Support UM News on World Press Freedom Day: Give to help sustain and expand the storytelling capacity of UM News. Your donation today will transform information into inspiration and ensure we can continue sharing stories of God’s work in the world through The UMC. Help us reach our $10,000 goal and keep this vital ministry fair, faithful, trusted and free for all!

Liberian president opposes Christian state plans

President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a United Methodist, says efforts to declare Liberia a Christian state would create “division among the citizens based on religious belief.”

She made her comments when she submitted the report of the Constitution Review Commission to the National Legislature on August 18, 2015, five months after the commission met in Gbarnga and approved a proposal to make Liberia a Christian country.

In an eight-page letter to the Liberian Senate, Sirleaf said the founders of the Republic did not put into the Liberian Constitution a declaration of Christianity as the nation’s religion.

“The constitution has always allowed freedom of religion and worship without seeking to describe or prescribe one religion as the official religion,” she said, adding that Article 14 of the Liberian Constitution correctly separates religion and state, and provides specifically and unequivocally that the Republic shall establish no religion.

Proposals go to National Legislature

Sirleaf’s letter is expected to be discussed by the National Legislature as part of their efforts to hold a referendum on amending the Liberian constitution. Though the National Legislature is dominated by Christians, many Christians, including United Methodist Bishop John G. Innis, have opposed the proposal to make Liberia a Christian state.

Innis had said that constitutional provisions were not needed to practice the Christian faith and expand The United Methodist Church in Liberia.

“Our Lord Jesus Christ did not force people to follow him, so Christians should not advocate for legislation that will create conflict for our nation.”

Baptist, Catholic and Muslim leaders have also expressed opposition to the proposal according to news reports.

Earlier, the Constitution Review Committee presented Sirleaf, who is a member of First United Methodist Church in Monrovia, with its final report on all the recommendations from the National Constitution Conference on August 17, 2015.

The supporters of the changes to the Liberian constitution said they were simply trying to restore language that was originally in the preamble to the Liberian constitution that the nation was built on a Christian foundation. They say that language was removed in 1986 when the constitution was amended.

“We are not asking for a statute legislating Christianity,” said Sen. Jewel Howard Taylor.

Swen is editor and publisher of West African Writers, an online publication about United Methodist happenings in West Africa and assists the denomination in Liberia with coverage for United Methodist Communications.

News media contact: Vicki Brown, [email protected] or 615-742-5469.


Like what you're reading? Support the ministry of UM News! Your support ensures the latest denominational news, dynamic stories and informative articles will continue to connect our global community. Make a tax-deductible donation at ResourceUMC.org/GiveUMCom.

Sign up for our newsletter!

Subscribe Now
Violence
Hundreds of members of the World Federation of Methodist and Uniting Church Women march in Gaborone, Botswana, wearing black in solidarity with victims and survivors of gender-based violence. The issue dominated conversations at the group’s Southern and East Africa seminar held April 3-6 in the country’s capital. Photo by Eveline Chikwanah, UM News.

African women speak against gender violence

Over 600 Methodist women from Southern and East Africa marched in solidarity with survivors of gender-based violence and those suffering in silence.
Faith Stories
Susie and Ed Keefer pose with Miriam, age 4, in Kinshasa, Congo, in 2013. Shortly afterward, Miriam went home with the Keefers to the United States. The matching outfits were a gift from Dr. Rebecca Yohadi. Photo courtesy of Susie Keefer.

From mission volunteer to adoptive mom

When Susie Keefer traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2010, little did she know it would be the first of many mission journeys.
Mission and Ministry
The Rev. Jonathan Baker and Donna Baker are overwhelmed as water gushes forth from a well in Wembo Nyama, Democratic Republic of Congo, in 2016. The local people had been praying for water for decades. New Covenant United Methodist Church in The Villages, Fla., and its Lake Deaton United Methodist Church campus in Wildwood, Fla., raised the money for this first well in the Sankuru Province of Central Congo. Photo by the Rev. Jim Divine.

Calling led couple to ministry in Congo

The Rev. Jonathan Baker, former conference council on ministries director, and registered nurse Donna Baker shared their skills with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

United Methodist Communications is an agency of The United Methodist Church

©2025 United Methodist Communications. All Rights Reserved