On Thursday, Felix Nathaniel “Angel” Villanueva Manalo, the brother of the incumbent INC Executive Minister Eduardo Manalo, uploaded on YouTube a video of him and his mother calling for help, claiming threats to their lives. Angel is the grandson of the INC founder.
In the video, Angel and his mother Cristina “Tenny” Manalo talked about their ordeal and alleged abduction of some INC ministers.
“My brethren in the Church of Christ, I am calling on you because our lives are in danger. We hope you could help us, said Angel, who later asked his mother to elaborate on their situation.
For her part, his mother Tenny asked the public to help his son Angel and daughter Lottie as well as the INC ministers who were allegedly abducted.
“Help my children, Angel and Lottie, and their companions. Also help the ministers who were abducted and have remained missing.” Tenny said.
Tenny is the wife of the Erano Manalo, the son of the INC founder and the mother of the INC’s current executive minister, Eduardo Manalo, who is the brother of Angel
She also called on his son Eduardo to to talk to her. “To my son, Eduardo, I hope that we could talk,” Tenny said.
Later in the day following the uploading of the video, Angel denied that there was a hostage-taking incident in his residence.
“I did not say that we were held hostage. Mayroon lang pong batang nagbibiro (A child apparently posted the note as a joke),” Manalo said.
Following the controversy, INC Executive Minister Manalo has expelled his brother Angel and his mother Tenny from INC for “creating divisions” in the church.
“While this is painful for Brother Eduardo Manalo, they decided to expel those creating divisions in the Church. In the worship services of the Iglesia ni Cristo starting today, we will be announcing this to our brethren, said INC General Evangelist Bienvenido Santiago.
After his call for help, Angel spoke with media to denounce acts of corruption in the church recalling that there were anomalies that he knew during the time of the founder and his successor son.
“Why is it that these days, there are many anomalies? Others might say we’re challenging our brother. No, we love our brother. But our problem is with people around him,” Angel said.
“The doctrine of the Iglesia ni Cristo is now damaged. In the same way that you looked up to us before, now you can see there are many anomalies. There are many acts of corruption in the Church. That’s what we want to avoid,” he added.
Meanwhile, the former editor of INC’s official publication “Pasugo” has claimed in a GMA News program Thursday that there are anomalies in the church hierarchy that needs to be addressed by the current Executive Minister.
The Iglesia ni Cristo, which maintains places of worship in over 102 countries and with more than 2,000,000 members worldwide, is celebrating its 101st anniversary on Monday, July 27, 2015.
