Be careful how you use your influence

THE bizarre church service in Kramerville, Sandton, at which a pastor pretended to raise a man from the dead, has once again placed so-called independent churches under the spotlight.

A video doing the rounds shows pastor Alph Lukau of the Alleluia Ministries International praying over a coffin. The man in a white suit lying inside the coffin had apparently fallen sick and died in hospital last Friday.

The man, at the pastor’s command, is seen coming to life and rising from his coffin, and the congregation breaks out in ululation and glorious gratitude at this apparent miracle. To them, this “resurrection” was similar to the miracle of Lazarus, related in the Gospel of John, in which Jesus restores Lazarus to life four days after his death.

However, the miracle of Kramerville is no miracle at all, but a sham designed to hoodwink the vulnerable and gullible, of whom there are many.

This is one in a long line of events about believers who fall under the spell of messianic leaders. Over the years there have been many cases of those who blindly follow, with tragic results.

The Rev Jim Jones takes credit for the highest body count when he gave cyanide-spiked grape punch to over 900 disciples of his People’s Temple in Jonestown, Guyana, in 1978.

Near Seoul, South Korea, in 1988, 33 members of a cult which idolised a 48-year-old woman, Park Soon Ja, killed themselves in a mass sacrifice.

In April 1993, after a 51-day siege, FBI agents stormed David Koresh’s Kingdom of Heaven in Waco, Texas. Eighty-three members of the Branch Davidians died after they set their compound on fire.

In March 1995, the Aum Shinri Kyo cult’s sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway caused 12 deaths and poisoned 5 500 more commuters. Their leader, Shoko Asahara, along with six other cult members, was hanged on July 6, 2018, 23 years after the sarin attack.

This is not to say that Lukau’s church is a cult – but there’s no doubt that it commands tremendous influence and power over its members.

Polls show 62% of Americans have “no doubt” Jesus will come to earth again; 40% accept the Bible as the literal word of God and around 8 million are committed to the “premillennialist” scenario in the Book of Revelation.

Church leaders hold strong sway in society, and must be careful how they use this power. Otherwise the argument for the regulation of religious practices will gain traction.