T. B. Joshua

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T. B. Joshua
Born Temitope Balogun Joshua
(1963-06-12) June 12, 1963 (age 60)
Arigidi, Nigeria
Residence Ikotun-Egbe, Lagos, Nigeria
Nationality Nigerian
Occupation Prophet, minister, televangelist
Net worth US$10-15 million (Forbes, 2011)[1]
Spouse(s) Evelyn Joshua
Website The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations, Emmanuel TV, YouTube Channel

Temitope Balogun Joshua (born June 12, 1963), commonly referred to as T. B. Joshua, is a Nigerian prophet. He is the leader and founder of The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN),[2] a religious organisation that runs the Emmanuel TV television station from Lagos, Nigeria.

He has been awarded various accolades, notably receiving the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) by the Nigerian government in 2008[3] and being voted the Yoruba man of the decade by Pan-Yoruba media outlet Irohin-Odua.[4] He was recognised as one of Africa's 50 most influential people by Pan-African magazines The Africa Report and New African Magazine[5][6] and listed among the world's most famous people by the website thefamouspeople.com.[7]

Joshua is known for his popularity across Africa and his online presence, with over 1,500,000 fans on Facebook[8][9] and hundreds of YouTube videos which have proved controversial and amassed millions of views.[10] As of 2011, according to Forbes, Joshua was Nigeria’s third-richest pastor.[11]

Biography

According to Joshua’s official biography, unusual circumstances surrounded his birth. He says that he spent 15 months in his mother’s womb[12] and narrowly avoided death after a quarry explosion near his house sent rocks through its roof just seven days after his birth.

Joshua, then known as Balogun Francis,[13] attended St. Stephen's Anglican Primary School in Arigidi-Akoko, Nigeria between 1971 and 1977,[14] but failed to complete one year of secondary school education.[14] In school, he was known as "small pastor" because of his love for the Bible. He worked in various casual jobs after his schooling had ended, including carrying chicken waste at a poultry farm.[15] He organised Bible studies for local children and attended evening school during this period.[12] Joshua attempted to join the Nigerian military but was thwarted due to a train breakdown that left him stranded en route to the military academy.[16]

The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN)

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Joshua wrote that in a heavenly vision he had received divine anointing and a covenant from God to start his ministry.[17] Following this, Joshua founded the ministry organisation The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN) with only a handful of members.[18][self-published source] According to the organisation, more than 15,000 members[19] attend its weekly Sunday service; visitors from outside Nigeria are accommodated in the accommodation blocks constructed at the church.[20][21][22]

The Guardian reported that The SCOAN attracts more weekly attendees than the combined number of visitors to Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London.[23] The SCOAN's popular services have also resulted in an enormous boost for local businesses and hoteliers.[24]

Despite Joshua's popularity, the church only has a branch in Ghana,[25] Joshua stating that "it is not yet time" for him to have branches worldwide as "it will be too much for my character".[26]

Collapse of guesthouse

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Main article: 2014 Synagogue Church building collapse

On 12 September 2014, a guesthouse collapsed in the SCOAN's premises in Lagos killing at least 115 people, 84 of them South Africans.[27]

Healings and miracles

SCOAN claims regular occurrences of divine miracles.[28] Several hundred Nigerians and international visitors come to the SCOAN each week to register for the prayer lines where the visitors are prayed over by Joshua and the "Wise Men". SCOAN has published numerous videos claiming to document the healing of incurable disabilities and illnesses such as HIV/AIDS.[29][30][31] Medical reports are a prerequisite for prayer for any health-related ailment in an attempt to authenticate the miracles said to be occurring.[citation needed]

Spiritual healing at The SCOAN has been the subject of several media reports, including a mention in Time Magazine,[32] an Associated Press interview[33] and an article by Foreign Policy detailing the proficiency of Nigerians to seek 'spiritual' help due to insufficient medical facilities.[34]

Anointing Water

Many have also claimed to be healed through Anointing Water that has been prayed over by Joshua and given to those who are unable to physically attend his church in Lagos.[35][36]

In 2013, four people died in a stampede in Joshua's Ghanaian branch when an unadvertised service where it was being distributed drew huge crowds far beyond the churches capacity, bringing Ghana's capital city Accra almost to a standstill.[37]

Joshua also made headlines when he claimed his Anointing Water could cure the deadly disease Ebola. He subsequently sent 4,000 bottles of the water alongside a cash gift of $50,000 to the Ebola-stricken nation of Sierra Leone.[38] This came after Lagos State Health officials visited Joshua, requesting him to publicly discourage Ebola victims from visiting his church for prayers.[39]

Deliverances of demon-possessed

SCOAN is also known for the deliverance of those allegedly possessed by evil spirits during its services.[40] The wife of Ghanaian goal keeper Richard Kingson was delivered of an evil spirit which was supposedly behind her husband's inability to procure a contract with a team since 2011.[41] He has since secured a contract with Turkish club Balıkesirspor.

