Dag Heward-Mills's treatise on Christian ministry organised around what he calls the most important and least-discussed virtue in church leadership: loyalty to one's spiritual father, pastor and ministry. Written from inside the Ghanaian Charismatic and African Pentecostal tradition Heward-Mills helped shape through his Lighthouse Chapel International network, the book identifies signs of disloyalty (murmuring, divided allegiance, premature departure, public criticism of leadership), traces the spiritual consequences across biblical case studies (Absalom, Judas, Korah), and prescribes the disciplines of loyal followership.
Reception
One of the bestselling Christian leadership titles to come out of West Africa and a defining text of the African Charismatic 'spiritual father' theology — translated into multiple languages and widely used in Lighthouse Chapel International church-planting curricula across more than 80 countries. Reception inside African Pentecostal networks is largely positive; reception outside has been more cautious, with critics including journalists covering Lighthouse Chapel's later employment and labour disputes (notably the 2022 UK Employment Tribunal cases) arguing the book's loyalty framework can underwrite abusive authority structures. The book remains foundational reading inside its tradition and contested outside it.
Frequently asked
What is Loyalty and Disloyalty about?
It is Dag Heward-Mills's treatise on what he considers the most important and least-discussed virtue in church leadership: loyalty to one's spiritual father, pastor, and ministry. The book uses biblical case studies — Absalom, Judas, and Korah — to trace the spiritual consequences of disloyalty, and prescribes disciplines of loyal followership.
Who is the book written for?
The book is written primarily for Christian leaders and church members within the Charismatic and Pentecostal tradition. Heward-Mills draws on his experience building the Lighthouse Chapel International network, which operates across more than 80 countries.
How has the book been received?
Within African Pentecostal networks it is widely used in leadership training and has been translated into multiple languages. Reception outside that tradition is more cautious: critics argue that its loyalty framework can concentrate authority in ways that enable abusive structures, a debate that intensified after the 2022 UK Employment Tribunal cases involving Lighthouse Chapel International.