Saving Africa- One Faith Healer At A Time
June 27th, 2007 | by Ken Grandlund |In their never-ending effort to save souls and pocket cash, Christian Evangelicals have found a treasure trove in Africa-again.
Pentacostalism is flourishing in Africa these days, promising prosperity, miracle cures, and spiritual redemption to a continent ravaged by famine, poverty, civil war and rampant bloodshed. And, not surprisingly, American televangelists and their protege’s are reaping the benefits of pushing their ‘fire and brimstone’ on the under-educated, highly suceptible native populations.
From Reuters:
As the miracle-healer descended from the sky in an immaculate white helicopter, his disciples cheered with joy: “Hallelujah! Praise Jesus.”
Gospel songs thundered through the speakers as televangelist Benny Hinn landed outside Uganda’s national stadium last month, before addressing 40,000 enraptured faithful.
His white suit picked out by floodlights, the U.S.-based preacher promised a “miracle crusade” to heal the sick, make the blind see and the lame walk. “In Jesus’ name, lift your hands and sing,” he cried, almost drowned out by cheering.
Promising prosperity, miracle cures and life-changing spiritual experiences, the “born again” faiths that are the staple of America’s multi-millionaire televangelists are fast taking over the world’s poorest continent.
For many, they offer hope. In Hinn’s front seats, ringed with collection buckets, sat people in wheelchairs, AIDS patients, children with deformities.
Did you get that? Promising miracle cures while passing around the collection buckets. To groups of people who make less in a year that that shiny white suit. And these people call themselves Christians? I thought Christians were supposed to care for the sick and poor, not fleece them.
Christianity, and particularly Pentacostalism, is flourishing in southern Africa (North of the Sahara, Islam still control the spiritual minds of the populace, and the mullah-led governments seem intent on keeping it that way, passing laws in some countries that forbids conversion of Muslims) in large part due to American missionaries like that of the good Reverend Hinn and political leaders like Sam Brownback, a GOP presidential candidate who encourages African missions based on “biblical reasons.”
But what are the people of Africa really getting from all this Christian indoctrination? Certainly, Pentacostalism’s more vibrant brand of worship appeals to a continent steeped in showy ritualistic spiritualism. It has that hook that the people can relate to. Speaking in tongues, ecstatic healings, fevered mass prayer. These aspects surely inject some momentary relief from the travails of day to day subsistence. But when the tent flaps close, it’s back to the malaria, hunger, and civil war again. In a land where living past five years is a major milestone, it’s easy to see why the supernatural promise of a better life after death is compelling. But wouldn’t it be even better to have some help in the here and now?
But instead of using their growing influence to promote better education, reduce health concerns, and mitigate explosive birth rates that inevitably end up with high youth mortality, Africa’s evangelical missionaries are simply there to collect a paycheck.
America’s preachers have long grasped the potential material rewards of their spiritual gifts.
Hinn has said he earns up to $1 million a year, lives in a $10 million seaside mansion and owns a private jet. Creflo Dollar, who visited Uganda this month, drives a Rolls Royce.
Africa’s preachers are learning fast.
At Uganda’s Holy Fire Ministry — a marquee beside a dirt track near the airport — hundreds line up for blessings from “Prophet” Pius Muwanguzi, whose purported talents include curing AIDS by touching the forehead.
In the kneeling congregation: a polio victim, a blind man and a girl who lost her phone.
The pastor touches an old woman, she faints. Then out come the collection envelopes. Minimum is 100,000 Uganda shillings ($62.5), although the poor can give as little as 10,000 to receive a blessing.
Muwanguzi, whose own blessings include a smart suit and a new Toyota Land Cruiser, declined an interview. But his secretary Jackie Kamanyire said payments were voluntary.
Nothing like stealing from the poor to make you feel all warm and Godly, right? Unfortunately, the “cures” are nothing of the sort, and at the end of the day, those coming for help are still sick, and now, thanks to the miracle of the healer, they are that much poorer too.
Francis Adroa gave her car to a Ugandan church promising to cure her of HIV/AIDS. The miracle failed, she got sicker. And she’s now a pedestrian.
A few centuries ago, white people used Christianity and the Bible to justify the slave trade. Now they’re using Christianity and the Bible to keep the poorest nations in the world impoverished. And with complicity from the American (and other western) government (specifically the President’s faith-based funding for programs in Africa and his “abstinence/no-contraceptive” programs there), they’re assuring that Africa stays poor, under-educated, and over-populated for a good long time.
People wonder why I despise organized religion and those who preach it the loudest. Could it be the blatant hypocrisy that it surrounds itself with? Gee…I wonder.
