This is pretty long, and surprisingly, I don't have all of the information from the site. I don't even have all of the Pastors. Benny Hinn's is, by far, the longest I posted because most people know of him.
Once upon a time, I was mad at these people. You know what? If these people believe they should have this stuff, they I believe they should live lavishly. I know people who defend their Pastors living it up, while they struggle. Hey, I can't be mad at 'em for that...
http://www.inplainsite.org/html/tele-evangelist_lifestyles.html
--------------------------------------
Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church
“30,000 people endure punishing traffic on the narrow roads leading to Lakewood Church every weekend to hear Pastor Joel Osteen deliver upbeat messages of hope. A youthful-looking 42-year-old with a ready smile, he reassures the thousands who show up at each of his five weekend services that "God has a great future in store for you." ... Osteen's best-seller, Your Best Life Now, has sold 2.5 million copies since its publication last fall.... In his book, Osteen talks about how his wife, Victoria, a striking blonde who dresses fashionably, wanted to buy a fancy house some years ago, before the money rolled in. He thought it wasn't possible. "But Victoria had more faith," he wrote. "She convinced me we could live in an elegant home...and several years later, it did come to pass." ... Osteen's flourishing Lakewood enterprise brought in $55 million in contributions last year, four times the 1999 amount, church officials say”. (Earthly Empires Businessweek.com)
-------------
John Hagee
“Since Hagee and his wife, Diana Hagee, founded GETV 25 years ago, the organization has gone from a back-room operation broadcasting Sunday sermons to San Antonio area viewers to a 50,000-square-foot multimedia studio broadcasting to 127 television stations and 82 radio stations nationwide...
.... According to the 990 forms for GETV, the organization in 2001 netted $12.3 million from donations, $4.8 million in profit from the sales of books and tapes, and an additional $1.1 million from various other sources, including rental income.
As the nonprofit organization's president, Hagee drew $540,000 in compensation, as well as an additional $302,005 in compensation for his position as president of Cornerstone Church, according to GETV's tax statements.
He also received $411,561 in benefits from GETV, including contributions to a retirement package for highly paid executives the IRS calls a "rabbi trust," so named because the first beneficiary of such an irrevocable trust was a rabbi.
The John Hagee Rabbi Trust includes a $2.1 million 7,969-acre ranch outside Brackettville, with five lodges, including a "main lodge" and a gun locker. It also includes a manager's house, a smokehouse, a skeet range and three barns.
Taken together, his payment package, $842,005 in compensation and $414,485 in benefits, was one of the highest, if not the highest, pay package for a nonprofit director in the San Antonio area in 2001.”
”.. Hagee's compensation was among the highest pay packages for television evangelists in 2001, according to IRS 990 filings”
In Addition Hagee’s wife “Diana Hagee received compensation of $67,907 as vice president of GETV and $58,813 as the special events director for Cornerstone Church”. (www.rickross.com) [INDEX]
--------------------
Joyce Meyer..
Ministry Headquarters
The ministry's headquarters is a three-story jewel of red brick and emerald-color glass that, from the outside, has the look and feel of a luxury resort hotel. Built two years ago for $20 million, the building and grounds are postcard perfect, from manicured flower beds and walkways to a five-story lighted cross.
The driveway to the office complex is lined on both sides with the flags of dozens of nations reached by the ministry. A large bronze sculpture of the Earth sits atop an open Bible near the parking lot. Just outside the main entrance, a sculpture of an American eagle landing on a tree branch stands near a man-made waterfall. A message in gold letters greets employees and visitors over the front entryway: "Look what the Lord Has Done."
The building is decorated with religious paintings and sculptures, and quality furniture. Much of it, Meyer says, she selected herself.
A Jefferson County assessor's list offers a glimpse into the value of many of the items: a $19,000 pair of Dresden vases, six French crystal vases bought for $18,500, an $8,000 Dresden porcelain depicting the Nativity, two $5,800 curio cabinets, a $5,700 porcelain of the Crucifixion, a pair of German porcelain vases bought for $5,200.
