I promised God a National Cathedral; I'm redeeming my pledge – Akufo-Addo

President Nana Akufo-Addo has said he promised God a National Cathedral before he became president, and will redeem that pledge.

Launching the National Cathedral Fundraising Campaign on Friday, 28 December 2018 at the forecourt of the State House, Accra, President Akufo-Addo said just as pertained to Solomon’s dedication of the first temple to God as taught by the Bible, he knows that God cannot be contained in a physical edifice.

“Rather, and again like Solomon on that occasion, the building of the National Cathedral is to serve as a gesture of thanksgiving to God for his blessings, favour, grace and mercies on our nation, and to give me an opportunity to redeem a pledge I made to Him before I became President,” he said.

The president made a personal contribution of GHS100,000 towards the construction of the edifice at the event.

The National Cathedral, the president explained, is more than just another piece of infrastructure or national monument.

“It will provide us with an avenue to call the nation to prayer, to worship, to celebrate, and to mourn. It will house a Bible Museum and will be an iconic infrastructure for national, regional and international pilgrimage and tourism. It will create jobs, and serve as a catalyst for technology and skills transfer into our country,” President Akufo-Addo stressed.

He continued, “The Cathedral will also provide a platform to promote deep national conversations on the role of faith in building the progressive and prosperous Ghana we all want. I am convinced that out of these conversations would emerge the ideas and values that should help us build a new Ghanaian civilization. This is the basis on which I identify it as a personal priority.”

Reiterating his earnest wish that the building of the National Cathedral should not be a burden on the state, President Akufo-Addo noted that it was for this reason that the Christian community, home and abroad, is being mobilized in partnership to raise the needed resources to build the Cathedral.

Whilst respecting the views of those who differ with him on the matter of the construction of the Cathedral, the President indicated that: “I am comforted in my decision by the vast numbers of enthusiastic supporters of this project, whose spiritual dimension is limitless.”

The President was confident that “like the statement of the Prophet Nehemiah in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, it is Almighty God who will prosper us and make us succeed in this endeavour. I am confident of the support of the Ghanaian people for this coalition of churches, corporations and individuals in bringing this project into fruition.”

This coalition, he added, will be a historic coalition, and the names of its supporters will be written in gold in the annals of our history

“I am proud to call myself a leading member of this coalition, and I pledge GHS100,000 as my personal contribution,” President Akufo-Addo said.