The Church Industry

1335 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Roles of religion in history and contemporary societies

Is the church a social club where handsome young men come to window shop for pretty young ladies? Is the church a beautiful architectural masterpiece like the 50,000 sitter church auditorium – “Faith Tabernacle” reputed to be the single largest church building on Earth, according to Guinness Book of Records (2007)? Should we liken the church to a football club, where only valuable players (big boys in Nigeria context) sit in front roles and drop big money for church project? No, is the church is a money-making venture piloted by pastors who use tithe and offering to buy flashy cars, fly private jet and live in lavish houses?

Yes Sam, you just spoke my mind. Did I? I don’t think so. I wonder why people, especially Nigerians, expect preachers to be paupers and beggars on the street. Is poverty a true reflection of Christianity? If your answer is yes, why then did Jesus Christ, our perfect example, employ Judas as his personal accountant to manage and keep his money? Don’t get me wrong, I am a strong advocate for accountability and proper financial management among pastors but I don’t belong to the school of thought that support poverty as a true reflection of Christianity. Is the church a religious gathering with little or no influence on human life’s and the nation? Permit me to take you on a short trip into the pages of history as we briefly explore the influence of the church in the early days.

In the Middle age of Europe, the church was the most influential institution. It influenced the decision of policy makers in business, politics and health in one way or the other. During the Middle age, the church led a movement of mass literacy by providing education to clergymen and monks. It ran schools for merchant and trade men...

... middle of paper ...

...ndrome, fluted by most men and women who have no record of a honest day job in our music videos, further deepens the spirit of materialism amidst youths. Artistes like jay Z and D-banj have more followers than some churches do. Most of these artistes were from the church but had no room of expressing and manifesting the potential within them. It is rumoured that a very powerful cult named “Illuminati” initiate talented singers into the world of fame and fortune. Well-known artistes like Kanye West, Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Jay-z are alleged to be members of the cult. The songs they sing are demonically inspired and dedicated to the devil. Imagine what the world would be in the next generation if the church refuses to create an impact in the music industry.

Show More
Related

  • Postclassical Era in Western Europe

    683 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Church was, undoubtedly, the most powerful body in Europe at the beginning of the Middle Ages. In most Western kingdoms the Pope had more power than the king himself, and the Christian religion controlled all aspects of daily life. People were to devote themselves utterly to the Church in prayer and giving, and they would be saved. As seen in Document 6, the lords and nobles committed themselves to the service of God before men, saying, “Nor will I ever with will or action, through word or deed, do anything which is unpleasing to him [God]…” Those who lived during this time trusted the Church’s explanations for the workings of the world. They saw God as all powerful, as the force behind everything. Art and music thus were focused around the Church and giving praise and thanks to God. Most art works of the time featured Jesus or other saints.

    Read More

  • Renaissance: Catalyst to the Protestant Reformation

    1691 Words  | 4 Pages

    The period of the Renaissance was an important era of development in the world religiously, artistically, and scientifically. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, important technologies such as the printing press contributed greatly in helping advance the intelligence of all humans. A broad humanistic sense began to expand throughout Europe, giving a new vision of the human being as the center of the universe and not as something mystical or divine. With a combination of the technological and social changes taking place at the same time, the Renaissance’s advancements placed the driving force for the protestant reformation to occur. The Protestant reformation was a new era of religious revolution that brought radical changes in the vision that society had of the Catholic Church. During this period, not only did the religion change, other areas such as the economy and the development of social interactions were reformed and

    Read More

  • The Mega Church in America: Missionary or Miscreant

    1659 Words  | 4 Pages

    The church or Ecclesia, as it is called in the original Greek language, regardless of size, are the called out ones who assemble to represent the Body and life of Jesus Christ. They engage in meetings of praise, worship, and listening to the Word of God, which is taken from their manual called the Holy Bible, or the Scriptures; those bringing the message are considered to be the mouthpieces for God, and are typically called preachers (KJV, Eph 5.23-32). According to the Bible, the church, which includes the preachers, is to strive to exemplify the type of life that Jesu...

    Read More

  • The Best Titles and Descriptions for the Middle Ages

    701 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...orced Christian faith (OI). The monasteries were also significant because the monks and nuns, who had worked in there, had treated the ill, educated children, and spread Christianity (Doc 8). They had to follow a strict life were they had to give up all possessions and take the vows of purity, chastity, and poverty (Doc 8). This was the time when religion had dominated all aspects of people’s lives. Although the Middle Ages can be classified as the Dark Ages because of the Vikings’ invasions, and the corruption of the church, there were also achievements in education after the Crusades; therefore it was not so “dark.” Also, feudalism had failed to continue because nobles had wanted more power; therefore the Age of Faith is the label that best describes the Middle Ages because it was the most important factor at the time, and the pope had control over all people.

    Read More

  • Church Reform In The 16th Century

    489 Words  | 1 Pages

    A 16th-century movement in Western Europe that aimed at reforming some doctrines and practices of the Roman Catholic Church and resulted in the establishment of the Protestant churches. The world of the late medieval Roman Catholic Church from which the 16th-century reformers emerged was a complex one. Over the centuries, the church, particularly in the office of the papacy, had become deeply involved in the political life of Western Europe. The resulting intrigues and political manipulations, combined with the church’s increasing power and wealth, contributed to the bankrupting of the church as a spiritual force.