The decor includes a $30,000 malachite round table, a $23,000 marble-topped antique commode, a $14,000 custom office bookcase, a $7,000 Stations of the Cross in Dresden porcelain, a $6,300 eagle sculpture on a pedestal, another eagle made of silver bought for $5,000, and numerous paintings purchased for $1,000 to $4,000 each.
Meyer says she expects the best, from where she lives to how she looks. Much of her clothing is custom-tailored at an upscale West County dress shop. At her conferences, she usually wears flashy jewelry. She sports an impressive diamond ring that she said she got from one of her followers. Meyer has a private hairdresser. And, a few years ago, Meyer told her employees she was getting a face-lift.
Not everything is paid directly by the ministry.
Last year, the Meyers bought a $500,000 atrium ranch lakefront home in Porto Cima, a private-quarters club at Lake of the Ozarks. A few weeks later, they bought two watercrafts similar to Jet Skis and a $105,000 Crownline boat painted red, white and blue that they named the Patriot.
----------------------------
Pat Robertson:
Estimates of Pat Robertson’s net worth vary between 140 million and a billion dollars. While the exact figure is not known, there is little doubt that he is a wealthy man... An extremely wealthy man with a “mammoth media, educational, and legal empire”.
“Robertson lives on the top of a Virginia mountain, in a huge mansion with a private airstrip. He owns the Ice Capades [Pat Robertson's International Family Entertainment Inc bought Ice Capades In February 1995 from Dorothy Hamill for $10 million], a small hotel, diamond mines (in Zaire), a vitamin company (Kalo Vita) involved in a multi-level marketing scheme along the lines of Amway, and until recently, International Family Entertainment, parent company of the Family Channel … all estimated to be worth between $150-200 million”. [http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/exposes/robertson/general.htm]
However Pat Robertson is unique among all the other crooks mentioned on this page, some of whom could be charitably considered ‘vastly deluded individuals’. He has taken the word ‘Christian’ leader to new lows, partially lining his pockets by getting involved with diamond-mining operations and brutal dictators and dealing with peddlers of porn… all the while peddling his version of the truth to millions. Unfortunately Pat Robertson’s reprehensible conduct has far too many facets to be listed here, so
------------------------
T.D. Jakes
The man who, in 2006, received a brand new convertible Bentley from friend Paula White justifies his lifestyle ...
Why else would Roman soldiers have gambled for his cloak as Jesus lay dying on the cross, if the cloak hadn't been unusually valuable?
"The myth of the poor Jesus needs to be destroyed, because it's holding people back," [http://www.dallasobserver.com/1996-06-20/news/bishop-jakes-is-ready-are-you/full].
An MSNBC Report tells us that
“Jakes works as hard as any CEO and makes no apologies for living like one too. He ".. has a movie and tv production company, a music recording studio, and his own record label. He has distribution deals with the likes of Sony, EMI, Time Warner, Clear Channel and Trinity Broadcasting".
And says
"Living well in America is not wrong, it's how you go about getting the money that's an issue. It gives me a great deal of credibility, whether I am working with ex-inmates, to say that it is possible to have the American dream without selling drugs. I cannot say that it if I haven't done it myself". [MSNBC Report. TD Jakes and Joel Osteen Enrich Themselves in Jesus' Name. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGmLFSPkyhs]
Jakes, who drives a Mercedes, has moved with his wife and their five children to a luxurious seven-bedroom home with swimming pool in the White Rock Lake area of Dallas.
“Flanked by a row of elegant cedars and surrounded by a tall iron gate, the $2.6 million pink brick house with fluted cream columns and a four-car garage is imposing even in this affluent neighborhood. Next door is the former mansion of oil tycoon H.L. Hunt, once known as the richest man in the world. The Hunt house has been undergoing repairs, and its lawn has withered to beige. These days it almost pales in comparison with its neighbor”. (www.trinityfi.org/press/tdjakes01.html)
‘I do think we need some Christians who are in first class as well as coach,’ Jakes said.” (Jim Jones, “Rising-star evangelist ministers to interracial congregation,” The Fort Worth Star Telegram, Aug.)
