“We Have Sinned…Please Rescue Us Now!”

“We Have Sinned…Please Rescue Us Now!”
In Africa each village has a village god, each clan within the village has a clan god, each tribe has a tribal god and each family has a family god. Apart from this polytheism, there is ancestral veneration which often takes the form of ancestral worship. In any case the ancestors are spirit beings who together with other spirits are the link between the Supreme Being and humanity.
The practice of polytheism in Africa – as it is in the nature of polytheism – sometimes lead to henotheism which is the worship of one god, while also recognising the existence of other deities, possibly enemies or rivals.” However there is a recognition and worship of one God who is superior to the other gods. Israel experienced this stage during the exodus. The first of the ten commandments says, “thou shall not have other gods before me;” by this, other gods are recognised but let them be there to serve the people who worship them.
Polytheists often wander into kathenotheism which is the worship of one god at a time.
Before arriving at the point of full theism which is the worship of one Supreme Being Israel flirted with polytheism, in which they practiced henotheism and a confused kathenotheism. Even in the promised land they often doubted the omnipotence and benevolence of Yahweh and resorted to serve the Baals and Ashtoreths and the gods of other nations.
In one of their digressions, God in his anger sold them to their enemies. For eighteen years the enemies oppressed them. Then they “cried out to the Lord, ‘We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals.'” God was angry and told them, “…I will no longer save you. Go and cry to the gods that you have chosen. Let them save you…”
Having known that they were the cause of their own misfortunes they said to the Lord, “We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now.” It was not just lip service! “they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord.”
And the good news happened! The Lord “could bear Israel’s misery no longer”(Judg.10:6-16).
Fellow Cameroonians, some years back the late venerable Very Rev Nyasako-ni-Nku in a soul wrenching message urged, “Cameroon, keep God.” But have we kept God?
The bloodbath, the reign of terror, the barbarism we are in for some years now only reveal the depth of our polytheism boardering on henotheism and kathenoteism. To further aggravate our drift from God is that we have not only held tight to our inherited gods, we have rather embraced the new gods of mamon, capitalism, enligthenment and esoteric fraternities!
We should cry out to God, “We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now!” We should not only say it, let us rid ourselves of all the gods among us and serve the Lord. The compassionate God seeing our genuine repentance would bear our misery no longer. He already sacrificed his son, all he now wants is for us to acknowledge him and serve only him through his exalted Son.
God expects us as individuals and as a country to come to our senses like the prodigal son. God wants us to return and say, “I have sinned against …you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son…” Believe me, the father is ready to receive us with open arms of love and mercy.
Sunday prayer: Lord we have sinned. We come before you with contrite and repentant hearts. Rescue us now. Amen!
Have a blessed Sunday! Peace be with you!