The general overseer of the Family Chapel International headquartered in Kumasi has stated that he will not comply with the directives of government to place offering bowls at the entrance of auditoriums.

According to the second vice-chair of the National Association of Charismatic and Christian Churches, the offering bowl has its place inside the auditorium as directed by the Bible.

“It is an abomination to place the offering bowl outside the temple. I know there were consultations but I don’t know if some of our people advised on some of these things,” he argued on a local radio station in Kumasi.

His position comes on the back of the tall list of COVID-19 infection prevention and control protocols issued by government to regulate the conduct of religious gatherings.

From Friday 5th June churches, mosques and other religious gatherings can resume at a quarter of their size not exceeding a hundred congregants.

Instructions on fumigation; seating arrangements; provision of hand washing and sanitary facilities; formation of COVID 19 taskforces; prohibition of laying of hands; prohibition of waving of handkerchiefs; placing of offering bowls at the entrances of places of worship; among others have been deemed by several churches as farfetched.

Rev. Victor Osei insisted that his church will only try out six services on Sunday after which a decision will be taken whether to continue holding church services or join the other churches who have indicated their intentions not to open their auditoriums.

“Even with that, I have a major challenge because what about our people who don’t have their names on our information boards where they get the information about the hundred. If they are coming, am I going to sack them when the room is full?” he questioned.

On the positioning of the offering bowls, Rev Osei maintained: “I am not going to call for an offering neither am I going to place the offering bowl outside. I will not do that. I will put the offering bowls inside. When we close, anybody who will want to put in an offering or a tithe can do it. But I am not going to call for an offering.”