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Ghana “Holy” Deaths. Is TB Joshua for Real?
By Ange Ngu Thomas
He might have five personal Facebook pages but TB Joshua’s “official” page does not mention the four deaths at his Spintex Road branch of the Synagogue Church of All Nations in the Ghanaian Capital Accra yesterday Sunday May 19th 2013.
Accra police Public Relations Officer Freeman Tetteh confirmed the deaths adding that investigations have been opened into why yesterdays’ stampede ended so tragically.
Five thousand people turned up for the service to receive free holy water which the “good man of God” usually sells and the water guarantees receivers will eventually get rich or get cured from any type of disease.
T B Joshua. Fake Prophet?
An official of the Ghanaian branch of TB’s church has acknowledged the deaths in a BBC interview but why has TB himself not posted updates about the tragedy? The miraculous “holy water” was no help to the four people who died or the 13 who were wounded during the stampede.
Most of yesterday’s injured victims were hospitalized but have now left hospital after treatment. You will have expected an on-the-spot sprinkle with holy water will have resolved their problem if the water is really that “holy”.
The stampede was obviously a tragic event but it was caused mainly because of the hype TB has created around his “holy water” and the miraculous cures and riches it brings to those who are blessed enough to get it. It is not strange therefore, that more than 3500 people turned up at the church to get the holy water.
TB’s official Facebook page has this extraordinary posting “There is no sickness Jesus cannot heal, no disease he cannot cure, and no problem He cannot solve. Touch your screen and receive your miracle today, in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!”.
I immediately touched my computer screen as I wrote this article as my own way of obeying the prophetic message from T B Joshua. I am still waiting for my miracle.
Temitope Balogun Joshua aka T B Joshua is not your ordinary run of the mill Pentecostal pastor in Nigeria. The 50 year old pastor owns a TV station (Emmanuel TV) and is the founder and leader of the The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN).
Thousands of people troop to his evangelizing sessions in Nigeria and when he travels to other African countries to preach and “heal”. He claims through prayers, he can heal the sick and make the poor rich. However, there has never been any independent verification of any of his claims.
He is a handsome well fed man and looks like the primary beneficiary of the thousands who look up to him for solace.
His followers give him the money his ministry needs “to stay in business” but except otherwise proven, are all short- changed.
His entry in Wikipedia notes that “Joshua is well known in Nigeria for reconciling broken families and marriages…After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Joshua sent a team of medical personnel and humanitarian workers to the affected area, establishing a field hospital called ‘Clinique Emmanuel’.
A Forbes blogger estimated Joshua has spent $20 million on humanitarian activities in the last three years. In recognition of his humanitarian activities, he was awarded a National Honour by the Nigerian government in 2008.
A measure of his popularity on social media is that he has 1.976 followers on twitter though he is not following anyone and has not posted a single tweet.
The last update on the TB Joshua Ministries Facebook page reads “Remember that believing is possessing, as Prophet T.B. Joshua said, Cover yourself, family, business, career, finances, health and Your Destiny with the Blood of Jesus Christ.”
The families of the four people who died yesterday in Accra Ghana will have a hard time believing that.
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Oh dear! This is interesting right?
Dear Ange,
I have keenly followed your reports since you started reporting for the BBC in Cameroon. However, reporting the incident that took place in Ghana is the right thing to do as a journalist but taking sides as to whether the man of God is genuine is not the work of a writer who seats on his table in the Philippines.Journalism is more appreciated when it becomes investigative journalism.
You have not taken time to check on anybody who claims he got healed from any diseases or ailment from through JB Joshua. I have personally visited the SCOAN more than 20 times as well as millions of people from all walks of life who are better informed than you are.I don’t think they were fools and I personally have the testimony of my own sister who was healed by JB Joshua. She is in Yaounde and you can check that out.
Things of the spirit are much complicated than you think so my brother do not easily draw conclusions as to why the water was not just sprayed to raise the dead .
I think this man should be arrested and face trial at a proper court
Mr Peng or whatever your name is
it is becaiuse of fake testiminials from people like you that we have the type of deaths that occured in Accra, Ghana. You accuse the writer of not checking his facts, claim you are a personal witness to the good works of this man i think is a fake like all these pastors who claim to cure illnesses and make people rich, claim your sister is also a beneficiary but give no proof of all that> What are you talking about? if you didnt know, another of these fake pastors John Stephens opened a similar church in Cameroon Kings Chapelle, rose in national prominence, claimed he could cure all diseases through prayers etc. He became very rich but his ministry collapsed when he started going out with a young beautiful university student. His angry wife dealth him the blow of any angry woman, she told eveverybody all the claims he was making were fake. Numbers started dwindling and the church collapsed. That was more than fourteen years ago. It will be revealing to know where that fake pastor John Stephen is now. JB Joshua, I predict, will fall the same way soon.
fake fakers.
