NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) — Tributes are pouring in for Ray McCauley, an influential, if controversial, pastor and spiritual leader for many South African Christians, who died this week at age 75.
McCauley, a former co-chairman of the National Interfaith Council of South Africa, died Tuesday (Oct. 8) at home surrounded by friends and relatives, days after celebrating his birthday, according to a statement released by his family.
“It is with deep sorrow and profound sadness that we announce the passing of Pastor Ray McCauley, the founder of Rhema Bible Church (and) an evangelical leader,” Pastor Joshua McCauley, his son and the current senior pastor of Rhema, said in the statement.
Although the cause of death has not been made public, some reports suggest he had been battling a long-term illness. He is survived by his widow, Zelda; his son, Joshua; and three grandchildren.
In 2022, McCauley had appointed his son and daughter-in-law, Tara McCauley, as the incoming senior pastors of Rhema but had continued in a supporting role, helping shape the future of the church, according to the younger McCauley.
“He always believed the best is yet to come and that God is a generational God whose heart is to see the gospel preached from generation to generation,” said the senior pastor in a church statement, which described Ray McCauley as a spiritual mentor to many and a servant leader.
Pastor Ray McCauley preaches at Rhema Bible Church in Randburg, South Africa, in May 2024. (Video screen grab)
The church will hold two memorial services — a comfort service on Thursday and an honoring service on Oct. 17. He will be buried on Oct. 19.
Born on Oct. 1, 1949, in Johannesburg, McCauley was a professional bodybuilder in his youth. He won Mr. South Africa accolades several times, and in 1974 he won bronze in the Mr. Universe competition in London. He also worked as a nightclub bouncer.
But his passion for bodybuilding and fitness faded when, as he described it, a spiritual transformation led him to Kenneth Hagin’s Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
After completing studies at the center, the bodybuilder-turned-pastor returned to South Africa and established the Rhema Bible Church in 1979. The mostly white neo-Pentecostal church later defied apartheid, convening nonsegregated church services. In 1990, Rhema was one of 97 churches to sign the anti-apartheid Rustenburg Declaration.
Pastor Ray McCauley. (Photo courtesy of Rhema Bible Church)
According to a media statement on Rhema’s website, 500 churches have been planted globally through the work of the church, and 10,000 students have graduated from the church’s Bible school. With more than 45,000 members today, it is the single largest congregation in the country.
On Wednesday, Cyril Ramaphosa, the South African president, celebrated McCauley’s impact on the country.
“Pastor Ray’s passing leaves our deeply spiritual nation bereft of a remarkable leader whose impressive legacy lives on in the faith of hundreds of thousands of believers within and beyond the Rhema community,” he said.
According to the Rev. Mzwandile Molo, the acting general secretary of the South African Council of Churches, the loss to the nation of such a significant Christian voice is deeply felt, especially at a time when the nation continues to need a clear moral voice.
“In the post-apartheid society, his was a voice, amongst many, that not only called for the moral renewal of the country but spent his time in prayerful action for such a renewal,” said Molo in a statement.
Tumi Senokoane, a professor of theological ethics at the University of South Africa, described McCauley as a leader who had revolutionized the church in South Africa, making it modern and multipurpose.
“He understood that the church is there to serve the community, and for that reason, he had activities that spoke to the needs such as giving food to the hungry and investing in Christian education by establishing a Christian college,” Senokoane told RNS.
The scholar said McCauley was one of those few pastors who realized that media is a critical component in evangelism and excelled in that space.
“He had views on politics. Unlike some, he understood that the church could not be silent on issues that would naturally affect the society. He also believed in ecumenism,” said Senokoane.
Despite the remarkable legacy, McCauley has faced criticism for preaching a prosperity gospel and for his lavish lifestyle.
In an obituary, South Africa’s Business Day newspaper described McCauley as “a shrewd businessman” who headed an empire that in 2008 drew a net income of more than 68 million rand (about $3.8 million) with more than 60.5 million rand (about $3.4 million) coming from tithes and offerings and held assets worth more than 33.5 million rand ($1.9 million).
McCauley “subscribed to a view that God provides financial blessing and physical well-being,” said Senokoane. “Of course, there is always a risk to this view, as it replaces the economics of God or economics of plenty with economics of scarcity and individualism.”
McCauley divorced his first wife, Lyndie, in 2000 and married the twice-divorced Zelda Ireland. In January 2010, the church announced the couple’s separation, with Ireland filing for divorce, but the two remarried in November 2013.