The Dallas Observer magazine reports:
“His conferences draw tens of thousands. His television show, broadcast on both the Trinity Broadcasting Network and Black Entertainment Television, reaches hundreds of thousands. He has spawned his own industry, T.D. Jakes Ministries, which sells his books — 10 in all, with five best-sellers — and videotapes, the income from which allowed him to spend nearly $1 million last year on a residence in his hometown of Charleston, West Virginia.”11
The Dallas Observer goes on to report:
“He says he is not embarrassed by this, even though his extravagant lifestyle has caused controversy in his hometown that will likely follow him to Dallas. His suits are tailored. He drives a brand new Mercedes. Both he and his wife Serita are routinely decked out in stunning jewelry. His West Virginia residence — two homes side by side — includes an indoor swimming pool and a bowling alley. These homes particularly caused the ire of the local folks. One paper wrote at length about the purchase and made much of their unusual features. A columnist dubbed Jakes ‘a huckster.’” (Kaylois Henry, “Bishop Jakes Is Ready. Are You?,” The Dallas Observer magazine, June 20-26, 1996, pg. 19 and 22) [INDEX]
-------------------------------------------
Creflo Dollar:
The ministry's income is unavailable, but newspaper accounts say the ministry paid $18 million in cash for his new 8,000-seat World Changers Church International on the southern edge of Atlanta. He flies to speaking engagements across the nation and Europe in a $5 million private jet and drives a black Rolls-Royce. and travels in a $5 million private jet. Dollar's ministry became a focus of a court case involving boxer Evander Holyfield in 1999. The lawyer for Holyfield's ex-wife estimated that the fighter gave Dollar's ministry $7 million. Dollar refused to testify in the case. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch. STLtoday.com 11/18/2003)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Mar. 5, 2000 says this
The Rev. Creflo Dollar Jr. has unabashedly embraced his name by building a religious empire on the message that his brand of piety leads to prosperity. He drives a black Rolls-Royce, flies to speaking engagements across the nation and Europe in a $5 million private jet and lives in a $1 million home behind iron gates in an upscale Atlanta neighborhood... The World Changers campus sits on a slight hill... Inside the church is a lobby befitting a five-star hotel. Chairs are scattered about on baby blue carpet thick enough to muffle the sound of the stadium-size crowd arriving for a Sunday service... There are no visible traditional Christian symbols - no cross, no image of Jesus, no stained-glass windows...Dollar lives in a $1 million home owned by the church in the Guilford Forest subdivision in southwest Atlanta. World Changers purchased another $1 million home on 27 acres in Fayette County in December. The church has amassed a fortune in real estate, mostly in College Park... As World Changers grew, so did Dollar's emphasis on prosperity. Dollar has no degree in theology. Much of his prosperity message, according to church and his family members, is based on the teachings of friend and spiritual mentor Kenneth Copeland... And a frequent criticism - that the church refuses to help nontithers - isn't true either, Lett said. Tithers simply "have priority," she said. People are not allowed to touch Dollar during services, she said, simply because "the anointing is flowing at that point." She said the church purchased a Rolls-Royce for Dollar's use because "he deserves the best.
------------------------------------------
Benny Hinn
William Lobdell, a Times staff writer, wrote about target-rich environment: the unregulated industry of televangelism is estimated to generate at least $1 billion through its roughly 2,000 electronic preachers, including 80 nationally syndicated television pastors. He told of the founder of the Dallas-based Trinity Foundation, Ole E Anthony, whose operatives struck dumpster pay dirt five years ago in south Florida when they found a travel itinerary for Benny Hinn, the Trinity Broadcasting Network's superstar faith healer who has filled sports arenas with ailing believers seeking miracles cures. Hinn's itinerary included first-class tickets on the Concorde from New York to London ($8,850 each) and reservations for presidential suites at pricey European hotels ($2,200 a night). A news story, including footage of Hinn and his associates boarding the jet, ran on CNN's "Impact." In addition, property records and videos supplied by Trinity investigators led to CNN and Dallas Morning News coverage of another Hinn controversy: fund-raising for a $30-million healing center in Dallas that has yet to be built.
