“The love of money,” the New Testament teaches in I Timothy 6:10, “is the root of all evil.” But what about some televangelists’ fondness for major bling ”” such as multiple, multimillion dollar estates, luxury cars, vacation homes, exotic trips and private jets? Does that make them, in the words of one author, “pimps in the pulpit?”
Many outside the evangelical movement are puzzled by the apparent lack of outrage following reports of high-living, tax-exempt religious broadcasters. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has been looking into six megachurch pastors and broadcast ministries, requesting financial records. Richard Roberts has stepped down as president of Oral Roberts University following charges that he used the school’s resources for family perks, such as a trip to the Bahamas for his daughter.
These charges come as no surprise to those within the evangelical world. Such tales of excess and profligacy have been an open secret for years.
Love of bling is the root of all evil, too.
Those mentioned in this article aren’t evangelicals. In fact, most of them are heretics of the worst sort, whose preaching of the prosperity gospel is only one sin among many. Unfortunately, it’s both the most visible and the most scandalous to non-Christians. We need to be vociferous, not only in our condemnation of the lifestyle, but in our repudiation of these false teachers.
These problems disproportionately involve independent pastors accountable to no one except their own hand-picked boards of directors.
#3 – Yes. A very bad fruit of Protestantism.
Yeah, the RCC never had trouble with being driven by the dollar… oh, wait… It’s called original sin, we’ve all got it!
The real issue is that the government gives religious, and other charitable organizations, preferential status in the tax code. Sen. Grassley is just posturing for publicity and votes. He should have requested an IRS investigation of these ministries to ensure they are following all applicable tax laws and regulations. That is all he should do. In fact, I would be surprised if the IRS does not give these high profile organizations some extra scrutiny every year.
Just because religious figures show bad taste and a lack of sensitivity does not mean they are engaged in illegal activity. These traits are not peculiar to only Pentecostals.