Following the readings, the Council of Churches in Namibia is advocating the regulation of churches by limiting the establishment of churches to those who meet basic criteria, including basic theological training of the religious leaders.
According to CCN, if a pastor wants to establish a church, he or she should have some form of training from a recognised Bible school.
It has been noted that some pastors come from outside the country and set up branches in Namibia while their main branch is based elsewhere.
For centuries, peer review or certification, as it is called, has been the rule in authorising the practice of the three great-learned professions — medicine, law, and ministry.
Let us put the following question forth: Would you trust a politician to determine the competence of your physician? Or, on the other hand, would you accept your physician’s own unsubstantiated word on the question?
No, instead of either, most of us would insist upon some sort of review.
We can understand why certified competence is vital in the practice of medicine: the patient’s very life is at risk. And in the hands of an incompetent attorney, innocent clients would end up with a fine or worse in jail.
But what harm can an unqualified religious leader do?
And how is ministerial competence determined, anyway?
During my studies at the University of Zambia, our professor in social work and development (professor Aguffu from Ghana) always posed this question to us: “Who decides, and which spectacles did you use?”
This statement reminds me that education is the first prerequisite to the three great learned professions — medicine, law, and ministry.
Later on, a formal professional education became the norm even then, however, a diploma was not deemed sufficient proof of competence. Physicians still have to be certified, attorneys have to pass the exams, and pastors have to be ordained.
As a practical example, Zambia is busy with a regulatory framework under the ministry of guidance and religious affairs to ensure that religious leaders belong to a recognised body.
Furthermore, in Rwanda, the government has already started the implementation of basic criteria for religious leaders, which include basic theological training.
But what does anyone have to lose at the hands of an unauthorised minister? In Africa, it is not uncommon to come across reports of pastors instructing congregants to eat grass, insects, or snakes.
When Martin Luther extolled the priesthood of the believer, he intended to remove all human intermediaries between the individual Christian and God. But he never meant that any layperson could baptise or bless the elements of Holy Communion.
Precise modes and standards of professional education have always been in dispute — not only in the ministry but also in medicine and the law.
But whether one studied under the guidance of a mentor or enrolled for three or more years in a formal course of study, there was only one way to be authorised to practice: review and approval by professional bodies within the field.
According to David Lewis Beebe, a church historian, in ministry there is even a further element: The fact that to be ordained means to be under “orders”.
According to this understanding, pastors are not freer than doctors or lawyers to begin their practice. Because Christ Jesus is the head of the church, therefore, outside the church there is no ordained ministry!
*Reverend Jan A Scholtz is the former chairperson of the //Kharas Regional Council and former !Nami#nus constituency councillor. He holds a Diploma in Theology, B-Theo (SA), a Diploma in Youth Work and Development from the University of Zambia (UNZA), as well as a Diploma in Education III (KOK) BA (HED) from UNISA.