Anita Odegwa Oyakhilome says she has now formally completed the process of divorcing Chris Oyakhilome, pastor and founder of Christ Embassy Church (also known as the Believers Love World), as her husband.
Filing for divorce in Suit No FD14D01650 on April 9, 2014 at Divorce Section A, Central Family Court, First Avenue House, High Holborn, London, UK, Anita had said, through her lawyers, Attwaters Jameson Hill Solicitors, that the marriage should be dissolved on the basis of “unreasonable behaviour” and “inappropriate relationships with members of staff”, which Oyakhilome denied.
Similarly, she made the announcement of the divorce – and her withdrawal from the church – through her lawyers.
“We have been requested by Anita Oyakhilome to confirm that on the 8th February 2016 a decree absolute was pronounced in the High Court of Justice Principal Registry of the Family Division dissolving her marriage to Christian Onehirokpeana Oyakhilome,” read a statement issued by the law firm on its website.
Advertisement
“Anita Oyakhilome would like to confirm that she is no longer involved in or part of Christ Embassy AKA Believers loveworld inc.”
In August 2014, TheCable reported Anita’s allegations against her husband, but the pastor kept mum for more than a week before finally breaking his silence, branding the allegations “crazy” and “stupid”.
“I heard that some media houses – especially in Nigeria – are writing some things against me. All sorts of frivolous charges, that’s crazy,” he said on September 8 during the monthly global communion service of the church.
Advertisement
“You have to understand something about a man of God. A man of God is not just someone who worships God or preaches God. A man of God is handpicked by God, set on course by God. If you study the scriptures, you will not find one man of God go against God, sinning against God.
“The only things you might find will be a man of God, maybe in two different kinds of ways. Moses, for example; when he struck the rock twice, [he] was provoked by the anger of the people. [It was] not because he wanted to do something against the Lord. No man of God does something against the Lord.
“Are you hearing me? A man of God is set on a course; there is a type of life that he is given. Then you have a young man, a young prophet; he wasn’t named; he was deceived by another man of God and so he went in a direction that God said ‘don’t go’.
“That is the only kind of thing you find about a man of God when he misses the message of God or he acts beyond what God said. But a man of God settles himself in the fight against the world… like those writing those stupid things about me, that I did this and I did that.
Advertisement
“You don’t know who a man of God is. I don’t go in that direction. I wasn’t accused of the things you said, nor did I commit those stupid things that you said and I don’t need to go into that level in such discussions. Jesus Christ was accused by many – a lot of frivolous charges. There will always be those who would like for it to be true. But you know, in spite of the accusations against Jesus, It didn’t change who he was. It didn’t change him.
“There are preachers and there are men of God. I am not a preacher; I am a man of God and I go in the way I’m asked to go. It may cause some troubles with individuals but that’s not because I have done something wrong and when it comes to Reverend Anita, what I will say to you is ‘pray for her’.
“Don’t act like those people. If you are married to a man of God, it doesn’t make you automatically mature. You can make mistakes; you can do something that is wrong. But some people expect the wife of a minister to definitely be at the level of that minister and so they may be looked upon and the expectation may be like that, but it’s a positional thing.
“If a man of God is married, it doesn’t automatically mean that the wife of a man of God is therefore a woman of God. That’s not the way it is in the Bible. That’s why you don’t really find the wives of men of God mentioned in the Bible. How many of them? Who was Peter’s wife, did you ever know her name? You never find that out. Who was John’s wife? Did you ever read the name? What about all the other Apostles? How many of their names are written in the Bible. You never find their names.”
Advertisement
Hints that the troubled marriage had broken down first emerged in 2014 when Anita stopped ministering at the London headquarters, which she presides over along with other churches in Europe.
She also stopped contributing to Rhapsody of Realities, the highly successful Christian daily devotional, which is sold around the world and is a major source of income for the couple.
Advertisement
The daily devotional co-authored by the couple, Rhapsodies of Reality, is distributed globally, written in 550 languages, distributed in 242 countries and read by 100 million people across the world, as at 2014.