According to a June article in The Dallas Morning News, shortly after Hinn announced his move to Texas, he said God had told him to build a "World Healing Center," and Hinn appealed for money. As much as $30 million was collected, but the center was never built. In April 2000, he told Trinity Broadcasting Network's Paul Crouch, "I'm putting all the money we have in the ministry to get out there and preach. The day (to build the healing center) will come. I'm in no hurry; neither is God."
Also about April 2000, Hinn's ministry began building a 58,000 square-foot office building in Irving. A few months after that, in August 2000, a holding company that is a subsidiary of Hinn's ministry began building a "parsonage" -- a $3 million, 7,200-square foot oceanfront home -- in Dana Point, Calif.
“Nor has Hinn publicly acknowledged his salary, though he told CNN in 1997 that his yearly income including book royalties was somewhere between $500,000 and $1 million. A spokesman has said Hinn generates about $60 million a year in donations”. (The Sun Herald. Posted on Fri, May. 17, 2002).
However in a report dated 07/06/2005 the Denton Record Chronicle says this..
“According to documents provided to the newspaper by a watchdog group, the inquiry into the ministry began a year ago and the IRS has asked for dozens of detailed answers. The Trinity Foundation has investigated Hinn for more than a decade. Hinn ministry responses to IRS questions and a purported salary list for ministry officials are among documents that Trinity members said they salvaged from trash bins outside Hinn-related offices. The salary document lists Hinn as CEO and his annual earnings as $1.325 million.” (Emphasis Added) [http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8B5M18O0.html]
“Since February of 2001, the Hinn Web site has been soliciting donations for a new orphanage to be built in this little town outside Mexico City saying it would be finished “soon.” But when we checked in Mexico, more than a year-and-a-half later, we could find no sign of any construction. But the Hinn web site kept promising that construction would be finished in, “a few short months.” That was news to the local official in charge of construction in the town, who told us the Hinn ministry hadn’t even been issued a building permit yet. What we did find, however, was this sign — curiously not in Spanish, but English — attached to a house the ministry called it’s ‘temporary orphanage,’ which appeared to be empty. The Hinn Web site continued to solicit donations”. (NBC News, Dec. 27, 2002).
“He lives with his wife and three children in a multimillion-dollar oceanfront mansion near the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Dana Point…. In an attempt to clear up his image, Hinn suggests meeting a Times reporter at the Four Seasons hotel in Newport Beach. Accompanied by bodyguards, Hinn arrives in his new Mercedes-Benz G500, an SUV that retails for about $80,000. He is dressed casually in black, from designer sunglasses to leather jacket to shoes… Hinn fiddles with his cell phone, which sports a Mercedes logo….(Hinn drives an $80,000 Mercedes-Benz G500.). First, Hinn declines to divulge his salary. (He told CNN in 1997 that he earns between $500,000 and $1 million annually, including book royalties.) "Look, any amount I make, somebody's going to be mad," he says…. Hinn does reveal that the $89 million taken in by his church in 2002 is a record for his Grapevine, Texas-based ministry, which has experienced double-digit growth during the past three years through direct-mail requests, viewer donations and offerings taken at the Miracle Crusades. By comparison, the target="_blank" onClick='alert("ON-site link will open in a new window. To return here, simply close the new browser window.")'Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn. had revenues of $96.6 million in 2001, the last year available.
According to MinistryWatch.com
“Hinn’s salary is somewhere between half a million and a million dollars per year. He also gets royalties from the sales of his books; Personal perks for Hinn, family and his entourage include a $10 million seaside mansion; a private jet with annual operating costs of about $1.5 million; a Mercedes SUV and convertible, each valued at about $80,000;
What the church termed “layovers” between crusades included hotel bills ranging from $900 per night to royal suites that cost almost $3,000 for one night’s stay. Layover locations included Hawaii, Cancun, London, Milan and other exotic locations.
