Liberia: Thanksgiving Service for Weah, Boakai, Others This Sunday

In an effort to express gratitude to God, knowing that “gratitude helps us to realize all we have comes not because of us, but from God;” a National Thanksgiving Service under the theme “Liberia says Thank you Lord,” will be held on Sunday, January 14, 2024, beginning 2:00 pm at the Harvest Intercontinental Cathedral (formerly Bethel) on Tubman Boulevard, Congo Town.

The National Thanksgiving Service is organized by the Christian Community of Liberia, under the auspices of the Liberia Fellowship of Full Gospel Ministers/Churches (LFFGM/C) and the Spiritual Stakeholders' Prayer Initiative (SSPI). Bishop Dr. M. Wolo Belleh, Apostle Dr. Samuel Carr, and Bishop Robert Baimba are the chief organizers, with over 90 persons acting as support staff.

According to the letter of invitation, copy of which was seen by the Daily Observer, “the gathering is our response to the Gracious and Powerful Hand of God that steered us peacefully through a challenging election, and now leads us into a historic transition of political power, as beseeched through fasting and prayers of many believers in and out of Liberia.”

Accordingly, President George M. Weah and Vice President Jewel Howard-Taylor, the Speaker, Deputy Speaker, and members of the House of Representatives, as well as the Senate President Pro Tempore and members of the Senate, have been invited.

The Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court and the Chairperson and Board of Commissioners of the National Elections Commission have also been invited.

President-elect Joseph N. Boakai Vice President-elect Jeremiah K. Koung and members of the 55^th Legislature have also been invited. 

Accordingly, there will be special prayers for the strength, protection, and direction of President Weah, Vice President Taylor, and others who are leaving government and a special prayer for the in-coming executive and the 55^th Legislature.

The Thanksgiving Service comes on the heels of a tension-packed election year that eventually ended on a very peaceful note. Liberians were hailed for how they conducted themselves during the electoral process.

Singled out for praise were various political actors, especially President George Weah, who graciously conceded defeat to the eventual winner, Joseph Nyuma Boakai.

“This is a time for graciousness in defeat, a time to place our country above party, and patriotism above personal interest,” Weah said in his concession speech in November.

A sitting president losing elections in Africa is rare, let alone that he should concede to a bitter rival. As a result, Weah has received a plethora of commendations from across the globe.

“These are great times in Liberia and Africa because such action on the part of a sitting president is very, very, very rare,” Hassan Bility, Director of the Global Justice and Research Project (GJRP), told the BBC in November.

Meanwhile, the peaceful nature of the presidential and legislative elections and the gracious actions of the leaders of the country have prompted the Christian community to initiate the Thanksgiving Service, the organizers said.