Congregants at the controversial "snake church" Chew off student's hair

Congregants at the controversial "snake church" attacked a Tshwane University of Technology student and bit off chunks of her hair and tried to eat it.

This was after one of the preachers had shouted to the congregation after seeing the woman wearing a stylish weave: "I see food!"

Kgalalelo Tlhoaele was at the End Times Disciples Ministries in Soshanguve, taking pictures, when members of the EFF marched on the church and burnt down its tent on Sunday.

The church gained notoriety after its pastor, Penuel Mnguni, fed congregants snakes, rats and weaves.

"I was terrified. Immediately after the preacher said 'I see food', they all ran to my hair," said Tlhoaele.

The startled student said she fell on the floor and hurt her knee trying to escape from the crazed hair-eaters.

"I have never seen anything like this. Those people looked possessed to me.

"They ran to my hair as if they were hypnotised. It's fine to eat each other's hair because they go to the same church but I don't even go to that church so why eat my hair?"

She said she removed the weave after the attack.

The church's controversial acts have now prompted the South African Council of Churches (SACC) to convene a meeting with Mnguni .

SACC acting general secretary, Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana, told Sowetan yesterday that they want to get Mnguni's perspective on what he is planning to achieve with his actions.

"His version of faith is not the same as ours, we want to directly meet with him so that he can tell us more about this new faith," Mpumlwana said.

"We called the church over the weekend requesting a meeting but they said we should send an e-mail. An e-mail was sent but up to now we haven't heard anything from them," he said.

Yesterday a representative of The End Times Disciples Ministries who did not want to be named said they had not received any invitation to a meeting from the SACC.