Controversial Nigerian televangelist T. B. Joshua dies at 57
Temitope Balogun Joshua, one of Africa’s most popular televangelists, died on June 5. He was 57.
The Nigerian-born pastor, known as T. B. Joshua, was founder of the megachurch Synagogue, Church of All Nations, which also runs the Emmanuel TV station in Lagos.
No cause of death was given.
“God has taken His servant Prophet T. B. Joshua home—as it should be by divine will,” SCOAN said in a statement, adding that “his last moments on earth were spent in the service of God. This is what he was born for, lived for and died for.”
T. B. Joshua was noted for making predictions and for his claims to cure various ailments and to make people prosper through miracles. He was controversial, with critics questioning his claims and saying he profited off of people seeking hope. In April, Joshua was blocked from YouTube after his church published videos of him claiming to “cure” LGBTQ congregants of their sexuality.
More than 15,000 people from Nigeria and abroad attend SCOAN’s Sunday services.
Many African presidents, senior government officials, international soccer players, musicians, and other high-profile guests have worshiped in the church. Joshua was popular in many African countries and in South America, where he had held many religious crusades. —Associated Press