Beverly Hills shopping sprees;
Receipts showing Hinn’s daughter receiving $1,300 in petty cash; her boyfriend getting $2,550 for babysitting; $23,000 in cash dispersed to Hinn and his wife; and, $25,000 in cash for expenses for a crusade – 30 minutes away from Hinn’s home” [http://www.ministrywatch.com/mw2.1/pdf/MWDA_053105_BennyHinn.pdf]
Once upon a time, I was mad at these people. You know what? If these people believe they should have this stuff, they I believe they should live lavishly. I know people who defend their Pastors living it up, while they struggle. Hey, I can't be mad at 'em for that...
http://www.inplainsite.org/html/tele-evangelist_lifestyles.html
--------------------------------------
Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church
“30,000 people endure punishing traffic on the narrow roads leading to Lakewood Church every weekend to hear Pastor Joel Osteen deliver upbeat messages of hope. A youthful-looking 42-year-old with a ready smile, he reassures the thousands who show up at each of his five weekend services that "God has a great future in store for you." ... Osteen's best-seller, Your Best Life Now, has sold 2.5 million copies since its publication last fall.... In his book, Osteen talks about how his wife, Victoria, a striking blonde who dresses fashionably, wanted to buy a fancy house some years ago, before the money rolled in. He thought it wasn't possible. "But Victoria had more faith," he wrote. "She convinced me we could live in an elegant home...and several years later, it did come to pass." ... Osteen's flourishing Lakewood enterprise brought in $55 million in contributions last year, four times the 1999 amount, church officials say”. (Earthly Empires Businessweek.com)
-------------
John Hagee
“Since Hagee and his wife, Diana Hagee, founded GETV 25 years ago, the organization has gone from a back-room operation broadcasting Sunday sermons to San Antonio area viewers to a 50,000-square-foot multimedia studio broadcasting to 127 television stations and 82 radio stations nationwide...
.... According to the 990 forms for GETV, the organization in 2001 netted $12.3 million from donations, $4.8 million in profit from the sales of books and tapes, and an additional $1.1 million from various other sources, including rental income.
As the nonprofit organization's president, Hagee drew $540,000 in compensation, as well as an additional $302,005 in compensation for his position as president of Cornerstone Church, according to GETV's tax statements.
He also received $411,561 in benefits from GETV, including contributions to a retirement package for highly paid executives the IRS calls a "rabbi trust," so named because the first beneficiary of such an irrevocable trust was a rabbi.
The John Hagee Rabbi Trust includes a $2.1 million 7,969-acre ranch outside Brackettville, with five lodges, including a "main lodge" and a gun locker. It also includes a manager's house, a smokehouse, a skeet range and three barns.
Taken together, his payment package, $842,005 in compensation and $414,485 in benefits, was one of the highest, if not the highest, pay package for a nonprofit director in the San Antonio area in 2001.”
”.. Hagee's compensation was among the highest pay packages for television evangelists in 2001, according to IRS 990 filings”
In Addition Hagee’s wife “Diana Hagee received compensation of $67,907 as vice president of GETV and $58,813 as the special events director for Cornerstone Church”. (www.rickross.com) [INDEX]
--------------------
Joyce Meyer..
Ministry Headquarters
The ministry's headquarters is a three-story jewel of red brick and emerald-color glass that, from the outside, has the look and feel of a luxury resort hotel. Built two years ago for $20 million, the building and grounds are postcard perfect, from manicured flower beds and walkways to a five-story lighted cross.
The driveway to the office complex is lined on both sides with the flags of dozens of nations reached by the ministry. A large bronze sculpture of the Earth sits atop an open Bible near the parking lot. Just outside the main entrance, a sculpture of an American eagle landing on a tree branch stands near a man-made waterfall. A message in gold letters greets employees and visitors over the front entryway: "Look what the Lord Has Done."
The building is decorated with religious paintings and sculptures, and quality furniture. Much of it, Meyer says, she selected herself.
A Jefferson County assessor's list offers a glimpse into the value of many of the items: a $19,000 pair of Dresden vases, six French crystal vases bought for $18,500, an $8,000 Dresden porcelain depicting the Nativity, two $5,800 curio cabinets, a $5,700 porcelain of the Crucifixion, a pair of German porcelain vases bought for $5,200.
The decor includes a $30,000 malachite round table, a $23,000 marble-topped antique commode, a $14,000 custom office bookcase, a $7,000 Stations of the Cross in Dresden porcelain, a $6,300 eagle sculpture on a pedestal, another eagle made of silver bought for $5,000, and numerous paintings purchased for $1,000 to $4,000 each.