7 Responses to “Saving Africa- One Faith Healer At A Time”
By SteveIL on Jun 27, 2007 | Reply
The only ones keeping the poor in Africa are those leftist pieces of human garbage in the UN, and the verminous tyrants who rule these countries. All the UN does is give recognition to the tyrants who are truly keeping their people poor in order to maintain power. And then whine when the U.S. government doesn’t give enough money, when in actuality, the American people give away billions on their own to the groups that actually do want to help. How the hell do you know that these missionaries are trying to keep poor people impoverished? It’s actually verminous leftist trash (Robert Mugabe) making more poor people impoverished, not the other way around. The article you linked to noted that the person who got suckered into giving her car away was the exception, not the rule. It is pigs like Mugabe who are the failures, and are trying to use Pentecostals as a way to minimize the massive disaster he has created for his own people.
Hypocrisy? The hypocrisy is where it always has been; with the tyrant-enabling, lying leftists. And by the way, I noticed how you glossed over what the Islamofascists are doing north of the Sahara. That would include committing genocide in Sudan. Or did you forget that Sudan is in Africa and ruled by an Islamofascist government?
By Tom Harper on Jun 27, 2007 | Reply
Those starving Africans don’t need food; they need the Love of Jesus
This story isn’t surprising. Wherever there’s human suffering, these phony “Christians” see a chance for more power and more conversions.
By ken grandlund on Jun 27, 2007 | Reply
Of course SteveIL, it’s always the “leftists” who are ruining the world. But as always with your comments, you stray from the post topic at hand and try to interject other arguments that weren’t made.
Of course the tyrannical and/or corrupt governments play a significant role in Africa’s poverty and civil wars. But the fact I didn’t expand on that reality has no bearing on the fraudulent actions of the “faith healers.” I also didn’t mention that the sky in Africa is blue, but that doesn’t mean I don’t realize that as fact.
How do I know that the Xtian missionaries aren’t trying to keep people impoverished? Maybe I make the assumption based on the evidence- give us your money for a miracle from god. Taking from the poor enhances poverty, don’t you think? Especially when the takers aren’t exactly in need of the dough.
You said that the woman who lost her car is an exception. Okay, probably so. After all, she actually had a car to lose. Many in Africa don’t even have that.
And again, I mention the Islamic govt’s in the north briefly, but only because this article is about the Christian charlatans, not the Islamic whacko’s. Both are a blemish on mankind, but I wouldn’t expect you to accept that either.
But thanks, for never failng to try to steer a topic off course with things that were never part of the conversation to begin with.
By Ron on Jun 27, 2007 | Reply
Benny Hinn is a total scumbag. Him and his ilk.
By SteveIL on Jun 27, 2007 | Reply
It’s about time you understood that.
Fraudulent actions of spiritual leaders? How do you know it’s fraudulent? Isn’t hope, a big deal in Christianity, a good thing, backed up by help? So what if they don’t do things your way, with all this great “science”? Not all of them are going on faith healing, and something must be working or people would see through guys like Hinn (no, I am in no way affiliated with him or his church) if they only relied on faith healing.
And yeah, I can understand your point about this article being about what you think are Christian charlatans, although the piece was not negative (surprisingly, it mentioned both good and bad). But as far as the Islamist “whackos” north of the Sahara being the same or similar as the Christian “charlatans” in the south, I have a couple of questions for you. How many of those Christian “charlatans” have put millions of people into, let’s be honest, concentration camps for the purpose of being slaughtered when nobody is watching, as those Islamists in Sudan are doing? And, how many of those Christian “charlatans” have turned a country that was the breadbasket of Africe only a few years ago into cesspool of poverty as that leftist scum Mugabe has done in Zimbabwe? Now, I’m not talking about what happened decades and decades ago; I’m talking today. White European colonialism is dead and buried, and has been for a long time. Using that argument is just an excuse.
How am I steering things off topic? If the topic was just to slam Christianity, then I did steer off topic. Sorry to intrude on your “party”. Sorry to inform you that there are Christians, even Pentecostals, trying to do something that the governments of the nations they are in aren’t doing. And, they’re getting insulted and no recognition for it.
To repeat what you said:
And, like I said, it’s about time you understood that.
By Froenx on Jun 29, 2007 | Reply
This has nothing to do with left or right.. but of course some people have to throw in the ‘blame the left’ red herring.
Yawn.
How about we focus on the real problem. the dictators and tyrants running the places.
Sending aid does not help. it only goes to their coffers.
By liberal vet on Jun 29, 2007 | Reply
Why am I not surprised that money grubbing televangelists are taking advantage of the poor and promising them eternal life. We liberals love to impose unnecessary regulations. And we only support stem cell research because we love abortion and a blastocyst is the next best thing. Oh and global warming how naive can we liberals get. Conservatives have all the answers. Geeze is that why they care more about those unborn than those alive and suffering while the elitist wallow in untold fortunes. LV