Churches in Papua New Guinea are reminded that they have a big role to play in the communities where they are located.
Sumkar MP, Alex Suguman, said this during the official opening ceremony of the 15th National Pastors and Evangelists conference of the Evangelical Lutheran of Papua New Guinea, hosted by ELC Karkar District at Anul Lutheran High School on Karkar Island, Madang Province.
Suguman said the government acknowledges churches’ contributions and wants them to do more to address the social decline, including law and order issues that are affecting communities.
He said from observation nowadays, there are so many issues happening in the communities where the government and political members are blamed for not doing things correctly.
“Our people must stop this mentality because God created human beings and churches came first and later government came to manage the affairs of these people.
“For Lutheran Church, I can say that this church has a long history and to be honest, ELCPNG has a big influence in forming the government of the day,” Suguman said.
Suguman told pastors and evangelists attending the weeklong conference that similar influence is needed to address social disorders and law and order issues in their respective congregations, parishes, circuits and districts.
He said the breakdown in the family unit is creating a lot of problems.
Suguman also highlighted that some churches are being used by certain individuals for personal gain and monetary purposes, which is wrong.
He stressed that the church must be honest in its roles and responsibilities, and support the government by addressing issues in its locale.
(ELCPNG Assistant Bishop, Reverend Lucas Gedabing, and Sumkar MP, Alex Suguman, witnessing the official opening of 15th National Pastors and Evangelists conference of Evangelical Lutheran of Papua New Guinea, hosted by ELC Karkar District at Anul Lutheran High School)