大象传媒

"I was so thankful that at my age, at 18, I had discovered this. Grown men were moved to tears鈥� it was a collective state of euphoria."

Before his death in 2021, TB Joshua, the TV evangelist and founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations in Lagos, was often seen alongside presidents and powerful politicians. But for the last few weeks, he has been the subject of furious debate, after the publication of a 3-part documentary series which exposed his rape, abuse and mistreatment of his 鈥榙isciples鈥�.

The former disciples accuse him of using both fake miracles and threats to win and then retain followers.

His church didn鈥檛 respond to the allegations in the documentary series but said previous claims against TB Joshua have been unfounded.

In the first part of a two-part series on cults, prophets and religious leaders, Alan Kasujja hears about the experiences of one of TB Joshua鈥檚 disciples 鈥� and speaks to Professor Maria Frahm-Arp from the department of religious studies at the University of Johannesburg.

He discusses why prophet-led, 鈥榮ingle-man鈥� churches are so attractive to many people 鈥� and asks how people can spot if their church is actually a cult.

For more, listen to the World of Secrets 'Disciples' podcast from the 大象传媒 World Service. Or watch "Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua" on Youtube.