Enoch Adejare Adeboye (born 2 March 1942) is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

and General Overseer of

Redeemed Christian Church of God The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) is a Pentecostal megachurch and denomination founded in Lagos, Nigeria. The General overseer (most senior pastor) is Enoch Adeboye, ordained in 1981. The church in Lagos had an average church attendanc ...

Early life

Enoch Adejare Adeboye was born on 2 March 1942 in Ifewara, near Ife, in the then Southern Region,

British Nigeria Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence. British influence in the region began with the prohibition of slave trade to British subjects in 1807. Britain a ...

.Christine Chisha
Pastor Enoch Adeboye: Trademark of humility
daily-mail.co.zm, Zambia, 16 November 2014 He was born into a very humble family.

Education

Enoch Adejare Adeboye began his education at

Ilesha Ilesa () is an ancient town located in the Osun State, southwest Nigeria; it is also the name of a historic kingdom (also known as Ijesha) centred on that village. The state is ruled by a monarch bearing the title of the Owa Obokun Adimula of Ij ...

Grammar School Ilesha

Osun State Osun State (; yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Ọ̀ṣun), occasionally known as the State of Osun by the state government, is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states, to the north by Kwara State, to the south by Ogun S ...

in 1956. Enoch Adejare Adeboye then proceeded to the

University of Nigeria The University of Nigeria, commonly referred to as UNN, is a federal university located in Nsukka, Enugu State, Eastern part of Nigeria. Founded by Nnamdi Azikiwe in 1955 and formally opened on 7 October 1960, the University of Nigeria has thr ...

Nsukka (UNN) in

Nsukka Nsukka is a town and a Local Government Area in Enugu State, Nigeria. Nsukka shares a common border as a town with Edem, Opi (archaeological site), Ede-Oballa, and Obimo. The postal code of the area is 410001 and 410002 respectively referr ...

, but because of the

Nigeria Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence ...

, he completed his first degree in the

University of Ife Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal government-owned university that is located in the ancient city of Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife ...

(now Obafemi Awolowo University), graduating with a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

in 1967. That same year, he married Foluke Adenike. They both have four children namely: Adeolu Adeboye, Bolu Adubi (née Adeboye), Dare Adeboye and Leke Adeboye. In 1969, he obtained a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Hydrodynamics In physics and engineering, fluid dynamics is a subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that describes the flow of fluids—liquids and gases. It has several subdisciplines, including ''aerodynamics'' (the study of air and other gases in motion) and ...

from

University of Lagos The University of Lagos, popularly known as UNILAG, is a public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria and was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the first generation universities in Nigeria and is ranked among the top universities in th ...

. In 1975, he obtained a

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

. in

Applied Mathematics Applied mathematics is the application of mathematical methods by different fields such as physics, engineering, medicine, biology, finance, business, computer science, and industry. Thus, applied mathematics is a combination of mathematical s ...

from the

Ministry

Adejare Adeboye joined the Redemed Christian Church of God in 1973 and served as an interpreter before he was ordained a

in the church by Pa. Josiah Akindayomi in 1975. He became General Overseer of the church in 1981. For three years, he filled the role part-time at Unilorin before giving up his university position to preach full-time.Lisa Miller
The Newsweek 50: E. A. Adeboye
''Newsweek.com'', 20 December 2008African instituted churches
Rufus Okikiolaolu Olubiyi Ositelu. LIT Verlag Berlin-Hamburg-Münster The church which was not well known before Adeboye became the General Overseer, has branches in about 198 nations as of (March 2017), including more than 14,000,000 worshipers in Nigeria.Adeboye has stated that he aims to put a church within five minutes walking distance in developing cities and five minutes driving distance in developed cities. Adeboye is considered a preacher of the

prosperity gospel Prosperity theology (sometimes referred to as the prosperity gospel, the health and wealth gospel, the gospel of success, or seed faith) is a religious belief among some Protestant Christians that financial blessing and physical well-being are a ...

, a claim he does not deny, saying that "

Pentecostals Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

have such an impact because they talk of the here and now, not just the by and by… while we have to worry about heaven, there are some things God could do for us in the here and now." Following new legislation that placed limits on non-profit leadership to 20 years of service and less than 70 years of age, Pastor Adeboye resigned as General Overseer in 2017. He celebrated his 80th birthday in 2022, Adeboye's foundation donated eight

dialysis machine In chemistry, dialysis is the process of separating molecules in solution by the difference in their rates of diffusion through a semipermeable membrane, such as dialysis tubing. Dialysis is a common laboratory technique that operates on the sam ...

s to Wuse District Hospital, together with a

reverse osmosis Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane to separate ions, unwanted molecules and larger particles from drinking water. In reverse osmosis, an applied pressure is used to overcome osmotic pre ...

medical water purification system and an electrical generator.

Publications

Adeboye has written several books, including: * Open Heavens Daily Devotional * Lessons from the Sower * Christian Moderator * Deadly Enemy of Man * Divine Favour * Kingdom Prosperity * Fruits of the Spirit * God of Wonders * God’s Remembrance and Deliverance * Prevailing Prayers * The Wonder Working God * Transitions * Mathematics & Greatness

University endowments

Adeboye has

endowed A financial endowment is a legal structure for managing, and in many cases indefinitely perpetuating, a pool of financial, real estate, or other investments for a specific purpose according to the will of its founders and donors. Endowments are of ...

four Nigerian universities, including

Obafemi Awolowo University Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal government-owned university that is located in the ancient city of Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife ...

and the

Awards and recognition

*''1 of the 50 most powerful people in the world'' by ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'' (2008) *Adeboye was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by

New African ''New African'' is an English-language monthly news magazine based in London. Published since 1966, it is read by many people across the African continent and the African diaspora. It claims to be the oldest pan-African monthly in English, as well ...

magazine in 2019.

Personal life

Adeboye married Folu Adeboye on 17 December 1967. He is a father to four children (three sons and a daughter) and several grandchildren from the marriage. Pastor Enoch Adeboye lost his son Dare Adeboye on 4 May 2021, who died at the age of 42.

References

External links

*
Pastor E. A. Adeboye
at RCCG Winners Chapel Detroit {{DEFAULTSORT:Adeboye, Enoch 1942 births Living people Nigerian Pentecostal pastors People from Osun State Yoruba Christian clergy University of Lagos alumni University of Lagos faculty University of Nigeria alumni Yoruba–English translators University of Ilorin faculty Prosperity theologians