Notable Ghanaian human rights lawyer Kwabla Senanu testified at The SCOAN that he was delivered from a spiritual problem that had caused him embarrassing bouts of sleep in the courtroom.[42] Similarly, Ghanaian musician Denise Williams said she was delivered from a demon that had pushed her to become a drug addict and suicidal.[43] Veteran Nigerian Nollywood Actress Camilla Mberekpe was also said to be delivered at The SCOAN.[44]

Popular Nollywood actor Jim Iyke also said he received deliverance at The SCOAN,[45] the video of the event subsequently going viral.[46]

Foreign crusades

Although Joshua rarely travels, he has held foreign crusades in Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia and Colombia. His 'Miracle Crusade' in Cali, Colombia in July 2014 was allegedly attended by 100,000 people and held in the Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero.[47]

He held a crusade in the Estadio Azteca in Mexico which was allegedly attended by 200,000 people over two days in May 2015.[48][not in citation given]

Humanitarian work

Another ministry is the humanitarian arm of SCOAN. There are media reports that this humanitarian arm has donated money in order to help orphans and the destitute.[49] In 2009 it was reported that one widow received more than 500,000 N.[50] In 2012, Joshua sponsored one Nigerian student doing a PhD in Oxford University with Nigerian media reporting the total given amounted to £100,000.[51] There is also a rehabilitation programme for militants from Nigeria’s volatile Niger Delta region and a Forbes blogger estimated that Joshua has spent $20 million on humanitarian activities over a period of three years.[52]

Joshua was involved in the meeting of the family of the late president of Liberia, Samuel Doe, with the former warlord Prince Yormie Johnson who was responsible for Doe's death. During this meeting the family publicly forgave Johnson.[53]

SCOAN has also established another NGO in Ghana called Passion For Needy.[54] 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'.[55] In recognition of his humanitarian activities, he was awarded a National Honour by the Nigerian government in 2008 [3] as well as receiving a letter of appreciation from the United Nations.[56] He was further honoured as an Ambassador of Peace by the Arewa Youth Forum, a predominantly Muslim organisation, in appreciation of his humanitarian endeavours.[57]

Sports

In 2009, Joshua started a football club, My People FC, as part of efforts to help the youth. Two members of the team played for Nigeria's Golden Eaglets in the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Sani Emmanuel, who apparently lived in The SCOAN for several years,[58] was Nigeria's top-scorer and the tournament's MVP. Emmanuel and his colleague Ogenyi Onazi have now signed professional contracts with SS Lazio, Onazi a key player for the Nigerian Senior Team, the Super Eagles.[59]

WBO International Light Middleweight boxing champion King Davidson Emenogu said that Joshua has financially supported him throughout his career and purportedly prophesied that he would be a world boxing champion.[60]

Prophecies

SCOAN claims that Joshua has successfully predicted events in the lives of individuals who attend his church services as well as worldwide events, including a prophecy of Michael Jackson's death,[61] the Boston bombing attacks in America [62] and the outcome of two African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final matches, which were won by Zambia [63] and Nigeria[64] respectively. However, a critic group "TB Joshua Watch" has released videos showing that prophecy videos are often edited to present them as more accurate than they really were. [65]

His prophecy about the death of an African president was widely reported in African press.[66] Joshua's followers believe the prophecy concerned the former president of Malawi Bingu wa Mutharika who died in 2012.

False rumors spread using Joshua's name are known to have caused widespread panic in communities,[67][68] affected sporting evendts[69] and led people to stop using social networks.[70]

Alleged MH370 prophecy

SCOAN released a video claiming that TB Joshua predicted the Malaysian Airlines MH370 event,[71] however the original unedited prophecy predicted a plane crash at the end of the runway due to a known cause. Several followup prophecies were then released, but none provided any credible information leading to the plane being found.[72] Nevertheless, the prophecy received a lot of attention on social media and its accompanying YouTube video amassed over 1 million views.[73]

Notable visitors

Notable visitors to SCOAN have included late Ghanaian President John Evans Atta Mills [74] South Africa’s Winnie Mandela,[75] EFF leader Julius Malema,[76] the Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu [77] and the late former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba who once stated that he watched 'Emmanuel TV' daily.[78]

It also included Jeremiah Omoto Fufeyin.

Emmanuel TV

Emmanuel TV, the SCOAN television station, broadcasts 24/7. Its Sunday services, which include the prayer line, are broadcast live. Joshua's programmes also air weekly on a number of local television stations across Africa. In its profile on Joshua, the BBC described him as "Nigeria's best known televangelist".[79]

Emmanuel TV logo

YouTube Channel

Emmanuel TV's YouTube Channel is one of the most subscribed Christian YouTube channels worldwide, having amassed 275,000 subscribers and over 105 millions views since its inception. Google ranked one of Emmanuel TV's YouTube videos as the fourth most viewed clip ever within Nigeria.[80]

Personal life

Joshua is married to Evelyn Joshua. They have three children.[81] His eldest daughter Serah Joshua has graduated from the London School of Economics, Department of Law.[82]

Criticism

Joshua has many critics.[83]

According to media reports, at least three people in London with HIV have died after they stopped taking life saving drugs on the advice of their evangelical Christian pastors. "The women died after attending churches in London where they were encouraged to stop taking the antiretroviral drugs in the belief that God would heal them." The HIV prevention charity African Health Policy Network (AHPN) believed that the SCOAN, which has UK headquarters in Southwark, south London, "may" be one of those involved in such practices. However the three in question have no demonstrable link to the SCOAN. The BBC quoted the SCOAN as saying "No, we do not ask people to stop taking their medication".[84]

On 14 September 2015 it was reported that Joshua "secretly purchase[d] [a] $60 Million Gulfstream G550 Private Jet".[85] He claimed that "the jet was paid for by at least eight African Heads of State in 2014".[86] These rumors were dismissed as false by Ezekiel,[87] a media aide of Joshua but subsequently he was seen disembarking in Tanzania from the same jet he claimed not to own.[88]

Books written by T. B. Joshua

References

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  27. ↑ TB Joshua Lagos church collapse: Many South Africans dead BBC
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External links

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