3,000 Celebrate Mass Wedding on Easter Sunday at South African Pentecostal Church with Polygamous Marriages

A South African Pentecostal church marked Easter Sunday with a massive wedding ceremony involving approximately 3,000 participants, many of whom entered into polygamous unions. The event was organized by the International Pentecost Holiness Church at its headquarters in Heidelberg, near Johannesburg.

Polygamy, which is legal under South African customary marriage laws, played a prominent role in the event. Church spokesperson Vusi Ndala confirmed that some men were marrying their sixth or seventh wives, while others were marrying multiple brides at once. According to Ndala, “Polygamy is not only embraced but held in high regard” within the church community.

The International Pentecost Holiness Church, an African-initiated movement founded in the early 1960s, blends Pentecostal Christian doctrine with African cultural practices. The church’s Easter celebrations traditionally include mass weddings, which it considers a sacred and joyful part of its religious observances.

This year’s ceremony marks the largest mass wedding in the church’s history. In 2023, about 400 couples participated, but the number increased dramatically this year due to many grooms choosing to marry multiple women simultaneously. In some cases, men were accompanied by their existing wives, who supported them during the ceremony.

The wedding festivities were held in the church’s colossal dome-shaped building, which can accommodate up to 60,000 people. Outside the main structure, long white tents were erected in open fields to shelter the soon-to-be-married congregants. There, participants received bridal flowers, food packs, and bottled water before entering the main church. The women wore white bridal gowns, while many of the men were dressed in white suits with red ties, creating a visually striking procession as they queued into the sanctuary.

The International Pentecost Holiness Church has incorporated the cultural tradition of polygamy into its religious doctrine, making such ceremonies an integral part of its identity.