No Such Thing as Stolen Destiny – Fr. Oluoma Debunks Popular Belief

Catholic priest Rev. Fr. John Chinenye Oluoma has strongly criticised the widely held belief in “stolen destiny,” calling it a misleading idea rooted in gullibility. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Fr. Oluoma challenged Christians who blame their setbacks or life struggles on the notion that their destinies have been spiritually hijacked.

He pointed to the biblical story of Esau and Jacob—often cited to support the “stolen destiny” narrative—as a misunderstood example. According to Oluoma, if Esau were alive today and sought help from a so-called powerful prophet, he would likely be told his destiny had been stolen and be prescribed marathon fasts, deliverance sessions, and seed sowing as remedies.

However, Oluoma argued that despite Esau’s loss of his birthright and blessing to Jacob, the Bible shows Esau still thrived. He noted that in Genesis 32, Esau met Jacob with 400 men—a sign of his material success and influence. In the following chapter, Esau even declined Jacob’s offer of gifts, saying, “I have plenty, keep what is yours.”

The priest urged Christians to stop measuring destiny by material wealth or earthly success and reminded them that God’s purposes are not thwarted by human deception. “What Jacob took from Esau was their biological father’s blessing. God is not Isaac, who got old, blind, needed bush meat pepper soup to bless, and got deceived by a woman and her favourite son,” he wrote.

Fr. Oluoma concluded by warning that the real danger lies with those who promote the idea of stolen destiny. “In fact, if there’s such a thing as stolen destiny, it would be those who programmed you to believe your destiny was stolen that are actually stealing your destiny,” he said.