Voice of God Recordings Named in Shakahola Massacre

UPDATE 01/29/2024. The article naming VOGR is no longer available.

Voice of God Recordings has been named as the "key influence" for cult leader Paul Mackenzie, the leader of the suicide sect in Kenya. Mackenzie and a group of elders in the sect influenced several members of his sect to commit suicide through starvation, leading to the most deadly terrorist attack perpetrated in Kenya.[1] Over two hundred victims were small children.[2]

Mackenzie and thirty members of his sect have been charged with murder and terrorism. He has been labeled "the most reviled man in Kenya" for the horrific event [3] now known as the Shakahola Massacre.

Cult observers regard Mackenzie as among the most destructive cult leaders in modern history. And he is arguably the most reviled man in Kenya. Others assert that the preacher, who took his followers to a wilderness to die, on the pretence of farming and promises of spiritual nourishment, is a hero. Many of these are in detention with him, but considerable numbers of his followers are not. Judging by posts and comments on social media, clearly many of them remain loyal.
- Margot Kiser

Investigative reporter Margot Kiser from Kenya spoke directly with Mackenzie at the Shimo La Tewa maximum security prison.[4] Kiser has earned a great deal of respect as a "Kenya-based American journalist covering war, geopolitics, human rights, conservation, and crime, primarily in East Africa. She has contributed feature stories for Newsweek, The London Times," and more.[5]

In her meeting with Paul Mackenzie, the cult leader pleaded with Margot Kiser for help. Ironically, for a cult leader who convinced hundreds of his victims to starve themselves into heaven, Mackenzie complained to her about the conditions of the prison and the small portions of food issued to prisoners.[6] However, the humble manner in which he spoke convinced Kiser to dig deeper into the history of the suicide sect.

In the investigative report published on January 26, Kiser named Voice of God Recordings in Jeffersonville, Indiana, as the key influence on Paul Mackenzie. Though she did not name William Branham as the source of doctrine, Kiser did mention that Mackenzie's influence was the taped sermons distributed by Voice of God Recordings. Those recordings, available on branham.org, are the sermons preached by William Branham from 1947 through 1965.

The key influence on Mackenzie, however, [was] the taped sermons he had learned and delivered himself, distributed by an enterprise called Voice of God Recordings. VOGR is a US organization.
- Margot Kiser

References

[1] Kiser, Margot. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. 2024, Jan, 26. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. Accessed 2024, Jan, 26 from https://www.theelephant.info/investigations/2024/01/26/cult-leader-mackenzies-beginnings-and-shakahola-end-times/. "2024/26/01 Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times In Mombasa, court clerks took 4.5 hours to read to the main suspect, Paul Nthege Mackenzie, and his 94 co-defendants, the 475-page charge sheet's 238 counts of manslaughter Margot Kiser In Mombasa, court clerks took 4.5 hours to read to the main suspect, Paul Nthege Mackenzie, and his 94 co-defendants, the 475-page charge sheet's 238 counts of manslaughter."

[2] Nzwili, Fredrick. 20224, Jan 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. Accessed. 224, Jan, 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. "224/25/01 Nzwili, Fredrick. 20224, Jan 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. Accessed Investigators were able to link Mackenzie and 30 others to the death of 238 children. The children's bodies were retrieved from the shallow graves in the ranch. The pastor's wife, Rhoda Maweu, and all his children are alive Investigators were able to link Mackenzie and 30 others to the death of 238 children. The children's bodies were retrieved from the shallow graves in the ranch. The pastor's wife, Rhoda Maweu, and all his children are alive."

