Bishop Oyedepo and Adjeman’s relationship was, for years, emblematic of the spiritual father-son dynamic prevalent within Christianity.
The Ghanaian-born Adjeman had risen through the ranks in Winners Chapel, making history as the only non-Nigerian to be ordained as a bishop in the church.
The Living Faith Church, in a strategic move to strengthen the growth of the gospel in Ghana, had transferred Adjeman in 2002, giving him the monumental responsibility of overseeing 14 churches spread throughout the nation.
However, as is often the case in life and ministry, challenges arose. As governments evolve and regulations change, churches in Ghana were tasked with re-registering under new company guidelines.
Meanwhile, Adjeman took steps that altered the course of church history in the region, registering the church under his name and notably excluding the Nigerian trustees.
This act of going solo did not go down well with the church leadership, Oyedepo and the Nigerian headquarters.
The spiritual and administrative dissonance reached its peak in 2004. Following Adjeman’s cease in the monthly remittance of church income back to the Nigerian headquarters a longstanding practice aimed at funding the broader mission of the church justified his actions by portraying it as an act of national loyalty, implying that it was unjust for a Ghanaian church to send its earnings to Nigeria.
The Ghanaian Pentecostal Fellowship (GPF) became a mediator, urging Adjeman to respect the foundational investment from Nigeria and step down from the seized properties of Winners Chapel.
While they were in this spiritual quagmire, Winners Chapel International acted fast to establish a new place of worship. The church’s factions became delineated: Oyedepo’s faction as the Oyedepo original body, and Adjeman’s as Winners Chapel Ghana
A 19-year legal begun, putting to the test the strength and resilience of the church, the longest in Ghana’s judicial history.
The recent Supreme Court judgment has however brought clarity to the situation, granting justice to the Oyedepo- led Winners Chapel.
