Joined: 09 Dec 2002 Posts: 127 Location: Largo Florida
Posted: Wed Dec 11, 2002 7:12 pm Post subject: The Assembly of God Leadership is Corrupt and Perverted
In the Assembly of God Denomination in America there is a thread of corruption, greed, evil and preying on the weak and misfortunate by local pastors, like Karl Strader; to prominent national Assembly of God ministers, like Bakker and Swaggart, within the Assembly of God organization itself that is based on connections and influence and is devoid of honesty, truth, integrity and righteousness.
The nice meek people like Roy and Patricia and Associate Pastor Jim who caused the 1989 split at Carpenter’s Home Church. Unfortunately as proved by the Strader Affair, many innocent people don’t have a chance to receive real justice and equity when they are among wolves in sheep’s clothing. The money that flows through Carpenter’s Home Church and the Assembly of God denomination, as well as other denominations in America and is not openly accounted for, is in the hundreds of millions of dollars per year, and offers religious politicians and unscrupulous scoundrels a gold mine or “cash cow” as Roy called it. Some of the things that go on in AG (Assembly of God) CHC (Carpenter’s Home Church) and Baptist Christians make the soap operas on television appear mild in comparison.
More money is embezzled from the church each year ($16 billion) than is given to foreign missions ($15 billion) reported the newly published second edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia. The exhaustive survey of global Christianity contains some good news. It notes that Christianity has become “the most extensive and universal religion in history,” with some 2 billion adherents—one in three of the world’s population—at the start of the new millennium.
The last century has also seen a huge shift in the racial makeup of believers globally, from 81 percent white in 1900 to 55 percent non-white last year. The charismatic renewal has also been a major influence in the last 100 years, with 520 million current members of Pentecostal and charismatic denominations and movements. Almost 800 million people have been touched by the Spirit since 1900.
But the fine print of the massive publication also contains some disturbing information. Among the startling findings of the research team is that: More money is embezzled from the church each year ($16 billion) than is given to foreign missions ($15 billion).
Consider this fact that in a one year period of 8/31/1998 to 8/31/1999 Campus Crusade for Christ, Inc., a California not-for-profit corporation in theory run and owned by Evangelical Preacher Bill Bright, spent $29,416,000 to raise $314,959,000. Would Jesus Christ have done this? (Mind Jesus Christ did not keep His total salary a secret like Bill Bright has continually done!)
CCC is in theory an interdenominational Christian evangelistic and discipiling ministry with the objective of helping the local church and other organizations fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) in this generation BUT TONGUE-SPEAKERS ARE NOT WELCOMED nor MIRACLES and HEALINGS! Even though Jesus Christ healed the sick, cast out devils and drove money changers out of the House of God with a whip!
Founder and Chairman Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ who along with his wife makes up fifty percent of the board of directors of this nonprofit religious organization wears thousand dollars suits and claims to make on forty thousand dollars are year. But of course, unlike President Bush or other public servants, Bill Bright doesn’t release his total compensation to his donors or the public and definitely not his personal income tax!
Because of the separation of the church and state in the American Constitution, the American Southern Baptist religious leaders such as Bill Bright, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Charles Stanley, Louis Paula and Billy and Franklin Graham have a field day in stealing money from the sheep in the name of the one who would never do such a thing. They have developed an art in legally being wolves in sheep’s clothing that is not allowed in Canada, England or other industrial educated countries. For there is no one to police American TV Evangelists who are usually of Baptist or Pentecostal backgrounds and have no open integrity when it comes to money.
It is a fact that none of the prominent evangelical Southern Baptists leaders in America reveal their total compensation to their donors. But these same evangelists support the bigotry of Religious Right and demand integrity from others.
The selfishness and greed of these Evangelical Christians who have done things that others, who are not religious would think twice to do. This is what this book is all about - the selfishness, greed and corruption of so-called Christian leaders in America today.
In United States, in the last few years, many evangelical churches and religious organizations have gotten together because of a religious scandal in Texas, involving Larry Lea of On the Rock Church, W. A. Grant and Robert Tilton of Dallas. The television media brought it out, and while others such as Dr. Billy Graham who was most hurt by it formed an organization called Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability insisting accountability and financial responsibility in religious organizations so there would be no cause for offense in anything or needless loss of money. Apostle Paul wrote:
We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. (2 Corinthians 6:3)
Avoiding this: that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which is administered by us. (2 Corinthians 8:20)
Christian Religionists, Evangelicals, Baptists, Charismatic and Pentecostals, all teach, that as stewards of God, everything we have belongs to Him and it is very important that we provide:
“Honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.” (2 Corinthians 8:21)
Yet, very few churches and religious organizations, who although they state they believe the bible and the importance to provide “honorable things,” most of them don’t belong to an organization that practices financial responsibility and open accountability.
Also, they keep the salary of the senior pastor of the Church or the senior evangelist, a secret. Why? I can’t answer that, but I do know it does give offense, in the secular and religious world. If you are honorable there is no reason not to reveal your income if it is within acceptable norms. The salaries of other public servants, including the President of United States and the first Lady, are known.
