A cleric, Prophet Christopher Owolabi, has warned comedians to refrain from using God’s words for comedy and other forms of entertainment.
Owolabi, who is the General Overseer, Christ Apostolic Church, Ori-Oke Irapada, Omu-Aran, Kwara, gave the warning during the special deliverance programme of the church on Wednesday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme was tagged: ‘‘Getting the Youth to Know God.’’
Owolabi noted that using God’s words for entertainment purposes, which he said was now common among comedians, was unholy and against the Christian doctrine.
He said such act, if left unchecked, could pose serious danger to the future of Christendom, especially the efforts to build a new generation of church leaders among the present youths.
‘‘It is very common, especially on social media and live events, to see people using the words of God to crack jokes and other forms of entertainment.
‘‘They also at times quote directly from the Holy Bible to drive home their points thereby subjecting God’s word to disrepute.
‘‘This ignoble act has been a source of concern to religious leaders and needs to be nipped in the bud,” he said.
The clergyman also expressed dismay that some religious leaders were fond of hosting comedians in churches and other spiritual programmes purely for entertainment purposes.
‘‘I wonder what lessons we expect our youths to learn from such jokes that will make them to be spiritually devoted and gain the desired salvation.
‘‘This is happening when our nation is facing various forms of challenges such as insurgency, ritual killings, kidnapping and armed robbery.
‘‘It is high time we as religious leaders, parents, teachers and counsellors retrace out steps and find lasting solution to this menace.
‘‘There are lots of expectations from the youths as leaders of tomorrow and they must be thoroughly groomed to take up the mantle of leadership,” he said.
Owolabi also made reference to President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent warning against using his personality for comedy.
‘‘If a president can detest that, what can you say of using God’s words for jokes, comedy and entertainment.
‘‘Nobody is against these practitioners from practising their trade but they should refrain from dabbling into God’s words to entertain their audience,’’ he said. (NAN)
