Online Reporter
JOHANNESBURG. — The wedding procession lasted for several hours as members of the International Pentecost Holiness Church streamed into the newly-constructed dome at the IPHC’s Kanana City in Heidelberg.
Local and international media crews braved the cold weather in Gauteng on Easter Sunday and attended what was billed as the biggest mass wedding in South Africa – with the popular church breaking its own record of biggest wedding processions.
Priest Vusi Ndala, national spokesperson for the church, told journalists that more than 3 000 congregants had invested considerable effort and anticipation into the grand ceremony.
“This is historical. It has never happened anywhere, and we would want to imagine it is a world record. We have invited different guests, including the media to join us in this historical mass wedding. Over 3,000 couples have entered holy matrimony, and their marriages have been blessed,” Ndala spoke to IOL at the expansive venue.
“In April 2023, we thought we had the biggest number when 800 congregants got married on the same day, but we have now surpassed that number by over three times. This is a great achievement for us, which says members of the church see the importance of building society, building a community.
“Marriages are blessed. It is in marriages that children are born, families are build and leaders come out of families. That is why we celebrate these mass weddings. We thought we cannot leave this historic mark without much celebration, under the guidance of our leader, Comforter MG Sandlana,” he said.
The long day inside the IPHC premises also saw some congregants being wedded in polygamous marriages. Some of the men were marrying more than one wife, a practice which Ndala said is “a longstanding African tradition which has been co-opted in our church”. — BBC.com
