At Maiden Conference of Community of Hashem Female Association: Cohen Gadol urges Cameroon women to be committed nation-builders

Cohen Gadol cheers-up Female choristers at Tiko Synagogue,Cameroon

By Christopher Ambe

The world-wide General Overseer/Cohen Gadol of the Holy Sabbath of Christ the King International, Ben Aaron Chidi Ebene Amakaeze has challenged Cameroon women to become models of nation-building.

Cohen Gadol Amakaeze threw the challenge on November 22 at the maiden Annual Conference of Community of Hashem Female Association (CHFA), which  held in Douala, under the theme”Empowering Women to meet up with the Modern Society”.

     “Cameroon women, you must be exemplary in the task of nation-building. Through women nations are built. In my area they say a woman is a house or a home. A beautiful woman builds a house whereas the foolish one destroys it,” the Cohen Gadol told the conference.

    The conference assembled both Cameroonian women and foreigners-in their tens, who are members of the Holy Sabbath of Christ the King International Ministry;they listened to various presentations on how to empower themselves and make a difference in society.

    Cohen Gadol Amakaeze, who was on  a more than one week pastoral visit to Cameroon ,as guest speaker during the one-day conference, strongly called on the women to become more and more knowledgeable.

    But because the “Kind of knowledge you have will determine the kind of person you will be”, the Overseer recommended to them only positive knowledge, which produces development, as opposed to negative knowledge which produces underdevelopment and stagnation.

   “If you are fed with positive knowledge you will develop; likewise if you are fed with negative knowledge, you will retrogress”, the Minister of God told the conference.

    He noted:”The Bible is the source and origin of knowledge because, the Originator of life (God) put His ideas expressing how His creatures and creation can grow and develop through a blueprint called the bible”

Revisiting the story of creation in the Bible,the  Cohen Gadol said it is necessary to“empower a woman, because empowering a woman is indirectly empowering a man; an empowered woman gives a powerful assistance to a man”

 Holy Sabbath women at the conference 

     He urged the women “to strive to have good knowledge because it is what a person has that he gives. Cameroon women must seek for knowledge from today, for the best thing in life is not money but knowledge”

    The participants were told by the Cohen Gadol to distance themselves from people who have no sense of direction.

In his remarks, conference Chairman Elder Abraham Val Molulu -who is also CHFA Patron Cameroon Nation, said the women’s meeting came shortly after a maiden conference for the empowerment of youths.

    Stressing the importance of coming together, he announced that henceforth such conferences would be held quarterly. He noted that to empower a community all aspects of the community must be catered for.

Although the President of the Community of Hashem Female Association (CHFA), Mother G.B.Amakaeze was not present at the Cameroon conference, her written address was presented by Mother Saraphine Nwosu on her behalf.

   Mother G.B.Amakaeze recalled that CHFA had held several central conferences in Enugu, Nigeria with only a few Cameroon women in attendance and was happy the conference was now in Cameroon so that many women would benefit from its lessons.

     According to her, “The aim of these conferences is  to reach out to women and empower them through capacity building that enable them face and overcome various societal challenges..”

She added that CHFA activities include: humanitarian services, games and health programs, guidance and counseling, leadership training, synagogue representative forums.

    Mother G.B.Amakaeze told the women: “We must understand that this association cannot grow without our collective efforts. Let us work together in order to experience unequalled growth right from our families to our synagogues and community at large. The new policy of the community is to help us raise funds to help us develop the community to the needed standard where the Lord will use the community to speak to the world.

   “The Community cannot be the best if we are not the best. Therefore, we have to strive for excellence,” Mother G.B.Amakaeze told the conference.

    Earlier in her welcome address, CHFA Representative Cameroon nation, Mother UNA Okorie,said the presence of Cohen Gadol as  Guest speaker was eloquent testimony of the love he has for the Community of Hashem Cameroon Nation.

She also  commended Mother Jemimah Eya Arrey,who began CHFA in Cameroon and “did a lot during her tenure of office by taking women to feasts for worship, prayers and to compete in various women activities with CHFA Nigeria, hence winning a lot of prizes and gifts as was the case last Passover 2015”.

   She said Mother Jemimah Eya Arrey who has been instrumental in the growth of the Holy Sabbath church in Cameroon, was succeeded by Mother Ekoko Martha during whose tenure Cameroon zone was raised to CHFA Cameroon Nation.

   Mother UNA Okorie said CHFA is an enviable umbrella with Mother-General G.B Amakeze as president. According to Okorie, the Mother-general has opened the eyes of many women to elements of empowerment.

Sabbatherians dancing to glorify  God  at Tiko Synagogue

According to her,“CHFA Cameroon Nation hopes to provide its members with a blend of quality, intellectual development, opportunity for self-discovery and self-actualization of their dreams, knowledge and display of wisdom for the good of our families, association and society at large"

    Papers presented during the conference included:”Women Leaders, Skills and Behaviors” by Deaconess Sarah J. Molulu; “The role of CHFA women in the face of Modern Challenges” by Mother Martha Ekoko.

   As a prelude to the conference proper ,CHFA Cameroon Nation was engaged in a series of activities  which included but not limited to  combined Sabbath Worship at Ngodi Mission Douala;debate (on ‘Man or woman: who is the backbone of the family?);workshops on house-keeping and décor; Healthy and Natural food production techniques; local herbs and their uses.

     At the end of the conference, participants expressed satisfaction.

For example, Chairman Molulu said the turnout was quite impressive, especially as some participants not only came from across Cameroon but from Nigeria.

   To Mother M.F. UNA Okorie,CHFA Representative Cameroon nation: “The turnout of women was encouraging and the conference ended without any problems”

   The Cohen Gadol had this remark: “Cameroon is a blessed nation .What we have seen today is a combination of the culture of the people of Cameroon and how they have been able to package it for the world to see. I must say that all the conferences I have attended this one by Cameroon Nation has done far better than expected. What we have seen here are women who are have the capacities and are capable of building.”

Some Douala Conference women in family photo

The Cohen Gadol rounded up his pastoral visit to Cameroon on November 28, 2015 with a divine service at the newly constructed multi-million Fcfa Holy Sabbath Synagogue in Tiko (near Tiko Airport), christened Mount Olive Synagogue.

   The Tiko synagogue, described as the best in Cameroon, had personally been dedicated to the worship of the Almighty God by the Cohen Gadol on March 7, 2015.

That same March he had also laid the foundation stone of the Ben Aaron Scriptural College in Bwiteva-Buea Subdivision.

    It should be noted that the Holy Sabbath of Christ the king is a Jewish church, which originated from Israel and what they practice is called Judaism.

    The Holy Sabbath Church was founded in 0ctober 1960 in Nigeria. The Church moved to Cameroon in 1990 and this far has more than 20 branch synagogues with thousands of members.

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