The Right Reverend Emmanuel Kwesi Ansah, the Bishop of the Sekondi Diocese of the Methodist Church, Ghana has queried if prosperity messages in some pulpits are the key enablers for the many corrupt practices in the country. He asked: 'Is our state of Corruption a result of the prosperity Gospel some of us pastors preach? 'You have to be rich, a child of God does not live in poverty, why should a Christian suffer and many others.' The bishop was speaking at the 63rd annual Synod of the Diocese at the Christ the King Methodist Church in Anaji under the theme: 'Discipleship: Growing into Christian Maturity.' He said the Christian or any individual could only become rich through right living, following good financial principles, and trusting God who is the source of all good and perfect things. ' So, keep the spiritual formula for financial growth and prosperity, 'he implored Bishop Ansah was worried that Ghana after 67 years of independence was still not economically empowered due to corrupt practices and has been tossed here and there by the waves of IMF and other international agencies to the extents of forcing the country to even legislate on doctrine against the country's cultural values. He said: 'Now even a Class One pupil wants to give a bribe to the teacher to allow him or her cheat in exams, school elections are now full of bribery acts of sharing pencils and gifts to win pupil's heart.' The bishop wondered that though there are many Christians in every sector of the economy from the high office of the presidency to the messenger at the MDAs, 'we have given up the training we went through and are adopting new strategies which don't conform to our moral and cultural values as Christians. The bishop admonished Christians not to be swayed away from the good teaching and doctrines they had been taught, but rather become so mature and stable in their faith that no one could lead them astray into doing things contrary to the word of God. He said, the church numerical strength was also becoming a subject of concern…. although communities around us keep growing, churches have all been in decline in recent times and called on believers to be agents of change, through Christ-like living to draw more and more people to Christ. On election 2024, the bishop called Christians to approach the process as matured individuals conducting themselves very well. 'Don't allow yourself to be used for any gain by any political party,' he advised, adding, 'learn to respect each other's views…remember that we are one body created in the image of God after his own likeness to live and love one another.' The 63rd Synod is also highlighting the massive contributions of Church members and the various coordinating offices for helping to build a successful year under review. Source: Ghana News Agency