Durban - Grace Bible Church (GBC) bishop Mosa Sono has added his voice to South African religious leaders condemning an alleged "resurrection" that was filmed and spread via social media on Sunday last week.
Sono said via an emailed statement that GBC rejected the "so-called resurrection" and described the act as "blasphemy against God and a black mark on Christianity".
“We are appalled by the acts that have been described as miracles by so-called men of God, [done] to confuse and to take advantage of the gullibility of their congregants.
"As leaders in this sector, we need to stand up and defend Christianity against people who use deception to amass wealth. It is an indictment against the church of Jesus Christ and an abuse that the Word of God warns against. We call upon our law enforcement agencies to get to the bottom of these insensitive acts and bring to book people who break the law in the name of religion,” said Sono.
He said that GBC recently took part in a summit to discuss "controversial acts that have brought a spotlight upon the church".
The ultimate objective of the summit was to establish codes of conduct and to initiate peer review mechanisms to monitor the behaviour of leaders.
"The summit has set itself timelines to formally launch the body within this year, which will have a code of conduct and guidelines and accountability to act as a safeguard against those who transgress the rules and who act against the spirit of Christianity," said Sono.
"We are currently a laughing stock of the nation and the whole act has turned into a sick joke. This has gone far and we need to act now against these false prophets and re-establish the credibility of the church. People need to check the Word of God - which is the truth - and not believe in individuals who mislead them. We are sick and tired of being tarred with the same brush as these contemptuous people."
Sono encouraged those who knew the truth behind "these false acts" to expose the "impostors".