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South African 'resurrection' hoax goes viral

By T.K. Randall
February 27, 2019 · Comment icon 8 comments

The man clearly wasn't dead to begin with. Image Credit: Alleluia Ministries International
A pastor who 'resurrected' a man at a funeral recently is now at the center of a viral Internet phenomenon.
The ridiculous stunt saw Prophet Alph Lukau of the Alleluia Ministries International Church perform an apparent 'miracle' by resurrecting a man who hadn't actually been dead in the first place.

To create the illusion of a resurrection, the 'deceased' man, who had been lying in a coffin with his mouth wide open, simply sat up when Lukau placed his hands on his chest and said "rise up!"

While the crowd seemed to be convinced by the stunt at the time, a viral video of the hoax has since landed Lukau in hot water with multiple funeral services suing him for "reputational damage."

Bishop Elly Mogodiri has also opened a criminal case against both Lukau and the Alleluia Ministries International Church on the basis of fraud, organized crime and misrepresentation.
"I have seen too much pulpit greed and commercialisation going on in the church, amongst other disturbing practices," he said. "Right now we are witnessing the staged fraudulent and unfaithful act of resurrecting a deceased person in the church of Alleluia Ministries International (AMI) under the leadership of prophet Alph Lukau."

"I am aware and have been duly advised that this case falls within the ambit of organized crime, fraud and misrepresentation amongst other misdemeanours."

Footage of the stunt, which has gone viral in South Africa, has proven so popular that other people have now started mimicking it as part of what has become known as the 'resurrection challenge.'

Some examples, including a clip of the hoax itself, can be viewed below.



Source: IOL.co.za | Comments (8)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #1 Posted by esoteric_toad 6 years ago
What the heck is a "viral internet phenomenon"?  It's just a video of a religious figure propegating a hoax. Something that has happened many many times and will likely carry on many many more times.
Comment icon #2 Posted by bison 6 years ago
Two questions come to mind. Was it actually intended that people believe that a dead man was brought back to life, or was this merely a sort of religious 'theatre', where a supposed miracle from ures was being reenacted? I once saw a man in a white robe dragging a wooden cross, whilst being whipped by two men dressed as Roman soldiers. They made their way to a local church, at Easter. I didn't jump to the conclusion that they were literally trying to pass the robed man off as Jesus. Had the supposed dead man in this case received a certificate of death? Not proof, of course, since mista... [More]
Comment icon #3 Posted by FlyingAngel 6 years ago
Words "pastor, religion (link to God) and hoax" don't seems to go well together
Comment icon #4 Posted by EnderOTD 6 years ago
Fake!
Comment icon #5 Posted by Jon the frog 6 years ago
After embalming... you are surely and definitively dead.
Comment icon #6 Posted by Jon the frog 6 years ago
You are sarcastic don't you !
Comment icon #7 Posted by Seti42 6 years ago
If you follow a douche who calls himself 'prophet', you are a fool. Also, if you give money to a 'church' that isn't 100% transparent about its non-profit charity work, you are a fool. These people/organizations should be forced to put 'for entertainment purposes only' and 'I am a performer' in big letters on every sign and pamphlet they put out.
Comment icon #8 Posted by Princess Serenity 6 years ago
"Beware of the false prophet." |: Do religious people not understand that?


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