Meyer says she expects the best, from where she lives to how she looks. Much of her clothing is custom-tailored at an upscale West County dress shop. At her conferences, she usually wears flashy jewelry. She sports an impressive diamond ring that she said she got from one of her followers. Meyer has a private hairdresser. And, a few years ago, Meyer told her employees she was getting a face-lift.
Not everything is paid directly by the ministry.
Last year, the Meyers bought a $500,000 atrium ranch lakefront home in Porto Cima, a private-quarters club at Lake of the Ozarks. A few weeks later, they bought two watercrafts similar to Jet Skis and a $105,000 Crownline boat painted red, white and blue that they named the Patriot.
----------------------------
Pat Robertson:
Estimates of Pat Robertson’s net worth vary between 140 million and a billion dollars. While the exact figure is not known, there is little doubt that he is a wealthy man... An extremely wealthy man with a “mammoth media, educational, and legal empire”.
“Robertson lives on the top of a Virginia mountain, in a huge mansion with a private airstrip. He owns the Ice Capades [Pat Robertson's International Family Entertainment Inc bought Ice Capades In February 1995 from Dorothy Hamill for $10 million], a small hotel, diamond mines (in Zaire), a vitamin company (Kalo Vita) involved in a multi-level marketing scheme along the lines of Amway, and until recently, International Family Entertainment, parent company of the Family Channel … all estimated to be worth between $150-200 million”. [http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/exposes/robertson/general.htm]
However Pat Robertson is unique among all the other crooks mentioned on this page, some of whom could be charitably considered ‘vastly deluded individuals’. He has taken the word ‘Christian’ leader to new lows, partially lining his pockets by getting involved with diamond-mining operations and brutal dictators and dealing with peddlers of porn… all the while peddling his version of the truth to millions. Unfortunately Pat Robertson’s reprehensible conduct has far too many facets to be listed here, so
------------------------
T.D. Jakes
The man who, in 2006, received a brand new convertible Bentley from friend Paula White justifies his lifestyle ...
Why else would Roman soldiers have gambled for his cloak as Jesus lay dying on the cross, if the cloak hadn't been unusually valuable?
"The myth of the poor Jesus needs to be destroyed, because it's holding people back," [http://www.dallasobserver.com/1996-06-20/news/bishop-jakes-is-ready-are-you/full].
An MSNBC Report tells us that
“Jakes works as hard as any CEO and makes no apologies for living like one too. He ".. has a movie and tv production company, a music recording studio, and his own record label. He has distribution deals with the likes of Sony, EMI, Time Warner, Clear Channel and Trinity Broadcasting".
And says
"Living well in America is not wrong, it's how you go about getting the money that's an issue. It gives me a great deal of credibility, whether I am working with ex-inmates, to say that it is possible to have the American dream without selling drugs. I cannot say that it if I haven't done it myself". [MSNBC Report. TD Jakes and Joel Osteen Enrich Themselves in Jesus' Name. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGmLFSPkyhs]
Jakes, who drives a Mercedes, has moved with his wife and their five children to a luxurious seven-bedroom home with swimming pool in the White Rock Lake area of Dallas.
“Flanked by a row of elegant cedars and surrounded by a tall iron gate, the $2.6 million pink brick house with fluted cream columns and a four-car garage is imposing even in this affluent neighborhood. Next door is the former mansion of oil tycoon H.L. Hunt, once known as the richest man in the world. The Hunt house has been undergoing repairs, and its lawn has withered to beige. These days it almost pales in comparison with its neighbor”. (www.trinityfi.org/press/tdjakes01.html)
‘I do think we need some Christians who are in first class as well as coach,’ Jakes said.” (Jim Jones, “Rising-star evangelist ministers to interracial congregation,” The Fort Worth Star Telegram, Aug.)