[3] Nzwili, Fredrick. 20224, Jan 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. Accessed. 224, Jan, 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. "224/25/01 Nzwili, Fredrick. 20224, Jan 25. Kenyan Cultic Pastor In 'Starvation Massacre' Charged With Murder And Terrorism. Accessed Paul Mackenzie, the self-proclaimed Kenyan pastor who shocked the country and the world after he drove his followers into mass "starvation suicide," has been charged with murder and terrorism. On Jan. 17, Mackenzie, the leader and founder of the Good News International Church, and 30 of 94 of the co-accused were arraigned in the High Court in the coastal city of Malindi, Kenya. He faces charges of the murder of 429 people — most of them children — whose bodies were found buried in shallow graves in a ranch in the remote Shakahola forest in the coastal county of Kilifi Paul Mackenzie, the self-proclaimed Kenyan pastor who shocked the country and the world after he drove his followers into mass "starvation suicide," has been charged with murder and terrorism. On Jan. 17, Mackenzie, the leader and founder of the Good News International Church, and 30 of 94 of the co-accused were arraigned in the High Court in the coastal city of Malindi, Kenya. He faces charges of the murder of 429 people — most of them children — whose bodies were found buried in shallow graves in a ranch in the remote Shakahola forest in the coastal county of Kilifi."

[4] Kiser, Margot. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. 2024, Jan, 26. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. Accessed 2024, Jan, 26 from https://www.theelephant.info/investigations/2024/01/26/cult-leader-mackenzies-beginnings-and-shakahola-end-times/. "2024/26/01 Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times It's very hard to square Mackenzie's public image with the soft-spoken, almost delicate man I have met and spent time with. I paid McKenzie a visit at Mombasa's Shimo La Tewa maximum security prison last July. Dressed in a grey-blue button-down shirt with matching trousers, he sat with an air of sunlit ease in the visiting room. Only his handshake corresponded with his circumstances; although firm, yet his grip felt like that of someone falling into a void. Mackenzie was pallid and thin. Then nearly 90 days in remand, he appeared to be wasting away, a shadow of the firebrand preacher seen on television and the internet, his signature raspy voice now a mere whisper. He came off as mannerly and even obedient Margot Kiser It's very hard to square Mackenzie's public image with the soft-spoken, almost delicate man I have met and spent time with. I paid McKenzie a visit at Mombasa's Shimo La Tewa maximum security prison last July. Dressed in a grey-blue button-down shirt with matching trousers, he sat with an air of sunlit ease in the visiting room. Only his handshake corresponded with his circumstances; although firm, yet his grip felt like that of someone falling into a void. Mackenzie was pallid and thin. Then nearly 90 days in remand, he appeared to be wasting away, a shadow of the firebrand preacher seen on television and the internet, his signature raspy voice now a mere whisper. He came off as mannerly and even obedient."

[5] Kiser, Margot. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. 2024, Jan, 26. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. Accessed 2024, Jan, 26 from https://www.theelephant.info/investigations/2024/01/26/cult-leader-mackenzies-beginnings-and-shakahola-end-times/. "2024/26/01 Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times Margot Kiser Margot Kiser is a Kenya-based American journalist covering war, geopolitics, human rights, conservation, and crime, primarily in East Africa. She has contributed feature stories for Newsweek, The (London)"

[6] Kiser, Margot. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. 2024, Jan, 26. Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times. Accessed 2024, Jan, 26 from https://www.theelephant.info/investigations/2024/01/26/cult-leader-mackenzies-beginnings-and-shakahola-end-times/. "2024/26/01 Cult Leader Mackenzie's Beginnings and Shakahola End-Times When MacKenzie rose to greet me, I was surprised to note that he didn't quite reach my height, 5′6″, and that he was not handcuffed. There were two guards present in the room, one male and one female. During our conversation he expressed the hope that the state would set a bond for his release. "If I am released, I'm going to need assistance to go somewhere else Margot Kiser When MacKenzie rose to greet me, I was surprised to note that he didn't quite reach my height, 5′6″, and that he was not handcuffed. There were two guards present in the room, one male and one female. During our conversation he expressed the hope that the state would set a bond for his release. "If I am released, I'm going to need assistance to go somewhere else."