PENTECOSTAL EVANGELIST REINHARD BONNKE PASSES ON AT 79
German evangelist Reinhard Bonnke, who drew huge crowds in Africa over decades of preaching, has died aged 79. The statement about his death first appeared on his Facebook page around 8:30 a.m. EST on December 7.
The statement reads in part, “It is with sorrow that the Bonnke Family would like to announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, and grandfather, Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke. He passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, on December 7, 2019. For the past 60 years, he has preached the glorious Gospel of Jesus throughout the entire world. We want to thank you on behalf of him and our family, for your kind love and unwavering support, which enabled him to preach the matchless message of salvation to countless people.”
The statement was written by Bonnke’s wife, Anni Bonnke.
Reinhard Bonnke was born in 1940 in Königsberg, Germany. The city on the Baltic Sea is now called Kaliningrad, and is part of Russia. He became born-again at the age of nine. His father had also been a preacher. Bonnke, a native of Königsberg, East Prussia, Germany, attended Bible College in the Welsh city of Swansea.
He became involved in missionary work in Africa at a very young age and in 1974 founded the Christ For All Nations mission organisation, which was headquartered in South Africa and later in Germany.
God placed upon his heart the vision of ‘the continent of Africa, being washed in the precious Blood of Jesus.” In 1984, Bonnke commissioned the construction of the largest mobile tent that was capable of holding 34,000 people.
Bonnke founded his Christ For All Nations fellowship in the 1970s. The organization has offices in the United States, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Nigeria, South Africa, Singapore, Australia, and Hong Kong. The organization was originally based in Johannesburg, South Africa during apartheid. Bonnke moved the headquarters to Frankfurt, Germany, in order to distance his group from the oppressive government.
The family lives in the United States but Bonnke was best-known for his work with the Christ For All Nations organisation throughout Africa. The Pentecostal preacher oversaw more than 79 million conversions to Christianity. Its no exaggeration to say that his work transformed the continent.
Between 2009 and 2019, Bonnke helped to produce the ‘Full Flame’ film series. In total, there are eight episodes in the series which aim to convert people to evangelicism.
In 2015, Bonnke was honoured as the winner of the Lifetime Global Impact award at the Global Congress of Empowered21 in Jerusalem. A spokeswoman for Emopowered21 told the Christian Post at the time, “Reinhard Bonnke has totally dedicated himself to soul-winning for 50 years now. He has a laser-sharp focus on winning souls. Through his ministry, Christ for All Nations, over 73 million people have made registered decisions to follow Jesus Christ. To be recognized and honoured by the Christian community for this service is an honour for which we give the glory to God.”
His teaching literature has been published in over 100 languages across 55 countries, his official website says.
He is survived by his wife Anni, his three children, Kai-Uwe Bonnke, Gabrielle Bonnke and Susie Bonnke, as well as eight grandchildren.
May his soul rest in peace!!!
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