President John Evans Atta Mills has urged a closer bond between the state and the church since they have a common agenda in building a better society. President Mills was speaking in a news item monitored on state broadcaster, GBC, on Sunday, after he attended a thanksgiving service to climax activities marking the Methodist Church of Ghana’s 50 years autonomy from Britain. The First Lady, Mrs Ernestina Naadu Mills and New Patriotic Party flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, also participated in the service. President Mills urged the church to offer constructive criticism of government as well as contribute suggestions to help build the nation. “The church is encouraged to criticize, to make suggestions, however we want these suggestions and criticisms to be constructive because at the end of the day, we want to build and not to destroy”, he said, urging Christians to help strengthen the spiritual foundations of the nation “because a nation which has a weak spiritual foundation is a nation that is doomed to failure.” “We must always be reminded of the words of the hymnist that we should labour on even though our hands are weak, our knees are faint, our souls are down and yet we must not forget that the prize that we want to seek ultimately is near a kingdom and a crown”, he said. President Mills who described himself as the biggest beneficiary of the Methodist Church, congratulated the church for its great and many contributions to the development of the nation. The Presiding Bishop of the Church, the Most Rev. Professor Emmanuel Kwaku Asante, urged members of the church to work hard to improve their lot. He urged the flock to discourage disunity and behaviours that create hostilities and disturb the peace. Rather they must encourage what unites them. “We are political animals, so we cannot avoid politics, but we can avoid the politics of insults; the politics of violent hostilities and the politics that attacks personalities for holding different views.” He said it was sad that partisan politics seems to have degenerated over the years, fanned by the desire to get power by hook or crook, counseling that in the context of this, individual members of the church ought to stand up and be counted and be ambassadors of peace, of political decorum and respect for the elderly, among other virtuous callings. Story by Isaac Yeboah/Myjyoyonline.com/Ghana