Much was read into the removal of Anita’s name from the devotional after the news of the divorce proceedings went public. A member of the church in the UK told TheCable that Anita was complaining that retaining her picture and profile in the booklet was creating the wrong impression that she was still contributing to it.
Advertisement
TheCable was told back in 2015 that the UK Central Family Court had given Oyakhilome and his wife the final go-ahead to end their marriage.
The family court, in issuing the “decree nissi”, could not issue the “decree absolute” because of the massive alimony involved which is outside of its jurisdiction. The assets to be shared between the couple are estimated at millions of pounds.
Advertisement
A ‘decree nisi’ is a document of ‘no objection’ from the court while a ‘decree absolute’ is the final legal pronouncement of the dissolution of the marriage.
Oyakhilome is the founder of Christ Embassy Church, one of Nigeria’s biggest denominations, and is also a popular televangelist. He is the president of Believers’ Love World Inc, the registered name of the Christian ministry, while his wife is the vice-president.
The dissolved wedding is approximately half-a-decade old, and is blessed with two girls – Charlyn and Sharon.
37 comments
It is unfortunate that she has chosen to divorce her husband when other ministers wives are by their husband’s side to support him.
From the beginning, GOD made it that a woman should be a help mete to her husband but when Anita chose not to play that role, i know it is a matter of time before they has crises in their marriage.
A pastor’s wife should be beside her husband but instead she chose to be and live far apart from her husband. Her husband is in South Africa while she chose to live alone in London. Nobody should be surprised that her marriage failed and i wish to say that she is a disgrace been called a pastor’s wife in the first place.
This is the most biased and bigoted comment I have read in recent time. A terribly jaundiced submission like your makes it difficult for those in leadership position to get help when challenged maritally. In your infantile thinking, all the blames of this unfortunate situation should be placed at the door step of Sister Anita, abi? Shior!
Replying your comment is more or less a waste of time. However I wish to point out that we are hold responsible for our words and actions. It is unfortunate that many reply to an issue they don’t know about.
A pastor’s wife should be by her husband’s side, and any thing that will make a pastor’s wife to be apart from her husband is an error.
What is she doing in London while her husband is in South Africa? By the way are you married? if so, if your wife should do as Anita, your marriage may crash as well.
Sir, ur quote “it is unfortunate many reply to an issue they done know about” from the look of it you replied to an issue you don’t know about, saying the she chose to live far from her husband. Do u know whether it was a joint decision or her Husbands making. Please don’t comment about people lives and what they do when you don’t know them.
Why concluding very fast on Anita as if you have some issues with her before? Husband is the head of the family? Our first concern should be why Christ allowed his family to live miles apart from each other. Anyway, God have not made us judge over them so let’s pray for them.
Sir, please clarify why you keep using the term “She chose…” Is that absolute and accurate knowledge or it is an assumption. I mean How do you know it was something SHE CHOSE. Is it possible that she was “instructed” and “appointed” to lead the church in the UK, away from her husband – like other BLW pastors and their wives who seem to be leading branches in separate geographical locations? I think you are pointing a finger of accusation to pastor Anita too early and presumptuously, unless you have absolute knowledge about the situation. I am not defending the wife and accusing the husband per se, I am simply saying, as long as we are not close enough to the couple, we may not know exactly what went wrong.
Read more at: https://www.thecable.ng/.VsX8DnK2i-Y.facebook
God is the Judge, know that their marriage crises started when she started to make an accusations against her husband. Other pastor’s wives, tell me the person that is living apart from her husband?
The fact remains, if she had been by her husband, the issue would not have risen. To live in the UK was her choice and that is why I said “she chose to”. If you are a woman and married, never think of living apart from your husband if you don’t want to see your marriage to crash.
