Cape Coast, July 26, GNA- The visiting Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of all England, Most Reverend Dr. Rowan Williams, on Saturday, stressed that the responsibility of fighting fear and greed, which inhibit the well-being of mankind, should not be left on priests alone. He said there was the need for all Christians, to unite and help heal mankind of these inhibitions.
The Archbishop, made the call, at a mass held in his honour at the Anglican Christ Church Cathedral at Cape Coast, with the theme: " heal and unite us Oh Lord". The Most Rt. Rev. Dr. Robert Okine, Anglican Archbishop of the Province of West Africa was present.
Archbishop Williams regretted that mankind's greed for things like power, money and sex, and fear of one another, had resulted not in just physical slavery but also slavery of the heart and mind. He described the Cape Coast Castle, as a great monument of the days when slavery held a grip on the area, and said those who owned or sold slaves, were themselves sick with greed. It was, therefore, a great symbol, he said, that the Anglican Church objects to slavery.
Archbishop pointed out that the worst of fears, was that of being afraid to ask God for forgiveness, and said the " first thing we ought to learn is that God loves us in our sin and sickness, and that he longs to set us free, we must not be slaves of fear". The Archbishop, noted that "Christians have been given the dynamite to blow away the castle of sin and fear, by the Holy Spirit, in order to change the world", and urged them to pray and unite, and go out to tell the world that it is possible to live without slavery and sickness. " We pray that the Church in this nation will be an essential part of lives of the people", he said.
The Catholic Archbishop of Cape Coast, Most Reverend Peter Appiah Turkson, on behalf of other church leaders in Cape Coast, in a fraternity message, told the Archbishop that his visit "was received with great joy", and that it would have been incomplete if he had not visited Cape Coast and Elmina, where Christianity began in the country. He assured Head of the Anglican Church, of their support and said they would pray for his leadership so that the unity of the Church would be strengthened and enhanced.
The Archbishop and his wife were presented with gifts and he in turn, presented the cathedral with a plaque embossed with the symbol of his office. He and his wife Superior Mother Jane, had earlier received a rousing welcome from both young and old Anglican faithfuls in Cape Coast and its environs, as well as those from the Sekondi Diocese of the Church soon after the helicopter he was travelling on touched down at the Victoria Park at 0900 hours.
He laid a wreath on the tomb of the Reverend Philip Quaque, the first African to be ordained a priest of the Church in 1765, and who died on October 17, 1816. He was buried at the Castle, where he had established the first Anglican School in the country. Archbishop Williams also paid courtesy calls on the Oguaahen, Osabarimba Kwesi II, whose palace is located in the house in which Rev. Quaque's father lived, and the Central Regional Minister, Mr Isaac Edumadze at the residency.
The two dignitaries briefed the Archbishop of the historical importance of Cape Coast and he in turn, expressed his delight to be in Cape Coast to visit the place where Rev. Quaque's father lived.
