By Bongiwe Dlamini and Khetsiwe Khumalo | 2021-06-07

RENOWNED Nigerian televangelist and preacher Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua, widely known as Prophet T.B. Joshua (57) has passed on. He died on Saturday, according to his official social media platforms. Noteworthy is that the prophet died about a week before his 58th birthday on June 12, 2021. The cause of his death could not be ascertained.

Prophet T.B Joshua was the founder of The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN). Many Emaswati have been travelling to Nigeria to meet him for different reasons, including healing and luck. On Saturday after a prayer service in church, Prophet TB Joshua spoke during the Emmanuel TV Partners Meeting: “Time for everything - time to come here for prayer and time to return home after the service." "God has taken His servant Prophet TB Joshua home - as it should be by divine will. His last moments on earth were spent in the service of God. This is what he was born for, lived for and died for," a statement from the church read. Joshua's cause of death was not stated. Since his rise to prominence in the late 1990s, the popular preacher was renowned for his philanthropy, prosperity teachings, and purported healings and miracles. SCOAN plays host to dozens of international guests, and local celebrities, who visit the worship centre for prayers. He was famously known for his controversial predictions on politics, world events, and the economy, and for performing miracles which he often performed on the online digital media of the church, Emmanuel TV.

His predictions and prophecies were often not well-received by many who were of the view that he was phoney, especially when his predictions did not come true. Back in 2014, Joshua made headlines when 125 people, including 84 South Africans, died after a six-storey guesthouse located within the Synagogue Church of Nations (SCOAN) premises collapsed.

Relating to this incident, a local Pastor Thulani Dlamini of Tree of Life Healing Church, remembered how his whole family was spared from the catastrophic accident. In a month-old YouTube video titled ‘Tribute to Prophet TB Joshua’ that was shared on the church’s Facebook page yesterday, Pastor Dlamini said prior to the incident, he spent some time at a church opposite the SCOAN building where his family used to sleep.

Dlamini said God’s grace spared his family’s lives, and that after the incident, he got a message from God that those who died were not fools but martyrs. Worth noting is that the late philanthropist was Dlamini’s spiritual father who, according to the pastor, heavily influenced his life.

Dlamini stated that he first met the late prophet at a pastors' conference in Cape Town in 2004. There, the clergy stated that all pastors were prayed for and the prophet said, “now you have it.” The following year, 2005, Dlamini said he attended two another conferences in Botswana, where he met Prophet TB Joshua for the second time.

However, the pastor stated that the best memory he had with the prophet was in 2007 when he had a personal encounter with the prophet at the SCOAN in Nigeria where they locked hands and the prophet prayed for him. “My life was fully transformed. He prayed for me to make my way easy in working for the Lord. “It’s no surprise that amid all the challenges that I’ve been through I’m still standing,” Dlamini said.

He further mentioned that when he was diagnosed with COVID-19, he was healed after he touched a television screen when the prophet prayed. “I thank God for the life of Prophet TB Joshua. I don’t know what the earth would do without him,” stated the pastor. Tributes have been pouring in following the passing of the famous preacher. A Nigerian social commentator, Japheth Omojuwa, has described Joshua's death as ‘a big loss to Nigeria.’ "TB Joshua is a big loss to Nigeria and the Ikotun end of Lagos especially.

His church is one of the major points of tourist attractions to Nigeria and I can't begin to imagine the impact of his death on businesses, people and the less privileged in that area. May he Rest in Peace," Omojuwa tweeted yesterday morning. Additional report by BBC

..........................Church bodies mourn Prophet TB Joshua’s death

THE leadership of church bodies in the country have joined the world in passing their condolences upon hearing about the passing on of Nigerian prophet and televangelist Temitope Balogun Joshua, popularly known as TB Joshua. News of his death came as shock to League of African Churches President Bishop Samson Hlatshwako, who stated that they join the world in mourning after hearing the news about his death.

President Hlatshwako said the passing of the Nigerian televangelist was a huge loss to all people as he served as a proclaimed prophet to everyone all around the world. “My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and international congregants of the Synagogue Church of All Nations,” said Hlatshwako.

He further wished that everyone in mourning should put everything to God, for He knows the plans that He has for all people. Eswatini Conference of Churches Chief Executive Officer Themba Ngozo said as the church they would also like to pass their condolences to Prophet TB Joshua’s family and his church for his demise. “He will be remembered to many about his generous giving,” said Ngozo.

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