Son of SC Bishop adds his voice of warning to COGIC leadership

Competing with the din of punching hammond organ music, shouts of praise and punctured preaching in Church of God in Christ congregations around the country, are voices that don’t get praise or prominence. Its the few who have spoken out about the strong spiritual and moral current in the denomination which is carrying the church downstream away from its holiness roots and previous adherence to biblical mandates. Generally such individuals are quickly branded as “troublemakers” and characterized as “fighting leadership”. That diminishes the impact of their words and allows for the pentecostal praise fest to continue among the rank and file members. After all, acknowledging the words of a prophet who speaks truth to leadership would give them legitimacy and its appears COGIC leadership has mastered the art of denying such voices a place to be heard. The show must go on.

But still they speak because the Spirit of the Lord commands it.

In South Carolina, the son of the jurisdiction’s bishop is speaking out and in the process risking his all important place and “legacy” in COGIC.

Dr. Edward Lee Johnson, son of Bishop Johnnie Johnson and brother of COGIC scholar Dr. Alonzo Johnson, took his message public after a letter decrying the treatment of Supt Earl Carter to COGIC leadership went unanswered.

On March 3, Johnson launched his “Prophetic Argumentative Essay” and contended that COGIC’s Presiding Bishop had supported, openly endorsed and had given authority to speak corruption from the pulpit of West Angeles. On the list were the Rev. Peter Gomes, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas, Congressman Bobby Rush, and self proclaimed gay performer Tonex aka “B. Slade”.  The common bond with all the men? Homosexuality.

In just the past 108 years God raised up the Church Of God In Christ with the purest Biblical practices since the birth of the New Testament Church. Even racism was brought to its knees for a brief period in Bishop Mason’s ministry. Magic Johnson, a “poster child” for the LGBT community has officially infiltrated our ranks as a (COGIC member). (Listen to his admitted statement with Anderson Cooper during the Donald Sterling debacle.) All it takes for the Church Of God In Christ to change its position against same sex marriage is for enough of the Johnson and Rush types to “creep” into our church. And trust me, there are many that are not highly visible but believe just like them among us. If people will not obey the Bible—what makes you think they will obey your constitution?
We all should be taking a lesson from the US Supreme Court on this grave issue; you only need one deciding vote. I am literally ashamed of the current leadership of our church in this area. Black people are blaming White conservatives for not being compassionate, and having a racist slant—but the Black churches have bought into the liberal agenda of the country, and have almost completely “sold out” on “good morals” and biblical principles. That may not have been the intentions when the church took sides with the political parties—but it’s the reality of where we are presently. And guess who is taking the brunt of the suffering in their communities as a result of poor leadership on the national level among people of color?

Read the entire commentary JUDGMENT-COGIC General Assembly.