My Analysis
Healings
and miracles reported in Happy Science
Last Saturday
thousands of Ugandans reportedly
attended Ryuho Okawa’s first happy science lecture in Africa.
Pentecostal pastors have come out vehemently to declare this new religion a cult
and have also called upon government to limit
freedom of expression. Despite numerous
warnings about the dangers of the false American prosperity gospel of greed, Pentecostal
pastors have continued to support this false gospel. Ryuho Okawa’s happy science gospel is also fundamentally
premised on the material prosperity gospel. Happy Science Uganda has a
programme on UBC TV where it aired some of the testimonies of its converts. A muslim
boy in Tororo who converted to Happy Science
gave a testimony on how Lord El Cantare
saved him from an accident by reciting prayers from the Happy Science book darma
of the right mind. This young man said that all these other religions only
divide people. Another old man gave a testimony of how Lord El Cantare healed his leg- previously this man
could not ride a bicycle but now he said he can ride from his village to
Tororo town thanks to happy science. There you go, even in happy science they are
miracles and healings. However, un like some Pentecostal pastors who charge
money for prayers , I have not yet seen prayers for sale in Happy Science .
The Pentecostal
movement as a burden to the poor
Many Pentecostal
churches in Uganda
really ridicule the poor . They are preaching that it is very difficult for a poor
man to enter heaven, contrary to what the Lord Jesus Christ taught. Pastors are
telling believers that they are poor because of a poverty curse that needs to
be broken. They teach believers that they are poor and are having financial
problems and even marital problems because they do not tithe. The poor have
started to wonder why non-of the Apostles of Jesus taught tithing and why
tithing is absent from the Acts of the Apostles. Many Pentecostal pastors ridicule the poor who come with coins in the
church. Many pastors call the churches and so called cathedrals they have constructed
God’s houses. If that building or
cathedral is God’s house, how comes the pastors’ house is more elegant and
cleaner than the church building(God’s house)???? How comes the church where
services are conducted and where God dwells is full of dust yet the pastor’s house is full of
tiles. There are pastors in Uganda
who have houses that cost over 500 million Uganda shillings yet their churches
are mere sharks.
Ryuho
Okawa Versus Benny Hinn
Unlike
Benny who charged 50 U.S $ (over 80,000 ug. Shillings ) per person for
attending his conference in 2007 , Ryuho Okawa charged as follows : Sh
2,000 (Pavilion), to Sh 5,000 (Silver Pitch ) to Sh, 10,000 (VIP Gold Pitch). Ryuho
Okawa did not charge even a VIP as much as 50$ . You should note that one US dollar
is currently equivalent to 2500 Uganda Shillings. So, who is more pro-poor???
Ryuho Okawa teaching Versus Pentecostal
Prosperity Gospel
During the Saturday lecture it was reported that;
‘’Speaking on a podium Okawa said
that people should stop segregating others, but instead focus things and
material peace that will lead them to prosperity. Okawa said that Africans need
to learn how to repent, fight poverty and donate to others. “It is through
giving and sharing wisdom that you will become independent,” he said. He
emphasized forgiveness and self-confidence and learning how to forgive
especially among Ugandans. “All people
are created as one, so you have to believe in forgiveness,” Okawa said that
Happy Science’s main goal is to create Utopia on Earth through Love and
Enlightenment. “To love is to give not to take from others. So, love can
overcome hatred. If you take from others, you always want to take from them,
but if you start giving, it creates harmony. It is a very simple way of
thinking, but difficult to do. So, teaching of giving love is very important,”
he said.’’, see, http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/632329-thousands-flock-happy-science-lecture.html
ON THE OTHER HAND
Some Pentecostals pastors preach
revenge i.e. sending witchcraft back to the sender (abizayo), some have been
caught in sodomy but have never repented, some are advocating for the killing of
gays using state laws, some are telling people to sow seeds in almost every sermon etc Pastor
Kayanja recently charged pastors of criminal trespass at his Rubaga miracle
centre cathedral. How can a born again believer commit trespass at God’s house???
And is this love???
So, my question is who is more
pro-poor?
Million dollar questions in the
minds of the poor in Uganda
1.
How comes most
Japanese nationals like Ryuho Okawa are not born again Christians, yet over 80
percent of the cars driven in Uganda are from Japan. There must be a secret. These
people must be having the true key to prosperity.
2.
How comes that most
of the Chinese who look like the Japanese are not born again Christians yet
they are materially prosperous. A number of cheap Chinese products are on the Ugandan market.
3.
How comes most humble
Ugandans doing business are able to secure visas to china and Dubai
to do trading, yet it is almost impossible for a humble Ugandan trader to
secure a visa to America and
Britain
to buy some goods for trading. China
and Dubai are not full of born again Christians like
America!!!
4.
How comes America-a born
again Christian nation is forcing us to allow homosexuality. What kind of God
do they worship?
5.
How comes Creflo
Dollar a popular American evangelist came to Uganda in 2007 to break the curse
of poverty but soon after his departure, the dollar went up, there were riots
in the country, food and fuel prices increased????
Summary
The
prosperity gospel in the Pentecostal movement is anti-poor and many poor have
started to question it. We should not be surprised when the poor go to cults
such as happy science. We must preach sound doctrine and the gospel of repentance.
We must love and respect the poor just like our Lord Jesus Christ. We must stop
exploiting the poor and supporting the exploiters of the poor.
Thousands flock Happy Science
lecture
Publish Date: Jun 25, 2012
Thousands
of Ugandans on Saturday flocked Namboole stadium to attend the first public
lecture by the founder of happy science.
Master
Ryuho Okawa who jetted in the country on Friday founded the movement in 1986.
The congregation came as far as Northern and Eastern
Uganda.
Despite
some drizzling, the stadium was filled before 2.00pm. Before his lecture that was televised live on
most local televisions, local musicians entertained people who were mainly
moved by happy science songs.
Musicians
Chameleon, Iryn and Benon thrilled the crowd with their performance as many
joined the floor to show their happiness.
Speaking
on a podium Okawa said that people should stop segregating others, but instead
focus things and material peace that will lead them to prosperity
Okawa
said that Africans need to learn how to repent, fight poverty and donate to
others. “It is through giving and sharing wisdom that you will become
independent,” he said.
He
emphasized forgiveness and self-confidence and learning how to forgive
especially among Ugandans. “All people
are created as one, so you have to believe in forgiveness,”
Okawa
said that Happy Science’s main goal is to create Utopia on Earth through Love
and Enlightenment.
“To love is to give not to take from others.
So, love can overcome hatred. If you take from others, you always want to take
from them, but if you start giving, it creates harmony. It is a very simple way
of thinking, but difficult to do. So, teaching of giving love is very
important,” he said.
The
movement was founded way back in 1986 in Japan with the aim of improving
peoples’ lives.
Today
it is one of the largest religious movements in Japan, and spreading across over 94
countries around the world with 11 million members (followers).
Okawa
adds that the aspect of enlightenment is aimed at looking within one’s self to
discover who they truly are.
“Through
studying the universal wisdom, people can learn the purpose of life and can
awaken to their true mission. “We believe any religious group can accept this
way of thinking because we take God to be light, love, truth and faith, so he
will always be around his people,” he says.
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