The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) has applauded the induction of its leader, Prophet TB Joshua, into the list of the world’s most influential personalities, and described the recognition as yet another encouraging testimony that the church is having a positive impact on humanity.
Prophet TB Joshua was recently listed by ‘The Society For The Recognition Of Famous People’ among the world’s most famous and influential spiritual and religious leaders.
The group’s website, www.thefamouspeople.com, places TB Joshua in the same category with other renowned spiritual and religious leaders including Pope Benedict XVI, John Wesley, Mother Teresa, John Buyan, St Francis of Assisi and some biblical characters.
Evangelist Samuel Excellence, a spokesperson for SCOAN in Ghana, spoke to this paper about the recognition: “If you watch the category of persons that have been acknowledged in the category where they place the man of God, you are talking about biblical characters like Isaiah, John the Baptist, Solomon, St Paul, Moses …have all been included in that category of recognition and most of them were even recognised posthumously.”
Evangelist Excellence continued: “But he (TB Joshua) is a living person whose impact is still being recognised in the world and for the Synagogue Church of All Nations, this is a credit that buttresses the point that we are following a man who is called and anointed by God to make an impact in his generation and his mission is changing lives, changing the nations, changing the world and that mission has been felt by the whole world now and that is why they are acknowledging him as one of the most influential people in the world.”
The SCOAN official said it was refreshing for such a recognition to have come at a time many are verbally lashing out at the church as a result of the September 12 tragedy it experienced.
“The man of God himself has always said that the attack and persecution we suffer at the hand of the adversary causes us to be known all over the world. It was just September 12, 2014 when our church had an attack … and the evidence on the ground proves that the man of God had no wrongdoing whatsoever in what happened. However, many people have used that to say all manner of things against him but in the middle of those negative things, we have another group of people seeing his good works and doing him this honour; and for me, this buttresses the point that the persecution we suffer causes us to be known all over the world.”
About 6,000 famous and influential individuals comprising business people, scientists, writers, musicians, sports persons, painters, physicians, singers, dancers, film and theatre personalities, activists, intellectuals, academics, fashion icons, media personalities, leaders, lawyers, engineers and inventors have so far been documented by the website.
Only four other Nigerians have so far been noted by the society, these being Nnamdi Azikwe, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka and President Goodluck Jonathan.
This recognition comes on the heels of another honour done TB Joshua where he was named the ‘Yoruba Man of the Decade’ for his contributions to humanity.
The first pan-Yoruba news medium, IrohinOdua, made the announcement via the Nigeria newspaper ‘Nigerian Tribune’.
It also announced that Nigerian Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka was named ‘Yoruba Man of the Year’ and Nigerian statesman Chief Obafemi Awolowo of blessed memory was awarded ‘Yoruba Man of the Century’.
According to the statement, the three personalities were selected after a careful consideration of the role each had played in the annals of modern Yoruba history.
The Yoruba people are one of the three prominent ethnic groups in Nigeria, constituting over 35 million people, of which 400,000 are said to be residing in Ghana.
Eulogising TB Joshua’s contribution to tourism in Nigeria, the Editorial Board Chairman forIrohinOdua, Prince Adeleke, said: “The ancestral origin of The Synagogue has transformed from a dingy wasteland into a local Disneyland drawing, in one year, millions of visitors to Nigeria from Africa, Europe, the Middle East and America.”
He continued, “We see in his handiwork, a quiet revolution to transform the world in ways unimaginable. Since we blew the whistle for nomination, we have received incalculable, baffling testimonials from royals and ordinary street folks, leading us to a hidden light in a dark, malicious world where the poor remain the dreg and the end butt of repression, neglect and perpetual want.”
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