What is Grave Soaking and Where did it Come From?

“Grave Soaking” (Also known as “Grave Sucking” or “Mantle Grabbing”) is the practice of laying on the grave of a Christian known for having great faith. Practitioners believe that by doing this, they can “soak up” or “grab” the spiritual power the deceased left behind. Although grave soaking received a lot of attention in the media, it should be noted that no churches, denominations, pastors, or leaders condone the practice. This includes Bethel Church in California, where it is widely believed to have sprung from.

What is Grave Soaking?

If you type “Grave Soaking” into a search engine, you will find Videos and images of individuals kneeling or lying across the graves of famous people such as C. S. Lewis, John Calvin, or Charles Finney in hopes of “grabbing” the spiritual “mantle.” When I first saw this behavior, a thousand and one questions flooded into my mind.

Why would someone do this, what were they trying to get out of it, and where did it come from?

What are Grave Soakers After?

In order to understand what grave soakers are up to, it’s essential first to talk about the concept of a “Mantle.”

Webster’s dictionary defines a Mantle as “a loose sleeveless garment worn over other clothes.” In other words, a Mantle is a cloak. In the Bible, mantles sometimes symbolize a prophet’s calling. An excellent example of this can be found in the story of Elijah and Elisha.   

“Elisha then picked up Elijah’s cloak that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. He took the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and struck the water with it. “Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over.”

2 Kings 2:13-14

In some charismatic circles, the term mantle (also called an anointing) is understood as the power the Holy Spirit gives to those with a calling. These gifts come in various forms and are typically connected to the mission given to the person.

For example, if (hypothetically) God called John Calvin to be a great teacher, his mantle could be seen in a spiritual gift like insight. More physical spiritual gifts like healing or prophecy are also thought to be part of someone’s mantle.

Bill Johnson and Grave Soaking

One of the most well-known proponents of this idea is Bill Johnson, a paster at the infamous Bethel church. Much like Elijah passed on his “mantle” to Elisha, Johnson believes that modern-day mantles can be passed down from one person to another. He also believes that if someone does not pass along their mantle before they die, the spiritual power lingers here on earth, waiting for a new host.

In the book The Physics of Heaven, Bill Johnson says,

“There are anointings, mantles, revelations, and mysteries that have lain unclaimed, literally where they were left because the generation that walked in them never passed them on. I believe it’s possible for us to recover realms of anointing, realms of insight, realms of God that have been untended for decades simply by choosing to reclaim them and perpetuate them for future generations.”

Bill Johnson, Chapter 4: Recovering Our Spiritual Inheritance

2 Kings 13

This idea that spiritual power lingers on is often connected to a passage in 2 King 13:21. In the text, a dead man comes back to life after touching the bones of Elisha.

“Once while some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders; so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s tomb. When the body touched Elisha’s bones, the man came to life and stood up on his feet.”

Much like the man tossed into Elisha’s tomb, grave suckers hope to find lingering power in the graves of faithful men and women of God.

Where Did Grave Soaking Come From?

Although the faculty and staff deny ever teaching or promoting the practice, it did originate in Bethel College in California.

Officially, Bill Johnson and other staff members claim that they have never encouraged people to retrieve mantles through grave soaking.

However, due to the fact that the trend began with Bethel students, the college’s teachings likely had a hand in the phenomenon.

Most people seen grave soaking are connected to bethel in some way. The best example is actually Bill Johnson’s wife who posted photos of herself grave soaking on social media. Although it is entirely possible, the photos were taken in jest. Their existence does indicate grave soaking was an idea well-known in the Bethel community.

In a similar manner, because Bethel College denies teaching the practice of grave soaking, it’s not unreasonable to think the students came up with the idea on their own.

In an interview with Liebscher, a minister at Bethel and founder of their band, Jesus Culture, he suggests that this was the case.  

“Bill does not want to control things. Students may be out in kind of the fringe. They’re pressing into the supernatural in a way that’s like, ‘OK, that’s weird man. That’s weird.’ But Bill’s not going to publicly get up and start reprimanding everybody. We pastor it one on one.”

When liars defend liars: Dr Michael Brown whitewashes the heresies of Bill Johnson

The Biblical Precedent

In my opinion, there is no biblical president for the practice of grave soaking. When supporting the practice, some will point to 2 King 13:21. However, it is the only passage where anything like this happens, which leads me to question the validity of this interpretation.

If “mantles” or spiritual power really linger on earth after death, then there should be more stories of power being passed.

Moreover, in the text, there is no indication that the “mantle” of Elisha was passed on to the once-dead man. All it says is that a deceased individual was tossed onto Elisha’s bones and came back to life. To suggest that this is proof that spiritual power lingers in the graves of the devout is a bit of a stretch. I would even go so far as to say it is a misunderstanding of how the Spirit works in scripture.  

Sources

1. The Physics of Heaven, by Ellyn Davis & Judy Franklin
2. pulpitandpen.org
3. churchwatchcentral.com
4. Does Bethel Church Teach Grave Soaking? | Rediscover Bethel (YouTube interview)
5. Merriam Webster – Mantle