They’re the used car salesmen of religion. They feed off the gullible and the weak, promising riches beyond belief to those who believe in get-rich-quick schemes (so long as they become rich first). They sell fake hopes and false dreams — all in the name of God — and do it all without having to pay a penny in taxes. They’re televangelists and they are terrorizing America!
Christianity
Television evangelists or televangelists are virtual celebrities in the religious world. Smart, frequently handsome (or beautiful), and always charismatic, TV evangelists are often considered by their followers as the personification of Jesus himself. Joel Osteen, Creflo Dollar, Robert Tilton, Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, Rex Humbard, Pat Robertson, Jimmy Swaggart, and Jack Van Impe are just a few of the 100 or more television preachers in just the US alone.
It’s a classic pyramid scheme. These hustlers hide under the guise of religion and demand cash from viewers in exchange for the Lord’s blessing. Believing they are out of options, the hopeless and the poor regularly send in their last dollar, or even months of saved rent money, just for the chance to receive a much-needed “blessing.” Televangelists then use the cash they collect to treat themselves to lavish vacations, pricey foreign cars, extravagant private jets, and luxurious “parsonages” in the form of mega-mansions. As for the people, they are so blinded by the majesty and mention of God that they never even realize they’re being robbed and taken advantage of. Oh, and thanks to religious exemption laws, the entire scam is tax-free.
If churches would simply pay taxes just like every other profit-making business in America, the US National Debt could be wiped out. Homelessness could be eradicated. No one would have to go hungry or be unable to afford a doctor. You know, the Christian-type stuff that Jesus promoted. However, instead of making a real difference, we make it easy for crooks to run a scam under the guise of a “church,” then sit back and watch them buy mansions, jets, boats — and never ask them for a dime in taxes.
Does anyone smell bullshit?? Comedian John Oliver did.
A few seasons ago, the host of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” used a comedy sketch to expose televangelists for their sick tricks. The segment was so successful that Oliver incorporated a “church” of his own that could also legally skip paying Uncle Sam. Dubbed “Our Lady of Perpetual Exemption,” Oliver merely promised to cure people’s ailments if only they would send him “seed money” to build the new church. Soon thereafter, he was inundated with thousands of dollars in tax-free donations. The money just poured in.
What’s sad is that Oliver never really wrote a script for his comedic sketch. He simply repeated the exact words and phrases he heard from real televangelists.
Osteen, Dollar, Copeland, and the others all preach what is known as the “prosperity gospel,” in which they teach that wealth is a sign of God’s favor. For viewers to be blessed with prosperity, all they have to do is have faith, pray for money, then donate large sums of money to those “Christian” TV ministries. If their financial blessings don’t come right away, they are encouraged to increase their faith, pray more, and donate even larger sums of money to the television ministers for as long as it takes until their blessing comes.
What a crock!
THE THEATRICS OF TELEVANGELIST BENNY HINN and “The Magic Coat”
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Christianity
So, exactly how do televangelists get away with this? It’s easy. All they have to do is get 501(c)(3) status and declare their business model a “ministry,” which, as John Oliver discovered, is an unbelievably simple process. They then ask for exorbitant tax-exempt donations and keep most of it in order to buy acres of land, mansions, and private jets.
For example, Joel Osteen, pastor of the gargantuan Lakewood Church in Houston, lives in a 17,000 square foot home worth nearly $11 million dollars and has a net worth estimated at $40 million.
Creflo Dollar, a prominent mega-pastor outside of Atlanta, is worth nearly $27 million. He petitioned his church to purchase a $65 million dollar private jet (with all the bells and whistles) so that he could “safely and swiftly share the Good News of the Gospel worldwide.” Interestingly, church members and television viewers ate beans out of a can and skipped paying their mortgages and rent just to help Dollar raise the dollars for his high-tech toy.
Pastor Kenneth Copeland claimed he can’t fly on a regular plane because “there are demons” on them. He also said that whenever he travels on a private plane, God openly talks directly to him — and he talks back. His net worth is reportedly a whopping $760 million!
These hucksters claim to be doing the work of Jesus, but, are they really?
During the time of false prophets, temple moneychangers, Pharisees, and Sadducees were all denounced by Jesus. Their games did not interest him and, because he spoke truth to power, they murdered him.
For a man who walked miles of dirt roads in makeshift sandals, does anyone actually think Jesus would have wanted his earthly representatives flying around the world in a $65 million dollar private Learjet? Or would Jesus have wanted to see that same $65 million used to feed the poor, clothe the needy, help the homeless, or make some sort of immense impact on humanity?
Why do otherwise intelligent people send large sums of money to a total stranger they see on television? Why are people so easily blinded into doing almost anything so long as they’re convinced it’s being done in the name of God? What can be done to tackle the societal terrorism of televangelists?
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You brought up some good points here. First I have long believed churches should pay tax like everybody else does. These preachers are living the high life in big mansions and what not basically for free and that is a crime. But also I have relatives who watch these con artist on tv and send them hundreds of dollars at a time. So you are right people will do almost anything if they are told God is in it. If churches paid tax and these preachers only made enough money to live comfortable and not have private planes or whatever that would cut a lot of the crooks out of it. But until that happens they are going to keep going with their meal ticket to riches.