Long before branding metamorphosed into a megabucks business, a small horde of society’s dregs changed the face of the 1^st century. They were basically uneducated in the Roman and Greek classics. They were commoners and only few could read and write. They were mainly fishermen and tradesmen whose voices could not reach the corridors of power since theirs were muffled by their low socioeconomic status. Somehow, they banded around a man of lowly birth and means, whose personality they found irresistible. He made them look inwards to see that imprinted in their hearts was the insignia and image of the Almighty God, “Imago Deo”. He gave them hope and above all, he caused their minds to be enlightened to such a level that they believed in themselves and their ability to change the world. They were fearless and no weapon of established hegemony was enough to deter them. They had no physical armory but wielded power of divine dimension that made the Roman Army fear them, while the Jewish religious leaders and custodians loathed and envied them altogether.

Threatened by their rising profile, the religious and political authorities united to subjugate and decimate them. But the more they persecuted and hounded them, the more they thrived and spread in prominence and strength. Onlookers in Antioch could not understand the basis upon which they operated. And due to limitation of vocabulary at that time, these group of world changers were christened ‘Christians’ for the first time because they had displayed moral character, and supernatural ability reminiscent of those that made Jesus Christ, outstanding. When their eloquence could not be linked to their lack of education, the elites marveled for ‘these ones have been with Jesus of Nazareth’. So grew the influence of Christianity all across the world, even though the spark was generated first in Jerusalem by a group of ‘nobodies’. Now the Christian brand has become ubiquitous and trendy like the Coca Cola brand which is drank all over the world. It has become merchandised and bereft of much spiritual essence.

The corporate world is ruled by branding and a successfully branded product or service is sure to outpace its competitors and rake in more sales at any given point. Hence copywriters, brand managers, brand designers, and graphic artists who think outside the box have been working assiduously to create brands and adverts that would make their brand unique and exceptional. Though efforts are made to create, promote and market a brand through eye-catching and heart-pulling adverts, what keeps a brand going is the consistency of the quality of its content. It is not the sophistry and attractiveness of the packaging and catch-phrase that gets the customer to buy or depend on a product. Rather, a brand-loyalty and continued support by customers is assured when the latter’s expectations are matched by the utility and quality offered by the brand. Hence in branding parlance, it is said that ‘a good product always sells itself’; through its ‘unique selling point’.

A corporate entity that is its branding would normally invest in R & D, especially market research to ascertain how it is performing in the minds of its clients. They would also research on how best they are perceived by those who love or hate them. They would not disregard the opinions of their critics or the activities of their competitors. Based on the outcome of their extensive research, products and services are designed to be at the cutting edge. And to ensure consistency of quality, all products are subjected to quality assurance tests before they are pushed into the open market. And if faulty ones slip through unnoticed, they are usually recalled back and destroyed at the expense of the brand owner to avoid any dent on the brand’s name. In such a case, a re-calibration of the tools and machinery used may become necessary.

Having laid this foundation, I would want to dare to bring the contemporary brand of Christianity into scrutiny and being a Christian myself; I make no apologies for my views which are based on my personal opinion and not on empirical or brand-oriented research. Christianity like I earlier said became a veritable brand at Antioch in the first century A.D. when the evangelistic efforts of Paul and Barnabas yielded much fruits as recorded in the Book of Acts of the Apostles. They became a brand not by the word of mouth alone but by the moral and spiritual quality of the lives they lived. The people marveled and could only help but call them Christians because they lived and walked like Jesus Christ whom they called and submitted to as their Master. Their mindset and worldview were shaped and influenced by their understanding of what values and lifestyles that Jesus had lived and promoted during his short time with them. His followers carried on the torch and passed it from generation to generation till it has come to berth in ours. Now we are the custodians of the Christian brand and we are to bequeath to posterity what we know as the essence of Christianity in contemporary times that we live in.

