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--Ghana's super pastors
by Eva Wiseman
Question the methods of the super pastors bringing Ghana to a standstill and what happens? Their followers start praying for you…
I recently had the unpleasant experience of becoming a prisoner in my own home. For three days it was impossible to get on to the main road without sitting in traffic for hours. The queues started at 4am and ended well past midnight.
All this because a celebrity was in town. That's not uncommon in Ghana – the newly inaugurated President Obama made this the first African country he visited on a tour in 2009, drawing huge crowds. And we regularly attract superstars like Chris Brown, Jay-Z and Beyoncé, not to mention home-grown icons such as Sarkodie, Becca and Wizkid.
Yet none of them could dream of attracting the kind of numbers I saw at the end of my road. Only one kind of superstar can bring Accra to a standstill – and that's a prophet. This time it was TB Joshua, founder of the Synagogue, Church of All Nations, star of his own dedicated 24-hour TV channel Emmanuel TV, pastor to footballers and presidents, prophesier of the Boston Marathon bombing – or so he claims.
Joshua is based in Nigeria and doesn't visit Ghana often. He arrived dispensing healing and wise words in phrases with increasing emphasis: "You can stop Satan, you can drive out evil spirits, the demons keeping you poor, sick, unhappy, drive them OUT, be healed in the name of Jesus!"
Then he unveiled his latest product: "Holy Anointing Water, 2.0". Not just anointing water, but new anointing water. Even though the old version promised to cure sickness, create wealth, resolve marriages – it's hard to imagine how one could improve on such a product – the new version is apparently even better. Special offer car sticker and anointing water bumper packs were also available for around £25.
I don't mean to belittle anyone's faith. From a rational perspective, it's easy to see why – in a country like Ghana with no NHS, pension scheme or regular power supply – someone like Joshua might seem reliable by comparison. And when I went to a service to see what all the fuss was about, I found it genuinely uplifting. Imagine, several thousand people all singing, praying and meditating, united in the genuine belief that their lives are improving every time their heart beats – it creates an energy that only the most hardened sceptics could ignore.
But I just can't help but compute how many car stickers one has to sell to make $10m – Joshua's estimated income. Followers retort that, unlike many other churches, Joshua's does not require an upfront cash payment before dispensing healing. A comparison which leaves me speechless.
Joshua is by no means the worst offender when it comes to so-called "prosperity pimps". Fellow Nigerian David Oyedepo, founder of the Living Faith World Outreach Ministry, is reported to be worth $150m and owns four private aircraft.
When I asked one of Joshua's followers why he was spending about a quarter of his monthly income on some water and a car sticker, he said that the only appropriate response to my scepticism was to pray for me. Now this poor man is on his knees praying that I too will see the virtue in miracle-making car accessories.
I believe in religious freedom and everyone, from Joshua followers to atheists, should be free to practise as they please. But I don't see why the closest thing I have to a religious routine – getting my daughter to school on time – should be violated just because a mega pastor has come to town.
And speaking of little children, take them for a Sunday afternoon walk in a Ghanaian park at your peril. One sunny day, no sooner had we turned a corner in the lovely Aburi Botanical Gardens not far from Accra, than we stumbled upon a large group of women performing an exorcism. Much fainting, writing and speaking in tongues ensued. "Are they sick mummy?" asked a little voice. Well yes, dear, they are.
[END]
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