The Celestial Church of Christ has raised concerns regarding the photo of the remains of the late clergyman, Venerable Superior Evangelist Gabriel Gbekeleoluwa Akingbulugbe, being circulated online immediately after the his demise.
Recall that Freelanews reports that VSE Akingbulugbe died on Sunday, September 4, 2022, after a brief illness.
In a statement made available to our correspondent and signed by media head, Superior Evangelist Kayode Ajala, the CCC communities worldwide are yet to get over the shock of his death.
“The office of the Pastor, Celestial Church of Christ Worldwide has noticed with concern a picture of the remains of our highly respected and profoundly loved senior clergy, late Venerable Superior Evangelist Gabriel Gbekeleoluwa Akingbulugbe, making the rounds on social media and originally posted by a yet-to-be-identified individual.
“We are not only appalled but deeply pained that anyone could consider it proper to post such a picture of the deceased clergy man, obviously taken immediately after he passed on, on the social media.
“Our hearts still throb with the pain ignited by the news of his death. We are still numbed by the mere thought of his great loss. The dead should be respected. The family of the departed is still mourning this irreparable loss. It is simply unthinkable for anyone to aggravate their pain in the manner. This particular picture of the corpse of the late respected clergy man, making the rounds on social media, is a total desecration of his memory,” SE Ajala wrote.
He informed the press that concerted efforts had been made to get the originator of post to pull it down but to no avail.
“We have made concerted efforts to get the originator of this abominable post to pull it down but so far, our efforts have not been successful hence this passionate appeal. We hereby call on the originator of the picture of the remains of VSE Gbekeleoluwa to please pull down the picture as a mark of respect for the departed clergy man,” he pleaded.
The late VSE Akingbulugbe was the shepherd in charge of the Celestial Church of Christ, Olowu Parish, Lagos and the chairman of the Pastor in Council working Committee on Discipline.
He survived by wife and children. May his soul rest in peace.
Ojelabi, the publisher of Freelanews, is an award winning and professionally trained mass communicator and a recipient of the D9112 Superstar Icon Award, who writes ruthlessly about pop culture, religion, politics and entertainment.