In my sincere opinion, the contemporary brand of Christianity in Nigeria and across the world is marred and unattractive to a majority of onlookers and faithful to say the least. For instance, majority of folks you see on the streets of Nigeria are ‘born again’. And if they are not born again, they at least belong to one of the traditionally conservative churches from where the ubiquitous Pentecostals metamorphosed from. The multiplicity of churches has not in any way impacted positively on the destiny and there is disconnect between what Christians preach and profess on Sundays and the life and examples we live out on the streets from Mondays to Saturdays at their work places and at home. This inconsistency has been found to be a ‘consistent attribute’ of majority of Christians such that the general public, who usually are seen as unbelievers marvel and are left fussy in a confused state.

In corporate offices, Christian professionals speak clichés and ‘christianees’ but we live an ambivalent life that has no bearing on our supposed faith that is linked to the Apostles and Prophets of old. We seem incapacitated by the conflicting and hypocritical lives they live to be able to sell their Christian brand because we have failed to live out the example expected of the brand we are to promote. No congregation or denomination has been found to live above board; the Catholics, Protestants, Evangelicals and Pentecostals alike. Though my focus is not on the seemingly conservative churches, not for want of evidence, I am particularly irked and disappointed by the brand called ‘Pentecostalism’ which I sadly have been a part of for over 10 years.

For instance, Nigeria entered the Guinness Book of World Records when a frontline Pentecostal Church built a 50,000 capacity auditorium within a year. Nigeria has also been on record to have hosted the largest gathering of Christians worldwide in one single meeting like the yearly Holy Ghost Congresses and Shiloh which the Redeemed Christian Church of God and Winners Chapel hosts respectively. Pentecostal Churches (not the orthodox ones) have acquired hectares of land along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway for their meetings and have caused untold hardship to motorists at various times. Some Pentecostal churches have reached the ‘mega church’ status with little or no impact on the immediate environment where they are situated. Only a few have impacted the social and economic status of the poor and downtrodden among them, let alone the wider society.

A Pentecostal church can be found within every measurable kilometer in Nigerian cities and suburbs but the moral quality of the lives of the professing members lives nothing to be desired. The magnificence of the buildings where the sermons are preached and heard is paled by the weak witness of the multitudes that exit the edifices every Sunday. We criticize the government as being undemocratic, insensitive to human sufferings and corrupt, but our churches are built as castles where despotic theocrats and hegemonies rule and reign with absolute power, leaving the followers in spiritual poverty and subjugation. A lot of Pentecostal churches are run like one-man businesses with a winner-takes-it-all mentality with no recourse to accountability and financial transparency which was a mark of the early church. We have widened the dichotomy between secular work and ministerial work such that church members who miss out weekly services are labeled as promoting the cause of Babylon . We have forgotten that God’s first assignment to Adam was to tend the Garden of Eden long before the fall of man. But a lot of pastors in order to enslave their members have made them loathe their work places rather than help them strike a balance between work and church attendance.

We promote the sanctity of human life but haven’t quite added much value to living generally. Our private schools and universities are the most expensive yet the missionary schools built by orthodox Christians trained us for free, yet we label them as ‘dead churches’. We proclaim the sanctity of marriage and family life yet our lives are mired by utter hypocrisy, infidelity and promiscuity. Divorces hardly happen in orthodox churches but some Pentecostal pastors and members have had non-plausible and scandalous divorces that went through easily, and they remarried without a care in this world. The stunned world watches in shock and trepidation at these Christians whose lot is to bring healing and change to our dying and sick world.

Little wonder we’ve lost our biblical saltiness; our value and essence; hence have been truly trampled upon and lost our redemptive voice. In the yore years of Pentecostal Christianity in Nigeria , people respected ‘born again’ Christians because they truly lived a regenerated lifestyle of moral integrity despite their conservative excesses. Many lived what they professed and wielded tangible spiritual power that drew the attention on non-believers. The moral quality of the lives they lived made their alternative lifestyle attractive even to the educated and upwardly-mobile class of young Nigerian professionals. Many graduates left their paid jobs to take up full-time pastoral positions not for pecuniary reasons. They wanted to promote and project the authentic and tested Christian brand which they had admired and were ready to sacrifice their professional life for; thus becoming the ‘brand managers and promoters’.

