The battle over alcohol

My  bosom friend Joseph Kwame Korkoti has become overly con­cerned about the current war going on between two groups of pas­tors as to whether it is right or wrong for Christians to imbibe alcohol.

As a matter of fact, Korkorti’s expert opinion on the matter should have been sought.

On recent radio programme, two opposing groups of clergymen ar­gued vehemently either in support or against alcohol. Korkorti was bewil­dered. He did not see their point. He did not even see their quarrel. What were they really driving at?

An article in the Mirror by my good friend and Apostle Kwame­na Arhinful on the subject offered a brilliant analysis but tragically enough, he concluded poorly. But I understand him. It was the only way he could conclude without saying the Bible contradicts itself on the issue. As an apostle of Christ, he is not sup­posed to give conclusions that would inflame doctrinal sentiments.

My former bodyguard Napoleon Kwadzo alias Bonarparte summed up his conviction on the matter and refers to the Bible to make his point clear. “The Bible is against drinking not drunkenness. Furthermore, God chooses those he specifically wants to steer clear of alcohol like John the Baptist, Samson and the like. The others are free to quaff!”

I didn’t know the man who once protected my life was so biblical. When he drinks he quotes the Bible to support the dose and his conscience is clear. When he smokes, he quotes history and cites that Christopher Co­lumbus could not have made it round the world without smoking tobacco.

Well alcohol is one controver­sial issue that has defied all forms of debate aimed at placing it in its proper place. Those who do not drink argue against it, quoting scripture over and over again. Those who drink also quote the Bible to support the number of ‘quarters’ they down. It is an interesting controversy.

I once spoke to a born-again Hungarian clergyman and asked him whether in his home country beer-drinking among Christians is regarded as a sin. He said Christians can drink some beer for refreshment but not as a habit or to satisfy an ad­dictive urge; in effect you could drink so long as it was not habitual.

Well, other clergymen who are firmer friends with the Holy Spirit won’t agree to the imbibition of al­cohol in any form. Korkorti was once arguing with a pastor and reminded him that the banku and okro soup he loves so much contains more alcohol than he could ever find in a glass of wine. The pastor told him to stop blaspheming.

When Korkorti started explaining the biochemical intricacies of the fermentation processes with respect to his reference to banku, the pas­tor stopped him at once because he thought Korkorti Asamoah was possessed by the evil one. He com­manded him to come for deliverance.

Well some Christians permit alco­hol during their wedding ceremonies, outdoorings and parties.

In fact, some pastors are properly charged even before they mount the pulpit. They are the believers in the age-old tradition that alcohol loosens the tongue.

And so long as the tongue is stiff, it must be forcibly loosened with sup­plementary doses. The word is then preached with vim till the pastor runs out of gas.

Alcohol is part and parcel of the lives of most people. They say it is their only source of happiness. One guy I have always known explains freely why alcohol is a faithful com­rade.

“I don’t trust anybody in this world any longer .As for women I’ve finished with them, he says. “I have even been betrayed by my friends. They are treacherous. But I am as­sured that alcohol can never betray me. When I take my quarter my appe­tite is guaranteed, my happiness is complete.”

Others drink to enable them to cause trouble. If you want your in-law to stop interferring in your marriage, you only have to take quarter and the problem is solved. But in cases where the in-laws also take bitters, it can become a civil war. And hoes and cutlasses would feature prominently.

People drink alcohol for many other reason. Some say it is good for their waist and excites their libido in such a way that they are able to satisfy their sweet-hearts in ways unimaginable.

Others say it gives them free bowels, thereby removing phlegms and generally boosting their health. For others, they claim it helps them to think faster, and others say it gives them sound sleep complete with snoring and nightly contentment.

I remember sometime in 1989 when alcohol retailers were banned from selling bitters because some of them were not concocting the stuff properly and were thereby making it a health hazard. Well, some die-hards got angry and demonstrated in their homes and akpeteshie bars in protest. Before the demonstrations ended, most of them were in coma. They were dead drunk.

Today if alcohol is banned in Sikaman, there would be a social upheaval. It would be a mass insur­rection against the government of the day. Thousands of believers with red and brown eyes blowing ‘fuse’ and wielding matchets and shovels will charge headlong towards the seat of government to demand that the ban be countermanded.

You are likely to see among them my uncle Kofi Jogolo, Kwapey, Adams, Blue Blue of Kintampo, Reverend Kofi Kokotako, Wisdom and Korkorti as the flagbearer.

But the problem is, is alcohol good for the body? The answer is no! A little bit of alcohol is said to be good for the heart. Anything beyond that is harmful to body tissues, brain cells, the nervous system, the stom­ach lining, the liver and even your manhood. If you drink too much, you can’t function.

Spiritually, it is not good for those who seek personal development and want to aspire towards a better rela­tionship with God. The Holy Spirit in­deed cannot work in our environment charged with the scent of “molasses” and the “fuse” of kpekpe.

But the fact we must also accept is that not all aspire to commune with the Holy Spirit. And if they don’t, what should they do? One man asked a catechist, “If I stop drinking akpeteshie, what would I drink. Palm oil?”