Nigerians React As Adeboye, Oyedepo, Kumuyi, Other Top Nigerian Pastors Keep Mute On TB Joshua’s Death
Popular Nigerian pastors have been silent until now in the midst of Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua’s untimely death.
T.B Joshua, a well-known preacher in Nigeria and Africa, including Asia, whose ability to perform miracles drew visitors from Europe, America, and other continents to Lagos, was verified deceased on Sunday morning.
The pastor was claimed to have died on Saturday after closing a presentation at the Synagogue Church Of All Nations, shocking his congregation and onlookers.
Politicians, friends, and well-wishers, as well as those who did not seem to approve of his ministry, have utilized various methods to express their condolences and sympathies to the departed family and his congregation.
However, some prominent ‘men of God’ in the country, such as Pastor Enoch Adeboye of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor W.F Kumuyi of Deeper Life Bible Church, Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith Church, Pastor Paul Enenche of Dunamis Church, Pastor Chris Oyakilome of Pastor Chris Okotie of Dunamis Church, to name a few, have refused to acknowledge T.B Joshua’s death.
When Dare, one of Pastor Adeboye’s sons, died, T. B Joshua was one of the first pastors to express his condolences and held a minute of silence for the 43-year-old pastor during his church service.
In a sympathy message to Pastor Adeboye and the Redeemed Christian Church Of God (RCCG), Joshua said the tragic event would not have occurred if God had not permitted it, adding that He did not require human approval to carry out His purpose.
In a live broadcast on Emmanuel TV, the clergyman added, “God does not require our permission; God’s time is the finest.”
“What matters is not how long we live, but how well we live,” he continued.
The reason for these Pentecostal pastors’ silence over Joshua’s death is unknown, but one thing is certain: the late clergyman was not a member of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, or the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, until his death.
There may have been a misunderstanding between Joshua and some of these renowned preachers, as Apostle Suleman Johnson of the Omega Fire Ministries in Edo State indicated. Suleman has said to his congregation on June 7, 2021, “Prophet T.B Joshua is too small.
“And my problem is that when I respond, I respond raw. I don’t edit. You are too small. The Synagogue is too small. Too small. I cannot fight…Church cannot fight Church. None of my pastors has followed me to my father in the Lord. Me, I book months before I see him. Then I carried a frustrated fat-bodied baboon to go and meet who? There’s no mountain on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. You’re sick! What I don’t understand is, was it a mistake? …”
But even at that, some Nigerians who spoke to DAILY POST on this matter shared a diverse opinion.
“It’s not biblical for anyone to hold grudges against their fellow human being even unto death. Although they might have sent their condolences to the family and Church without making it public. If there was a face-off between Joshua and Adeboye for instance, the former did not harbour it in his mind because immediately he learnt about Dare’s death, he sympathised with the RCCG leader,” Rebecca Akpan, a member of Assemblies of God, told our reporter.
According to Emmanuel Oche, “I’m sensing enmity, acrimony and envy among these pastors against the late Joshua. These top pastors are mainly known in Nigeria while T.B Joshua brought foreigners Nigeria. So, some of them might have felt belittled and this might have made them to develop everlasting hatred for him.”
Chidinma Ebuha believes that most of these pastors did not believe in T.B Joshua’s miracles. Although I’m not a believer of these miracles but, I really don’t think they should ignore him in death because of this. If my enemy dies, I will still condole with the family. It goes to tell you how Nigerian pastors operate. There’s so much hatred among them. God help us. The question is, would Jesus Christ had done the same?”
Whatever be the case, Nigerians are of the opinion that even though the cleric was denied membership by the leadership of CAN and PFN, individual pastors, who are members of both organisations, had the rights to condole with the grieving family and members of the Synagogue Church.
Recall that Rev. Chris Okotie, the Shepherd Superintendent of the Household of God Church, on Tuesday morning shared a cryptic post on his Facebook page in which he referenced a certain ”wizard of Endor” who assumed the title of ”Emmanuel”.
The clergyman in his post said the wizard who assumed the title of Emmanuel had been consumed by divine indignation. This, to many, was a veiled reference to the death of the acclaimed Prophet.