One of the unique selling points of the Christian brand is its consistent stance on the absoluteness of moral and ethical conduct. But today, the Christian brand seem to have a vacillating moral value system which more or less reflects the moral decadence in the wider society which it was originally created to reverse. Moral scandals of pastors having tryst with female church members are no longer news item for soft sell and gossip tabloids. In essence, society’s celebrities now share the headlines with Pentecostal pastors. The brand promoters and marketers (the congregation) on the other hand are not wary of showcasing and distributing the distorted brand which they are so comfortable with. Hence churches burst at the seams on Sundays from Mondays to Saturdays; the Christian brand becomes submerged and subsumed into the moral morass of the wider society. If the doctor who is to treat a patient becomes a patient, anarchy and hopelessness would become imminent.

The contemporary brand of Christianity in Nigeria is in dire need of re-branding. This will not require so much research and experimentation as the original template has not been marred or proven to be dysfunctional. We need to face reality and accept the fact that we have failed to meet our own expectations and that of the wider society whom looks up to us. The hope of the mass on non-believers is not mistaken for if we strictly follow the examples shown by our forebears and live up to our responsibilities as reform agents, we would once again reclaim the respect we’ve so lost before other Christians and the wider society. We need to become more realistic in our worldview so we can positively influence and change the prevailing social realities for the good of society. We need to find biblical answers to the prevailing problems caused by poverty and disease among our people. We need to influence the market place by tapping into divine insight and wisdom which the Pentecostal experience guarantees. And added to that, we need to rise up from our fallen moral state and wash our soiled garments so we can shine as lights in this morally perverse and dark world.

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The writer is a physiotherapist and moderator of Cry of Adam Network and can be reached via email; halal3k@yahoo.com

Robot  Villager

# 1 Long before branding metamorphosed into a megabucks business, a small horde of society’s dre...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 19.04.2008 07:34

employlawone  Villager

# 2 Sir, Well spoken, suitably articulated and expertly written. Thank you, High Regards, Olu Posted by employlawone| 19.04.2008 13:19

Ike Amadi  JJC

# 3 That was a brilliant piece except that the Latin phrase in that first paragraph should have been "Imago Dei", meaning 'image of God', and not whatever the author fancied to construct. Apart from that, the article was worth reading and re-reading. Posted by Ike Amadi| 19.04.2008 15:16

Fadu  Villager

# 4 Sir Obi that was a good article with traces of honest observation of the 21st century brand of christianity i.e lack of financial transparency, divorce trend in Pentecostal churches, for instance a pastor in London divorces his wife and married one of the church choir, yes some good example isn't it? I attended free orthodox missionary school, when is the pentecostal school will start offering free education. Some time they made me think that they are just after my 10% My question is, are all these Pentecostal churches half genuine? I am seriously thinking of going back to my Catholic church where there is transparency in their dealings of course they have their down as well but they are not as hypocriticle as the Pentecostal churches. Fadu UK Posted by Fadu| 19.04.2008 19:39

employlawone  Villager

# 5 Dear Brother Ike, Is that you? This is Olu Ojedokun, sorry we have lost touch, excellent contribution. hope to speak soon, High Regards, Olu =Ike Amadi;4295007510>That was a brilliant piece except that the Latin phrase in that first paragraph should have been "Imago Dei", meaning 'image of God', and not whatever the author fancied to construct. Apart from that, the article was worth reading and re-reading. Posted by employlawone| 20.04.2008 04:16

pappilo  Villager

# 6 Very good article. thank you for telling it as it is Posted by pappilo| 20.04.2008 04:26

Olamide  Villager

# 7 They are one man businesses and not transparent. If the husband dies, the wife or the son becomes the Senior Pastor, church properties are registered in the name of the "Founder" and bank accounts are also in the name of the 'owner' of the church. The board consists of the founder, his wife, one of their children and possibly, the son-in-law and another outsider who is a stooge. Most of the so-called 'men of God' are business men who invests their money in building churches and sit down to live off the fat of the land and labours of their miracle-seeking congregations. Those that speaks with authority that comes from God are few and far in between. It is left for people to beware and stop chasing miracles so that they don't fall victims. Posted by Olamide| 20.04.2008 05:55

