church started welcoming the person of the Holy Spirit.

“He was happy to see that his efforts and those of others who sowed this seed in the Anglican Church never ended in vain. When he eventually died, Anglican bishops came to personally pay their respects. Moreover, about four or so years ago, a service was held where the excommunication was lifted even after his death.”

Fifty years of the ministry and its impact?

The Holy Spirit Mission GS disclosed that aside the anointing of God upon his life, what he cherishes most is integrity, and honesty. “It was the integrity I saw in Bishop Michael Marioghae that made me join the Holy Spirit Mission in the 80s. I have seen that honest leaders are few.

“I was personally quite happy when Reinhardt Bonkke sent for me years before he died and told me that he had heard of my high level of integrity and that I should keep it up.”

Ighele now supervises about 160 pastors in Holy Spirit Mission.

He recognizes that his honesty with others endeared him to them.

“I learned this from Bishop Marioghae and also from others and some ministries can learn this from us”.

The cleric further said “When I started out in ministry, I looked out for pastors with a high level of anointing to push the work forward but after about six years or so, I changed my style. I stopped looking for the anointed and started looking for the faithful. The anointed may give you an immediate impact but with bad character. But the faithful may not give you immediate results but will certainly bear fruits that will endure.

“I lay more importance on the fruit of the Spirit than on the power and gifts of the Spirit because it’s the fruit that will take you to Heaven and not the gifts. That was why Jesus said “by their fruits, you shall know them “and not by their anointing or largest churches. So for me, the character of a man and how the man of God uses the anointing with good character is more important than the anointing that brings scandals and makes one in the news for the wrong reasons. I have peace and I like peaceful people and I like to be with peaceful people.

Recognising that in ministry, there can be great misunderstandings, dissatisfaction, and disappointment, he said “There is no growing ministry that does not have problems. We had problems but these were early during my tenure as the GS of Holy Spirit Mission. Some of the problems were caused by some people who had their own agenda while some were also caused by my inexperience and youthful exuberance. For the past many years, I have had a team of pastors whom I seriously believe in. My work is to use my office to build up my pastors and not to be angry with them or humiliate them when anyone sins or does not behave too well.”

On what the church is looking to achieve in the years ahead as a ministry, he said: “We are a ministry with a sanctified ambition to make an impact. So, in the next few years, we should be in at least 50 other nations of the world. By the grace of God, we should go beyond that”.

Overcoming temptations and stable marriage

The cleric who has been married for 38 years said before he joined the Holy Spirit Mission, revealed that he stood on the altar of a church and made a vow that no lie would ever come out of my mouth. “I also made a vow that I would never commit fornication and adultery. I told God that I prefer to die if that’s the only way of preventing me. I asked for His grace to see me through because by my power I could not because females used to like me a lot. I was handsome. Like in Chinua Achebe’s ‘Things Fall Apart,’ like a bird, I had to learn to fly without perching when men had learned to shoot their catapults without missing. “Moreover, I have always had this principle of not allowing married or unmarried females who have no sense of shame to be in my inner circle or very close to me. Once I discover, I will distance such a female from me. As for money, I have a very sensitive conscience and so does my wife. Church money is church money and my money is my money.”

Married 38 years to his wife Carol, he said: “I believe that every living thing should grow and that love is a living thing. So we deliberately fire our love for each other. We create time to play. We kiss each other a lot and we enjoy each other so much.

“I take her out to eat out about once or twice a week. We chill out from time to time. We look for new ways of showing our love to each other because love that is not expressed is dead like faith without works is dead”.

He continued: “We have worked on ourselves to be a highly romantic couple. We trust each and our love keeps growing.1 Corinthians 13 tells us that love never fails, that is, love never packs up. I will advise ministers whose love lives have remained stagnant to join the group Carol and I set up and registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, Abuja, it is known as Marriage Promise Keepers (MPK).

Churches infiltrated by witches

On the state of the Nigerian Church, Ighele lamented that the church is highly divided and seen as a cash cow business for many people.

According to him, many so-called pastors without genuine repentance and deep conviction about Christ and his sacrifice on the cross for our redemption have started a ministry and have brought in strange doctrines. “Comedians now make jokes of us because of the present state of the Nigerian church. To make matters worse is the fact that it has been highly penetrated and polluted by many witch doctors, diviners and demonic intermediaries. Some have pulled down their shrines, raised money, and put up a church building and church sign board.

“With the Bible in one hand and charms and objects of divination and the ability to “see” in the other hand, they are trying to redefine Christianity” Ighele asserted.

He added: “This should not be strange because, in Acts 16:16-18, the Bible tells us that a girl who has a similar demon that enabled her to “see” and “prophecy ” was part of Apostle Paul’s company for a period. The girl’s prophecy was correct but it came through an evil spirit that wanted to penetrate and pollute the Christianity of that era”.

He went further to advocate that the true Church in Nigeria should propose a bill to the National Assembly to make the church regulate itself and discipline its erring pastors just as the medical, dental, nursing, engineering professions, and legal professions do. Jesus said that by their character (fruit), we shall know them but millions who patronise them do not give a damn about so-called pastors’ character. It is a pity.

Bishop Ighele pointed out that from what he knows about how ministries operate having been the General Superintendent of a 50 years old ministry for the past 27 years, “I can tell you that branch pastors do not need to take permission from the General Overseer to celebrate their birthdays or the birthdays of their wives and children. I am not aware of the birthday celebrations of pastors in our ministry. That is the position with many other General Superintendents.”

He noted that as large as the Redeemed Christian Church of God is, I do not expect our highly respected Pastor Adeboye to be involved in such matters.

“Even if he was informed by the branch pastor of the City of David that his wife would celebrate her birthday about 2 weeks after the death of their prominent member, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, it is not always possible for one to remember all things all the time including the names of some of your children. We forget our children’s names and some important things sometimes”.

He, therefore, advised that Pastor Adeboye’s name should be left out of the controversy.

“As for the pastor of the City of David and his wife, they are highly responsible people. It is because of their level of responsibility and accountability that they have been able to attract equally highly responsible people to be part of their congregation”.

“But I also know that highly responsible people can make big mistakes due to errors of judgment or the temporary departure of emotional intelligence. I have made mistakes.

“When Papa Adeboye’s son died some years ago, my wife and I quickly canceled her birthday celebrations even though we are not members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God. But I have made mistakes in other areas of life.

“I seriously think that by now, Pastor Illuyomade and his wife might have realized that they made a mistake. I am not sure they are aware that they will be in the news for this reason. If they had known, they might have canceled the birthday celebrations or shifted it to when the mourning period is conveniently over.”

He further said “as a part of the Body of Christ, we, I appeal to Nigerians to forgive and be merciful and pay all attention to mourn the departed Mr. Herbert Wigwe. I know that Pastor Illuyomade and his wife and worshippers at the City of David are also in deep mourning right now outside public view. They are mourning uncomfortably. I pray that they will receive wisdom from God to make peace with the Wigwe family. The Illuyomades should keep stooping until they appease the Wigwe family and friends. They should stoop to conquer.” (The Nation)

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