Evelyn Joshua Biography, Early Life, Education, SCOAN Leadership, Public Scrutiny and Legacy

Evelyn Joshua

Evelyn Joshua, also known as Pastor Evelyn Onyisi Joshua, is a Nigerian pastor, preacher, and televangelist best known as the Senior Pastor and Leader of The Synagogue, Church of All Nations, SCOAN. She is also identified by SCOAN as the President of Emmanuel Global Network, the organisation behind Emmanuel TV.

Early Life and Background

According to SCOAN’s official biography, Evelyn Joshua was born on 17 December 1968 to the family of Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Akabude of Ukala Okpunor Community, Oshimili North Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria. The church biography says she first attended St. Emecheta Primary School in Delta State before later relocating to Lagos as a child.

Education

SCOAN says she later continued her schooling at Orile Primary School, Oshodi, completed her secondary education at State High School, Oshodi, and afterward obtained a certificate in Management Studies from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration.

Marriage and Family

Official SCOAN and independent reports say Evelyn Joshua married Temitope Balogun Joshua, popularly known as T.B. Joshua, in 1990. Their marriage lasted until his death on 5 June 2021, and they had three daughters. Africanews also reported that she met T.B. Joshua in 1990 and later became his close ministry partner.

Role in Ministry Before Leadership

SCOAN’s official profile says that after her marriage, she played an active role in the ministry’s early years. The church credits her with helping pioneer and nurture its Sunday School Department and with serving as a dependable partner in ministry and family life while T.B. Joshua built SCOAN. The same profile also says she co-coordinated the ministry’s charity arm, Emmanuel Global Network.

Rise to Leadership in SCOAN

After T.B. Joshua’s death in 2021, Evelyn Joshua moved into the top leadership role at SCOAN. Punch reported in September 2021 that SCOAN officially announced her as the church’s new leader, while SCOAN’s own biography presents her emergence as part of the church’s continuing mission and identifies her as the current leader of the ministry.

Ministry and Public Influence

Since taking over, SCOAN says Evelyn Joshua has continued leading services, crusades, and international revival meetings, while Emmanuel TV remains part of the ministry’s public outreach. SCOAN’s official biography highlights major events under her leadership in South Africa in 2022, Kenya in 2023, and Ghana in 2024, presenting her as the figure carrying the ministry forward after her husband’s death.

Public Scrutiny and Leadership Challenges

Her leadership did not begin quietly. After T.B. Joshua’s death, SCOAN went through a period of internal tension over succession. Punch reported that the church had to publicly clarify that Evelyn Joshua was in charge, while later investigative reporting said several senior disciples left during the leadership struggle that followed T.B. Joshua’s death.

Her ministry has also operated under wider public scrutiny because SCOAN and Emmanuel TV remained controversial after the death of T.B. Joshua. Investigative reporting in 2024 said the reconstructed ministry under Evelyn Joshua revived Emmanuel TV’s online presence and continued miracle services, keeping the church visible but also debated in public space.

Legacy

Evelyn Joshua is now remembered as the woman who stepped into one of the most difficult church leadership transitions in modern Nigerian Pentecostal history. Her story is closely tied to marriage, ministry partnership, and then succession, as she moved from being T.B. Joshua’s wife and co-labourer to becoming the public face and leader of SCOAN. Whether viewed mainly as a faithful successor or as the head of a ministry still surrounded by debate, she remains a notable religious figure in Nigeria and beyond.

Sources: SCOAN official biography, Punch, Africanews, and investigative reporting republished by ThisDay.