thekingsjester  Villager

# 8 ...They would also research on how best they are perceived by those who love or hate them. They would not disregard the opinions of their critics or the activities of their competitors... The average church in Nigeria today unfortunately sees critics as the devil's advocates at work who deserve to be crushed by all means. The opinions of 'unbelievers' do not count in todays' so called bible professing churches. Talk about being judgemental. when the evangelistic efforts of Paul and Barnabas yielded much fruits as recorded in the Book of Acts of the Apostles. They became a brand not by the word of mouth alone but by the moral and spiritual quality of the lives they lived. The people marveled and could only help but call them Christians because they lived and walked like Jesus Christ whom they called and submitted to as their Master. Their mindset and worldview were shaped and influenced by their understanding of what values and lifestyles that Jesus had lived and promoted during his short time with them... This is where you get it wrong, many 21st century 'men of God' do not profess Jesus Christ so how can they live according to his dictates. This is very much apparent in their lifestyles. Many profess MONEY and TITHES which unfortunately have become their lord and master, therefore they can only live akin to what they profess. we are to bequeath to posterity what we know as the essence of Christianity in contemporary times that we live in. Sadly, we will be bequeathing a false christian legacy, considering that many have even 'doctored' the bible to suit the modern day quest for riches rather than the original message of salvation. In my sincere opinion, the contemporary brand of Christianity in Nigeria and across the world is marred and unattractive to a majority of onlookers and faithful to say the least. For instance, majority of folks you see on the streets of Nigeria are ‘born again’. And if they are not born again, they at least belong to one of the traditionally conservative churches from where the ubiquitous Pentecostals metamorphosed from. I feel very nauseated with the way so called 'brethren' brandish the term 'born again'. I doubt many know the true meaning and implication of that term. There seems to be a growing false notion that being born again is as a result of personal effort and not by the power of the holy spirit. How else would you explain the manner in which 'brethren' are quick to judge those perceived as not belonging to this 'class'? The multiplicity of churches has not in any way impacted positively on the destiny and there is disconnect between what Christians preach and profess on Sundays and the life and examples we live out on the streets from Mondays to Saturdays at their work places and at home. This inconsistency has been found to be a ‘consistent attribute’ of majority of Christians such that the general public, who usually are seen as unbelievers marvel and are left fussy in a confused state. This to me is the saddest part. 21st century corporations that seek survival have begun to give back to society by way of being socially responsible. Many have realised the need to carry their immediate communties along in the way they run their businesses in order to make positive impact on the lives of members of the communities in which they operate. What do we have in the case of churches, corrupt, socially irresponsible congregation who would rather inflict harm and damage to their neighbours. Particularly, I find the group called 'mountain of fire and miracles ministries' very inconsiderate, callous and despicable in their manner of worship. They have a penchant for siting their churches in residential areas, with very noisy speakers. Whatever happened to the biblical injuction love thy neighbour as thyself? Unfortunately such selfish attitude only ends up being inculcated in the congregation who eventually live it out in their daily lives. The 21st century ideology of christianity in Nigeria today is totally warped. You simply cannot have a sound sleep because as early as 4am some hypocrite is singing choruses and 'spreading the gospel' with a megaphone right by your bedroom window. In the public buses, they follow you from bus-stop to bus-stop ranting, in the name of spreading the word, suffice to say you also have to pay for the inconvenience by making a contribution to support the 'work' of the evangelist to the next bus. These people are simply not christians, believe me I know a christian when I see one. After all the bible says, 'by their fruits, you shall know them'. In corporate offices, Christian professionals speak clichés and ‘christianees’ but we live an ambivalent life that has no bearing on our supposed faith that is linked to the Apostles and Prophets of old. We seem incapacitated by the conflicting and hypocritical lives they live to be able to sell their Christian brand because we have failed to live out the example expected of the brand we are to promote. 