“Politics does not have a personality” – Pastor Emmanuel Iren

Pastor Emmanuel Iren is the Lead Pastor of one of the fastest-growing churches in Nigeria; Celebration Church International. With branches in Abuja, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island, Port-Harcourt, Ibadan, the United Kingdom and Canada, the church is booming with youthful energy and a huge number of growing talents across new and developing industries. 

As the 2023 Presidential Election approaches, we sit down to talk to Pastor Iren about his thoughts on politics, governance and the Christian. In a country with the largest Christian population in Africa and a median age of 18.1 years, the youths in Celebration Church are statistically part of the critical mass and we wanted to know what their overseer had to say about their role in the nation’s politics. 

One of the things you’re known for, from your teachings, is the believer’s interaction with the world around him. Do you have an ideology specifically concerning the believer and politics?

Well, one Bible character that always caught my interest is Daniel; how that when it came to his pedigree as a prophet, he stood out and at the same time was still relevant as a politician, serving three kings. I don’t know how the church has become so complacent and comfortable with just doing church, meanwhile biblical history is replete with people who were politically relevant. See Joseph and Nehemiah as well. Apart from even just having a sense of responsibility to our nation, if we, as believers, want Godly ideas to thrive in this nation, then Godly people have to be involved in nation-building. We have enough biblical history to support that idea. The Bible says that “When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan.” That’s just the reality. We cannot keep hoping for a great nation while concurrently refusing to be involved in nation-building. 

That’s quite profound. But I imagine that the hesitancy to go into politics by many young Christians is born out of the familiar idea that ‘Politics is a dirty game’.  Is it really possible for a believer to be a ‘clean’ politician?

You are right that a lot of believers hesitate because of this idea, but the reality is that politics does not have a personality. Therefore, it can either be dirty or clean. It takes on the character of the person or people involved. So yes, statistically, politics is a dirty game. Not because it is, in and of itself, dirty but because a lot of dirty people are politicians. This is why we need more righteous people in politics.  

It will take a lot of wisdom, strategy and I must say, prayers, for believers to be involved in politics and not compromise. That’s why we have to come out in our numbers. Over the years, we’ve found one or two people, who openly identify as believers, scattered sparingly in different government offices. But that’s not enough. There must be a mass deployment of believers in politics for there to be real change 

That being said, the Bible is, again, replete with examples of believers in politics who worked with unrighteous kings. Pharaoh was not a believer. But when you are Joseph and you are excellent and have something that can save a nation, nobody really cares what your religious inclinations are. Because you can build a nation and get the job done, you are appointed. I earlier mentioned Daniel but I’ll mention him again. About him, pagan kings said that an excellent spirit rested upon him. Just by observing his exceptional qualities and service.

I believe that there has to be more to us than our religious sentiment. We have to bring our A-game and offer solutions that the world cannot refuse. 

Very brilliantly couched. Bringing it down to your church, I am aware that your Lagos Mainland branch was a PVC enrollment centre some Sundays ago. In what other ways is Celebration Church politically active?

That’s a great question. 

We have officially and unofficially encouraged people to get their PVCs and be ready to vote. Interestingly but not surprisingly, we have amongst us, young people who are politically inclined and interested in politics. They know that we are ready to pray for them, train them, support them, and hold them accountable. Most of them are already doing great stuff and are giving me hope for politics in this nation. For instance, there is a young man named ‘Alex Adekunle-James’ who co-authored a book with Senator Babafemi Ojudu on ‘Politics That Works’. The book is essentially an exposé on how to understand the political system –  for people who are interested in nation-building but just don’t know how to go about it. What interested me the most was that this guy, as young as he is, was able to pull off such a level of feat that had even the Vice President in attendance at his book launch. That’s just one of many ways that I know something great is happening right under our nostrils. 

That sounds huge. I wonder, however, if there are plans to take advantage of the youth populace in Celebration Church and the church in Nigeria towards producing better public office holders in Nigeria? 

Yes. Right now, we’re basically at the sensitization phase; letting people know that it’s a game of numbers and we have to recognize that the church has the numbers. We must see ourselves not just as a congregation but as a market. We are influential and we have a voice. We are not just believers, we are bonafide citizens of the country and we know our rights and the laws. We are ready, not just through prayers, but also through advocacy to drive the change we want to see. 

Powerful. Finally, as the election race builds up, what final tips/advice do you have for Christians across the country?

You have to understand that no matter how religious or prayerful you are, the actions of your leaders will affect you. The Bible says that prayers should be made for kings so we may live a quiet and peaceable life. So, we must see it as something that is for the interest of the church when we get our PVC and cast our votes. It’s good to pray but we must do more than that.