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2. The Prosperity Gospel

by The Global Conversation

30 days ago

1. The Global Conversation - Intro October 2009

by The Global Conversation

2 months ago

In November the Global Conversation focuses on the prosperity gospel—the teaching that true Christian faith results in material wealth and physical well-being. While it has its roots in America, it has found fertile soil on other continents as well. To accompany the lead article in Christianity Today by Ghanaian scholar Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, director Nathan Clarke went to Ghana to explore the forms the prosperity gospel takes in that West African nation.

Read about the "behind the scenes" story - bit.ly/1oRzUb

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26 Likes

SaturateOnline
1 day ago
Chuck Fowler
3 days ago
Phil Snelling
3 days ago
ey3zack
7 days ago
Heather Harden
8 days ago
Jonathan Smith
9 days ago
Stuart Jones
12 days ago
Fayola Shakes
12 days ago
agusto nunez
13 days ago
Laurence Tom
13 days ago
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Chris Sinclair 22 days ago

this was really well done. didn't pull any punches. looked at things honestly (love the first person perspective). this is the sort of thing that others would usually point at and say 'yeah christianity is pretty invalid' like Jesus Camp or something. but you told the story in a way that made me actually appreciate the REAL Christ MORE by your balanced awareness of who was out of the picture as much as in it.
well done.
The Global Conversation 21 days ago

Thanks Chris - I appreciate your comments.
Chronicle Project 18 days ago

We like this.
Midnight Cry 17 days ago

Very well done. This is tragic, demonic, a complete misrepresentation of the gospel of Christ. Having lived in Africa for some time (2005-2006) you see the impact that this US-exported form of religion has firsthand. False promises, disappointment, recklessness and the like are the foundations of this teaching.

How men can rape the poorest of the poor like this is the very heart of darkness.

The man who claimed that God told him to "make sure they give in dollars!"... what can you possibly say?
The Global Conversation 17 days ago

Thanks for your comments Midnight Cry. One of the unexpected discoveries of my time in Africa was the role that prosperity teaching plays in helping people develop better work patterns. Wiser people have equated it to a new type of protestant work ethic. While some prosperity gospel teachers say that your financial blessings will come with sacrificial giving (like the first guy in the video) others encourage people to work hard and apply themselves (the second pastor.) In my life, my family played that role (and my mom played it well when she never let me quit the soccer team I wanted to abandon.) In Africa, that system is compromised because of a variety of factors like poverty and AIDS. So this teaching is filling that vacuum. It's an interesting element to what is becoming in my mind a very complex problem
-Nathan Clarke
Heather Harden 5 days ago

Nathan, there is so much need in Africa. But to you the Gospel to teach "a better work ethic" is not acceptable. That is not the Gospel.
I encourage you to check out a ministry that is meeting people’s spiritual and physical needs in S. Africa without asking anything in return.
ChangingTomorrow.net
Wim and Hylien Van Rensburg sold their business to minister to the people of Africa. I am a part of Susan's Kids (www.SusansKids.com), a NC charity that support Changing Tomorrow Children's Foundation.
I heard about your documentary through Wretched Radio (www.WretchedRadio.com) Is this clip the entire documentary? If not, where can I see the rest?

Heather Harden
Nathan Clarke 4 days ago

Heather - at the risk of being defensive, I did not say that the Gospel only teaches a "better work ethic." Heavens no!! I believe if you read my post, I state that this concept of work ethic has been a by-product of the "prosperity gospel." I am all for holistic approaches to mission, in fact one of the stories we will be telling as part of the Global Conversation is a very inspiring example of meeting all sorts of needs in Northern Thailand. You can see that in a couple of months.

In regards to your other question about the documentary length, this is it. I'd love to pursue this story more and if we can find funding, that might be an option.
Jerrold Daniels 16 days ago

Thank you for this! It brings a whole new dynamic to the conversation when it's taken to the global scale. We have been having an ongoing dialog about this very subject on our blog and we'd love insight from others who are educated in this area. tinyurl.com/yj32obo
Jonathan Moss 16 days ago

What is the song that begins at 2:45? It's extremely good. And as a whole, the video was incredible.

Incredible and so sad. Thanks for putting this up and making us aware of the prosperity gospel and the damage that is being done outside of America.
The Global Conversation 16 days ago

Jonathan, thanks for your kind words.
The music is production music - no artist that you can buy off the street.
P. Higgins 16 days ago

Great/sad video.....beautifully shot. The first pastor's white shoes are stellar. Unfortunately, Nordstrom doesn't carry them, but I will keep looking.
Nathan Clarke 16 days ago

Perhaps prayer will help you in your quest
btz.lt 16 days ago

Thank you!
Paula Rennie 15 days ago

Very nicely done Nate, but the preachiness induced something akin to a bad acid flashback :). I must say, I'd never seen a preacher in white lace, but the shoes came close to the sartorial excess of one bloated buffoon I had the great misfortune to see not once, but twice. I'm allergic to most "gospels", the prosperity gospel in particular, and I've always wondered how those who buy into it and fail financially feel - abandoned? It's a cure for one guy's poverty - the one in the shoes.
Keep up the really great work!
Auntie P.
Nathan Clarke 15 days ago

Thanks Paula. I'd love to do a piece that profiles people that are in the "audience" and buy into it, but for this project, time did not allow for that. I think it would make for an interesting documentary - the prosperity gospel from the other side - a bottom up view.
Paula Rennie 15 days ago

Exactly!
Feingut 15 days ago

"Jonathan, thanks for your kind words.
The music is production music - no artist that you can buy off the street."

Who produced it?
Steve@316 11 days ago

Anytime someone has added ANYTHING before the word "Gospel", it is no gospel at all. Breaks my heart.
gnpcb.org/esv/search/?q=1+Corinthians+15%3A1-11
Heather Harden 5 days ago

Steve, you are so right. There is only one Gospel and that is the one given to us by Jesus Christ through His infalliable word, the Bible.
Dan Seely 3 days ago

Great video! I am currently living and ministering in Africa and have seen first-hand the long term effects and mindset that the prosperity gospel produces. People are "coming to Jesus" not because they have been regenerated or are responding to the grace of God but because they want something for themselves. Now I'm not saying that it's wrong for genuinely poor people to desire to have their physical needs met, but it is absolutely wrong to twist the true gospel so that people respond to get their needs met.

The prosperity "gospel" is one of those "another gospel[s]" that Paul talks about in Gal 1:6-9. It takes the eternal message of Christ and perverts it with a message of immediate, physical, and material blessings. For those who say that desiring and praying for and "craving prosperity is non-negotiable," what about 1 Timothy 6:6-11? They must ignore or twist this passage to continue preaching like they are.

These prosperity preachers are literally robbing from the poor by giving false promises of material blessings which they say are sure to come "if you have enough faith" - a faith which must be evidenced by giving money to these false prophets so they can get rich.