'Morning devotions' in most corporate organisations in Nigeria today is no longer news. In some cases employees are forced to attend regardless of what faith the profess and are penalised for not attending. To even think of the fact that the same brood who lead these compulsory devotions live no better than the hypocrites of bible times, the pharisees. The same people whose character in their respective offices, leaves their faith in question. For instance, Nigeria entered the Guinness Book of World Records when a frontline Pentecostal Church built a 50,000 capacity auditorium within a year. Nigeria has also been on record to have hosted the largest gathering of Christians worldwide in one single meeting like the yearly Holy Ghost Congresses and Shiloh which the Redeemed Christian Church of God and Winners Chapel hosts respectively. Pentecostal Churches (not the orthodox ones) have acquired hectares of land along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway for their meetings and have caused untold hardship to motorists at various times. If you happen to have ever been caught in one of the 'redeemed or mountain of fire traffic' especially when you have driven a long distance from the south-south or eastern region, believe me you will curse every member of the congregation of these churches down to their fifth generation. Sometimes I imagine there are people in this world who derive so much joy from the pain they inflict on others. Really and truly I believe that anyone who has a concience has no business being in these churches. Some Pentecostal churches have reached the ‘mega church’ status with little or no impact on the immediate environment where they are situated. Only a few have impacted the social and economic status of the poor and downtrodden among them, let alone the wider society. Unfortunately, our 'men of God' are growing fat at the expense of the helpless, the sick, weary and needy, the same people the bible admonishes us to take care of. These helpless masses are brainwashed with threats of doom and damnation if they refuse to do the will of these, 'men of God'. A Pentecostal church can be found within every measurable kilometer in Nigerian cities and suburbs but the moral quality of the lives of the professing members lives nothing to be desired. The magnificence of the buildings where the sermons are preached and heard is paled by the weak witness of the multitudes that exit the edifices every Sunday. We criticize the government as being undemocratic, insensitive to human sufferings and corrupt, but our churches are built as castles where despotic theocrats and hegemonies rule and reign with absolute power, leaving the followers in spiritual poverty and subjugation. I have often said that if nations were rated by the number of churches found in them, Nigeria today would be a super power ahead of countries like Britain. The way and manner churches have sprung up in Nigeria within the last 2 decades only proves the hunger and deprivation many are facing as a result of the poor economic state of the country. We crticise the westerners for their 'non church going' lifestyles, yet we who cannot find any empty seats in our sunday and weekday worships top the charts in all manner of crime. A simple test would be to leave your gsm phone on your seat in church (supposed house of God) and walk to the next pew, you are not likely to find it when you return. A lot of Pentecostal churches are run like one-man businesses with a winner-takes-it-all mentality with no recourse to accountability and financial transparency which was a mark of the early church. In my opinion, many churches today are monarchies. When the founding father or mother dies, the heir or heiress becomes the successor. Whatever happened to spiritual leadership? In the days of the apostles, lots were cast to determine who would take over the place of Judas Iscariot. That would be old-fashioned in 21st century church 'conglomerates'! We have widened the dichotomy between secular work and ministerial work such that church members who miss out weekly services are labeled as promoting the cause of Babylon . We have forgotten that God’s first assignment to Adam was to tend the Garden of Eden long before the fall of man. But a lot of pastors in order to enslave their members have made them loathe their work places rather than help them strike a balance between work and church attendance. In fact I hold the view that employees who use office time for church 'runs' are stealing from their employers thereby violating the commandment, 'thou shall not steal'. Even the bible says in the book of ecclesiastes, 'there is time for everything'. I once had a colleague who would sneak out of the office an hour before the official closing time, when the trend was discovered, he claimed he was going to fulfil his religious obligations, by attending church services. It would have made more sense to me if he had requested that the the collective one hour pay be deducted from his monthly salary! Then he may probably appreciate the need to give to Ceaser that which belongs to Ceasar! We promote the sanctity of human life but haven’t quite added much value to living generally. Our private schools and universities are the most expensive yet the missionary schools built by orthodox Christians trained us for free, yet we label them as ‘dead churches’. Unfortunately, children of the downtrodden and helpless whose one-tenth earnings (by way of tithes and sunday contributions which could be as much as four times in one service) have gone a long way in erecting these schools and universities, cannot attend these schools due to their exhorbitant fees. Whatever happened to charity beginning at home? The stunned world watches in shock and trepidation at these Christians whose lot is to bring healing and change to our dying and sick world. Competition, in many churches today, is no longer for soul-winning but for a critical mass of congregation who can make donations and pay tithes effectively. I can only conclude that christianity, especially in Nigeria, has reached a point where people need to seek God for themselves first and not only rely on what they are fed by 'men of God', (many who have perfected the art of public speaking). Christians also need to go back to the biblical message of salvation and not materialism. Posted by thekingsjester| 20.04.2008 18:27

