Mummy G.O, Indabosky and Other Madness on Nigerian Pulpits

Mummy G.O, Indabosky and Other Madness on Nigerian Pulpits

By: Deji Yesufu

If you have not seen the videos of one woman, whom Nigerians have aptly called “Mummy G.O”, you are missing out on the latest social media sensation. Some mischievous individual has taken it upon himself to produce short clips of this woman preaching in her church. Dressed in a very conservative “deeper life” clothing, Mummy G.O is almost always spewing some outlandish statement in the name of preaching. She is either saying dressing in a certain way will lead you to hell, or singing a certain song; or even using some certain devices is sure path to hell. In one clip she claimed that having been involved with pre-marital sex with her boyfriend, on the night of their wedding, her boyfriend, now husband, suddenly, declares that her hymen had been restored. She was a virgin again.

I purposely ignored many of the commentaries on the subject as it is common knowledge that the Nigerian religious scene can also serve as comic relief. But for some reason, I made the following statement on my Facebook page yesterday: that whoever has made a woman a pastor should be content with whatever she serves them in her sermons. Many of those who commented on the thread missed my point. I was accused of being a chauvinist. Another one said I was misogynist. And even some who ought to understand, because they agree with me on theological matters, felt my comment was rather extreme. They said this matter was common to both men and women, and their case in point was the clown that refers to himself as “Indabosky” – whose real name is Prophet Odumeje.

I will not bore you with who “Indabosky Pahose” is except to say that the gentleman is a real scam, bringing a lot of shame to the Church because he flaunts himself as a minister of the Bible. My nay-sayers are saying that if such ridiculous nonsense can come out of a man like Indabosky, we should give Mummy G.O some slack for her foolish talk. Well, it is because we have continued to give excuses for these people that the Nigerian religious space is filled with shenanigans. Just yesterday, I saw a woman, very likely a leader, another Mummy G. O, who was twerking in a church program, while the congregation went wild with amusement. For those who do not know what twerking is (I only found out myself late last year), it is an erotic gesticulation at the waste area that mimics the female sexual act – I leave the rest for your imagination.

Back to Mummy G.O: It is true that the religious environment is filled with as many male charlatans as the female ones. However the Bible has a reason for commanding, not suggesting, that the woman should not preach in church or lead men. I will refer us to two scriptures and I will conjure up the context in these verses to provide support for my position.

1 Corinthians 14:34 Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 14:35 And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

1 Timothy 2:11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 2:12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 2:13 For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 2:14 And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 2:15 Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.

The context of the Corinthian scripture was Paul counseling that there should be order in the church. Disorderliness had arisen because the Corinthians were abusing the gift of tongues. Paul ends his admonition by saying that women should not speak in church. There is a possibility, though I admit this scripture does not make the connection, that the root of the confusion in those churches were the women. But in case you disagree, let us look at the Timothy scripture.

Paul gives a similar command, this time he gives a reason for his command. He says the woman was deceived but the man was not deceived. In other words the woman is susceptible to deception, while men are not. The woman can be easily moved by her emotions, while the man is usually more stable because he is a rational in his undertaking of matters. Just as God has made the man the head of the home, he has made the man the head of the church. There is something incongruous with genuine Christianity when a woman leads a congregation. When the evil is made to fester for too long, the Mummy G.Os of our day emerge.

The all time low that the likes of Indabosky Pahose have brought Nigerian Christianity to cannot be compared the outright disobedience of biblical injunctions of women preachers. Pahose is the product of a false gospel coupled with the poor educational standards of our society – all in the light of a church environment averse to critical thinking. The Mummy G.O phenomenon may also be regarded as a natural outcome of the above. The only difference is that one is a downgrade, while the other is outright disobedience. If we will simply obey scripture, we will not have Mummy G.O. However to rid Nigerian Christianity of the likes of Ndabosky Pahose, there is a lot more that must be done.

So, I repeat: those who make women their pastors or who allow them to preach in their churches, should be content with whatever rubbish comes their way.