Archbishop Charles Agyinasare has condemned the use of people’s disabilities, physical appearance, sexuality and private parts as weapons of insult, urging Ghanaians to adopt greater civility in their speech and disagreements.
According to the Archbishop, insults that target aspects of a person’s identity or physical condition can cause lasting emotional harm and contribute to a culture in which degrading language becomes normal.
He made the call while preaching on “Watch Your Words: The Power and Responsibility of Speech,” on Sunday, October 4, 2026, where he cautioned Christians and the wider public against destructive speech.
Archbishop Agyinasare said society must particularly reject the practice of turning people’s physical conditions into instruments of ridicule.
“A person’s blindness should not become an insult. A person’s stammer should not become an insult. A person’s physical disability should not become an insult,” he said.
He added that a person’s lisp, baldness, height, weight, facial appearance or any other physical feature should not become “ammunition” simply because people are angry.
The Archbishop said using disability as an insult also sends a broader message of contempt towards innocent people living with the same conditions.
“The person you are insulting bears the image of God,” he stressed.
He further condemned the use of vulgar language during disagreements, saying there was no justification for using people’s private parts, sexuality, parents, spouses or families as weapons of attack.
“There is no need to use people’s private parts, sexuality, parents, spouses, or families as weapons during disagreement,” he said.
He urged Christians to ensure that their vocabulary reflects their faith and values, citing biblical admonitions against foul, polluting and unwholesome language.
Archbishop Agyinasare also warned against sarcasm and innuendo, explaining that such forms of speech could be used to mock, ridicule or communicate contempt while allowing the speaker to later claim that the offensive statement was merely a joke.
He said humour should not become an excuse for repeatedly humiliating another person.
The Archbishop noted that words could have consequences long after they were spoken, observing that people may remember humiliating words for decades.
“Words leave your mouth in seconds, but they can live in another person’s heart for years,” he said.
He therefore urged people to distinguish between speaking the truth and speaking cruelly, stressing that truth does not require brutality.
“You can be firm without being vulgar. You can be passionate without becoming abusive. You can expose corruption without insulting people’s humanity,” he said.
He also called for an end to threats and intimidation, particularly where disagreements become politically, ethnically, religiously or socially charged.
According to him, disagreement should not cross the line into statements intended to harm, punish, intimidate or frighten people into silence.
He encouraged the public, especially social-media users, to pause before speaking, posting, forwarding or commenting and to ask whether what they are saying is true, necessary, gracious and edifying.
The Archbishop said society needed to change the language used in homes, churches, the media, social media and politics.
He concluded with a reminder from Proverbs 18:21 that “death and life are in the power of the tongue,” urging people to use their words to give life rather than tear others down.