The Dallas Observer magazine reports:
“His conferences draw tens of thousands. His television show, broadcast on both the Trinity Broadcasting Network and Black Entertainment Television, reaches hundreds of thousands. He has spawned his own industry, T.D. Jakes Ministries, which sells his books — 10 in all, with five best-sellers — and videotapes, the income from which allowed him to spend nearly $1 million last year on a residence in his hometown of Charleston, West Virginia.”11
The Dallas Observer goes on to report:
“He says he is not embarrassed by this, even though his extravagant lifestyle has caused controversy in his hometown that will likely follow him to Dallas. His suits are tailored. He drives a brand new Mercedes. Both he and his wife Serita are routinely decked out in stunning jewelry. His West Virginia residence — two homes side by side — includes an indoor swimming pool and a bowling alley. These homes particularly caused the ire of the local folks. One paper wrote at length about the purchase and made much of their unusual features. A columnist dubbed Jakes ‘a huckster.’” (Kaylois Henry, “Bishop Jakes Is Ready. Are You?,” The Dallas Observer magazine, June 20-26, 1996, pg. 19 and 22) [INDEX]
-------------------------------------------
Creflo Dollar:
The ministry's income is unavailable, but newspaper accounts say the ministry paid $18 million in cash for his new 8,000-seat World Changers Church International on the southern edge of Atlanta. He flies to speaking engagements across the nation and Europe in a $5 million private jet and drives a black Rolls-Royce. and travels in a $5 million private jet. Dollar's ministry became a focus of a court case involving boxer Evander Holyfield in 1999. The lawyer for Holyfield's ex-wife estimated that the fighter gave Dollar's ministry $7 million. Dollar refused to testify in the case. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch. STLtoday.com 11/18/2003)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Mar. 5, 2000 says this
The Rev. Creflo Dollar Jr. has unabashedly embraced his name by building a religious empire on the message that his brand of piety leads to prosperity. He drives a black Rolls-Royce, flies to speaking engagements across the nation and Europe in a $5 million private jet and lives in a $1 million home behind iron gates in an upscale Atlanta neighborhood... The World Changers campus sits on a slight hill... Inside the church is a lobby befitting a five-star hotel. Chairs are scattered about on baby blue carpet thick enough to muffle the sound of the stadium-size crowd arriving for a Sunday service... There are no visible traditional Christian symbols - no cross, no image of Jesus, no stained-glass windows...Dollar lives in a $1 million home owned by the church in the Guilford Forest subdivision in southwest Atlanta. World Changers purchased another $1 million home on 27 acres in Fayette County in December. The church has amassed a fortune in real estate, mostly in College Park... As World Changers grew, so did Dollar's emphasis on prosperity. Dollar has no degree in theology. Much of his prosperity message, according to church and his family members, is based on the teachings of friend and spiritual mentor Kenneth Copeland... And a frequent criticism - that the church refuses to help nontithers - isn't true either, Lett said. Tithers simply "have priority," she said. People are not allowed to touch Dollar during services, she said, simply because "the anointing is flowing at that point." She said the church purchased a Rolls-Royce for Dollar's use because "he deserves the best.
------------------------------------------
Benny Hinn
William Lobdell, a Times staff writer, wrote about target-rich environment: the unregulated industry of televangelism is estimated to generate at least $1 billion through its roughly 2,000 electronic preachers, including 80 nationally syndicated television pastors. He told of the founder of the Dallas-based Trinity Foundation, Ole E Anthony, whose operatives struck dumpster pay dirt five years ago in south Florida when they found a travel itinerary for Benny Hinn, the Trinity Broadcasting Network's superstar faith healer who has filled sports arenas with ailing believers seeking miracles cures. Hinn's itinerary included first-class tickets on the Concorde from New York to London ($8,850 each) and reservations for presidential suites at pricey European hotels ($2,200 a night). A news story, including footage of Hinn and his associates boarding the jet, ran on CNN's "Impact." In addition, property records and videos supplied by Trinity investigators led to CNN and Dallas Morning News coverage of another Hinn controversy: fund-raising for a $30-million healing center in Dallas that has yet to be built.
