This archive report was first published on 3 July 2020.
As South Africa gradually eased its coronavirus lockdown in May, the Gabola church faced a challenge that went beyond the usual restrictions. Founded just two years ago, the church, whose name translates to 'drinking' in the local Tswana language, has made it an integral part of their worship to consume alcohol.
According to Reuters, the church's leader, Tsietsi Makiti, 55, explained that they tried to hold their usual meetings in local bars, called shebeens, but were soon arrested. Undeterred, they have been moving their services from place to place to avoid a run-in with the authorities.
On Sunday, worshippers gathered in a rubbish-strewn field in Evaton, south of Johannesburg, where the 'clergy' blessed beer bottles in prayer. Makiti, wearing a bishop's mitre with a miniature bottle of spirits hanging off it, proclaimed, 'At Gabola church you (bring)… the liquor of your choice… and the pastor will bless the liquor so that it will not be poisonous to your body.'
While some Protestant sects teach that alcohol is sinful and to be avoided, most mainstream Christian churches are not opposed to moderate drinking, citing Biblical stories such as Jesus turning water into wine at a wedding feast.
Despite observing all other coronavirus rules, including the limit of 50 people, the spacing out of chairs, and the use of hand sanitisers, the Gabola church's unconventional methods have put them at odds with the government's lockdown rules.
