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THE SYNAGOGUE: CHURCH OF ALL NATIONS & PROPHET T.B. JOSHUA My Experience by Dagñea
Teshome November 2002 I first came to know about The Synagogue, Church of all Nations & Prophet T.B. Joshua by viewing one of the videotape documentations of miracles at The Synagogue, "Divine Miracles Tape #1". By the time the videotape ended, I had made up my mind that I would travel to Nigeria as-soon-as-possible! If this is indeed what The Synagogue claims that it is, i.e., actual miracles that are taking place in the name of Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, this to me is the single most important phenomena that I ever had the opportunity to witness - I was not about to miss it for anything! I went to my office and started searching the Internet for any reference to "The Synagogue" and/or "T.B. Joshua". To my pleasant surprise, I found multiple links to sites that had to do with my topic of interest. What's more, I came across the official web site for The Synagogue! I read everything I found, very late into the night. I also found the telephone number for The Synagogue and attempted to speak to someone, without success. That night, I sent an email requesting for information on what the requirements were for visiting The Synagogue. The next day, I continued my research. Shortly afterwards, my research turned into an "investigation" because, by then, I had come across a lot of negative publicity against the overseer of The Synagogue, Prophet T. B. Joshua. Now, my research concentrated on finding as much about the negative reports on T. B. Joshua's healing ministry. To my surprise, most
people attested to the authenticity of the miracles. The only point of
contention was the source of the power by which the miracles were worked.
A number of people asserted that T. B. Joshua is not a man of God as he
claims to be and that the miracles that he claims to work in the name
of Jesus Christ were in fact worked by the power of satan! Many claimed
that he mixes witchcraft with Christianity and that he is no more than
an advanced practitioner of witchcraft. After reading numerous negative articles and outright condemnations of Prophet T. B. Joshua, I was not convinced that he was a false prophet and an agent of satan. I actually became more concerned about the honesty of his accusers rather than that of T. B. Joshua. I was extremely disappointed with the lack of depth and substance in the accusations leveled against him. Most of the accusations were based on answers T. B. Joshua supposedly gave during interviews. His accusers have taken excerpts from these supposed interviews and tried to infer doctrinal position out of them to prove their points. No one, to my knowledge, had gone over the 14 or so sermons that are available on his web site, analyzed the sermons and presented a biblically sound argument as to the flaw of his teaching and/or doctrine. No one, to my knowledge, has gone to The Synagogue, taped his teaching and presented an objective, documented proof of T. B. Joshua's false teachings and counterfeit miracles. Instead, his detractors have chosen to wage a concerted smear campaign based on innuendo and rumors such as claims that he performs animal sacrifice. One report alleged that T. B. Joshua does not travel outside Nigeria to conduct crusades because he will not be able to perform his animal sacrifices and consequently not be able to make his miracles. What I found most disturbing is that people who are supposed to be religious leaders and men of God are hurling all these accusations without an iota of evidence. What is so disappointing is that prominent Christian journals such as Charisma simply echo these groundless accusations rather than conduct objective investigations and bring the truth to its readership. If uncovering the truth and exposing highly publicized claims of miracles in the name of Jesus Christ is not within the scope of Charisma's mission, I would urge the editor of the journal to leave sensationalism to the National Enquirer. At this point, having done as much research as I possibly could, on the Internet, and having ordered and viewed five videos of miracles at The Synagogue very critically, I decided to go to Nigeria and see for myself. I said to myself, if this is indeed a man of God, and if the miracles that take place at The Synagogue are done by the power of the Holy Spirit, even I may be cured from my diabetes. On the other hand, if I find the slightest evidence indicating T. B. Joshua to be a sorcerer, and the miracles to be made by "forces" of satan, I would not want anything to do with it. I promised myself that I will expose him to the world. Well, I boarded a plane and headed to Lagos, Nigeria exactly a year ago this month ( November 25, 2002), a few days after I saw the first video. I will not go into the details (procedures and protocol) of my stay at The Synagogue because they have a pretty standard program for accommodating visitors. For those interested in the details, a reporter from the magazine, The Remnant, has written and published an in-depth article. I would, however, like to say that the people at The Synagogue were very friendly and very hospitable. The staff was highly disciplined, courteous, and professional. I would like to make the following observations in regards to the staff and the general social climate at the synagogue. In general, the "disciples" (as the people assisting Prophet T. B. Joshua closely are called) and the general staff do not appear to be overly friendly. That is, they are not outgoing in that, they do not freely talk to the visitors, smile that much or even appear to want to carry extended conversations. They are cordial but rather "mechanical" in their interaction with visitors. I believe it is this perception that prompted one prominent pastor visiting from the USA to make the comment "… his followers appear to be zombie like…" During my first few days at The Synagogue, I formed a similar opinion as the pastor who felt that the followers were zombie like. Upon careful reflection and after talking to some of the other visitors who have been at The Synagogue before, however, I came to realize that a strict code of conduct is enforced. The disciples and the general staff are given strict instructions not to solicit the visitors, give interviews or otherwise engage in any activity that may be misleading or cause misunderstanding. Considering the many detractors of Prophet T. B. Joshua and The Synagogue, I completely understood. In hindsight, now I know why Prophet T. B. Joshua says "silence can not be misquoted". Another observation that I quickly made was that The Synagogue has strict rules in regards to visitors leaving the compound of The Synagogue and regarding interactions with the local people. When I attempted to walk out of the compound to look around the city, a staff member carrying a walkie-talkie stopped me. He asked me to please come back inside. I did not argue. Considering the crime rate in Lagos, Nigeria, I understood the motivation behind this restriction. These and other practices at The Synagogue may lead some to make hasty and unfair conclusions. It is my sincere belief that one needs to consider the cultural, social, organizational and other factors that may lead the people at The Synagogue to conduct business in the manner they do before passing judgments and making accusations. I think it is only fair that I talk about my own experience at the prayer line - this is where Prophet T. B. Joshua prays for people. As I explained earlier, upon arrival at The Synagogue, I was not fully convinced that the miracles were made by the Holy Spirit. I went to the prayer line with doubts in my mind. When Prophet T. B. Joshua prayed for me, nothing spectacular happened. He came by and stretched his hand out at me and asked me to stand. I stood up. He looked at me for a brief moment and left. He did this twice. With most people he prays for, he would say you are free, or some "force" would take over the persons body and the person would either fall down or move involuntarily. With me, nothing happened. I was somewhat disappointed, but deep inside I felt that one has to believe before receiving his/her healing. In my case, I did not have such a conviction. When I arrived in Lagos, Nigeria, at The Synagogue, I was only about 60% sure of the legitimacy of T. B. Joshua as a man of God. By the time I left The Synagogue, I was as certain as one can be about T.B. Joshua's honesty and that he is a man of God and that he is used by the Holy Spirit in a mighty way. May all the glory be to God
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