Faith healer Tom de Wal was arrested on Friday evening during a service at Praise Tilburg. The municipality labeled the meeting as an event without a permit. Cultural theologian Frank Bosman calls De Wal a charlatan to Omroep Tilburg, but is also critical of the intervention of the municipality of Tilburg.
Cultural theologian Frank Bosman of Tilburg University is closely following the case surrounding faith healer Tom de Wal. His judgment is crystal clear: “Tom de Wal abuses desperate people. He is a charlatan.”
But Bosman is also critical of the way in which the municipality of Tilburg intervened last weekend. “The argument for his arrest, that no permit had been applied for, is actually incorrect,” he says the local broadcaster. “In the Netherlands you do not need a permit for a church service.” According to him, freedom of religion should only be restricted in the event of serious security risks.
De Wal wanted to hold healing services at the Van der Valk Hotel Eindhoven last weekend, but they were canceled by the hotel. As an alternative, he moved to Praise Tilburg, a church where he often acts as a speaker.
The municipality of Tilburg then put an end to the meeting. According to a spokesperson, Praise Tilburg did not have the required event permit. The municipality states that it was not a regular church service, because tickets had been reserved and no permit had been applied for.
Warn members
De Wal then continued his service on the street, but was arrested there. Praise Tilburg calls that arrest ‘unacceptable’ and states that it was “an ordinary church service, in which Jesus was worshiped and prayers were said for healing and recovery.”
Tom de Wal was arrested during an interview with Omroep Brabant. Here you can see the images:
Bosman sees a clear role for the large, traditional churches. They have centuries of experience with these types of figures. When regular help is difficult to obtain, gaps arise. The traditional churches often do not fill them completely, but they can warn their members against deception.
At the same time, he questions the actions of the municipality. “Freedom of religion should not simply be restricted. There must be clear, well-substantiated reasons for this,” he says. “An arrest because a church service is seen as an ‘event’ is legally questionable. And the municipality must always explain publicly why it is intervening.”
Favorable for De Wal
On Instagram De Wal writes that he was stopped and arrested in the Netherlands because he prayed in the street. “No mayor or police officer has the authority to forbid you to pray,” he writes.
“This could hardly have turned out better for his own supporters and his image,” says Bosman. “Being arrested is the dream of every reactionary preacher. Then you are suddenly the one who is being persecuted by an angry government. For his followers, this is proof that he is in the right place.”
De Wal was released later that evening, around a quarter to ten. He received a fine for violating the General Local Ordinance (APV).