I cannot say his claims are fake or not but I blame stupid African politicians who don’t know what they are doing.In a real world,if you are sick ,you go to your doctor,if you are finding it difficult to have a child as a woman,you see a specialists doctor for help and you don’t go to these so-called pastors for whatever powers they are using.Africans are living on the another planet at this DNA world and are not prepare to progress at all and thus why all these pastors are using them.Politicians in Africa are all corrupt and basically don’t know what economic policies they are actually pursuing to help their own people out of all these desperations.It is time to think beyong all these spiritual,spiritual miracles and to rely on all these fake pastors.GOD save Africa from all these.
Dear Caro,
I think people like you who have not traveled around the world to see how God is using fellow human beings to do will keep dreaming every day. Well the pastor you refer to will be judged by God and not man.God can fight for himself and we can only sit back and watch.The bible states it clearly that by their fruits we shall know them and it also went further to say, if it’s from man, it will not last and if it’s from God it will last. You might have just started hearing about TB Joshua in the past few years but let me assure you that he had been there at least for the past 25 years and God has been using him so mightily.You may want to know that he is not the kind of people you see around your streets that will for any reason ever try to seduce one of his followers. He has built an empire for God’s children and God is just taking him from level to level.You can fool some people some times but you can’t fool all the people all the time.During the last football match in Yaounde stadium,the Cameroon government managed to pay students to fill up the stadium and they barely could have about 20.000 people in there.Last Sunday service in Lagos about 60.000 people attended and they came from all corners of the world.They paid for their expenses and were not forced by someone so I wonder how many of these people went out of their senses to get there if they did not really believe they were coming to meet God’s servant.
Mr “Peng”
I still dont think that is your real name.Tell me, are you a public relations officer for JB Joshua? Thousands of people visit his so calloed healing sessions because unlike a lot of lyin g pastors, he at least offers them food and sometimes even gives out money to people. What he gives out though is just a fraction of the money he get from his gullible followers. Please please please give me a break. TB Joshua was in Accra when three people died. Why didnt he predict that? When the people died, why didnt he use his “holy water” to ressurrect them? Why does he sell water even if he calls it “holy”? Are you on this planet? Do you know what 419 is? Tht is what TB Joshua is doing. Why are you rambling about what he has done for you and your sister when you cant even use your real name and tell us what he has done with concrete proof. My brother, dont be a fool too. Whiteman foiol you black man fool you too? Ashia for you.
Am still surprised that you cant even believe that the name Peng is also associated with the North West of Cameroon.Maybe you think am Chinese but no am from the north West so do your research well and you will know which village use Peng.You will never be able to understand things of the spirit except you surrender to the spirit as well. I don’t want to keep talking about this subject because anointing is not for sale and you will never understand that you have to pay for running cost of everything you get at least. Why have you not asked why people in the USA have to buy tickets to listen to Joel Osteen where ever he goes within the US.Is also a fake man of God. Please wake up and let our God be the judge
Ok Mr Peng
you probably dont know there are fools also in the USA? Stupid people who believe you can use “hopy water” to cure disease and get ricj exists everywhere, not only in Africa. Your TB Joshua failed for two reasons. He could not “predict” the death of those Ghanians and when they died, he could not used his “holy water to resurrect them. Simple. Why does he sell “holy water ” anyway? Thieves in pastor’s clothing. These fellows should be tried for treason wherever they are, America, Ghana or Nigeria because that is what they are “holy traitors”.
You need to be tried first for being ignorant which is not an excuse
Hey Peng,
I do not know you but i’ve had a friend by name Peng, from Pinyin in the North Region of Cameroon. I don’t think you have to bother if someone doesn’t believe that’s your real name. By the way that was not even the issue in your comment on the article written by Ange Ngu Thomas. Caro Ntemkeng is the same person, Ange Ngu Thomas. He or She is the author of the article. He needs deliverance and my advice to him is to go to the synagogue, Church of All Nations in Nigeria and gets his deliverance and he may also be opportuned to get his own Anointing water from the man of God. It’s free.
Wow, I’m really impressed with the new face of the Iroko website. The introduction of this new layout makes it easier for one to browse through the various blogs and at the same time appreciate its beauty. It really looks original and authentic. Keep up the good work
Great!!!! i can’t believe how people abandon their lives in the hands of a ‘man of God’!!!! Peng…rescue yourself…stand up and look for your life. TB won’t give it to you…he won’t give your sister health even if she feels good now. she should go see a doctor. Our uncle went to TB, was declared healed of cancer. he came home, threw a thanksgiving party in church and died a month later of cancer. waoooh! hurray TB. let’s wake up, people. why want to get rich without working for it? it is stupid indeed.
