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Sky News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Sky News
Jimmy Swaggart: Pioneer televangelist dies aged 90
Jimmy Swaggart - a pioneer of televangelism in the US - has died aged 90. Last month, the American Pentecostal preacher suffered a cardiac arrest at his home in Louisiana and was taken to a local hospital. His death was announced on Tuesday on his public Facebook page, though no cause of death was given. At one point, Mr Swaggart was the most famous TV evangelist in the US - preaching the word of God to millions of followers at home and abroad. But his vast audience dwindled when he was caught on camera with a prostitute in 1988. Mr Swaggart was serving as a co-pastor of the Family Worship Centre in Baton Rouge when he died. He was born in 1935 - and "after a dramatic salvation experience at the age of eight, felt the call of God on his life." According to his website: "He spent hours reading the Bible, praying, and, after a certain revival meeting, decided to ask God for the talent to play the piano." Mr Swaggart's first album, Some Golden Daybreak, was released in 1958. Since then, 17 million recordings have been sold. The Grammy-nominated pastor took up evangelistic work full-time in 1954 and was ordained by the Assemblies of God in 1961. He preached the gospel on TV for longer than any other American evangelist, according to his ministry's website. The Campmeeting Hour, Mr Swaggart's first radio programme, aired in 1969 - and within five years, the show was broadcasting on 700 radio stations in the US. His career in TV started in 1973 with the 30-minute weekly programme, The Jimmy Swaggart Evangelistic Association Presents Jimmy Swaggart, also known as the Jimmy Swaggart telecast. In 2010, Mr Swaggart launched the SonLife Broadcasting Network (SBN), a 24-hour Christian channel. Prostitute scandals He was defrocked by the Assemblies of God in 1988 after pictures surfaced of him with a prostitute. The pictures were handed in by rival TV evangelist Marvin Gorman, who was also defrocked after Mr Swaggart accused him of "immoral dalliances" in 1986. Following the scandal, Mr Swaggart delivered his famous "I have sinned" speech in front of a congregation of 7,000 in Baton Rouge, where he sobbed and asked for his wife's forgiveness, while falling short of detailing what his sin was. Mr Swaggart carried on as an independent Pentecostal preacher - but in 1991, he was found by police in California in the company of another prostitute after being stopped for a traffic violation.
The Guardian
a day ago
- The Guardian
Jimmy Swaggart, US televangelist brought down by scandal, dies aged 90
Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, who became a household name amassing an enormous following and multimillion-dollar ministry only to be undone by revelations of paying sex workers, has died. He was 90. Swaggart died decades after his once vast audience dwindled and his name became a punchline on late-night television. His death was announced on Tuesday on his public Facebook page. A cause was not immediately given, although he had been in poor health. The Louisiana native was best known for being a captivating Pentecostal preacher with a massive following before being caught on camera with a sex worker in New Orleans in 1988, one of a string of successful TV preachers brought down in the 1980s and 90s by sex scandals. He continued preaching for decades, but with a reduced audience. Swaggart encapsulated his downfall in a tearful 1988 sermon, in which he wept and apologized but made no reference to his connection to a sex worker. 'I have sinned against you,' Swaggart told parishioners nationwide. 'I beg you to forgive me.' He announced his resignation from the Assemblies of God later that year, shortly after the church said it was defrocking him for rejecting punishment it had ordered for 'moral failure'. The church had wanted him to undergo a two-year rehabilitation program, including not preaching for a full year. Swaggart said at the time that he knew dismissal was inevitable but insisted he had no choice but to separate from the church to save his ministry and Bible college. Swaggart's messages stirred thousands of congregants and millions of TV viewers, making him a household name by the late 1980s. Contributors built Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a business that made an estimated $142m in 1986. His Baton Rouge, Louisiana, complex still includes a worship center and broadcasting and recording facilities. Swaggart said publicly that his earnings were hurt in 1987 by the sex scandal surrounding rival televangelist Jim Bakker and a former church secretary at Bakker's PTL ministry organization.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
US televangelist Jimmy Swaggart dies at 90
US televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, whose multimillion-dollar ministry and huge audience dwindled after a prostitution scandal, has died at the age of 90. His death was announced on Tuesday on his public Facebook page. A cause was not immediately given, although he had been in ill health. The Louisiana native was best known for being a captivating Pentecostal preacher with a massive following before being caught on camera with a sex worker in New Orleans in 1988, one of a string of major TV preachers brought down in the 1980s and 1990s by sex scandals. He continued preaching for decades, but with a reduced audience. READ MORE Mr Swaggart encapsulated his downfall in a tearful 1988 sermon in which he wept and apologised but made no reference to his connection to a prostitute. 'I have sinned against you,' he told parishioners nationwide. 