Govt could be losing millions from prophets products
MBABANE – Government could be losing millions of Emalangeni from the proceeds of healing products sold by prophets in the country.
As observed recently, many people have been made to pay for miracle water, oil, towels as well as T-shirts in the form of offerings.
However, there has been a question of whether payment for the healing products should be classified as income or just offerings for the miracles. Some people believe the healing articles should be given free of charge, while others say there is nothing wrong with people paying for miracles.
Prophet Raphael Shabangu says there is nothing wrong with men of God charging people for water or anything, as a healing product.
Shabangu was asked specifically about the sale of holy water, holy T-shirts and holy oil, after more than 1 500 people queued for holy water provided by Malawian-born Prophet Shepherd Bushiri’s spiritual son Evangelist Brian Mukoyi at Enlightened Christian Gathering Church a fortnight ago.
Shabangu said what people needed to understand was that inasmuch as healing was for free; some men of God spent their own money in getting and arranging for the healing material such as the holy water and the T-shirts. “When you talk about healing, you need to understand the title and gift of the person used by God to perform the miracles. I am personally a prophet who has the gift of healing through laying hands on the sick. It is not all illnesses that could be healed through the laying of hands. When you consult the Holy Spirit, he will always guide you on what is to be done,” he said.
Asked if he charged for laying hands, Shabangu responded to the negative. However, he said people were at liberty to offer whatever, as the Bible provides that God’s servants should benefit from the church.
Shabangu stated that there were instances where people provided transport whenever they requested for prayer. “Some people give you more than the initial expenses. We morally keep the remaining money for ourselves because they give it from willing hearts,” he said.
To those who sold healing water, T-shirts and oil, Shabangu said he believed that they incurred expenses on the water bottles and the inscriptions, hence the charges.
He stated that he used anointing oil for anointing. At the moment, he said the oil was for free. Shabangu shared that every individual had the task to examine prophets before queueing for their healing products.
He said he was yearning to see Prophet Bushiri after he appeared to him in a dream. “I am not a fan of water but I can use it if provided by Bushiri. I did not care about Bushiri and his miracles until he appeared to me in a dream. In the dream, he approached me while seated in a restaurant. From that dream, God revealed that Bushiri had the grace of wealth and money and that whosoever received his miracles would receive wealth. Bushiri might have identified a clean well for the water, which he then prayed for. I am still trying to connect with him through his local congregants,” Shabangu said.
Zion
Khumbulani Ngwenya said one would have to understand Bushiri before commenting about his miracles. Ngwenya said to him, Bushiri was not different from the ancient Zion prophets, who used water for healing. He said the ancient prophets did not owe anyone an explanation about their secrets. “I am not Bushiri’s follower but I respect his miracles, Ngwenya said.
Apostolic Faith Mission Church Pastor Sandile Sibandze said signs had shown that many prophets across the world had shifted from the gospel. Sibandze said their names and miracles had been spread across the globe more than the name of Jesus had been spread.
Sibandze said inasmuch as he believed in miracles, the manner in which prophets of the current times performed them left a lot to be desired. He said miracles were first seen when Jesus accomplished his mission on earth. He said Jesus did wonders for the marginalised group in societies, without expecting any returns.
The man of God said even though Jesus performed miracles, he warned strongly about spreading the news. “What we see nowadays is totally different from what we learnt about Jesus. We never learnt about any healing substance or material with the inscription of Jesus, as it is happening nowadays. You find people queueing for bottled water with a sticker of a certain prophet, with the belief that those who consumed it would be healed. The Bible taught us that Jesus performed miracles as and when God commanded Him. There was no stock of water, T-shirts, juice or oil for sale during the time of Jesus,” Sibandze said.
He added “Sesikhweshile futsi sesidla egameni, meaning prophets are now taking advantage of the gospel.
Sibandze said every individual had a secret for healing. “You cannot stop stocking water, T-shirts or oil, as if all people need the same healing. The healing secret is revealed the moment you pray for the individual. At times, God can command you to pray for water to heal a certain illness. At times, you can pray for a cloth, depending on the guidance of the Holy Spirit,” he said.
The man of God lamented that people had shifted their faith from God and placed them on miracles.
Sibandze warned that people should be on their guard against false prophets as the Bible stated that there would be many at the end of times. He said miracles would never take anyone to heaven. Sibandze said Jesus considered individual faith before performing miracles. He made an example of a centurion whose servant was healed after Jesus had analysed her faith and spoke the Word.
He also made an example of the paralytic and a blind man who were healed because of their faith. “Let us look at the definition of a miracle. It is defined as a wonderful and surprising event that happens as a result of supernatural power. To me, that means, God can release a miracle through anyone with the gift of the Holy Spirit. I believe that through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, people can be healed with the use of water. It could be water from any source, “Sibandze said.
Witch doctors had something to share about healing products, in particular water. In an interview, Chairperson of Witch Doctors Association, Makhanya Makhanya, said what needed to be understood was that water was life with or without prayer. However, he said inasmuch as water was life, there were spirits that lived in water as it was home for other creatures.
Makhanya stated that those who understood water science knew the categories and purposes of water. “Water is just water, but works differently. In one river you can find many types of water for different purposes when it comes to healing. Water is named after the creatures that live in it,” he said.
Creatures
He made an example of a creature he referred to as ‘inkanyamba’ which survived in water. He said once the home for the creature was identified, people fetched the water with the spirit of the creature. He said if sure about the spirit, that water could be stored for healing purposes.
The witch doctor said at times, people used water with the spirit known as LaMlambo to remove certain spirits or bewitch others. “There is also water sourced from mortuaries. That water is bottled and stored for illegal use. One thing people should know is that anything associated with dead bodies is not righteousness and can be used for rituals,” he said.
Makhanya believes in the existence of holy water. He says water becomes holy if prayed for by a person with the gift of the Holy Spirit. The witchdoctor said prayerful people who could do wonders still existed even in Eswatini.
On the selling aspect, Makhanya said there was no way a real prophet could sell holy water.
He said there was something amiss about those who sold holy water. “When you read the Bible, you will see that a prayerful person has minimal association. He remains righteous. He does not attend funerals in order to stay holy,” Makhanya said.
He added that people could only make offerings in appreciation of what God had done for them through His servant. He warned that a real prophet did not accept money or any offering from a needy person. “What we see today is different from the teachings of Jesus. You find prophets taking money from the needy in exchange for healing, he said.