A Trustee of the Accra East Grand Commandery of the Knights of St. John International, Lt. Dr. Robert Adjaye, has charged his fellow Brothers and Sisters to stand and be counted in defense of their faith.
Referring to an exhortation by the Pope on the role of the laity, Lt. Dr. Adjaye stressed that the battle of today’s Christian is not only in the physical but a spiritual battle that needs to be fought in that regard.
Speaking at a Memorial Mass as part of activities marking the 4th Bienniel Accra East Grand Convention of the Ancient Noble Order at the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Accra on April 30, Lt. Dr. Adjaye said “We, therefore, have to be prepared to defend Christianity by putting on our armour. Today’s battle is more spiritual than material. For us, we have to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power.”
“In this spiritual warfare, we need to pray for spiritual guidance and strength; we need to put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, the helmet of our salvation and the sword of the spirit which is the word of God- ready for our defence and attack (Eph 6:14 -17),” He added.
Touching on evangelisation, Lt. Dr. Adjaye noted that “And so in today’s world the Knight should be prepared to evangelize and defend the faith, not by swords or guns but by a clearer understanding and practise of our Catholic faith, and be prepared to explain them to both Catholics and non-Catholics.
Our faith is trusting in the goodness of God daily because as our great African Saint, Augustine says in his Confessions, our souls are restless until they rest in our Lord and Master.
To evangelize, we must first grow in our faith so that it is no longer we who live but it is Christ who lives in us (Gal 2:20). Our faith must bear fruit in good works, for faith without good works is dead and good works without faith is dead.
To be effective evangelists, we should go back to the basics and derive joy in knowing and proclaiming the Gospel.
This year’s non-residential convention was held on the theme, KSJI (Knights and Ladies) Living our faith in a COVID-19 pandemic which was attended by Delegates and observers from 24 Commanderies within the Accra East Grand Commandery and an impressive representation from the Accra East Grand Ladies Auxiliary who were also holding their Conference at the Holy Spirit Cathedral.
