SALUTATION INTRODUCTION

Transcription

1 SPEECH DELIVERED BY PROFESSOR W. ODURO AS GUEST SPEAKER AT THE 37 TH MATRICULATION CEREMONY OF CHRISTIAN SERVICE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE ON BEHALF OF PROF. ELLIS ON SATURDAY, 3 RD NOVEMBER, 2012 AT THE DURBAR GROUNDS AT 10.00AM ON THE THEME THE CHRISTIAN: AN AGENT OF CHANGE SALUTATION Chairman and Members of the Governing Council President Vice President Registrar Members of Staff Nananom Distinguished Invited Guests Students Ladies and Gentlemen INTRODUCTION I bring you the best wishes of my Vice-Chancellor, Professor William Otoo Ellis who should have been here this morning as the Guest Speaker to today s ceremony. As a mentor institution and as the Vice-Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Prof. Ellis accepted the invitation when he was contacted initially but it is rather unfortunate that another University assignment has taken him outside the country. He, therefore, sends his sincere apologies for his inability to be present here in person and I convey his best wishes for a very successful programme to you all. I must confess I have been particularly impressed with the level of development the Christian Service University College (CSUC) has achieved for itself over the last few years; undergoing several restructuring and 1

2 transformation in an attempt to reposition it as a credible tertiary institution with a vision to make its patrons to know Christ better and to make Him better known. Please do accept my warm congratulations. MATRICULATION CEREMONIES The world over, matriculation ceremonies such as the one we are witnessing this morning continue to be observed on the calendar of several higher institutions of learning. As one of the core traditions of tertiary education, it is during such an occasion that fresh students are formally admitted as junior members in statu Pupillari. It is a ceremony to mark the official entry and acceptance of a student into the fold of an institution. It is on this note that I congratulate all fresh students gathered here this morning for being deemed qualified to have been admitted for further studies here at the CSUC, reputed to be one of the best non-public tertiary institutions in the country. THE CHRISTIAN: AN AGENT OF CHANGE Since the fall of man in Genesis Chapter 3, sin has been living with us here on earth. The earth has seen several ills such as armed robbery, drunkenness, abortion, suicide, racism, drug/alcohol abuse, prostitution, corruption, terrorism, riots/hooliganism, and deceit among others. These ills have even assumed alarming proportions in these end times. Sin in all its forms has become the order of the day to the extent that many sins have been coated and their effect heavily downplayed. There is a general attitude of a care-free lifestyle and most so-called Christians are the most vulnerable. The above has unfortunately resulted in the situation whereby there is no marked difference between a Christian and a non-christian in terms of attitude and lifestyle; a situation that has allowed several people to question the place of Christians in our modern society. But as Christians, we are 2

3 supposed to act as salt to preserve the decaying society and provide light to all those who are living in the darkness of this earth which is sin as amply explained by our Lord in Matthew 5: Suffice to say, such so called- Christians have lost their taste and so how will their saltiness be restored? Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, the Christian is not an ordinary citizen but a chosen and prepared vessel through whom God executes His agenda of transforming and reconciling this world onto Himself. This is amply explained in 1 Peter 2:9-10 which says that you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God s own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light. Once you were no people but now you are God s people; once you had not received God s mercy but now you have received mercy. But let us all ask ourselves as Christians, whether we ourselves are living above reproach, let alone transform others. Of course, a lot of the times, we are found wanting so how then do we turn around to show good examples to others hypocrisy at its best. Christ cautions us in Matthew 7:5 to remove the speck or log in our own eyes so that we can clearly see and point out the speck on a brother s eye. This obviously was not the lifestyle the early disciples were leading they were consciously mimicking the lifestyle and attitude of Christ and this was why they were called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11:26). In my opinion, Christ will be very happy if we are able to transform our own lives first and leave the rest to Him to take care of if for nothing at all. As Christian students, the least to be heard of you is acts of vandalism, hooliganism, rioting, cheating and examination malpractices which are the order of the day in some of our tertiary institutions. It is my hope that these things would never be mentioned among you throughout your study period 3

4 here and God will bless you for that. Let us remember to turn on a new leaf by not confirming to worldly standards but being transformed by the renewing of our minds as advocated in Romans 12:2. Let us all resolve to follow the perfect example of Christ as in 1 Peter 2:21-23 to this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly (NIV) Several other Christians have tried to pattern their lives after that of Jesus, simply by asking in every situation "what would Jesus have done or said?" Administering such a Christ-centred lifestyle would involve discerning the moral principles applicable to God s own established pattern. This should be in strict accordance with the dictates of the Holy Bible. Philippians 4:8 says that: finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things. I would, therefore, urge all fresh students to commence your studies here with a conscious effort to accept the challenge of helping to transform our sick society for the better. ADVICE TO STUDENTS AND CONCLUSION As you begin your studies here for a degree, I urge you to be enthusiastic about what you have set out to do. Plan your activities, be focused and have a positive attitude towards all that you do and you will be declared a winner at the end of it all. Learn as many new things as possible, many of which may seem irrelevant for now but may become a weapon for you in the near future. Remember you swore an oath today to abide by the rules of this great institution. It is solemn promise so you will be judged by its tenets 4

5 here or later. But in all things, remember you are agents of change and so conduct your affairs with this at back of your mind. I thank you and wish you God s guidance in all your affairs. 5