According to a June article in The Dallas Morning News, shortly after Hinn announced his move to Texas, he said God had told him to build a "World Healing Center," and Hinn appealed for money. As much as $30 million was collected, but the center was never built. In April 2000, he told Trinity Broadcasting Network's Paul Crouch, "I'm putting all the money we have in the ministry to get out there and preach. The day (to build the healing center) will come. I'm in no hurry; neither is God."
Also about April 2000, Hinn's ministry began building a 58,000 square-foot office building in Irving. A few months after that, in August 2000, a holding company that is a subsidiary of Hinn's ministry began building a "parsonage" -- a $3 million, 7,200-square foot oceanfront home -- in Dana Point, Calif.
“Nor has Hinn publicly acknowledged his salary, though he told CNN in 1997 that his yearly income including book royalties was somewhere between $500,000 and $1 million. A spokesman has said Hinn generates about $60 million a year in donations”. (The Sun Herald. Posted on Fri, May. 17, 2002).
However in a report dated 07/06/2005 the Denton Record Chronicle says this..
“According to documents provided to the newspaper by a watchdog group, the inquiry into the ministry began a year ago and the IRS has asked for dozens of detailed answers. The Trinity Foundation has investigated Hinn for more than a decade. Hinn ministry responses to IRS questions and a purported salary list for ministry officials are among documents that Trinity members said they salvaged from trash bins outside Hinn-related offices. The salary document lists Hinn as CEO and his annual earnings as $1.325 million.” (Emphasis Added) [http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8B5M18O0.html]
“Since February of 2001, the Hinn Web site has been soliciting donations for a new orphanage to be built in this little town outside Mexico City saying it would be finished “soon.” But when we checked in Mexico, more than a year-and-a-half later, we could find no sign of any construction. But the Hinn web site kept promising that construction would be finished in, “a few short months.” That was news to the local official in charge of construction in the town, who told us the Hinn ministry hadn’t even been issued a building permit yet. What we did find, however, was this sign — curiously not in Spanish, but English — attached to a house the ministry called it’s ‘temporary orphanage,’ which appeared to be empty. The Hinn Web site continued to solicit donations”. (NBC News, Dec. 27, 2002).
“He lives with his wife and three children in a multimillion-dollar oceanfront mansion near the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Dana Point…. In an attempt to clear up his image, Hinn suggests meeting a Times reporter at the Four Seasons hotel in Newport Beach. Accompanied by bodyguards, Hinn arrives in his new Mercedes-Benz G500, an SUV that retails for about $80,000. He is dressed casually in black, from designer sunglasses to leather jacket to shoes… Hinn fiddles with his cell phone, which sports a Mercedes logo….(Hinn drives an $80,000 Mercedes-Benz G500.). First, Hinn declines to divulge his salary. (He told CNN in 1997 that he earns between $500,000 and $1 million annually, including book royalties.) "Look, any amount I make, somebody's going to be mad," he says…. Hinn does reveal that the $89 million taken in by his church in 2002 is a record for his Grapevine, Texas-based ministry, which has experienced double-digit growth during the past three years through direct-mail requests, viewer donations and offerings taken at the Miracle Crusades. By comparison, the target="_blank" onClick='alert("ON-site link will open in a new window. To return here, simply close the new browser window.")'Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn. had revenues of $96.6 million in 2001, the last year available.
According to MinistryWatch.com
“Hinn’s salary is somewhere between half a million and a million dollars per year. He also gets royalties from the sales of his books; Personal perks for Hinn, family and his entourage include a $10 million seaside mansion; a private jet with annual operating costs of about $1.5 million; a Mercedes SUV and convertible, each valued at about $80,000;
What the church termed “layovers” between crusades included hotel bills ranging from $900 per night to royal suites that cost almost $3,000 for one night’s stay. Layover locations included Hawaii, Cancun, London, Milan and other exotic locations.
Beverly Hills shopping sprees;
Receipts showing Hinn’s daughter receiving $1,300 in petty cash; her boyfriend getting $2,550 for babysitting; $23,000 in cash dispersed to Hinn and his wife; and, $25,000 in cash for expenses for a crusade – 30 minutes away from Hinn’s home” [http://www.ministrywatch.com/mw2.1/pdf/MWDA_053105_BennyHinn.pdf]
