Edited
and greatly reduced by Russell Earl Kelly, PHD, January 31, 2010.
On January 30, 2010 APP.com writer Jason Method wrote
a continuing article about G. Dewey Friedel, the 60-year-old, pastor of Shore Christian Center in Wall, NJ.
Friedel
is a Prosperity Preacher who has built an overpriced and overbudgeted amphitheater-style church which has shrunk from 1200
to 300 members and is being taken over in bankruptcy on February 3, 2010. The church began in 1979. He says that the devil
and a "spirit of control" were attacking the church but that great things were coming.
Friedel has already lost his
second home in Lee County, Miami, Florida. He wanted to build his own worldwide network similar to the Trinity Broadcasting
Network saying "If we offer what we have, he's going to do something with it."
The church was foreclosed on in July
because Shore Christian Center could not make payments on its $4.7 million mortgage.
"It is unusual for any church
to be foreclosed on, experts say, but there is special irony for a pastor who is an adherent to a strain of Christianity known
as the prosperity gospel" says Method.
Friedel's consistent message over the years has been: God is going to bless
believers' lives with bigger houses, better jobs and more money.
Friedel, who dresses in designer clothes like the
leather sport coat he wore one recent Sunday, has seemed to personally enjoy that heavenly blessing for years. He lives in
a spacious house, assessed at $747,600, with two driveways and a pool, writes books, appears regularly on national Christian
television, and socializes with famous preachers and Major League Baseball players
Until this year, he owned two condos
in Florida, before they were both lost to foreclosure.
Church finances fell apart after its adjustable rate mortgage
changed from $23,000 to $47,000 a month. Friedel, who declined to be interviewed by communicated via e-mail, has been promising
for years that a huge donation is coming through the United Nations, China and Saudi Arabia and that "all participants involved
with the U.S. Treasury had to and did pass an FBI and CIA inspection." He and the church have declined to provide specific
information about the deal.
A senior program officer for the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships said
that neither that office nor the United Nations Foundation had any involvement with the church.
Friedel's wife, Ronda,
61, is co-pastor and son Isaac, 25, as assistant pastor.
Nancy Bensing, 59, and her husband have been very active supporters now say the church has reaped what it has sown.
"I'm mad at myself — for buying all that bull-crap all these years."
A graduate of Oral Roberts University and
Princeton Theological Seminary, Friedel had served as a missionary in India and Methodist minister in Avon before taking off
to start his own church.
In 1999, the church added a 36,000-square-foot multipurpose complex, Evangelist Oral Roberts
visited the church twice. Around 2005, the church appeared to reach its crest of 1200.
With membership high, the church borrowed $4.5 million, refinancing previous
debt and spending some for needed renovations on the original building. "We are not too small to accomplish this forty million
dollar project."
Friedel was willing to borrow money on his own properties as well. The Friedels refinanced their
Wall home for $720,000, with a notation that the maximum balance secured by the mortgage could be as high as $900,000, land
records show. They had has purchased the home for $550,000 in 1998. They also refinanced their condo in Lee County, Florida,
for $548,000, land records show. Later, in 2007, they refinanced their Aventura, Florida, condo for $354,975.
"The
best way to honor your pastor is cold hard cash in the palm of the pastor's hand.' " The Czerwinskis contend that Friedel
was not joking. Meanwhile, Stephen Czerwinski said, the church never reported to members or leaders what it was doing with
the donations. "You never saw the budget," he said. "You never saw how much (Friedel) was paid. You were told to have faith.
. . . You were told you could ask (about salaries) privately, but anyone who did was reprimanded for not having faith."
The
church has long required that congregants who want to become members must pledge to give 10 percent of their income to the
church, a practice known as tithing.
The current elders confirm that the church does not share financial data with
the congregation, which has no say on the church budget.
Elder Joseph Raspanti of Brielle said any member was always free to raise
questions, but he also believes that objecting to decisions would display a lack of faith. "When you give to the church, you
give what you believe belongs to God. To give it, and then say, "I don't like the way it's being used.' That's not tithing,"
Raspanti said.
According to a 2005 financial statement obtained by the Asbury Park Press, the church spent $974,280
on salaries for its church and school staff of 39. The church also spent $106,178 in "casual labor," $182,834 for housing
allowances, and $154,446 for travel, meal and lodging of guests [$3000 per week].
At the end of the year, after bringing
in $2.6 million in revenue, the church finished $221,302 in the red.
Church officials have declined to discuss specific
salaries.
Rick Davis tells the story of retrieving a dropped wallet and discovering that it had been dropped by the
king of Saudi Arabia who is has been about to financially help the church with millions in donation since 2007.
Friedel
passed out bonus checks to leaders in anticipation of the donation arriving. On January 1st, 2008 the youth leader received
a bonus check for $12,000 but never cashed it and was asked to return it but refused.
Joseph Lane, an elder and church
attorney, said he has seen the contract.
On Easter Sunday in 2009, Friedel promised the church a season of abundance.
"Hear me now," Friedel said. "You are about to flourish and be on the receiving end of something that is happening as an undercurrent
in this world. We've been meeting with government officials from all over the world."
On Nov. 8, more than three months
since the congregation had lost ownership of its sanctuary and facilities, Friedel alluded to the pending donation again and
promised the church would embark on the big building program.
Tithing Insurance: If you lose something or hve something stolen at church
and waive the deductible, you can collect $750.00 tithe insurance.
Christian-only insurance benefits hit snag in Kentucky
Anthony Baize of Sellersburg, Ind.,
was shopping for a homeowner’s policy in 2006 when he saw an interesting offer from GuideOne Mutual Insurance Co. nefits
and discounts for “churchgoers.”
Nick Valenzuela was looking for renter’s insurance for his Louisville apartment when he saw the same “FaithGuard”
deal offering $750 in “tithe” insurance for policyholders who are disabled, and waiving the deductible for property
lost or stolen at church.
But the policies didn’t seem right to Baize, an atheist, or to Valenzuela, an agnostic, because the benefits the
company and its agents advertized are available only to Christian churchgoers, according to court records.
They filed complaints with the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights and later the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, alleging discrimination based on religion by the West
Des Moines, Iowa, company and two agencies that sell its policies in Louisville and Lexington.
On Sept. 18, the U.S. Justice Department announced a settlement in which GuideOne, Young Insurance Agency of Louisville
and Lee Insurance Agency of Lexington agreed to pay $45,000 in civil penalties — plus $29,500 to Baize, Valenzuela and
to the Lexington Fair Housing Council, which investigated their complaints.
The settlement, which must be approved by the court, also requires GuideOne, which marketed the FaithGuard endorsement
in at least 18 other states, to stop selling the policy anywhere in the United States and to train agents on their responsibilities under the U.S. Fair Housing Act, which
the Justice Department had accused the company of violating.
“All individuals have the right to secure homeowners and renters insurance without regard to their religious beliefs,”
Loretta King, acting assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, said in a prepared statement.
Melany Stonewall, a spokeswoman for GuideOne confirmed that the company had settled the suit and will phase out the
coverage in homeowners and renters policies by mid-2010. She said it disputed that its coverage was discriminatory or violated
federal law.(2 of 2)
Stonewall said the GuideOne policy endorsement applies to any house of worship, including mosques or synagogues, not just churches.
The policy provision, which is available at no additional cost, doubles medical payments
if the policyholder is injured in an accident on the way to or from church. It also pays $750 toward tithing or church donations
if the policyholder is disabled at home, according to the suit
The Justice Department’s lawsuit said such benefits are not available to non-churchgoing
policyholders, or to those who suffered a loss that wasn’t related to a church activity.
The suit said that an agent in the Lexington agency told a tester for the Lexington
Fair Housing Council that FaithGuard provides benefits “if an individual goes to church or is a Christian.”
The application for homeowners and renters insurance from GuideOne included a space
for the applicant’s religious denomination, and prospective customers were required to sign a statement verifying the
information, which “is material to the company in determining whether they accept this application,” according
to the suit.
The suit said Young Insurance Agency sold the renter’s policy with FaithGuard.
Baize left a message declining to comment on the case, and Valenzuela could not be reached
for comment.
Another company spokeswoman said in 2006 that 46,000 customers nationwide had FaithGuard
coveragefor their homes or autos, and its president and CEO said their popularity proved that “Americans who attend
church regularly also are in the market for insurance that understands their beliefs and needs.”
The company said at the time that it insured more than 43,000 churches, and that FaithGuard
was developed as a natural extension of its business to offer coverage for the more than 90 million people who attend church
regularly in the U.S.
Reporter Andrew Wolfson can be reached at (502) 582-7189.
African
women prostitute themselves to afford ‘tithes’
People are now paying for prayers; paying for praising and worshiping their heavenly Father. No wonder ladies are going
into fornication and/or prostitution in order to pay their tithes and offerings, some of which are up to eight (if not more),
alongside forceful vows and other levies. In the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) led by Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, there
are divisions: Yoruba caucus, Igbo caucus, Delta/Edo caucus, etc; everybody fighting for his selfish interest; not the preaching
of the gospel of salvation, which our Lord Jesus Christ upheld.
MISSIONARIES REFUSE TO BAPTIZE NON-TITHER WHO FULLY SUPPORTS SIX ORPHANS
December 17, 2008
I
flipped my lid when I read this today. I told the pastor that he should go to hell. Forgive me if you disagree but I am serious.
They thought that they had consigned Pablo to hell because he could not tithe and they would not baptize him. The following
is a small portion of the blog.
http://hermanajensen.blogspot.com/
Hermana
Stacey Jensen
Pablo
fell because he cannot commit to pay his tithing. Talk about a shock that we didn't see coming… he was totally on board
when we taught tithing, but it turns out that he's not after all. It's not because he doesn't want to share his money, it's
that he wants to share it his way. When this problem came to light, we also learned that he takes care of 6 abandoned and
battered little boys. He buys their clothes, pays for them to go to a psychologist, and for their medicine and all that jazz.
He does this with his own money. So the issue is that he doesńt want to pay tithing because he says he wońt be
able to keep caring for these 6 little boys. He is all about serving, but he wants to be able to use his tithing in his
own foster home project. We told him that Heavenly Father would bless him to be able to pay his tithing and still be able
to care for these little boys and left him with the eternal homework to "pray about it." So his baptismal date fell, but fell
hard core because we weren't able to just take out another date right then for the following weekend, rather his date fell
and fell into the "eternal investigador" category where it's like the group of people that will surely get baptized someday,
but not this transfer, not when Íll be able to see it happen.
......................................
BLACK SHEEP AFTER
READING MY BOOK
David N.; 2-23-08TITHING ABUSE STORY
I am writing this with a broken
heart. I am all alone and all isolated since reading your book (I am not finished yet) and others online. I have tried to
talk to people at my church whom I thought were my friends about tithing and financial unaccountability.
This is a Word of Faith church
and Kenneth Copeland and his wife are here for a week of meetings.
[The wrong part] I am not doing
everything right. I am lashing out, actually reaching out for support and friendship.
I just want to talk to somebody
but no leader will talk to me about it. they shut me off and have blacklisted me in the church. I try to talk to my friends
but they have to choose carefully whom they will remain loyal to. Everyone is backing away and telling me they are praying
for me or think I am in danger or on the wrong road, etc.
I am all alone. My wife is really
having a hard time. She is trying to be loyal to me but is in the choir and being fed different things from the other side.It is really touch on her.
I need help.Who can I turn to? I guess I can’t change my church or my friends (who aren’t friends any more
or soon won’t be). It doesn’t seem to be an issue where you can agree to disagree or compromise and meet in the
middle. It is either their way or the highway and that makes me wrong, immature and a rebel.
Hi, I am the
Administrative Assistant named in Suzanne Sateline’s report. What she didn’t tell you was that in 1995 I was supporting
3 children on child support only. I had been a stay at home mom for 16 years and had no idea how to even turn on a computer.
We went from a 5-bedroom house to a 2-bedroom apartment. My children’s father chose not to be a part of their lives
after he remarried, so I was desperate for help. I reached out to my church and was told that I should tithe to get God’s
favor. So I did.
When I had trouble
paying my bills, I was told I should tithe first. When my electricity was turned off I was told I didn’t have
enough faith, or that I had hidden sin. When I asked the church for help, I had to fill out enough papers to choke a horse
and made to feel like I was stealing from God. It was the Catholic Church in my area that helped me more times than
I can remember. (I’ve never been Catholic).
In 2005 I had
a wreck (even though I had been tithing) and was hurt. Two surgeries on my knee made it almost impossible to wear heels,or
anything besides tennis shoes, so I quit going to church because it hurt to walk. My car was totaled and I had to buy a new-used
car. In buying the car, my first consideration was would I still be able to afford to tithe if I buy this car. I bought a
4-yr old 2001 Suzuki, hoping I would still be able to tithe.
Car payments,
on top of tithing just did not work for me. I started missing my tithe payments and eventually quit mailing them in.
Earlier this year,
I was crying out to God on my knees, in my bedroom! Begging him to forgive me for not tithing, and for “robbing”
him. He led my back to my Bible in Malachi 2-3, Malachi is talking to the PRIESTS of that day who were keeping the best of
the tithe. I couldn’t believe I had read those scriptures for years and years and there it was. . .right in front of
me.
Then I dug in
and started researching and telling my story. At that point I had officially quit tithing in my heart. I wasn’t going
to send any more money to the church. A complete stranger read my story on one website and contacted the website owner to
send me $500. He just wanted to send me a blessing. . ..I can’t begin to tell you how much of a blessing that was. Then
in August I received a financial settlement that had been long overdue. If I had received it before, I would have sent 10%
to the church. Also, I recently received a substantial raise at work. And it looks like next month I will finally be able
to own my own home. All this AFTER I quit tithing.
May I say too,
that I have come to realize that the Prosperity Gospel is a pack of lies, and twisted scripture. Sataline’s report states
that Steve Sorensen advocates tithing because then you are under God’s “protection.”
Then please explain
this, my best friend was an avid Chirstian woman. She died 5 years ago of cancer. She tithed, gave offerings and I never saw
her let that plate go by without putting something extra in it. I literally saw her take the shoes off her feet and give them
to someone who needed shoes. She taught Sunday School, sang in the choir, and was very active in her cell group. She fought
such a hard fight to live. But it wasn’t meant to be. Why? Did she not have enough faith, hidden sin? What would you
tell her husband? two young daughters? her parents? Friends?
After googling
every preacher on TBN, for example “john hagee false teacher” and seeing the over the top lavish lifestyle of
greed these pastors live, I got mad. When I gave my money to the different ministries, I wasn’t counting on it going
to line the pockets of these mega televangelists. It is obscene.
I sat at my computer
and cried my eyes out at watching the videos on www.false-teachers.com. How that must be such dung in the eyes of God. The whole thing was such a shock to me, that it is
all such a money scam.
I am so grateful
that God cared enough about me to remove me from that apostate church. Now, I firmly believe that God has given Hagee over
to a reprobate mind. He obviously believes a lie, given the heresy he’s been saying lately, like “Jesus did not
come to be the Messiah” so he can promote his latest book.
I lost friends
when I walked away from that church. In a way, I lost my identity since I had been involved in severaly ministries too. I’ve
had to re-learn everything about the Bible. My cell leaders, who profess to love me, told me that I had LOST MY SALVATION
and CURSED MY CHILDREN because I quit tithing. Then they refused to speak to me about it any more. . ..it was not open for
ANY discussion. Just a little cultish wouldn’t you say?
Now, I’m
grateful that I’m out. I see the brain-washing I got and wonder how I could have sat there for so long in such a delusion
(It must have been the Kool Aid). I have asked God for forgiveness for seeking his hand and not his face, and I have repented
for ever going to a place like Cornerstone.
I’ve had
people tell me all the good things that Hagee has done in the world. Most churches have done good things. But the greed is
more than I can stand. One table in GETV cost more than I make in two years. Why? Because money says your successful? I think
not, from what I’ve read, Jesus would have said, “sell it and give it to the poor.”
About 3-4 years
ago Hagee has us start paying off the church debt. It was somewhere around $30 million and he said that he “didn’t
want to leave the next generation a huge debt.” This new payment was over and above the tithe and offering. Now that
the debt is nearly paid, Hagee has bought a private jet. Jets are very expensive to maintain.
In closing, I
like Senator Grassley’s analogy of “Jesus rode a humble donkey”, why do these preachers need jets and fancy
cars? Jesus could have been carried everywhere in a golden chariot, but he chose to walk or ride a donkey, why should it be
different for these preachers? They say they do so much for us but when was the last time you got to speak directly to your
pastor? Is he/she covered by body guards (why do you need body guards to go to church?) Is your pastor always off traveling
or on speaking engagements?
I still give.
I have always loved to give. But now, the poor in my community have my heart. I also give to a hospital that never turns a
child away for not being able to pay.
One last question.
Where is the faith of the preacher? Why can’t he/she preach the Word correctly that Paul taught us to “give as
you purpose in your heart” and “give cheerfully?” Let the people give and let the preacher have faith that
God will meet his/her needs.
The reportedly extravagant
lifestyles of six television evangelists are raising some eyebrows at the Senate Finance Committee, which wants to know if
the popular preachers are paying their fair share in taxes.
Sen. Charles Grassley, the
committee's ranking Republican, has written letters to the evangelists, asking that they "disclose their assets, spending
practices, compensation plans and business arrangements," according the Wall Street Journal's Suzanne Sataline. "The letters aren't formal subpoenas, and the six aren't required
to reply."
Although religious organizations
themselves are not required to pay federal taxes, any for-profit ventures a church may engage in are not similarly exempt.
"Mr. Grassley said his investigation
was prompted by complaints from watchdog groups and others that the ministers live in multimillion-dollar homes, travel on
private jets and engage in profit-making ventures from their ministries," reports the Journal, adding that the senator said
he would withhold judgment until he got "the story from the ministries."
Evangelists receiving letters
from Grassley were Kenneth Copeland, Creflo Dollar, Benny Hinn, Eddie Long, Joyce Meyer and Paula White. Spokespersons for
Dollar, Hinn and Meyer all denied any wrongdoing in statements to CBS News.
CBS also reports that Sen.
Grassley's letters were prompted in part by Ole Anthony, an investigator with the Trinity Foundation, a religious watchdog group that probes
potential fraud among religious groups.
"We've been working with
them for two years," Anthony told CBS. "We have furnished them with enough information to fill a small Volkswagen."
According to the Wall Street
Journal, the ministers under scrutiny are all "prosperity theology adherents who preach that wealth is a sign of God's favor."
"Ministers who espouse prosperity
theology promote themselves as conduits for God's blessings, saying that believers will reap benefits as long as they give
generously to the ministries," continued the Journal."Most evangelical ministers urge believers to donate, but don't link
donations to earthly wealth."
(CBS) This story was written
and reported by Laura Strickler of the CBS News Investigative Unit.
CBS News has learned Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance
Committee, is investigating six prominent televangelist ministries for possible financial misconduct.
Letters were
sent Monday to the ministries demanding that financial statements and records be turned over to the committee by December
6th.
According to Grassley's office, the Iowa Republican is trying to determine whether or not these ministries are
improperly using their tax-exempt status as churches to shield lavish lifestyles.
The six ministries identified as
being under investigation by the committee are led by: Paula White, Joyce Meyer, Creflo Dollar, Eddie Long, Kenneth Copeland
and Benny Hinn. Three of the six - Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland and Creflo Dollar - also sit on the Board of Regents for the
Oral Roberts University.
A spokesperson for JoyceMeyerMinistries provided CBS News with an IRS letter to the ministry dated October 10, 2007, that stated: "We determined that
you continue to qualify as an organization exempt from Federal income tax." The letter could not be independently verified
in time for this story. The ministry also pointed to audited financial statements for the last three years that are posted on the organization's Web site.
In
a statement, Benny Hinn's spokesperson, Ronn Torossian, said the ministry was in the process of determining the best course
of action in response to the Senate investigation. "WorldHealingCenterChurch complies
with the laws that govern church and non-profit organizations and will continue to do so," Torossian wrote.
In a statement
to CBS News, Creflo Dollar called his ministry an "open book" and said he would comply with any "valid request" from
Grassley. But he noted that the inquiry raised questions that could "affect the privacy of every community church in America."
The
other three ministries did not respond to requests for comment from CBS
News on Monday.
Because they have tax status as churches, the ministries do not have to file IRS 990 forms like
other non-profit organizations - leaving much financial information largely behind closed doors.
The letters sent
Monday were the culmination of a long investigation fueled in part by complaints from Ole Anthony, a crusader against religious
fraud who operates the Dallas-based Trinity Foundation, which describes itself as a watchdog monitoring religious media, fraud and
abuse. "We've been working with them for two years," Anthony told CBS News. "We have furnished them with enough information to fill a small Volkswagen."
Anthony
said after twenty years of working with media organizations to expose televangelists, he saw little reform. He says that's
why he turned to another tactic, going straight to Grassley. He is confident that Grassley's inquiry will be different, "What
we hope is that this will lead to reform in religious nonprofits."
The structure of many televangelist organizations
- in which the leadership is often concentrated in one person or one family - has itself been the target of criticism. "Churches
like these are ruled as a dictatorship," says Rod Pitzer, who directs research at Ministry Watch in North Carolina, which
provides advice for donors to Christian organizations.
Pitzer welcomes the Senate committee investigation. Ministries
lacking accountability, he says, "give a black eye to churches and Christians who are trying to do things in the right manner."
The
Internal Revenue Service treats churches generally the same as nonprofit organizations. To keep their tax-exempt
status, both are prohibited from making large profits or providing a substantial benefit to for-profit interests.
Churches
and nonprofits also are forbidden from attempting to influence legislation or political campaigns.
Most
churches fall well within those guidelines, said Michael Broyde, professor at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University.
"Churches
have nothing to worry about if their expenditures are vaguely reasonable and the standard of living of their pastors is within
the norm," he said.
The
"norm" is usually at the discretion of church leaders and depends on the local cost of living and salary range of parishioners
and colleagues, Broyde said.
Religious
groups might jeopardize their tax-exempt status if they use it to compete with private business or substantially benefit a
member of the organization.
Examples
of prohibited activities include "payment of dividends, the payment of unreasonable compensation to insiders, and transferring
property to insiders for less than fair market value," according to the IRS.
....
In
October, three former professors at Oral Roberts University filed a wrongful-dismal lawsuit against the school. The suit includes allegations of
extravagant spending by the Roberts family. It describes a $39,000 shopping tab at one store for Richard Roberts' wife, Lindsay, a $29,411 senior trip to the Bahamas on the university jet for one of the Roberts' daughters, and a stable of horses for the Roberts' children.
12 November 2007 Posted to the web 12 November 2007
Mangoa Mosota, Nairobi
The sprouting of countless charismatic churches in the country
has heralded a new breed of church leaders and worshippers with strong faith in the power of miracles.
An increasing number of Kenyans are turning to 'sowing the seed'
(giving huge sums of money for offering and tithe) at the prompting of church ministers who promise them to expect prosperity.
However, it appears there are 'men and women of God' who are
out to take advantage of the unwavering faith and ignorance of worshippers. These are people who hide self-interest under
the cloak of religion. They quote biblical verses to suit their intentions and convince the congregation of the need to give
more in order to receive more.
Indeed, many Kenyans have sad tales to tell after being convinced
to 'sow seeds.' A woman who only wanted to be identified as Evelyn said last year she sold her property and took a bank loan
at the prompting of her pastor.
"He told me to invest in the work of God so that he could miraculously
secure me a job within a month. In total, I gave him Sh120,000," said Evelyn, 35, who is still jobless even after the promise
of a miracle.
Evelyn said she realised that the preacher was conning her after
she discovered that there were many members of her church who the pastor had promised instant miracles, but are still waiting.
Some have been waiting for five years.
"I am distraught and confused. I don't know whether to sue or
confront him in public," lamented Evelyn.
Miracle merchants
Stella Wanjiku told Crazy Monday earlier this year that she
saw a white man preaching in Spanish on Aga Khan Walk, Nairobi.
"His lunch time sermon was then translated into English and Kiswahili
by two other people," said Wanjiku.
"I was perplexed when he said that he could cure people living
with HIV/Aids by just touching them," said Wanjiku, a secretary with a Nairobi company.
For Jonathan Wambasi last year provided a moment of disbelief
when he saw a former schoolmate on TV getting 'healed' after suffering a 'lifelong' physical disability.
The man on crutches had 'healed miraculously' after being
prayed for by one of the well-known preachers in Nairobi. "I grew up with the man and he was born without any disability," Wambasi says.
He met the former schoolmate later on the streets of Nairobi and asked him about the 'miraculous' incident.
"Wachana nami. Hapo ndipo nakulia. Usiamini miujiza yote ya kanisa,"
Wambasi's friend retorted (Let me be. That is where I get my daily bread. Do not believe in all church miracles).
From that day, Wambasi has been doubting church ministers who
claim to perform miracles.
Many men and women of God have paraded people they claim to
have been previously suffering from HIV/Aids, who they claim to have healed. Mid last year, Prophetess Lucy Nduta of Salvation
Healing Ministry appeared in a Nairobi court accused of defrauding people living with the scourge.
Many people claimed that they had paid her for the healing. Nduta
was charged with obtaining money from HIV/Aids patients in the pretext that he could heal them.
In May, the wife of Kenyan evangelist Gilbert Deya, Mary,
was sentenced to two years in jail by a Nairobi court
for stealing a child.
Mary claimed that one of her two accomplices had given birth
to the child, but the court proved the woman was not the biological mother.
"The actions and claims of miraculous birth deserve no mercy,"
said the magistrate who made the ruling.
Deya runs a number of churches in UK cities and says he aids infertile couples by prayer. Kenyan police allege the
Gilbert Deya Ministries is an international baby-snatching ring, allegations Deya denies. Some children were taken into care
when DNA tests showed they were not related to women claiming to be their mothers.
Conversion strategies
The men and women of God have given themselves titles such as
archbishop, apostle, prophet (or prophetess), evangelist or bishop. Others call themselves 'Dr' yet nobody can tell which
university gave them the title. The names of the churches are equally amazing, with most of their titles promising miracles
and predicting doom for non-believers or the second coming of Jesus.
Minister Sentenced for Theft
Sep
12 20078:38AM Associated Press
Condensed and Edited by Russell E Kelly
ABERDEEN, S.D. (AP) A former Aberdeen minister has been given a suspended jail sentence for stealing money from a church member with Alzheimer's disease.
Edward
Maciorowski who recently moved to Wisconsin pleaded
guilty to theft by exploitation. The victim's lawyer says Maciorowski could have gotten up to $200,000 from the impaired woman in the past 6 years.
The lawyer says it's hard to tell
when the minister began taking advantage of the woman who was tithing $600 a week to the church and gave Maciorowski a car and spending money.
The BrownCounty prosecutor says he's not sure how much money the minister
took from the woman. Maciorowski who was pastor of the LivingWordBibleChurch pleaded guilty to theft of no more than $1,000. He'll be
on probation from a year, must do community service and may no longer contact the woman.
How it began. In 1998 over 100 members of Hillsong
contacted a church member when they discovered that he was a property developer. They sought and he afterwards promised a
25% return on their investment.
Now Robert Orehek, a 45 year old property developer,
has been accused of fleecing mostly members of HillsongChurch in Australia of $25 million dollars after his business collapsed in 2003.
Orehek claims that it was the Pentecostal materialistic
ethos [of the prosperity gospel] preached at Hillsong that made him do it.
While in court on August 24, 2007 the judge,
James Bennett, said that Orehek’s actions reflected someone who believed “perhaps with a little trust in God it
will all work out at the end of the month.”
Speaking in defense of Orehek was Consumer Advocate
Neil Jenman who had built a reputation usually fighting against people like Orehek who were unscrupulous property frauds.
Jenman said that Orehek was a “dreadfully inept businessman” and “not particularly intelligent” but
he did not set out to deceive investors.
Hillsong’s executive pastor, Joel A’Bell,
along with pastor David Crafts combined lost $540.000.
Orehek, who had been attending Hillsong twice
a week for five years, was shocked when he was told in February 2004 that he could no longer enter the building for worship.
Brian Houston, the founder of Hillsong, defended the ban in writing by saying “We maintain our right to ask anyone displaying
predatory behavior to cease attending our church …”
Orehek was charged with four counts of fraud
and using $150, 000 of investor funds for personal use.
...................................
July 2007: Gospel Riches, African Prosperity Churches; NIgeria.
There are super-wealthy churches and pastors whose members average $1.00 per month income and whose lives are
usually not improved after sacrificing to their churches. From Christianity Today, July 2007.
July 2007: Uganda pastor is arrested after trying to smuggle in a "miracle making" shock device.
Aug 2005: USA. Woman is kicked out of church because she cannot tithe after many heart surgeries.
Theresa Holmes of Washington DC tells her tithing abuse story of selling prayers and other abuses by wealthy
pastors.
April 2007, First Baptist Church, West Palm Beach, Florida. A mentaly ill woman is fleeced out of money she inherited.
She gave $605,000 of $620,00 to her curch and pastors and is now broke and cannot get it back.
June 2007; AOG, San Tan Christian Center (Arizona?). Pastor accused of stealing $300,000 in four years from church
funds. He teaaches tithing too!
Marietta, Georgia. Pastor of small Southrn Baptist Church sends his wife to collect tithes from senior living
center on the 3rd of every month to get tithes from Social Security checks. Validated by Russell Kelly.
African Prosperity Churches: Gospel Riches
From Christianity Today, July 2007
[This is less than 5% of the article.]
Pages 22-23 show a church in Nigeria and describes the pastor
standing up from a golden colored chair wearing a glittery green gown and facing 4000 members in a church with all modern
video equipment and laser-light strands.
On page 24 we are told that most African Christians
believe that God grants material prosperity to believers who have enough faith.“The
African Big Man idea honors rich powerful leaders such as prosperity preachers.”
Page 25: People turn it (TV) on and assume that
TBN is American Christianity and Americans know everything so why not listen to it.” TBN, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Hagin,
TD Jakes, and Kenneth Copeland are their heroes of the faith.
Page 27: “A religion of hope gleams brightly
against the backdrop of African poverty. Currently 315 million sub-Saharan Africans live on less than a dollar a day. …
The average life expectancy throughout the continent is 41 years.. One in three Africans suffers malnutrition.
The prosperity gospel offers a picture of
an ideal life in the midst of neighborhoods wracked by poverty, gang violence, sub-standard education and pervasive drug and
alcohol abuse. Yet it rarely, if ever, changes the real-life picture in those neighborhoods.
Page 28:It plays into the African cultures already existing urge to communicate with the supernatural. … For many divine
provision in the face of lawlessness, ramshackle living conditions and other urban quagmires makes intellectual faith alone
seem stale.
Page: 29: There is a photo of a 54,000 seat church
in Nigeria. … “Prosperity for most Africans means to have a roof over their heads and clothes.”
………………………………………..
Tithing-Study group friends:
I partially blame a lot of this on the acceptance
of tithing by mainstream churches. The prosperity preachers unanimously BEGIN with tithing and go from there.
In the wake of rising cases of worshippers accusing their pastors of extortion, fraud and
other dubious conduct, born again city businessman John Katto has spoken out to reveal the schemes employed by some Pentecostal
clerics to "keep followers inside" a web of ignorance.
In an interview with Sunday Monitor, Mr Katto, who became a born again Christian in December
2004, revealed how some pastors have used the "manipulation plus intimidation and judgement" equation to keep their congregations
blinded and unable to leave churches that are clearly suspicious. "We have a few good pastors and many bad ones . "
Illiterate pastors
Mr Katto, a trailblazer who led several initiatives in the Ugandan media, said "In fact, many
of these [pastors] cannot read or even be able to tell you a few verses in the Bible."
NEW REVELATIONS:
New converts, he said, are the most vulnerable to manipulation, especially when pastors claim
that "you will be cursed" if tithe is not paid. According to Mr Katto, 47, "people end up paying tithe using even borrowed
money" because of "coercion". Even those who need counselling, Mr Katto explained, "are expected to pay money and the bigger
their problem the more money they are expected to pay".
The church of one Muwanguzi, a cleric with a fearsome reputation, has been accused of commercialising
church proceedings. According to Mr Katto, "at Pastor Muwanguzi's church, on Entebbe Road, they have envelopes. If your problem is big and you need to be prayed for quickly, the amount of money is Shs100,000".
According to Mr Katto, the basic trick of the manipulative pastors is to project themselves
to their victims as substitutes to God. "Then you are judged, especially when it comes to things like finances, and giving."
Mr Katto, who converted to Pentecostalism at Pastor Isaac Kiweweesi's Kansanga Miracle Cathedral, said after the pastors have
projected themselves as glorious "substitutes" for God, they inspire fear and loyalty among followers who are likely to be
desperate for quick miracles.
"When [pastors] start churches, they feel that for them to grow they have to pull people in
and when they are in, to find a way of holding them in," Mr Katto said. "So instead of using the church to liberate them from
the oppressions they have been facing, they instead add a few. So [people] are held in."
………
The NFBAPC says that although there are 20,000 churches for born again Christians countrywide,
only 1,020 have joined the fellowship. Within NFBAPC, there is agreement that because the activities of the Pentecostals are
not regulated and monitored, "dirty" undertakings have gone unreported.
Interest into the activities of churches for born again Christians peaked last week after
the arrest at Entebbe Airport of Obiri Yeboah Kojo, the Ghanaian born Kampala pastor who was interrogated by police over an
"electric touch" gadget that he attempted to clear into the country.
Police crackdown
Police suspected the gadget, which is marketed on the Internet as a miracle-maker,
was to be used by Mr Kojo to shock unsuspecting worshippers to make them falsely believe the Holy Spirit is entering them.
Some pastors, including the crusading Solomon Male, have called for an independent inquiry into the activities of the Pentecostals,
going beyond merely probing Kojo and Kitaka.
According to Mr Katto, "we have come to that tragic point" where pastors have turned the
Church into a "money basket". He said pastors' "sale of miracles" has enabled them lead flamboyant lifestyles, including
the ability to become "the best clients in Kampala's boutiques".
Said Mr Katto: "Pastors have made themselves look like substitutes for God and so people look
to pastors for their needs rather than to God. Fortunately, I have been lucky to be open-minded, so I have not fallen for
these [tricks]."
Mr Katto pioneered private radio broadcasting in Uganda by setting up Radio Sanyu in 1993. He also introduced colour newspaper printing by bringing the first
colour separation equipment that all the city's papers used before developing their own capacity. Katto now manages a printing
business.
Concluded the media trailblazer: "Born again Christians are better off "building personal
relationships with God...the dependence we have on pastors is just not right".
BARF TIME: WHY BOOKS LIKE THIS ARE NEEDED.
WCFcourier .com Waterloo, Iowa; The Cedar
Valleys Home Page Friday, August 5, 2005
Support payments
The Living Word
Tabernacle in Waverly, Ohio, terminated the membership of Loretta Davis recently, according to a July report by WCMH-TV in
Columbus, because she had stopped paying her tithe. Davis' contributions ended in January after she was hospitalized the first
of 15 times this year for congestive heart failure. The church's founder said non-member Davis could still attend, but Davis'
daughter said, "In the time of (her) need, (the church) should be caring, supporting, asking what she needs, help her if she
needed help." When healthier, Davis was donating $60 a month out of her $592 Social Security check.
TITHING ABUSE STORY #1 OF
10, 000, 000++
This e-mail from “T” is in my possession
and portions have been shared by its writer to the Tithing-Study group at Yahoo.com. Underlines supplied by me.
I have always been a tithe-payer since learning
about it in church. I have always tried to pay my tithes faithfully since that time. Even when I was on welfare I tithed.
… When I could pay my tithes consistently I felt safe in God, but when I could not I felt like something bad would
happen to me and my kids and God would not meet our needs.We were told to
tithe off of our gross and not our net. The preacher would say that if Uncle Sam got his off the gross, then why shouldn’t
God.As for an offering I was told to give above my tithes. … I was a single
mom with two kids and I just couldn’t do that. So I would give an offering as the Lord would lay it on my heart.
What made me start seeking the Lord about the
truth concerning tithes was when I was still struggling after paying my tithes! I was told to give out of my need and
God will bless you (make a sacrifice and watch God move). When I did that it still didn’t work. Mind you because
of God’s goodness He still would meet my needs… [even when unable to tithe]
I would go to church and they would have these
$100, $500 and $1000 money lines. If you had the money you would get a special prayer and God would move for you in 3, 5 or
7 days. Then they would tell the rest of us to come up and bring what you have. Most times we didn’t get prayed for
--just a tap on the hand or a touch on the head. Imagine how that made us feel --like what we had to give God was not
good enough to give.
There have been times when so-called Prophets
would come into town. This one particular instance this lady asked if anyone would like a prayer cloth and two women stood
up to get one. As they did this she said “The price is $15.00.” You should have seen the look on their faces.
They were disappointed and they quickly sat down.
In another instance I was invited by a friend
to see a well-known Prophet. They had a money line also. Then they told the rest of us to give what we had. I only
had $20 and needed it to get to work. I was going to give $10 but couldn’t get change. Then the prophet’s spouse
said for nobody to leave without giving something. All of a sudden I felt the spirit of dread over me like something
bad was going to happen to me (like I wasn’t going to make it home safely) if I didn’t give the money. So I gave
it. …
Mr. Kelly, I am a giver and will continue
to give, but by the leading of the Holly Spirit and with wisdom. What the enemy wanted was for me to get so angry and
frustrated about tithing that I wouldn’t give at all. Thank God for leading me to the truth.Your web site and others have confirmed some things in my heart after reading Hebrews, 2 Cor 8 & 9,
the book of Acts (which really showed how the people of God should give) and other scriptures. This type of giving is not
being done in most churches today. What I realize is that people pick and choose what they want from the Bible for their gain.I just want the truth.2-12-2007
………………………………………..
Yes. You definitely can quote me, Mr. Kelly.It will be my pleasure. This type of thing is happening a lot in the DC area, especially
in the African American churches. … They will come back and tell you their quota for Sunday was not met and they
will literally beg you to give more when they know you don’t have it. …
I have seen “prophets” tell people
that “Don’t let me expose you and tell the exact amount and where the money is in your pocket book.” That
is their way of scaring people into giving.I can remember thinking “Thank
God I don’t have any money.” I didn’t want to die like Ananias and Sapphira. I was a babe in Christ then.
One woman I know personally got evicted because
she would pay her tithes and offerings over paying her rent. She had to live with another friend of ours until she could get
back on her feet.
This is why people leave the church and never
come back! They become angry with God when these so-called blessings don’t
manifest like the pastor and prophet said they would. They’re doing this stuff in Jesus’ name and making a
mockery out of Christianity. The Bible says woe to these pastors who scatter the sheep.
I stopped going to church for a while, but I
still prayed, read my Bible and communed with other Christians. I don’t boast on myself but I boast in the power of
the Holy Spirit who will keep those who truly belong to him.I know others who
have done this same thing. They refuse to go back because they are tired of the mess in the church and they just want God.
Plus the Holy Spirit is not there! If it wasn’t for Jesus and His hand upon our life we would be in a backslidden state.
Thanks again and God be with you.2-13-7
First Baptist Church, West Palm Beach, Dateline 04-01-2007
An obviously mentally disturbed woman inherited $620,000. She gave $520,000 to the church outright. She gave another
$60,000 to the pastor and his family as a love gift. She gave another $25,000 to a second pastor as a love gift.
They took it.
Now she is broke and wants it back.
It is in the court system.
She is studying to become an Orthodox Jewish rabbi.
June 8, 2007: San Tan Christian Center: AOG pastor Jon Bagley suspected of stealing $300,000 in 4 years. AOG leadership
has asked him to repay only $37,000 and does not intend to prosecute him. Members are required to tithe.
................................................
Marietta, Georgia, small Southrn Baptist Church
This story is probably typical of thousands of churches across the United States. I witnessed it personally.
This rural church had about 150 members on roll and a Sunday morning worship service turnout of about 60
members which included approximately 30 famlies. No elders or deacons. One or two families were finacially well-off though
far from being wealthy. The preacher was all-powerful and finalized all decisions of his board at which the top donors were
a distant second in authority and influence.
The church had about 10 members who were retired or disabled and lived in government housing on Social Secutiry
and food stamps.
The pastor and his wife lived next door to the church. They usually had two cars and a truck. They wore
the finest of clothes and she boasted of shopping at the finest stores in town. He was a small plane pilot and spent
a lot of time flying. She once boasted, "Well, honey, tithing sure has been good for us."
The secret? On the third of every month, the pastor's wife would make the rounds of the government
housing where the older women lived. She would visit each room and collect her husband's tithe of 10% from their Social
Security checks before they had time to spend the money.
