Feature: The Catholics Holy Walk Against Environmental Degradation

“Galamsey cuts across party lines. Those in the pits looking for gold are NPP, NDC, GCPP, Movement for Change, CPP, etc. etc. Let each flag bearer call his/her followers to lay down their tools.” – Most Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie, CSSP.

On Friday, October 11, 2024, Catholics in the Accra Archdiocese embarked on a 6.10 km prayer walk from the Holy Spirit Cathedral through to the Ghana National Fire Service, Head Quarters to the Christ the King Catholic Church.

This walk, which was against galamsey, was joined by people of other religions and some members of all political parties in Ghana, including the ruling NPP.

In a season of demonstrations and picketing, the Catholics displayed some orderliness unseen in Ghana, with a walk so peaceful without any form of lawlessness or shouting and singing of wars songs. Rather they prayed to God through Mary in the form that Jesus taught us in Luke 18: 9-14.

They were sodiscipline that the Police who were there in their huge numbers to ensure there was law and order was maintained, had nothing at all to do, but onlyto walk along with some partaking in the Rosary prayers.

The Catholics, very much aware of the harm galamsey was causing this country and the fact that its end never seems to be in sight, resorted to the only way that can break any form of evil, as exactly happened in the fall of the walls of Jericho (Joshua 6: 1-27).

In this case, the Catholics chose the powerful weapon, the Rosary.

When St. Gabriel the Archangel went to Mary to announce to her that she was chosen to be the Mother of God, beginning with the words, “Hail, Full of Grace…,” in Greek “Kecharitomene,” Heaven and hell stood still, waiting for her response. The former with great hope that she would say Yes, so that hell’s grip on man would be broken and the latter, in great fear that a Yes response would break,its strangle hold on man.

Mary said “Yes” and Heaven was full of joy and celebration while all hell broke loose in hell. Mary’s “Yes” found in the words of the Hail Mary prayer,always makes hell flee from the one devoutly praying.

Mary who knows that the best way to reconcile us, sinners, with God, willalways intercede for us at the feet of her Son (John 2:3). And after that she willdirectus to Jesus, telling us to do whatever He tells us (John 2:5).

The power in the Rosary prayer, has performed many miracles, with one occurringon Wednesday October 7, 1571 which made October, the month of the Holy Rosary. A small, ill-equipped and weak Christian naval force, miraculously defeated a much larger, well-equipped and very powerful navy of the invading Muslim Ottoman military at the Battle of Lepanto.

With war looming,and all the Christian nations in Europe panicking with fear, Pope Pius V, rallied everyone around to pray the Rosary daily, including on the day of battle. Victory was so swift forthe Christians as they prayed the Hail Mary…

After the numerous calls upon governments, since the nineties, to take steps to halt the devastation of the environment, including galamsey, fell on deaf ears, the Catholic Church decided to seek solution from God through Mary in the Rosary prayer. Without any show of violence or acts of lawlessness, the Catholics embarked on this peaceful prayer walk, to show that in most cases, prayer is the answer.

Unfortunately, some people, including Catholics condemned this. On my Facebook page, while everyone was commending the Catholics, a blogger, the Guards’ Guide, decided to go ballistic. Under a title: Letter to Jesus Christ: The Disgrace of Accra Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church (Ye Hypocrites), the author condemned Catholics of this archdiocese for ridiculing Christ and tarnishing the image of Christianity in the galamsey prayer protest, demanding to know where the Church was from 2010 to 2020.

It went on to say galamsey which started in Prestea in 1894, was worsened in 2010 by the NDC’s Baba Jamal when he launched Youth in mining (galamsey). It talked about 2013 to 2016 when galamsey worsened again with the Chinese all over galamsey sites which made President Mahama waged war on that activity only to find out that his ministers were taking bribes from the galamseyers.

