12th August, 2013
Kazeem Ugbodaga
No fewer than 101 babies were born at the just concluded National Convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, at its Camp Ground on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State, Southwest Nigeria.
The week-long convention ended on Sunday with the ordination of 11,256 ministers of the gospel, including 894 full time pastors ordained on the last day of the event.
The 101 babies included 48 boys and 53 girls. A set of twins was among the nine children born on the final day of the event, making the birth of babies one of the highlights of RCCG’s convention over the years.
Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the church, popularly known as ‘Daddy G.O.’ announced the birth of the 101 babies during the convention. They were born at the Redeemers’ Maternity Centre.
Mrs. Regina Uba, a matron with the Redeemer University Medical Centre, disclosed that 298 people were also treated for minor ailments free of charge at the Maternity Centre.
According to her, resident doctors in collaboration with several of volunteers mainly drawn from the medical profession were in charge of the centre, while members of the church donate drugs to the facility for use by all.
Adeboye had a hectic time anointing the heads of ordained pastors with anointing oil, assisted by his wife, Pastor Foluke Adeboye on Sunday.
Apart from the 894 full time pastors ordained on Sunday, others, including Assistant Pastors, deacons were ordained in the course of the programme.
The cleric said the 11,256 newly ordained ministers would help take the church to a new level in gospel ministration, saying that with the ordination, the ministers had occupied the highest office in the church, which is being a pastor just like himself.
As he laid hands on the pastors, he said: “I ordain you pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God, in the name of God the Father, in the name of God the Son and in the name of God the Holy Spirit.”
Earlier in the week, Adeboye had disclosed that the church would build a three kilometre long auditorium, saying that the new auditorium which would be built at the mission’s camp ground at km 46, Lagos-Ibadan expressway would also be three kilometres wide.
This will make the auditorium a humongous 9km square auditorium, and one of the top ten churches in the world, in area size.
The theme of the week-long convention was: Jesus.
The convention was the 61st in the church’s history.