Princevinco, with due respect you are mistaken. Pastor Anita DID NOT choose to live apart from her husband. She always did exactly what her husband instructed, unknown to her, he was setting her up to be cut off from her marriage. Her move to UK was under Pastors instructions. One reason was because of the kids schooling and the other was to launch the international ministry of Christ Embassy which she did both successfully. I do not know of any woman who supported their husbands in ministry to the level of Pastor Anita. She was sent to UK- ALONE withtwo kids. She single handedly planted church after church & assigned her best members to pastor those churches. Today, the churches in UK are close to 50. Many are Bishops in name only & cannot boast of planting any church. But this woman was a bishop indeed. She never fought for attention. Quietly watching her husband shower accolades on other female Pastors in the ministry on TV & yet never being recognized at home or in public for her efforts. She moved to UK because Pastor Chris insisted she stay there. She trusted that he would come & join her. After years of staying there alone, she made many attempts to return to her marital home in Nigeria but was sent back by her husband & BLOCKED by other female Pastors who OCCUPY her marital home. Almost 18 years she was banished to stay in UK, only seeing her husband oat church programs & sometimes meeting him on stage- not being allowed access to her own husband. I promise you,as someone who has been to a few other churches, she was one of the best. She helped the man in a way beyond measure. She established the first international office. Others are befitting from the fruit of her labor without her getting any credit for it. Before you jump to conclusions- find out from people who were close to them. What woman would leave such a man, knowing all the hate she will be subject to if there is not a cause ? Not only that, she is disassociating herself from the church to the extent of dropping her famous last name ? That should tell you something!!! Its like she RAN for her life!!. All that glitters is not gold. Why not escape with your life when you can? Or you would prefer to stay and continue to suffer just to please everybody? Truth is Pastor Chris does not want her. If her did, he would have gone all out to reconcile with his wife like Benny Hinn did. But he is not interested. Listen to the things he said about his own wife- the mother of his own children. Majority of the church members joined after Christ Embassy became famous. Most have never seen Pastor Anita before. Those of us who know her can tell you she is a very humble and quiet person. That is why she never tried to pull her weight against those ladies barricading her husband. She is not your typical Nigerian woman who would fight tooth & nail. Although she is Nigerian but of European mother. People just took advantage of her so please stop saying these wicked things against Pastor Anita because she is a true woman of God. Pastor Chris is a Man of God too but I believe that he just does not want Pastor Anita anymore. You can’t force a man to love his wife. Pastor Chris divorced her long ago by abandoning his wife for almost 20 years- a marriage cannot survive that way. That does not mean that he is not a man of God. He is- he just does not care for his now ex-wife. It happens & it is heartbreaking for many of us who love both of them. So all we can do is commit them to the Lord in prayer. Marriage is not easy!
Crescent, you made some points that throw more light on the crash of their marriage, but we need not fight over the issue, i am only speaking from the points of view of a marriage counselor.
It is unfortunate that her marriage with pastor Chris had crashed . It is not that i am totally absorbing pastor Chris from the blame of the crash of their marriage.
So the fact remains, pastor Chris has allowed his marriage to crash, and the crash of his marriage should be an eye opener and as well as a big lesson to all and sundry. That is to say that no matter who you are whether a man of GOD or not, if you toil with certain marriage principle, you will pay a huge prize of marriage failure as pastor Chris is paying the ultimate prize now.
What is happening with their marriage is a pointer that the marriage of no man is immuned from failure as your own marriage could fail if you are not careful.
In many of my articles, i encourage men to be careful and should guard their marriage. They are the first person GOD will ask about their marriage if they allow their marriage to fail. Learn a lesson from the marriage failure of pastor Chris.
You don dey change mouth abi?! Go and re-read your initial comment and se how bigoted it was/is.
You CANNOT be a marriage counselor & speak the way you did in your first post…..Now you see men as responsible for their marriages, ab? Meanwhile you stood in such harsh judgement over her….without even knowing anything about their lives!
Please don’t ever say you are a marriage counsellor. You are just an ill-informed commentator with no facts to support your jaundiced opinion. Recall how you heaped all the blames on the poor woman as if they came to you for “counselling”.
