OLUKOYA’S CHRISTMAS PUTDOWN:  E-life, Joseph Hayab, Oscar Ossai, Mike Bamiloye, Onifade, Olaleye, Fada Oluoma, respond

A cocktail of reactions has greeted the statement, largely regarded as a spiritual blunder made by the General Overseer, Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, Dr. Daniel Olukoya that Christmas is unbiblical.

Olukoya made this known during the Wednesday Manner Water Service, which coincided with the 2019 Christmas celebration, at the Church’s Headquarters in Lagos, saying his church does not celebrate Christmas since no book in the Bible recorded the word ‘Christmas’ or that Jesus was born on December 25. 

* Bola Adewara

According to him, “If you study the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, there is no word like Christmas. The bible only recorded that the shepherds were taking care of their flocks during a very cold season when they sighted the star that announced the birth of Jesus Christ. This cold period could be around April or May,’’ 

Speaking on this, Bola Adewara, publisher e-life said “Ordinarily, Olukoya has the right to speak his mind and speak to people who attend his Church and defer to him as their pastor. But there is a danger in this. In a world of Social Media, where so many Church-goers and Christians are gullible and so easily deceived, a lie told or an error made by a person regarded as a spiritual leader has a way of becoming true. Shall we say because rapture and trinity are not mentioned in the Bible we should not believe in them? Shall we say because missions is not mentioned in the Bible we should not be committed to it?”

Adewara said “in the early 1970s, a pastor condemned the use of Television and it became a fashion for his followers. Generations of children were denied of so many things on Tv including educational and spiritual programmes, only for the spiritual head to accept that the position was an error and retracted it almost 30 years after. The Church of God will not accept a repeat of this experience. Christian journalists in Nigeria will rise up to the task of correcting views made in error by any Church leader in Nigeria. Nigerian Church leaders should not portray the Church as confused and immature. How can we progress with soul winning when we are still debating Christmas?”

Also reacting to the statement, Bishop Oscar Ossai, General Overseer of The City of Refuge said, “Dr. Olukoya is creating a needless controversy and further divides the church along the lines of unity of doctrine of the body. For me, this is a mere attempt at branding his structure and creating a form of doctrinal exclusiveness. We already are buffeted on all sides as Christians especially in today’s Nigerian Church experience that we need not add more to our troubles. 

* Bishop Oscar Ossai

“Let it be made clear that Dr. Olukoya is not speaking for the Church. The acclaimed Church organs that peak for the body remains C.A.N., and the P.F.N. speaks for Pentecostal churches. These bodies have never contradicted our celebration of Christmas. If anyone has a new doctrine, let him clear it with these organs first.

“Christmas is a holy convocation acclaimed worldwide as an event commemorating the introduction of God’s salvation plan for humanity. The Church world accepts that 25th December be set aside for this event. Scripture confirms in Matthew 18 verses 18 -20 that church represents God on earth based on prayers of agreement. If therefore the leadership of the Church world at some point in time agreed that 25th December be set aside as Christmas, would MFM and her leadership invalidate such a consensus? The canon of scripture was adopted at some point possibly the Nicean council. Would a single church invalidate such canons? I think it’s time we set records straight. Some men are acting beyond their brief in this Charismatic era.

* Joseph Hayab

In his response, Rev. Joseph Hayab, Chairman Christian Association of Nigeria Kaduna state said, “Church leaders should not take the respect people give them for granted by causing unnecessary controversies that would drag the generality of Church leadership in the mud. Christians have come to agree that December 25 should be set aside as the date to mark the birth of Jesus, knowing well that there was no calendar when He was born. The idea of Christmas is to celebrate the coming of our Lord. To say Christians should not be celebrated is to start wildfire that could be difficult to quench in a period like this that the devil is fighting the church left to right and centre. 

* Fada Oluoma

Hayab added that to seek the validation of December 25 as Christmas day in the Bible is tantamount to seeking for the validation of wedding, thanksgiving service in Church, football club, Sunday service, and so many other things he himself does in his Church. Quoting the Bible, Hayab said “if one man regards a certain day above the others, while someone else considers every day alike, each one should be fully convinced in his mind. He who observes a special day does so to the Lord. He who eats does so to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. Olukoya is pointless. Church leaders should be careful not to make Christians look confused and directionless”

Fada Oluoma of the Catholic Church has this to say: It’s the same funny mentality of those who confuse terminology with theology. Easter as a term is not in the Bible but we celebrate Easter because it’s an event and a mystery recorded in scripture. Same with Christmas, it’s not the term or calendar date we celebrate but the event and mystery. One day now someone will wake up tipsy on ‘anointing’ and tell me to tell him why I call myself a Catholic since that term doesn’t exist in the Bible.

* Mike Bamiloye

Oluoma added that “the same folly can be extended to all Churches because no Church has a name that’s used as a group of Church members in the Bible. A Pentecostal Church that says it doesn’t celebrate Christmas because the term doesn’t exist in the Bible but calls itself a Pentecostal Church is just a comic contradiction. “If I wanted to be ‘an anointed idiot’, Oluoma said, “I would have been going around condemning Christians who identify as Pentecostals, quizzing them to show me where it’s in the Bible that a group of believers were referred to as Pentecostals or to prove to me where any group of Christians celebrated Pentecost in the Bible. Yet common sense dictates that it’s neither terminology nor semantics we identify as Pentecostal but the reality and mystery of the Holy Spirit. Whoever adjectivised SENSE with COMMON hasn’t experienced this generation of WHERE IS IT IN THE BIBLE intoxicated Christians, common sense is very rare.”

In the same vein, Mike Bamiloye, dramatist and leader of Mt Zion Faith Ministries, in his post on the topic said, which day was cancer born? Yet the world sets aside a day to creates awareness on it. Same for diabetes, AIDS, Father’s day, Mothers day, the girl child, children. Bamiloye reasoned that people do not argue on any of the days declared by the United Nations to celebrate diseases and infirmities. It is share ignorance and knowledgelessness, that would make a man argue dedicating only one day to celebrate the creator of heaven and earth. 

* Abraham Olaleye

Bamiloye said, “I don’t care if Jesus Christ was born on December 25 or not, even if it is on April 13, I care less. But the whole world have decided to chose a day to celebrate the birth of the King of kings, Lord of lords, the Lord, Jesus Christ. We chose to celebrate His birth on 25th December, you are free to choose your date, buy a Christmas tree and organise your own carol on February 10.”

* Testimony Onifade

Bishop Abraham Olaleye in his Christmas message said “Christmas means so many things to so many people. As you know, many of the things people believe about this unique celebration are far from the real purpose. Aren’t you glad you have an in-depth understanding of the purpose of Christmas- Jesus, the unequaled Gift from a Holy God to sinful men? So let’s continue to adore Him all year round.”

Rev. Testimony Onifade, National Director for Ecumenism, Christian Association of Nigeria, in his reaction to Olukoya said, “This view is an expression of intellectual shallowness and ignorance of religious history. Christmas is a conjugation of two words, Christ + Mass. The word “mass” means service. Hence, Christmas originated from the early Church concept means service in honour of Christ.

“If Christmas is not biblical, what is the meaning of the word “biblical”? Biblical is what is in the bible, simple. Is service not in the Bible? Is Christ not in the Bible? Ask Olukoya, the anniversary they do every year, is it biblical?”