nuggetzman  JJC

# 9 Thanks Ike for the error you noted..I actually wrote this article in a hurry while at work and posted immediately so didn't get to proof-read and make corrections. I just felt I should bare my heart as I felt it, and am glad so many people are thinking along the same lines with me cos things need to change and move in the right direction...as expected! God bless ya soul and you sure are a reflection of Imago Dei Posted by nuggetzman| 21.04.2008 04:33

FoxCatcher  Villager

# 10 An apt response to 'thekingsjester' is a quote from Rev. Richard Wurmbrand: ‘The churches have to exist. So they will get my attendance. “To whosoever asks you, give,” says the Lord. So I will pay my church contributions. I will listen to the sermons. The Bishops and the pastors have to have an audience. I will take care about following what they say, because I have to live eternally. Therefore I will check everything with the Scriptures. I will remember that not all men who have the title ‘right reverend’ are right. Not all 'eminences' are eminent.’ (Answers to A Million Questions). I agree with the various analysis of the Nigeria Pentecostal divide. However, overgeneralisations and tar brushing of ALL Pentecostal leadership may not really be accurate. I think it also detracts from the brilliance of the article in discussion. The truth is that EVERYONE of us that claim to be Christians of one colour or the other are very much a part of these problems. We contribute by the very nature of our Christian witness in our environment. The consistent, but unsung leaders preach much the same message and evince much the same lifestyle in our generation as the Antioch Christians. The question is how many of us consider them 'contemporary' or 'annointed' enough for our 21st Century egos? Consider that most of the maverick Christian leaders of today were products of the intense discipleship of the 80s; yet they are today the arrowheads of much of the new brand Pentecostalism of the 21st Century that we all consider so appalling. Again consider that the Marketers by Felix Obi's analysis are the 'congregation'; amongst whom are many enlightened and educated accoyltes. Rev. Emeka King's staunchest followers numbered lawyers, medical doctors, and other professionals. However, those who tried to point out the inconsistencies were otracised and forced out by their enlightened peers. Finally, the dangerous and often irresponsible driving and parking that create such chaos on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway were not perpetuated by Pastor Adeboye or Dr. Olukoya (though they have some measure of vicarious liability). These are done by professionals, business and community leaders, elites as well as those we like to label 'masses'. All these are presumably Christians 'discipled' by these leaders and so eager for 'divine breakthru' they could care less about their quests' impact on society. The same society within which they'll presumably return to enjoy the fruits of their 'breakthru'. The truth is that while we write beautifully, how do we (I) measure in life's arena? My understanding of Mr. Obi's missive is a call for each one of us 'born agains' to re-examine our brand and revisit the original template with a view of making a difference in a disillussioned society. That template has not lost its pungency and effectiveness in dealing with Society (no matter the century); but it has also never been a popular or easy template to adopt. FoxCatcher 'I am His drum; His is the beat, mine the sound.' Posted by FoxCatcher| 29.04.2008 10:05

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