There is no two types of truth, those who think that TB Joshua is not a truth man of God is their problem. People who have visited SCOAN for many year never complained. And again, even where Jesus was born not everybody believed him. For your good information, TB Joshua is not God and God also dose predict the death of people. He is being used by God and GOD a lone shall judge him.
Please Brother Peng.
I pray we jointly pray for Cameroon and the likes of Caro Ntenkeng and her friend the original author with the dreadlocks.
May God forgive them
In fact, we should really beware of false prophets without undermining the existence and power of God. Yes God uses people to do miracles but TB Joshua exaggerates and there are thousands who spend money to see him but never get healed. Nevertheless, he is a great preacher and brings the word of God to his people.
Cameroon people,your country cannot move forward because you people always grief the holy spirit,what you don’t know you call names and what you know you destroy. If you cannot do what TB JOSHUA is doing, just stay quiet. REMEMBER A GOOD MAN IS ALWAYS CRITICIZED,JESUS CHRIST WAS CRITICIZED AND KILLED SO WHAT THEN DO YOU WANT TO SAY ABOUT THE PROPHET??
Hi Patty
I’m glad you used the word “your uncle” who you say was healed of cancer. Remember those who are healed by Christs’ word must remember to follow Christ not party. Your uncle failed to maintain his healing. When Jesus Christ heals you, you must be ruled by his words and stay close to him. So don’t blame the holy spirit of GOD. It is only GOD who has the power to stop death, not TB JOSHUA.
READ YOUR BIBLE BETWEEN THE LINE. IT WILL HELP YOU KNOW MORE ABOUT GOD AND HIS PROPHET
WHETHER YOU BELIEVE OR NOT SALVATION IS PERSONAL
@Peter: Has Nigeria moved forward?
Hello to all,
my friend, his wife and new born visited TB for blessings. they paid a huge sum and received the blessings but on their way back to Cameroon they had a car accident and all perished. their bodies completely mutilated and buried in pieces.
TB should walk down the streets in broad daylight and heal mad people and blind people as Jesus did. And this challenge goes to all those crooks who disturb tranquility. Tell me why the miracles take place only on TV or in well planned and organised sessions. Remember that the brothers of Jesus who now live in the state of Israel considers him a criminal yet some people consider him as God. The God who was unable to forgive his creatures that he created from dust. he had to turn into a fetus to be born by a woman and crucified by his enemies and creatures so that his blood can wash away the sins of his creatures and enemies. anyone who believes in this should normally believe in the thousands of other gods. I have my goats, I did not create them yet whenever they destroy my crops I simply forgive them. I need not turn into a goat, get into the womb of one goat to be born and then crucified by goats for the simple reason of forgiving the goats for destroying my crops. Yet the goats I died to safe from hell continue to reject me. God does need to go through any such disgusting rituals in order to forgive his creatures. He is the Almighty and All-Powerful. Who can stop Him? Who is He afraid of?. My friends let’s continue doing our businesses as usual in the name of God but we should not expect sincere and honest people to subscribe to such fabrications.
When solving Maths and one begins with a wrong formula, the result would always be a false one.
That said, I was once having a conversation with a friend from Edea and I asked him, in French, “Connaissez-vous l’Americain qui s’appele Jacques Boulanger?”
My friend gave it a long thought, shook his head and said, “Non! Mais, Je connais un Musicien Canadien qui porte ce nom”
I said OK and asked again as follows, “Connaisez-vous l’Americain qui s’appele James Baker?”
He immediately said “Oui, c’etait le Secretaire d’Etat des Etats-Unis
No matter what language one speaks, the current President of the US will always be called Barrack Obama; that of Russia is Putin; UK is David Cameron. These names can be written using different alphabets
Xi Jinping is written differently in China with Chinese alphabet.
James Baker can never be Identified as Jacques Boulanger; Yaya Toure of Man. City can not be John Toure; Laurent Blanc of PSG in France can not pass for Laurence White.
The mother of the Messiah would be dumbfounded if you walked to her and requested that you would like to speak with his son Jesus.
She wouldn’t have a clue whom you are talking about.
But if you would ask her about Yeshua, she would gladly tell you about him. The reason being that this is how she called her son. This is what the Angel said she should call him. The Messiah was a Hebrew, so is his name. Yeshua is the name of the Messiah written with the English alphabet. It can also be written in any other alphabet, including Japanese, but would always be called Yeshua by these different tongues.
Some commentators have written that Jesus was a personality fabricated by the Greeks. The hard truth is that no one ever existed bearing that name.
On the contrary, Yeshua was the Christ. That is how his mother called him. He would rise after 3 days and 3 nights in the grave. He died at 3PM on Wednesday. He rose after sun down on Saturday. The resurection was noticed only after about 12 hours later, by his mother.
The name Jesus saves no one. Manifestations of the devil can convince anyone foolish to worship the wrong god.