It is a well-known fact that everyone has the right to freedom of conscience and religion. Religion has always played a huge role in society as it brings like-minded people together. However, with the increasing church scandals, it is undeniable that quacks have infiltrated the sacred institution. Therefore, should the holy place be subject to external regulation?
From people burning themselves in a church to rape and fraud scandals to some even sacrificing their children, modern religion has become a sad reflection of a society that has lost reverence and is degenerating rapidly in terms of values, ethics, and morality. Therefore, as God’s agents, world governments have the divine and social mandate to restore sanity in all sectors of society.
Some governments have tried to bring reforms to the religious sector. For instance, in 2018, the Rwandan government closed down more than 6000 churches and all pastors were required to obtain a theology degree to be able to run a church. Several televangelists have faced controversy around the world for promising fake miracles. Therefore, it seems only logical to have the churches operate on some sort of leash to avoid the exploitation of innocent congregants in the name of faith.
However, matters of religion are both sensitive and emotive. Therefore, the efforts to regulate the institution would be futile without the involvement of key religious stakeholders. The church needs to recognize that the government has a role to play and its authority is ordained by God. Romans 13: 1-2 says “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.” What the holy book implies is that both institutions should work together to ensure that sanity is restored.
Unfortunately, the various arms of government have ignored such engagement and key stakeholders are often ridden roughshod in favour of predetermined positions. The result is that the people who could have been fruitful allies of government have turned out to be the greatest adversaries. For instance, in Kenya, Church leaders have been heard threatening political leaders that they risk losing their votes if they place sanctions on church operations. This contentious existence between the two bodies has created a tough nexus that has further deteriorated the trust the common citizen had in them.
The best solution to this quagmire is peaceful coexistence. Jesus himself gave the parable of a man who planted wheat. When his servants discovered lots of tares had grown in the field, they asked whether they should gather them up. However, the farmer reiterated that gathering the tares would affect the wheat. Instead, they should wait till harvest time so that they can gather the tares and burn them and gather the wheat into the barn. What this implies is that care must be taken in an attempt to sanitize the religious sector to ensure the government does not uproot the wheat with the tares.
Finally, religion has become diverse and thousands of real and fake preachers are out there taking advantage of innocent congregants in the name of faith. Therefore, it is the government’s mandate to step up and rescue poor citizens. However, the action should be carried out with care while noting the time that things started going wrong to avoid infringing on core religions.