God bless you crescent, same thing I pointed out to prince too
Your comment..I THINK THE MISTAKE WAS MADE WHEN PASTOR CHRIS AND ANITA DECIDED TO LIVE APART.CHRIS WOULDN’T HAVE ALLOWED IT IN THE FIRST PLACE. WELL IT’S NOW HISTORY. IF THEY BOTH CHOOSE TO REMARRY,I DOUBT IF THEY WILL BOTH LIVE APART FROM THEIR NEW SPOUSES.
I understand the sentiment followers of self acclaimed men of God attach to any attempt to point out their errors. If Anita is an ungodly woman, how did she become and remained an ordained priest or pastor of the church for many years. This is the same sentiment that followed Chris Okotie’s case Very few discerning persons ponder on the possibility that there might some truth in the accusations. I know of a popular’Man of God’s who had sex with my friends 11year old daughter. He paid the girl’s mother some to keep quiet. He is still more popular than he was years back, probably defiling
Issues affecting situation should be handled with care.
SHE IS NOT A DISGRACE AT ALL.
You can only be a helpmeet to a man that wants her.
Funny how people jump into conclusions. Very funny!
Do you know hw much She sacrificed to build the church for years?
Of course you dont.
BLW UK/EUROPE is a living proof of years of sacrificial leadership. She built it!
That’s a helpmeet. Why was She in the Uk?
pple are saying She went there.
You really dnt understand BLW.
SHE WAS SENT THERE BY HER HUSBAND. IT’S IN OBEDIENCE SHE WENT.
And Every attempt She made to come back was refused o.
This woman was practically made a stranger in her home while She was busy sacrificing her all.
“I HATE DIVORCE” “I HATE THE PUTTING AWAY”
Thats wat the MOG did over the years.
she only made it official.
So She should continue to live as a single mother in another continent to save her image?
She has only made official what her husband has already done.
Husband and wife that live apart from each other are bound to experiance this. I know many Nigerians that have exported their wives/children to Canada and Ireland while the men stay back in Nigeria all to make ends meet. This comes to them as a clear warning that families are meant to stay together for good or bad.
You have a very valid point. Times are bad!!!! If it’s true (I don’t know), why is Christ embassy posting couples apart to different geographical locations as someone pointed out above? Even secular employers try as much as possible not to separate couples from one another. If it’s true, it is something they should seriously look into. We are in the last days, and our works will be tested by fire be your woman or man of God, pastor, ordinary born-again. No one will ask it. Read Rev 3.
I can only pray for them and hope that God will repair the damage. No one in hi/her right mind will enter a marriage for the purpose of getting a divorce and as it is a relationship between two people, surely both sides will have their failings in some ways.
God help them as I love both and wish them well.
All we should do is pray for them rather than take sides, if you dont have an absolute information, dont make an absolute statement.
Everyone will agree with me that Pastor Chris and Pastor Anita ministry touched and is touching countless lives for the Lord. This only is enough reason for the kingdom of darkness to launch all their arsenals on them to end this ministry. God can still restore. Please let us pray.
Your comment..prayer z d key, d Devil going 2 & 4r lukin 4 a Sol 2 dvor
I am deeply sorry for what befell this wonderful couple and pains me much to see them go different ways this way. And I pray, God pls do something about this. What ever the problem it is pls re unite them. Its always good for couples to always stay together. That’s a ministry of its own. And pls like somebody mentioned here. If u don’t have absolute information about this case u hv no right to make absolute statement. Both of them from my take hv their portions of mistakes and I pray they retrace their steps , forgive each other and forge ahead. There is no easy family even the poor face d same.
Your comment..2 Corinthian 5:14-15..”for christ love constrains us for we thus judge that one died for all, therefore where all dead, and he died that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him that died for all and rose again”. if only those who profess to be Christian can understand this verse of scripture. how would you separate yourself from one you once loved and still have fellowship with God???? how possible is that????(1 john 4:16-21, 1 cor 13:1-8) most Christians have a faulty foundation of doctrine. how can you push you cast a stumbling block on your spouse way by divorcing him, and still maintain a relationship with God???? (matt 5:32) …Apostle Paul has a message for such deceived, and ignorant believers in Romans 14 :21- 22 he tells them…” it is good …not to do anything that would make your brother to whom Christ died for to stumble, get offended, or made weak, has thou faith? have it to yourself before God, happy are you if you are not condemned by the very things you approve”. divorce comes from a hardened heart (matt 19:8) and its a sign that you are not yet converted. you are still in need of salvation. only this can give you a heart of flesh.