'I beg you to forgive me.' He announced his resignation from the Assemblies of God later that year, shortly after the church said it was defrocking him for rejecting punishment it had ordered for 'moral failure'. The church had wanted him to undergo a two-year rehabilitation programme including not preaching for a full year. He said at the time that he knew dismissal was inevitable but insisted he had no choice but to separate from the church to save his ministry and Bible college. Mr Swaggart grew up poor, the son of a preacher in a music-rich family. He excelled at piano and gospel music, playing and singing with talented cousins who took different paths: rock 'n' roller Jerry Lee Lewis and country singer Mickey Gilley. In his hometown of Ferriday, Louisiana, Mr Swaggart said he first heard the call of God at the age of eight. The voice gave him goosebumps and made his hair tingle, he said. 'Everything seemed different after that day in front of the Arcade Theatre,' he said in a 1985 interview with the Jacksonville Journal-Courier in Illinois. 'I felt better inside. Almost like taking a bath.' He preached and worked part-time in oilfields until he was 23. He then moved entirely into his ministry: preaching, playing piano and singing gospel songs at Assemblies of God revivals and camp meetings. Jimmy Swaggart speaking at the funeral service for his cousin Jerry Lee Lewis in 2022. Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP He started a radio show and a magazine, and then moved into TV with outspoken views. He called Roman Catholicism 'a false religion. It is not the Christian way', and claimed that Jews suffered for thousands of years 'because of their rejection of Christ'. 'If you don't like what I say, talk to my boss,' he once shouted as he strode in front of his congregation at his Family Worship Centre in Baton Rouge, where his sermons moved listeners to speak in tongues and stand up as if possessed by the Holy Spirit. Mr Swaggart's messages stirred thousands of congregants and millions of TV viewers, making him a household name by the late 1980s. Contributors built Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a business that made an estimated 142 million dollars in 1986. His Baton Rouge complex still includes a worship centre and broadcasting and recording facilities. His downfall came in the late 1980s as other prominent preachers faced similar scandals. Mr Swaggart said publicly that his earnings were damaged in 1987 by the sex scandal surrounding rival televangelist Jim Bakker and a former church secretary at Mr Bakker's PTL ministry organisation. The following year, Mr Swaggart was photographed at a hotel with Debra Murphree, an admitted prostitute who told reporters the two did not have sex but that the preacher had paid her to pose nude. She later repeated the claim – and posed nude – for Penthouse magazine. The surveillance photos that crippled Mr Swaggart's career apparently stemmed from his rivalry with preacher Marvin Gorman, whom Mr Swaggart had accused of sexual misdeeds. Mr Gorman hired the photographer who captured Mr Swaggart and Ms Murphree on film. Mr Swaggart later paid Mr Gorman $1.8 million to settle a lawsuit over the sexual allegations against Mr Gorman. More trouble came in 1991 when police in California detained Mr Swaggart with another sex worker. The evangelist was charged with driving on the wrong side of the road and driving an unregistered Jaguar. His companion, Rosemary Garcia, said he became nervous when he saw the police car and wove when he tried to stuff pornographic magazines under a car seat. He was later mocked by the late TV comic Phil Hartman, who impersonated him on NBC's Saturday Night Live. The evangelist largely stayed out of the news in later years but remained in the pulpit at Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, often joined by his son Donnie, a fellow preacher. 'There's been no greater example of a good and faithful servant than my father. No ifs, ands and buts about it. A man who lived his life for the cause of Christ,' Donnie Swaggart said in a video message. His radio station broadcast church services and gospel music to 21 states, and the ministry developed a worldwide audience on the internet. The preacher caused another brief stir in 2004 with remarks about being 'looked at' amorously by a gay man. 'And I'm going to be blunt and plain: if one ever looks at me like that, I'm going to kill him and tell God he died,' Mr Swaggart said, to laughter from the congregation. He later apologised. He made few public appearances outside his church, except for singing Amazing Grace at the 2005 funeral of Louisiana secretary of state Fox McKeithen, a prominent name in state politics for decades. In 2022, Mr Swaggart shared memories at the memorial service for Lewis, his cousin. The pair had released The Boys From Ferriday, a gospel album, earlier that year. – AP
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, whose ministry was toppled by prostitution scandals, dies at 90
Jimmy Swaggart preaching in Nicaragua. Photo: Getty Images / Cindy Karp Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, whose multimillion-dollar ministry and huge audience dwindled following his prostitution scandals, has died. He was 90. Swaggart's death was announced Tuesday (US time) on his public Facebook page. A cause wasn't immediately given, though Swaggart had been in ill health. The Louisiana native was best known for being a captivating Pentecostal preacher with a massive following before being caught on camera with a prostitute in New Orleans in 1988, one of a string of successful TV preachers brought down in the 1980s and '90s by sex scandals. He continued preaching for decades, but with a reduced audience. Swaggart encapsulated his downfall in a tearful 1988 sermon, in which he wept and apologised but made no reference to his connection to a prostitute. "I