The claims, which he himself shared on his official Instagram account in November 2025, sparked widespread curiosity and debate across Africa and beyond. According to him, his extraordinary lifestyle is part of a forty-year spiritual journey in which he survives solely on liquids, milk, water, and other beverages, without consuming any cooked or solid meals.

Prophet Elijah, whose real name is Marcelino Mário Bento, asserts that this unusual path began after what he describes as a divine directive.

In his social media posts, he insists that the Holy Spirit instructed him to stop eating all solid foods so that he might enter a higher dimension of spiritual power. As he celebrated the ninth anniversary of this vow, supporters flooded his pages with words of admiration, praising his commitment and referring to him as a vessel of God.

Yet, his claims have generated sharp divisions across social media. To some, he is a spiritual giant, an extraordinary servant of God whose life echoes the miraculous stories found in Scripture. To others, he represents a dangerous form of extreme religiosity, one that stretches human physiology beyond the limits established by science.

Medical professionals and skeptics have been quick to point out that surviving for years without proper food contradicts well-established biological realities, raising questions about what truly sustains him.

Despite the controversy, Prophet Elijah has cemented his image online, particularly on TikTok and Instagram, where videos show him praying for crowds of followers.

In these viral clips, people fall to the ground under what is described as the power of God, and some later testify that they received healing simply by being touched by him. On his Official Prophet Elijah page, he boldly states that he “works as Jesus did,” claiming that miracles manifest through him in ways similar to biblical accounts.

Marcelino Mário Bento is also the founder and leader of the Church of Salvation of All Nations, a ministry known for preaching, prophecy, and healing. His public persona, complete with his trademark dreadlocks reminiscent of biblical Nazirites like Samson, has contributed to his spiritual mystique.

Across several African countries, he is viewed as a preacher who proclaims urgent messages about repentance and the coming Kingdom of God. His sermons emphasize visions, dreams, and prophetic warnings, delivered with a sense of authority that resonates deeply with his followers.

While many celebrate him as a man uniquely empowered by God, others remain doubtful, especially regarding his claims of living without food. Nutritional experts argue that even short periods without proper nourishment can severely weaken the human body, making his nine years of “liquid living” scientifically implausible.

Yet among his believers, the extraordinary nature of his lifestyle strengthens their faith rather than diminishing it. To them, his endurance is further proof that “what God chooses to do cannot be stopped by human reasoning.”

Prophet Elijah, says he has committed to a forty-year period of living solely on liquids, a vow he claims is divinely mandated, after nine years of preparation and spiritual calling that led him to found Angola’s Church of Salvation of All Nations, a ministry focused on healing, deliverance, and preaching the Kingdom of God (Katila, The Nairobi Times, August 12, 2025).

Whether viewed as a miracle worker, a controversial religious figure, or a symbol of spiritual extremism, Prophet Elijah has undeniably become one of the most talked-about personalities in contemporary African Christianity.

His story sits at the crossroads of faith and skepticism, tradition and modernity, belief and doubt. And as he continues toward his stated goal of going forty years without eating food, the world will continue to watch, questioning, analyzing, and, for some, believing.

Prophet Elijah, whose real name is Marcelino Mário Bento, asserts that this unusual path began after what he describes as a divine directive