Please What exactly is divorce???
Bcos in Malachi, the bible calls it the “putting away”.
God says “I hate the putting away” “let none deal treachously against the wife of the youth” Mal 3: 15,16.
Pls, scripturally this woman was divorced for over 16 years. But bcos pple dont think, her image is being completely tarnished. Whereas all She did was make it official instead of pretending & suffering for nothing.
Its a very simple thing. The MOG neither wants nor loves this woman eh!
When a man prefers the company of other women to his wife, you dnt need many signs to know you are not NEEDED.
When can comfortably live with & travel with this women year in year out while you are on another continent, then you should ask yourself questions.
EVERY ATTEMPT SHE MADE TO COME BACK WAS REFUSED!!!
But thank God it is evident that She gave her all.
(If you dont know, ASK QUESTIONS).
Pastor is still very much a MAN OF GOD.
But i dont think GOD gave him any right at all to make this woman’s life miserable.
HE NEVER HAD THAT RIGHT!
PLEASE LET HER BE FREE BIKO!
Her godly reputation still stands. Pastor Anita is a woman of God. Millions around the world have been blessed with their ministry and continue to be blessed. If your husband does not want you even after you have tried your very best, prayed, cried, fasted, spoken the word, tried to get family intervention & yet the man still says you cannot stay in his house & has other women with him in his house while forcing you to stay out of the country in the name of ministry, there is nothing you can do! Their children are grown college graduates & are independent, so why must she be banished to stay in Europe alone ? She should be travelling with her husband, he should have other pastors handling the outside offices while the wife is with him, but the opposite was the case for over 17 years!!! Is there not something seriously wrong with that? those of us who actually know the former couple know that this would be the result if Pastor Chris continued to insist that Pastor Anita cannot stay in the same house with him.
It takes two willing persons to make a marriage work. If one person is consistently avoiding the spouse – that is called abandonment and that is also a ground for divorce.
She is not ‘punishing’ Pastor Chris by divorcing him because he already divorced her 16 years ago. He just did not file papers in court because that would make him look bad. As you know, Pastor Chris is very smart, so he strategically disconnected his life from the wife & left her with no option than for her to be the one to file the divorce papers. For your sake, so that you can direct all critism against the wife while he maintains a squeaky clean image!
The divorce decree is exactly what Pastor Chris wanted to free him up for reasons best know to him & to be revealed at the appointed time. We know that he does not care or love Pastor Anita. I sometimes wonder whether he was ever really in love with her. Pastor Chris is very much a man of God. He just happens to not have any interest in his former wife.
you seem to know too much,,If indeed He didn’t love Anita .. then why did he marry her in the first place? What do you know about their relationship in marriage & ministry? who is Anita competing with? You end up by saying P Chris is a man of God ,,well Anita thinks otherwise, she called him a false prophet & and said he teaches false doctrines and a humanizer,,read the early articles on her blog,,This is definitely not the qualities of the virtuous woman the bible the father of her children,, Openly calling him evil and an abuser: one who comes from the devil she said, deceiving people with miracles..Is this the kind of woman you claim wants to be by her husband? I’m sorry I refuse to accept that.
It’s obvious u are recalcitrantly ignorant and very shallow. People have made efforts above to enlighten you about the the posting policy of BLW but u still choose to wallow in your despicable emptiness , insisting on blaming the wife of posting herself to London.
Look a husband that could willingly post his wife thousands of kilometres away from himself doesn’t want that woman period!
Pastor Chris divorced her 16 years ago. He has shown that he preferred the company of other women to her wife’s.
With the two children and wife staying in London far away from him, to you is pastor Chris a husband and a father? ?????
