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Many Ghanaians believe that prayer and prophecy are important factors in political and economic outcomes.
Think of last December’s general election, the putative national cathedral, and the recent appreciation of the cedi against the dollar.
What have prayer and prophecy got to do with these issues? Regarding prayer, the basic idea is that it is widely believed that God is listening to the prayers of the faithful.
He will act if prayer is sustained and vigorous enough; this is the popular will, and with God’s intercession, the result will be approved by the faithful.
Prophecy, on the other hand, works differently. God makes it clear to self-appointed prophets what His preferences are in relation to various political and economic issues.
Not everyone thinks that God’s hand is instrumental in important political and economic decisions. Some contend that what happens in relation to, for example, the national cathedral, the value of the cedi against the dollar, or choosing a President and parliament is the result of policy decisions, not the result of prayer or prophecy.
The cedi has appreciated strongly against the major currencies in recent weeks
If you want to build a national cathedral, should you expect God to help you come up with the necessary hundreds of dollars to pay for its construction?
Building a national cathedral requires the government either finding the necessary money from taxpayers’ contributions or persuading Ghanaians voluntarily to stump up the necessary funds.
President Akufo-Addo and his team of eminent faith leaders may have prayed long and hard, requesting God to look favourably on the then President’s ‘personal promise to God’ to build a national cathedral, while seeking to encourage Ghanaians voluntarily to find the $400 million or more to complete the construction.
That was a big ask during a severe economic downturn and Ghanaians decided not to find the necessary money.
The Akufo-Addo government devoted an estimated $58 million of taxpayers’ money to build a national cathedral.
Currently, however, the project is the subject of investigation by the Operation Recover All Loot initiative, which aims to recover stolen state resources and combat corruption.
What about last December’s general election? Multiple self-appointed prophets claim that God tells them which candidate He wants to win the presidency.
God speaks – but do the voters listen?
Not necessarily. Voters tend to vote on their perception of how a government has performed during its time in power; have its policies brought about the desired outcomes that voters want to see?
Some prophets announced that Dr Bawumia, the NPP presidential candidate, would win; others stated that God had told them that Mr Mahama would triumph.
Voters, it appears, were not confused by these conflicting announcements: many believed that the NPP had not worked well for them and, as a result, Mr Mahama won in an unprecedented landslide.
Finally, why did the cedi recently rise considerably in value against the dollar?
Was it because Ghanaians prayed with sufficient vigour? Or was it because of government policy, aided and abetted by global events, e.g. President Trump’s ubiquitous tariffs which spooked global markets?
Many readers will remember the remarkable events of 2014 when Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams ‘commanded’ the cedi ‘to rise in Jesus’ name’.
Many Ghanaians believed that this was a sincere yet misguided attempt to involve the Son of God in the travails of Ghana’s economy.
The archbishop was widely ridiculed for his attempt to involve Jesus in the fate of the cedi, not least because the cedi failed to respond to his entreaties.
Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams has been silent this time around on the role of Jesus in raising the cedi against the dollar but it is probably fair to say that prayer was not the main reason for the cedi’s rise.
What does all this tell us about the power of prayer and prophecy versus the impact of policy? Ghanaians, like other Africans, are ‘notoriously religious’, according to the esteemed Kenyan philosopher, writer and ordained Anglican priest, the late John Samuel Mbiti.
Ghana’s governments, on the other hand, are not consistently noted for a ‘notorious’ ability to build national cathedrals, fix the economy, or run trouble-free elections.
So, what is to be: prayer, prophecy or policy? My view is that it doesn’t have to be one or the other. Maybe prayer AND – consistently good – policy is the way forward.
Elect governments which know what they are doing, able and willing to make and execute policy for the national good rather than for personal or party gain. Prayer, on the other hand, is, in my view, an adjunct, a ‘nice to have’, a supplementary not pivotal mechanism.
Around the world, many of the most successful governments of the last decades have not been unduly influenced by prayer when making and executing policies to improve citizens’ lives.
In conclusion, Mr Mahama’s government should acknowledge the importance of prayer while making policy decisions based on evidence.
There’s a lot at stake, and Ghanaians’ well-being will be the test of success or failure.
The writer is an Emeritus Professor of Politics, London Metropolitan University, UK
writer’s email : tsjhayn1@londonmet.ac.uk
