“Pope” Tsietsi Makiti lifts his hands towards the tavern goers and blesses them with the words: “Amstel! Hallelujah!”
“At Gabola tavern we drink, and we don’t hide from God that we are drinking,” says Makiti, who is dressed in traditional church robes and wears a mitre embroidered with a golden cross on his head.
“After the sermon we invite all new members to come forward and be baptised. You come with your beer, your water, your milk or tea and we baptise you with it.”
The Gabola church in Orange Farm, Johannesburg is one of many unconventional churches that have mushroomed across South Africa in recent years, prompting the CRL commission to launch an investigation into abuse in churches
TimesLIVE takes a closer look at some of the country's more unconventional churches and what attracts people to them.
Read the full in-depth feature on Times Select.
WATCH | 'Amstel! Hallelujah!': Inside SA's 'unconventional' churches
“Pope” Tsietsi Makiti lifts his hands towards the tavern goers and blesses them with the words: “Amstel! Hallelujah!”
“At Gabola tavern we drink, and we don’t hide from God that we are drinking,” says Makiti, who is dressed in traditional church robes and wears a mitre embroidered with a golden cross on his head.
“After the sermon we invite all new members to come forward and be baptised. You come with your beer, your water, your milk or tea and we baptise you with it.”
The Gabola church in Orange Farm, Johannesburg is one of many unconventional churches that have mushroomed across South Africa in recent years, prompting the CRL commission to launch an investigation into abuse in churches
TimesLIVE takes a closer look at some of the country's more unconventional churches and what attracts people to them.
Read the full in-depth feature on Times Select.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos