First up from The God Machine this week is a closer look at the lavish lifestyles prominent televangelists and “faith healers,” who are drawing scrutiny from an unlikely source.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, is investigating six prominent evangelistic ministries to determine whether they have illegally used donations to finance opulent lifestyles.
Mr. Grassley said yesterday that he sent letters to the six Christian ministries on Monday requesting documents to answer a long list of questions about their compensation, housing allowances, checking and savings accounts, cars, airplanes and overseas trips. They have until Dec. 6 to respond.
The inquiry focuses on some of the flashiest preachers now popular on television and the Internet, many of them proponents of the prosperity gospel — that God will reward believers who open their hearts and wallets.
Mr. Grassley, of Iowa, said in a telephone interview: “Jesus comes into the city on a simple mule, and you got people today expanding his gospel in corporate jets. Somebody ought to raise questions about is it right or wrong.”
It’s a pleasant surprise coming from Grassley, but the Iowa Republican is quite right. If these ministries, which tell donors to give more than they can afford (God, supposedly, will reward their generosity), are pulling a fraud, lawmakers can and should hold them accountable.
The ministries being investigated include Creflo A. Dollar Jr.’s World Changers Church International in Georgia, Paula and Randy White’s Without Walls International Church in Florida, Joyce Meyer Ministries in Missouri, Eddie Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Georgia, Kenneth Copeland Ministries in Texas, and of course, Benny Hinn of World Healing Center Church in Texas.
Grassley’s letter says that since these are tax-exempt ministries, contributions to them must be used for the “tax-exempt purposes of the organizations.” We’ll see where this goes.
Other items from the God Machine this week:
* In Kentucky, Linda Long was attending the East London Holiness Church when she started handling snakes, got bit, and died. Her family is now suing the hospital where she was brought for treatment, because allegedly medical professionals made fun of her injuries.
* In the Detroit suburb of Berkley, some religious activists pushed a proposal to “require that a Nativity scene with Jesus, Mary and Joseph stand at City Hall for about one month around Christmas.” The initiative began after local officials moved a Nativity scene from public property to church property a year ago. Surprisingly enough, Berkley residents rejected the proposal, 2,275 votes to 1,861 votes, earlier this week.
* The Christian Coalition — rather, what’s left of it — has conceded that it will not play a role in the presidential race this cycle. It claims it’ll instead focus its attention on congressional races, but given that the group has very little money, almost no staff, huge debts, and almost no members, chances are the Christian Coalition won’t be doing much of anything next fall.
* And coming up on Monday, Nova will air “Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial,” on the fascinating Dover trial on creationism in classrooms. It sounds like it’ll be worth watching.