Prophetic Rhetoric, by MaryKate DeGraw

Sunday, February 8, brought a guest speaker to Power Invasion Ministries, an evangelical church located in southern Denver. A detailed bulletin announced the guest and informed me that the speaker was a prophet, a man named David Wagner.

Power Invasion Ministries, a large, forest green stucco building—a building announcing itself as a church only through a conspicuous billboard bordering the side of a nearby highway—nearly brimmed with excitement for the speaker and with people; there was not one pew in the vast red-carpeted sanctuary that did not have a variety of people warming its plush, purple, “maybe” velvet upholstery. And a variety of people were present—from families of every form to individuals of varying age, gender, and ethnicity. Yet, somehow, over the course of 33 minutes, the speaker managed to speak personally to seemingly all of them. Throughout his delivery of his sermon/prayer/revelation/speech, David Wagner elicited applause from every corner of the church sanctuary, and the praise shouted at him continually echoed in the heights of the building’s wood-paneled, vaulted ceilings.

Yet, before David Wagner would speak, praise-and-worship had to commence and end. The church seemed to breathe with life when the singing began. Enthusiasm infused nearly every church- goer as the upbeat music and the deep alto of the lead singer filled the entirety of the large sanctuary. As the singing progressed, a wave of emotions swept through the congregation. At times the church seemed to jump with joy as multitudes of people jumped, laughing and shouting and singing all at once, and an air of exhilaration surrounded everyone. Women of every age ran down aisles with long purple, gold, and red banners flying in the air behind them, and young children danced in front of the stage. Yet, at other times, the congregation evinced a deep sense of somberness. Heads were bowed, shouting ceased, and music slowed. For 40 minutes the church underwent such emotional fluctuations, and at the end, the anticipation surrounding the proclaimed prophet was amplified to a calm hysteria. By the time the pastor of the church rose to announce the guest orator, the crowd was more than ready to receive what Wagner had to say. Luckily, the senior pastor of Power Invasion Ministries was more than willing to save Wagner time and candidly explained his guest’s ethos. As he noted, Wagner the Prophet was an admirable man, a godly man, a family man, and a successful man. The crowd nodded in approbation, and David Wagner walked up to the stage and began speaking.

A surprisingly young man, Wagner continued to build his ethos despite the firm foundation the leader of the church had already provided him. He graciously thanked the pastor and praised him appropriately, pointed to his children sitting in the front pew with his wife, and told several stories of churches he had recently visited and how they proved the validity of his prophetic words. From Florida to California, Wagner accounted churches in many states that had seen his words fulfilled in reality. After several minutes of thorough character sketching, Wagner finally approached the subject all had been anxiously awaiting; his prophetic message for Power Invasion Ministries.

From his ethos building rhetoric, Wagner transitioned directly into rhetorical appeals to pathos. The economy was bad, and the situation was getting worse, Wagner explained, yet the people of Power Invasion Ministries Power should stop worrying. In fact, he said, Power Invasion Ministries should expect rapid expansion, its pastor far-spread blessing, and its congregation financial stability the like of which they had never experienced, even with the state of the world economy. Drawing upon the many examples of mega churches scattered across the United States, Wagner assured the congregation that because of their sincerity in their faith, their devotion to their church, and their general goodness, Power Invasion Ministries would experience such growth as to be Denver’s mega church. They would be under the protection of God and prosper even in the poorest of economic situations, for, as Wagner assured the congregation, they were not of the world but of God, thus God would provide and care for them. “I see,” Wagner proclaimed, “notices stating PAID IN FULL, PAID IN FULL. And not for just this month, but for every month, PAID IN FULL, PAID IN FULL!” At times, possibly in order to further reassure the congregation of his message and build his ethos(for what higher authority is there than God?), Wagner spoke as if he were God himself, or merely an instrument that He was speaking through, and the words coming from his mouth were not his own but the very words of the God. Hence, with such rhetoric, Wagner comforted his audience with his words, words that appealed to their desire for security and safety. He elicited emotions (emotions often vocalized in soft exclamations and shouts of loud praise) of peace and happiness.

Wagner’s message, though seemingly far-flung, was surprisingly successful among the congregation of Power Invasion Ministries. He spoke directly to his audience, addressing them in an informal manner all while still conveying his superior knowledge in the spiritual. He spoke to the congregation as if they were friends he was bringing a gift to from a very rich third party, and he was merely there to announce the gift and explain why they were receiving such a generous present. Wagner’s tone was warm and his words flowed confidently and quickly, as if he were a sports’ historian speaking about long-before established facts, like who won Super Bowl 32, rather than events that had yet to occur. His confidence in his own message shifted to his audience, and the congregation seemed to absorb every word Wagner spoke. Yet, though there appeared to be no skeptics in the crowd, throughout his message Wagner continually referenced his past successes, perhaps a very subtle appeal to logos. Such was unnecessary, however, for Wagner’s appeals to ethos and pathos were more than effective.

I left the church early. Yet even before I had made my way discreetly out the back door of the sanctuary and out the front door into the calm of the parking lot, I saw how successful Wagner’s oratory skills were. The multitudes of church-goers engulfed the prophet David Wagner the minute a final offering was concluded, a final song sung, and a final prayer prayed.