    Read More

  • How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization

    1811 Words  | 4 Pages

    Roles of the Catholic Church in Western civilization has been scrambled with the times past and development of Western society. Regardless of the fact that the West is no longer entirely Catholic, the Catholic tradition is still strong in Western countries. The church has been a very important foundation of public facilities like schooling, Western art, culture and philosophy; and influential player in religion. In many ways it has wanted to have an impact on Western approaches to pros and cons in numerous areas. It has over many periods of time, spread the teachings of Jesus within the Western World and remains a foundation of continuousness connecting recent Western culture to old Western culture.-

    Read More

  • How the Reformation Affected 16th Century Civilization

    826 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Reformation spurred a wave of political devolution throughout Europe in the early 1500s, the most obvious example being that of the Holy Roman Empire. Although the nobility of the Holy Roman Empire had managed to keep hold of its power throughout a time of political unification, the Reformati...

    Read More

  • Racism In The Music Industry Essay

    1925 Words  | 4 Pages

    The music industry’s history is a convoluted mess. There is no real consensus on what the music industry IS and what paths it has taken. Were the Beatles the greatest band to ever exist? Maybe. Is there a hyper objectification of women throughout the “men’s club” that is the music industry? Probably. It’s this hard to define, frankly confusing business that is worth roughly $130 billion dollars today. With it’s flimsy and opaque edges, can the music industry ever be called into question on its wrongdoings? The racist undertone throughout its history may force it to. With the music industry as an ever growing business that seems to change almost every decade, the one thing that has not changed throughout time is an undercurrent of racism that

    Read More

  • Bad Influence of Hip Hop on Youth

    1022 Words  | 3 Pages

    Music producers have an influence on the music that today’s youth listen to that many are affected by even though the producers are unaware of it. Today there’s a lot of drug abuse, violence, and sex all on the rise even though hip hop itself is not to blame.

    Read More

  • How the Catholic Church Held Up During the Middle Ages

    1227 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Middle Ages was a long period of time. It started in about the 500 A.D. and ended in about 1500 A.D. Not many things can last for this long period of time, but at least one thing did, and that was the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church consists of Popes, Bishops, Clergy, and Monks, and Nuns were also part of the Church. Also during the Middle Ages, it also produced many great philosophers (Funk & Wagnall’s, 275). From the Middle Ages to the 13th century, the church played important role as authority, influence. The Catholic Church held up due to the power of the Pope, Pope Gregory’s policies, and the Church was a part of the citizen’s daily lives.

    Read More

  • Design and the Church

    783 Words  | 2 Pages

    That isn’t to say there aren’t pockets here and there where that spirit is alive, but as the Church is perceived as a body, so will the world perceive its function, which is largely as a partial paralytic. The nature of its mass congregation is in my opinion, reduced to following a ritualized practice that serves security of the one’s own soul, while vainly proclaiming messages from a practiced pulpit for world outreach in daily life. Then everyone goes home. The outreach that does get done tends to be of a charitable nature, highly organized and outperformed by many secular outfits, where the inductive power is carried by genuine empathy, a desire to help fellow man. Again, the Church means well, but its efforts seem to move with a sense of obligation, rather than true mission. I would argue that the congregations get too large, too organized, do not engage the issues that face culture ...

    Read More

  • Humanism During The Middle Ages

    270 Words  | 1 Pages

    During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church was the major power and influence over the European continent. The kings, queens and other leaders allied with the church to gain more power. Normal citizens in Europe had to give up 10 percent of their earnings each year to the Church which in effect made the church even more powerful and rich. Those who spoke out against the Church were accused being crazy. They were often punished. The church would burn them at the stake in front of the townspeople.

    Read More

  • The Influence Of The Catholic Church In The Middle Ages

    861 Words  | 2 Pages

    European history, the middle ages, or medieval period, lasted from the 5th to the 15th century (Middle Ages). During that period of time, the Catholic Church was the largest, and most important part of people’s lives. It influenced all parts of European society, from the poorest, to most powerful including the King. This influence was cause by the people turning to their priests for religious guidance, giving them agency over nearly every facet of their lives.

    Read More

  • Christian Poverty And The Ethical Views Of Christian Ethics

    1150 Words  | 3 Pages

    Much of scripture speaks to the issues of money and taking up cause for the poor, who are among the most vulnerable in society. The Old Testament has a key theme of protecting the powerless. The powerless in biblical times were often the most financially vulnerable within society, yet God cares for them. Kyle Fedler explains that God’s favoritism seems to rest with the poor and oppressed, and to reject those members of the community, is to reject the God that so deeply loves them. Within our society we often show our favoritism not to the poor, but to the wealthy. Our society runs off of individualism. That individualism blinds us to the needs of

    Read More

  • The Protestant Reformation

    3071 Words  | 7 Pages

    During the Late Middle Ages, Christian followers and clergy were becoming increasingly concerned about the corruption of the church. Some had even declared that the dogma was false, however, the church had dealt with similar challenges before. In the 1500’s a new series of attacks on the church’s authority had started to destroy Christianity creating both political and cultural consequences.

    Read More

More about The Church Industry

Open Document