CHRIST Embassy Church founder Pastor Chris Oyakhilome has sacked one of his top clergywomen Reverend Grace for organising a prayer session during which she called for church members to pray for their embattled leader.
On April 9 this year, Pastor Oyakhilome's wife Anita filed for a divorce citing unreasonable behaviour and adultery as her grounds for seeking a separation. Since then, the couple have been living apart, with Anita spending a lot of time in London and her husband resident in Nigeria.
Last month, Mrs Oyakhilome's lawyers Attwaters Jameson Hill Solicitors, served her husband with the divorce papers, sending shockwaves across the church. In response, Reverend Grace raised a prayer team to pray for the restoration of peace in the church’s first family, calling for divine intervention to save the Oyakhilome's marriage.
However, pastor Oyakhilome did not take kindly to this as it appears that his relationship between himself and his estranged wife is now beyond redemption. Among other things, all references to Anita's have been removed from the church's website.
One of the church's ministers said: “We suspected this issue is going to go public some day since the day Pastor Chris sacked Reverend Grace for meddling in his family affairs by openly calling for prayers among some members in London when Reverend Anita stopped coming to the church she was shepherding while all efforts to get her failed. Some of us believe our colleague in London did the right thing by seeking spiritual help for
the family but I think Pastor Chris misread her intention and had to travel to London."
Apparently, church members are unhappy with the way in which Pastor Oyakhilome is handling the matter. Apart from the sacking of the London pastor, another issue generating tension in the church, is the cry of female ministers who are accusing Pastor Oyakhilome of introducing controversial rules that are now threatening the foundation of many marriages in the church.
One female church member said “He issued a strange directive that husbands and their wives must not worship or attend the same parish. Now, if a couple is a member of a parish, one of them has to be posted to another parish and this is fuelling adultery in the church in no small measure.
One female church member said “He issued a strange directive that husbands and their wives must not worship or attend the same parish. Now, if a couple is a member of a parish, one of them has to be posted to another parish and this is fuelling adultery in the church in no small measure.
"Some of us who are female ministers that have been separated from our husbands, we are already talking. Some have started revolting against the order in their parishes, while some have refused to obey such transfer orders."
Another top female official in one of the parishes located in Ikeja, added: “The policy is real but it is creating tension in the church already. It’s a heartbreaking development because now we know that that directive was introduced to justify why Pastor Chris has to be in Lagos and his wife in London but beyond that, it is encouraging immorality while the church believes that we have an unusual grace that covers our human failings, including adultery”.
Pastor Oyakhilome is one of Nigeria's most influential and wealthy pastors with a huge following. His congregation is reported to be 40,000 strong and Forbes estimated his net worth, which includes diversified interests such as newspapers, magazines, a local television station, a record label, satellite TV, hotels and extensive real estate, at $50m.
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