Mozambique pastor dies during 40-day Jesus fast
A pastor in Mozambique has died after attempting to fast for 40 days in imitation of what the Bible says Christ did.
Francisco Barajah, the founder of the Santa Trindade Evangelical Church, passed away in a hospital in Beira, where he had been evacuated in critical condition.
After 25 days without food or water, he had lost so much weight that he was unable to stand. His age was 39.
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He was taken to the hospital at the insistence of his family and followers.
Mr. Barajah was diagnosed with acute anemia and digestive organ failure.
He was rehydrated with serums and attempts were made to introduce liquid foods, but it was too late, and on Wednesday he passed away.
The pastor also taught French in the city of Messica in the central province of Manica, which borders Zimbabwe.
According to members of the Santa Trindade Church, it was typical for the pastor and his congregation to fast, but not for so long.
His brother, Marques Manuel Barajah, stated that the pastor had fasted, but he disputed the medical prognosis regarding his demise. He stated, “The truth is that my brother suffered from low blood pressure.”
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It is not the first time that a deadly attempt has been made to imitate Christ’s 40-day fast in the desert as described in Matthew’s Gospel.
Local media reported that a Zimbabwean man died after 30 days in 2015. In 2006, a London woman died halfway through a similar fast, as determined by a British coroner.