In an intelligent society such as ours, any church or organization that is not openly accountable, shouldn’t be soliciting money from its members or adherents, who are the public at large. Somehow, all churches and church corporations should be warned and told they must be accountable, and be open and do all things above board where possible.
Hence, as a “news reporter” and “editor” rather than a “theologian” or “gifted one,” I have tried to report and make comments on events that actually happened rather than what should have happened.
We have also come to realize and appreciate, that in America in the 80’s, there was a minority of pastors and evangelists, belonging to a minority denomination, the Assembly of God, who caused the majority of religious scandals that affected all the Christians in America. Arrogant, rebellious and scandalous people like Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggart and Pastor Karl Strader, who were “Born Again Evangelicals.”
It would be wrong to generalize and to associate all pastors or evangelists with these troublemakers. Nevertheless, But we had personally written randomly to over two hundred and fifty evangelists and pastors in America concerning the Strader Affair and not one offered to help us in anyway. But some were very keen to criticize and say awful and nasty things about us without verifying the truth. However, we wrote to secular people and they were more than happy to help and assist us in anyway that they could. Ironic, isn’t it?
Many of these pastors and evangelists live and behave like kings of their own kingdoms, rather than like servants of the living God, as they should be. Humility and submission are words they must reintroduce into their own vocabulary and lives before they teach others.
Contrary to many pastors’ and evangelists’ point of view, we as Christians don’t exist primarily to serve them or to give them money but to serve the King of kings and Lord or lords. In our Heavenly Father’s eyes, we are all equally important. He has no favorites and is definitely not a respecter of persons -although, some pastors and evangelists would like us to believe otherwise.
We have over us only one King and His Name is Jesus. We are all bondservants to each other in the body of Christ, not just in words but in deeds. Pastors and evangelists are not and never were meant to be kings over us or over anyone else for the matter. They are there to serve us and not we to serve themselves.
The prominent Pentecostal and charismatic evangelists and pastors, especially in AG, who don’t know what the word integrity means should look it up in the American Heritage Dictionary, which defines it as:
Probity, complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness, of principles and practices: honesty, honor, honorableness, incorruptibility, uprightness, moral soundness, virtue, purity, morality. Also, integrity corresponds with fact or truth: veracity, accuracy, correctness, faithfulness, fidelity, truthfulness, honesty, frankness, openness, sincerity, exactness, verity, exactitude, and precision. Also, it defines integrity as the moral quality of a course of action, morality, moralness, ethicalness, propriety, righteousness, rightness and the state of being whole: completeness, entirety, oneness, totality and wholeness.
However, on the other side of the coin the words associated with the opposite of integrity are:
The latter things can be easily associated with Evangelical pastors, such as Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggart, Karl Strader, Dr. Henry J. Lyons, Dr. Bill Bright, Pat Robertson, Oral Roberts, Kenneth Copeland, and Dr. Billy Graham . In other words, if we have faith we will have integrity, responsibility and accountability. These are words that are missing in many of our churches in America. But a real man or woman of God, will be just, righteous, honest, a non-oppressor, a restorer, will execute true judgment, feed the hungry, cover the naked and will act and do right things for a start and not just preach and talk about it all like some do in AG.
However, for the record and to my knowledge, there has been no acknowledgment or acceptance of any responsibility by the prominent Men of Integrity in the Assembly of God, concerning the deeds and actions of AG Pastors like Karl Strader and Jim Bakker, whose leadership has resulted in many poor and defenseless elderly people being raped, murdered and robbed.
Roy and Patricia Aldrich of Lakeland, a wonderful couple, were among the elderly who were members of the Assembly of God and Carpenter’s Home Church who were deeply hurt. Roy had written to important and influential people at AG, including District Superintendent Don Lunsford and General Superintendent Thomas Trask, requesting their help concerning Pastor Karl Strader.
America has many rebellious preachers and teachers, who call themselves Christians and say that they speak the bible, in His anointing and power, but their actual personal lives and deeds speak the opposite.
Joined: 16 Oct 2002 Posts: 15 Location: San Diego California USA
Posted: Thu Dec 12, 2002 4:37 pm Post subject: Confused
You feel that strongly about the Assemblies Of God Church but yet you propigate and support a doctrine (tongues) that is supported and spread by the AoG???? What kind of logic is that, hate the messenger but not the message? Wouldn't it stand to reason that if they are corrupt and without God in their dealings with money and other matters that they ALSO would be corrupt in their thinking and capable of the spreading of a false doctrine?
Something to think about. _________________ Why do we always laugh at things that aren't funny?
Joined: 09 Dec 2002 Posts: 127 Location: Largo Florida
Posted: Thu Dec 12, 2002 6:31 pm Post subject:
You don't throw the baby out with the dirty bath water? Just because a baby has shit you don't get rid of the baby? You clean up the baby and you clean up the denominations! You get rid of the bad apples that spol the barrel.
And if you think AOG is bad but you have seen the National Baptist Convention, the church of God in Christ, the Southern Baptist rapists, or the Roman Catholic Pediophile Priests? We would be here all night if I just posted some of the stuff that is going on.
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