It spoke of President Nana Akufo Addo’s failure in his fight against galamsey even though he introduced community mining to replace it. The Guards’ Guide went on to talk about the dead Odor River; the over 30,000 Ghanaians who were killed on the Accra-Kumasi highway; galamseyers who attend Holy Mass and asked where the Roman Catholic Church was when all these were happening.

It did not understand why the Catholics did not protest against the Mills and Mahama government when galamsey was there and why they did not protest in support of Nana Addo’s fight against galamsey.

Then on a Catholic WhatsApp page, a Catholic thought that the prayer walk was fruitless and unproductive because it would have been so, if it was embarked at galamsey sites.

He went on to say that the Catholic Church could have educated its congregations in their environment rather than embarking on the walk. Adding that Catholics should be made to understand the significance of the walk; ending by saying Catholics have not been educated on how to protect the environment and yet they were made to go out to create awareness.

To the Guards’ Guide, the first question is, has it ever publicly created any awareness against environmental degradation? Is it aware that since the 90’s the Catholic Church in Ghana has been drawing governments and the public’s attention to the environment?

If it had done any research,it would have found out that the Catholic Church has always been concern about things that affect the lives of people including environmental devastation, than any other church or institution, by way of praying, drawing attention to the problems and suggesting solutions.

This completely uninformed blogger should not have made any noise in the first place, since it never did what the Catholic Church has been doing. It had no clue about the communiques from the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference (GCBC) and Pope Francis’ encyclical, the Laudato Si.

Surely it was not even aware that in its 2017 communique, the GCBC commended Nana Addo on his fight against galamsey and in 2018, it advised that care must be taking that government’s negotiation with the small-scale miners to return to mining, would not bring back galamsey.

For the Guards’ Guide to ask why the Catholics did not embark on such walks earlier, against the NDC governments, it must tell us why Jesus Christ did not come during the days of Noah and the days of Sodom and Gomorrah to preach repentance during the periods when sin was at its peak? God always knows the right time and the Catholics always act, according to His Word.

After decades with nothing effective been done by governments and the peoples, the Church decided to resort to communal prayer, to ask for God’s intervention. It is rather a great hypocrisy on the part of Guards’ Guide afterhiding away from issues on our environment, to come accusing those who care and always speak out about it. It falls in the class of passive citizens called Konongo Kayaa and also found in the country-broke-country-no-broke-we-dey-inside group. The best it can do is to shut up and observe how things are done.

As for the Catholic opposing the prayer walk, I must say, I am greatly surprised. He attends Holy Mass at least every Sunday and belongs to a prayer group. At the Prayer of the Faithful, during Holy Mass why does he join in praying against the Russian-Ukraine and Israeli-Arab wars, which are not happening in our country?

Does he join his prayer group during prayer intercessions for peace in war-torn countries? Is he even aware that the effects of galamsey is spreading nation-wide to areas where the activities are not taking place, with Ghana Water Company, warning that due to galamsey, soon pipe-borne water will be a privilege?

Was he always dozing off when communiques from the GCBC are read out, every year,during Mass? Does he miss out in purchasing the Catholic Standard to read the communiques and issues like the Laudato Si, published in it? Is he aware that all dioceses are going to embark on prayer walks including those in galamsey areas?

I shudder to think that if such a staunch Catholic who regularly attends Mass, appears to be very ignorant about the Church and its activities, then what about those who attend Church only on Christmas and Easter? Indeed, the Church has a lot of work to do on people like this fellow who always sits in Mass and take nothing in.

This prayer walk was apolitical and the NPP should know it was not against government, but a spiritual interaction between God and His people. And the NDC should stop taking advantage of the situation, parading bottles filled with polluted water, as if it is only in this era that galamsey came. Our waterbodies were in this state during the NDC regime and it did nothing to reverse the situation.

The Catholics have spoken to God through Mary and we will soon be told by Jesus, what should be done.

Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar, Amen and Thanks.

By Hon. Daniel Dugan

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