By Ewurabena Paha
After working the whole year and surmounting several challenges in the banking and finance space, management, the board, and staff, both active and retired, of the ARB APEX BANK have gathered at the bank’s corporate head office in Accra to offer gratitude to God and also celebrate its annual festival of nine lessons and carols.
According to history, the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is a service of Christian worship traditionally celebrated on or near Christmas Eve in England.
The story of the fall of humanity, the promise of the Messiah, and the birth of Jesus is told in nine short Bible readings or lessons from Genesis, the prophetic books, and the Gospels, interspersed with the singing of Christmas carols, hymns, and choir anthems.
Records have it that the festival was first held on Christmas Eve 1918. It was planned by Eric Milner-White, who at the age of thirty-four had just been appointed Dean of King’s after an experience as an army chaplain which had convinced him that the Church of England needed more imaginative worship. Since then, the festival has been held every year and even during World War II. Others embraced the ceremony following its broadcast in 1924.
In Ghana, the ceremony is part of the Christmas calendar where churches, schools, and even corporate institutions celebrate with activities that show the significance of the birth of the messiah Jesus Christ.
The Association of Rural Banks Ghana has, as part of its annual celebrations, also observed the festival. This year, the celebration was on the theme: “Hope for the Future and the Present”.
Banking Operations Department, ICT, Audit and Inspection, Human Capital, Risk, and Compliance Departments all took turns to read lessons that proclaimed the birth of the savior.
Outgoing President of the Association of Rural Banks Ghana, Lawyer Eric Daning, read a lesson followed by carols of “Silent Night.” This paved the way for the Managing Director of APEX Bank, Alex Kwesi Awuah, humbly reading his lesson taken from John 11 to 14.
In a sermon, the moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Dr Abraham Nana Opare Kwakye, who was represented by the Head, Church Life and Programmes Director at the Ga Presbytery, Rev Andrew Shadow, painted a picture of the birth of developments surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ and its significance to humanity.
He said Christmas must not only focus on merrymaking but rather be a time for those blessed with abundance to seek the welfare of the poor and needy. Rev Shadoow reiterated the purpose of the season, saying all those in trouble and the destitute should believe that Christ is their hope.
Awards and honours were given to some deserving staff whose contributions have positively impacted the operations of the bank. Staff got together immediately after the service, where both the management, the board, staff, both active and on retirement, and partners of the bank enjoyed some Christmas tunes amidst merrymaking and networking.
