Texas televangelist blows ‘the wind of God’ and proclaims coronavirus destroyed forever
Televangelist Kenneth Copeland released a bizarre video amid the coronavirus crisis in the country, claiming that the cure for the deadly viral infection is to simply "blow it away." The Texas pastor, released a short prayer on video Sunday, April 5, explaining how warm winds, heat, and "blowing the virus away" can curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
"Wind! Almighty! Strong! South wind! Heat! Burn this thing! In the name of Jesus," the 83-year-old loudly says into the camera. "Satan bow your knees. Fall on your face!" After a moment's pause and what appears to be a short burst of laughter, he says: "COVID-19" and blows a raspberry, calling it "the wind of God."
"I blow the wind of God on you! You are destroyed forever and you will never be back! Thank you! Let it happen! Cause it to happen!" Copeland says into the camera.
Copeland had recently claimed that the coronavirus pandemic would be "over much sooner than you think" because "Christian people all over this country praying have overwhelmed it."
The pastor, last month, "executed judgment" on the virus, declaring it to be "finished" as he demanded, "a vaccination to come immediately." The Copeland Ministries megachurch previously had claimed that the viewers watching the televangelist's show could be healed from COVID-19 by just touching their television screens.
Copeland, who is estimated to be worth $760 million, also urged his viewers to continue paying tithes despite several of them losing employment amid the crisis.
Several worshipers across the country have been frequenting churches, with one person in Ohio, who was among dozens seen leaving a church service, saying she "wouldn't be anywhere else" despite local authorities limiting social gathering in the wake of the virus's spread.
A woman, while speaking to a CNN reporter, said: "I'm covered in Jesus' blood," before stating that she goes to stores like Walmart and Home Depot "every day."
Multiple church pastors, amid federal and state guidelines for social distancing, have emerged defiant amid the crisis as they opened their church doors to their congregations for Palm Sunday.
"We're defying the rules because the commandment of God is to spread the Gospel," Louisiana pastor Tony Spell said on Saturday. Monroe Mayor Jason Frentzel, from Ohio, sent a letter to Solid Rock Church, asking officials to halt their service.
"While I understand that you have the right to assemble, I also understand the community's concerns with having such a large gathering coming together in this current environment," Frentzel wrote in the letter. The church, however, has continued to leave its doors open for worshippers.
The church, in a statement on its website, stated: "We believe that the doors of Solid Rock Church should remain open. It is in these times of crisis that the church should play a critical role as a place of refuge. A place where anyone can come to pray, to worship, and to find healing and hope."
Coronavirus has claimed more than 9,500 lives in the United States within weeks, the total number of infections in the country has risen above 337,000, according to the Johns Hopkins University live-tracking dashboard. The US has been branded the worst affected country in the world amid the pandemic, with the most number of infections and a rapidly-rising death toll.