Reinhard Bonnke: The Evangelist Who Shaped African Christianity

 

Reinhard Bonnke was a German-American evangelist known for carrying out extensive gospel missions throughout the African continent. He was born on April 19, 1940, in Königsberg, East Prussia, Germany, into a family of devout Christians. His father, Hermann Bonnke, worked as an army logistics officer in Germany.

Soon after Bonnke was born, East Prussia experienced mass evacuations due to fears of the Red Army advancing toward German lines. Bonnke, along with his mother and siblings, was taken to Denmark, where he spent some years in a displaced persons’ center before settling in West Germany. After the war, his father became a pastor.

Bonnke became a born-again Christian at the age of nine after his mother spoke to him about a sin he had committed. At ten, he sensed a divine calling to serve as a missionary in Africa.

Education and Early Ministry

For his higher education, Bonnke moved to Swansea, Wales, in the United Kingdom to study at the Bible College of Wales. There, he met Samuel Rees Howells, the college’s director, a deeply spiritual man who inspired him to develop an even stronger sense of faith.

Bonnke also met the famous preacher George Jeffreys in London and shared his divine calling to spread the message of God across Africa. Jeffreys encouraged him and prayed for him. After graduating, Bonnke pastored in Germany for seven years.

He began holding evangelistic meetings in Rendsburg, Germany, where he gained popularity. As a result, he received invitations to speak at Christian gatherings across Germany and beyond.

Marriage and Family Life

During one of his meetings, he met Anni Suelz at a gospel music festival and admired the grace with which she handled a mistake that caused her to lose a music competition. He offered to preach at her church, and over time, they fell in love. They married in 1964 and had three children.

Move to Africa and Ministry Expansion

Bonnke desired to leave Germany for South Africa, but the Velbert Missions Board in Germany informed him that no positions were available there. He was offered a position in Zambia but declined. In 1967, he finally moved to South Africa.

Upon arrival, he developed strong opposition to the country’s apartheid system, which caused friction between him and the minister overseeing him there. Eventually, he accepted a position to oversee three churches in Lesotho.

In his early years in Africa, Bonnke faced discouraging results from his evangelistic efforts. Frustrated by the slow progress, he had a recurring dream in which he saw a map of Africa splattered with blood and heard the voice of God saying, "Africa shall be saved." This vision inspired him to leave traditional ministry and embrace large-scale evangelism.

Establishing Christ for All Nations (CfaN)

In 1974, he moved to Gaborone, Botswana’s capital, and sought permission to hold a large crusade at the National Sports Stadium, aiming to gather 10,000 people. A local pastor advised him to start with a smaller meeting, believing that such a large crowd was unlikely.

Undeterred, Bonnke publicized the event extensively and partnered with Pastor Richard Ngidi, who helped him attract an audience. On the first night, only a few hundred people attended, but within three nights, the stadium was packed with 10,000 attendees.

That same year, he founded the mission organization Christ for All Nations (CfaN). Originally headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the organization moved to Frankfurt, Germany, in 1986 to distance itself from apartheid. Today, CfaN has at least nine offices across five continents.

Bonnke initially held tent meetings to accommodate large crowds. In 1986, he commissioned the construction of what was then the world’s largest mobile structure—a tent seating 34,000 people. However, a windstorm destroyed it just before a major meeting. The event was held in an open-air setting instead, attracting over 100,000 people—far beyond the tent’s capacity. The 34,000-seat tent was later reconstructed and used only once in Harare, Zimbabwe, in 1986.

Challenges and the Kano Riots

Apart from South Africa, Bonnke expanded his evangelistic efforts into other African countries, including Kenya and Nigeria.

In 1991, during a visit to Kano, a Muslim-dominated state in northern Nigeria, riots erupted. The violence stemmed from a misunderstanding of remarks he had made about Islam in Kaduna. A rumor spread that Bonnke planned to "lead an invasion" into Kano State.

Muslim youths gathered at the Emir’s palace, where several clerics addressed them, warning that Bonnke was coming to blaspheme Islam. After the noon prayers, riots broke out, resulting in widespread violence. Several churches were burned, many Christians were injured, and at least eight people were killed. Some Christians were even thrown into wells.

Although the state governor absolved Bonnke of any blame, the Nigerian embassy subsequently denied his visa applications, preventing him from returning for nearly a decade. In 2000, after Nigeria transitioned to civilian rule under President Olusegun Obasanjo, Bonnke was invited to return. He held a massive crusade in Benin City, in the country’s south.

Record-Breaking Crusades in Nigeria

In 2000, Bonnke held a crusade in Lagos, Nigeria, that attracted over six million attendees—one of the largest Christian gatherings in history. His subsequent crusades in Nigeria saw higher conversion rates than in many other African countries.

Later Years and Legacy

In 2009, Bonnke appointed Daniel Kolenda as his successor. In 2017, he held his farewell gospel crusade in Lagos, Nigeria.

On December 7, 2019, he passed away at the age of 79. A month before his death, he had announced on Facebook that he had undergone femur surgery and needed to learn to walk again.

Following his death, Daniel Kolenda officially took over the leadership of CfaN. To date, more than 400 evangelists have been trained through the ministry, and over 91 million people have made decisions for Christ.

Reinhard Bonnke’s legacy remains one of the most impactful in Christian evangelism. His passion for spreading the gospel across Africa led to one of the largest spiritual revivals in history. Through Christ for All Nations, his mission continues to inspire and transform lives across the world. 

Thank you for reading. God bless you.