What do London, Ontario, Jonestown, and the Klu Klux Klan have in common? More than you might think. The London Street Preachers have become an institution on the streets of Downtown London. You can't miss them, wearing large sandwich boards and spewing their doctrine from makeshift bible-binders. I've had several encounters with the two middle aged men, who actively harass women for wearing pants or shorts and having tattoos and piercings. Their names are 51 year old Steven Ravbar and 33 year old Matthew Carapella.
The pair began preaching in 2017, but it wasn't until later that year that a news reporter covering the story in London stumbled upon the source of their "sermons". They connected to an American evangelical faith healer and supposed cult leader William Branham, the "prophet" who founded a ministry he called "The Message" or "Latter Rain".
Branham grew up in rural Kentucky and was indoctrinated into the Pentecostal church by a man named Roy Davis. Davis had close ties with the KKK as the spokesperson for William Joseph Simmons, the man responsible for the 1915 revival of the organization and the creator of white supremacist group "The Knights of the Flaming Sword".
By 1945, Branham launched his own ministry and became famous as a "faith healer". His first service as a minister, he had a close friend Congressman William D. Upshaw disguised as a disabled man in a wheelchair. After Branham's prayers over him, Upshaw stood out of his wheelchair and walked in front of the astonished congregation.
Above: Branham "healing" a blind German girl
This is only the beginning of Branham's deceptions. His fame soon diminished when followers began to notice the long-term health of those he "healed" to have worsened. Before his death in 1965, Branham met with notorious cult leader Jim Jones and his followers at the People's Temple. Jones even cited Branham as his inspiration to create his own ministry. 13 years after Branham's death, Jones would lead over 900 men, women, and children to commit mass suicide in Guyana - bringing to light questions of cult-like behaviour in Christian missionary organizations.
Right: a poster from 1956 advertising a Miracle Healing Service with Jim Jones alongside William Branham.
All that remains of Branham's religious movement are countless recordings of his sermons. He still has several followers who maintain a website where you can access these sermons, called "The Voice of God Recordings". It is these same recordings that motivate Ravbar and Carapella to verbally harass London citizens on the basis of religion, their dress, and their gender.
I was honestly shocked to unearth such a large dark web of controversy surrounding the London Street Preachers and the man they call their prophet. "Brother Branham" brings an enduring legacy of racism, lies, and deceit to London - not to mention a mysterious connection to cults and horrendous attrocities which were based on Branham's ideologies like the Klu Klux Klan's violence and white supremacy, and the devastation of Jonestown.
If you're interesting in hearing the whole story, including what happened to the Street Preachers, you can hear it here on the Digital Dust Podcast. My classmates and I have shared other unique stories that I highly recommend you binge-listen right now!
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