Kumuyi Clarifies Deeper Life’s Six-Month Courtship Rule

The General Superintendent of Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Pastor William Kumuyi, has clarified that some of the church’s marriage guidelines are administrative practices, not biblical commands.

Speaking at the 2025 Global Family and Marriage Conference, Kumuyi explained that the former rule barring women from visiting men they intended to marry, as well as the six-month mandatory courtship period, were decisions made by church leadership to guide members, not divine instructions.

He stressed that Christians must distinguish between God’s commandments and church traditions, warning against treating human regulations as scriptural.

“We just felt you need some time to know one another, so we said six months. But it’s not in the Bible,” Kumuyi said, noting that the period is flexible and can be shortened.

He further explained that marriage committees within the church were set up only to provide guidance and not as replacements for biblical authority.