The General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Pastor William Kumuyi, has announced changes to the church’s marriage rules, saying that some of the old practices were never from the Bible but only church guidelines.

During the 2025 Global Family and Marriage Conference on Sunday, August 31, Kumuyi explained that the rule which stopped ladies from visiting men they planned to marry has been cancelled.

He said that couples may now visit each other during courtship as long as an elder is present.

He also revealed that the six-month mandatory courtship period introduced by the church is no longer compulsory.

According to him, the timeline was only a human arrangement meant to give couples more time to know each other, not a scriptural command.

Kumuyi explained that while six months was considered enough time in the past, it was never from the Bible.

He stressed that adjusting it to three months or even more does not mean changing the Word of God since the Bible does not specify any particular duration.

The preacher encouraged Christians to clearly understand the difference between God’s commandments and church traditions. He warned against treating man-made rules as if they were divine instructions.

He further clarified that the church’s marriage committees were created only to guide couples, not to replace biblical authority.

He reminded members that such committees are not found in the New Testament but were set up by the church for administrative purposes.

Pastor Kumuyi ended by warning leaders not to exceed their boundaries.

He cautioned marriage committees not to exercise authority beyond the scriptures, stressing that their role is simply to help and not to impose rules that God did not command.