Prophet Sparks Outrage After Ripping Bible Page and Telling Teen To Eat It During Church Conference

A controversial moment at a prophetic church conference is drawing widespread criticism after prophet Kevin Leal ripped a page from a Bible and instructed a teenage boy to eat it during a live service.

The incident took place during Rock Church's multi-day Encounter Conference hosted by pastors David Chisholm and Kyong Chisholm in Parkersburg, West Virginia. A video of the moment has since circulated online, sparking debate across Christian social media about prophetic practices, biblical symbolism, and spiritual manipulation.

During one session, Leal focused heavily on a teenager named Ethan, the nephew of a wealthy member of the congregation. After inviting Ethan to pray over people at the front of the church, Leal began prophesying that the young man would become a successful "kingdom businessman" and millionaire who would financially support the work of God.

"Make me money so I can give it to the kingdom!" Ethan shouted into the microphone after Leal instructed him to declare the prophecy publicly.

The atmosphere intensified after Pastor David Chisholm shared what he described as a vision involving Ethan and the Bible's wisdom literature. According to Chisholm, he saw the teenager sitting at a dinner table tearing pages from Scripture, chewing them, and swallowing them chapter by chapter.

"I saw you take Chapter 1, tear it out of the Bible, crumple it up, put it in your mouth and swallow it," Chisholm said. "Then you went to Chapter 2."

Chisholm then urged Ethan to "eat" a chapter of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Psalms every day for years to come - metaphorically referring to consuming Scripture spiritually and intellectually through study.

But moments later, the symbolism became literal.

After taking back the microphone, Kevin Leal asked a teenage girl in the congregation to bring him her Bible and open it to the book of Proverbs.

"You're not going to believe what I'm about to do," Leal told the audience. "But it happened 15 years ago in Brazil."

Leal then ripped a page from the teenager's Bible, handed it to Ethan, and instructed him to eat it.

"Eat it," Leal said. "When you eat this, the power of God is going to go inside of you."

As worship music played in the background, Ethan crumpled the paper into a ball, placed it into his mouth, and began chewing while Leal loudly prayed over him and repeatedly declared that "the power of God" was coming upon him.

"Swallow it! The power of God's coming on you!" Leal shouted while blowing forcefully toward the teenager.

At one point Ethan reportedly asked for water to help swallow the Bible page.

Leal then continued prophesying over the teen, declaring blessings, wisdom, and future financial success over his life.

"I see you with houses before other people have houses," Leal prayed during the moment.

The clip has triggered intense reactions online, with critics accusing the conference leaders of sensationalism and emotional manipulation, while supporters defended the act as a symbolic prophetic illustration rooted in biblical imagery such as Ezekiel and Revelation consuming scrolls containing God's word.

The controversy also follows several recent viral church moments involving dramatic sermon illustrations and prophetic demonstrations. In recent years, pastors including Paula White-Cain and Michael Todd have faced criticism for unconventional ministry moments that quickly spread online.

According to Key Ministries Inc., Kevin Leal and his wife Karen travel internationally conducting prophetic and apostolic ministry events focused on spiritual activation, prophecy, and revival gatherings.

As debate over the video continues, many Christians online are questioning where the line should be drawn between symbolic biblical imagery and performative spectacle inside modern church culture.