Is pastor Chris smarter than God, God says it’s not good for a man to be alone. So why would anyone in the name of working for God post his wife and other pastor wives far away from their husband.
Yes to millions he is a great man of God, but these millions have their own husbands and fathers. At the home front he has missed it.
It’s God first, then your wife and kids BEFORE the ministry!
Do you know how many wives of pastors of pastors in BLW that are pastoring church branches that are far from where the husband is? Please don’t be lazy do some research and stop displaying arrogant paucity of knowledge here.
You are clearly taking sides and you have the right especially as a typical African who are always too arrogant to admit wrongnes at the home front.
I doubt if u are married,or else you won’t be asking if it’s possible to marry without love! It’s far very easy to marry for wrong established of all reasons that to marry for.
Please if you marry, try to put your wife through emotional torture, by leaving her and the Kids for 16 years looking for money or work abroad. Please when you come back you will expect to a loving and caring wife? ??????
Yes you have in him a great pastor, but is he a great husband and a great father by living thousands of kilometres away from the home under his care for almost two decades?
???????!!!!!!
Pastor Chris has blessed you and millions all over the world but what is his testimony from wife ( with whom he share marital vow before you and the millions church knew him) as a husband and not as a man of God. ?????
You said she chose???…who told you that?…Pastor Chris is the head of the family and should determine where the wife stays…the moment the both live apart in the name of ministration…the more havoc the av caused to their family and their church. God help the followers, I wonder what they are teaching them.
Dear bro Joe, please do not say things that are untrue in a desperate bid to show your loyalty to the moG.
Cos that’s wat many BLW members are doing in order to rationalize Pastor’s actions. At least “the woman MUST have her own faults”.
Its clear you are reffering to pastor Anita’s blog.
THAT BLOG IS NOT JUST ABOUT THE MAN OF GOD!!!
She has a wider audience.
Not everything She says is about her husband.
From her painful experiences, She’s addressing other serious issues that involve other things like manipulation, prophets, doctrines of devil, deception, evil.
She has a wider audience!
No allegation will work!
This woman remains an honourable person. She did not say those things.
Let’s say only what is true.
Stop lying.
Le this two be. I am sure both of of them are not finding it easy right now. Let us pray that the Lord will restore their marriage.
From my personal experience , many ladies from the Church comes to my house, stay overnight, stays days, weeks and months with no sexual encounters between us, my concern has always been how would people outside knows that I am not having sex with these single women and single mothers who never want to live me alone, only God can trust a man of God because women want to be around you, the catholic knows best when the decree that Father should be husband of all members of the church because if you want to be the husband of one, the one must accept the fact that the rest of them all loves you too, and you have to choose between your calling or a woman, that was why Moses sent the Jethro daughter back to her father. There is a calling that you have to respect more than keeping one woman when you are caught between God calling upon your life and her and her children , somebody has to go or you let God go!.
It is indeed a sad and trying period for both Pastors Chris and Anita,no one has a right to judge either as we are Not privy to the details of what may have gone wrong …..it’s bad enough that they have both endured abuse,humiliation and public ridicule,they have a right to get on with their lives-that means whether we like it or not we must let them be,may God grant them peace in their separate lives and wisdom after this painful parting of ways …..
Watch any pastor who always claim, touch not the anointed without proving when and how he was anointed. Talent and skill must not be mixed with calling of God. If you are a man of God as you claimed, you would go all out to have your wife with you. Even when she goes wrong, the anointing you claimed is with you should endow and humble you enough to love and care for your wife.
Chris Oyakhilomen can not tell me he never had sex with other women since when wife was away.. But the so called anointing still flows… of course a mans gift is without repentance.. I hate Chris has been waiting for the wife to be the one to initiate the divorce and thats what he just got.. congrate smart preacher..God sees all
Your comment..its a pity that all these are happening to a man and woman of God. But pls can somebody help me by answering this question, as both of them are divorced, biblically are they allowed to remarry? If yes y so pls i would want d answers with bible verses backing it. Thanks
So sad,I wish the man of God to hold unto the good work of the Lord.The Lord is your strenght.