have sinned against you," Swaggart told parishioners nationwide. "I beg you to forgive me." He announced his resignation from the Assemblies of God later that year, shortly after the church said it was defrocking him for rejecting punishment it had ordered for "moral failure". The church had wanted him to undergo a two-year rehabilitation programme, including not preaching for a full year. Swaggart said at the time that he knew dismissal was inevitable but insisted he had no choice but to separate from the church to save his ministry and Bible college. Swaggart grew up poor, the son of a preacher, in a music-rich family. He excelled at piano and gospel music, playing and singing with talented cousins who took different paths: rock-'n'-roller Jerry Lee Lewis and country singer Mickey Gilley. In his hometown of Ferriday, Louisiana, Swaggart said he first heard the call of God at age 8. The voice gave him goose bumps and made his hair tingle, he said. "Everything seemed different after that day in front of the Arcade Theater," he said in a 1985 interview with the Jacksonville Journal-Courier in Illinois. "I felt better inside. Almost like taking a bath." He preached and worked part time in oil fields until he was 23. He then moved entirely into his ministry: preaching, playing piano and singing gospel songs with the barrelhouse fervour of cousin Lewis at Assemblies of God revivals and camp meetings. Swaggart started a radio show, a magazine, and then moved into television, with outspoken views. He called Roman Catholicism "a false religion. It is not the Christian way", and claimed that Jews suffered for thousands of years "because of their rejection of Christ". "If you don't like what I say, talk to my boss," he once shouted as he strode in front of his congregation at his Family Worship Centre in Baton Rouge, where his sermons moved listeners to speak in tongues and stand up as if possessed by the Holy Spirit. Swaggart's messages stirred thousands of congregants and millions of TV viewers, making him a household name by the late 1980s. Contributors built Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a business that made an estimated US$142 million in 1986. His Baton Rouge complex still includes a worship centre and broadcasting and recording facilities. Swaggart's downfall came in the late 1980s as other prominent preachers faced similar scandals. Swaggart said publicly that his earnings were hurt in 1987 by the sex scandal surrounding rival televangelist Jim Bakker and a former church secretary at Bakker's PTL ministry organisation. The following year, Swaggart was photographed at a hotel with Debra Murphree, an admitted prostitute who told reporters that the two did not have sex but that the preacher had paid her to pose nude. She later repeated the claim - and posed nude - for Penthouse magazine. The surveillance photos that crippled Swaggart's career apparently stemmed from his rivalry with preacher Marvin Gorman, whom Swaggart had accused of sexual misdeeds. Gorman hired the photographer who captured Swaggart and Murphree on film. Swaggart later paid Gorman $1.8 million to settle a lawsuit over the sexual allegations against Gorman. More trouble came in 1991, when police in California detained Swaggart with another prostitute. The evangelist was charged with driving on the wrong side of the road and driving an unregistered Jaguar. His companion, Rosemary Garcia, said Swaggart became nervous when he saw the police car and weaved when he tried to stuff pornographic magazines under a car seat. Swaggart was later mocked by the late TV comic Phil Hartman, who impersonated him on NBC's Saturday Night Live . The evangelist largely stayed out of the news in later years but remained in the pulpit at Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, often joined by his son, Donnie, a fellow preacher. His radio station broadcast church services and gospel music to 21 states, and Swaggart's ministry boasted a worldwide audience on the internet. The preacher caused another brief stir in 2004 with remarks about being "looked at" amorously by a gay man. "And I'm going to be blunt and plain: If one ever looks at me like that, I'm going to kill him and tell God he died," Swaggart said, to laughter from the congregation. He later apologised. Swaggart made few public appearances outside his church, save for singing 'Amazing Grace' at the 2005 funeral of Louisiana Secretary of State Fox McKeithen, a prominent name in state politics for decades. In 2022, he shared memories at the memorial service for Lewis, his cousin and rock 'n' roll pioneer. The pair had released The Boys From Ferriday , a gospel album, earlier that year. -CNN
The Guardian
a day ago
- The Guardian
Jimmy Swaggart, US televangelist brought down by scandal, dies aged 90
Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, who became a household name amassing an enormous following and multimillion-dollar ministry only to be undone by revelations of paying sex workers, has died. He was 90. Swaggart died decades after his once vast audience dwindled and his name became a punchline on late-night television. His death was announced on Tuesday on his public Facebook page. A cause was not immediately given, although he had been in poor health. The Louisiana native was best known for being a captivating Pentecostal preacher with a massive following before being caught on camera with a sex worker in New Orleans in 1988, one of a string of successful TV preachers brought down in the 1980s and 90s by sex scandals. He continued preaching for decades, but with a reduced audience. Swaggart encapsulated his downfall in a tearful 1988 sermon, in which he wept and apologized but made no reference to his connection to a sex worker. 'I have sinned against you,' Swaggart told parishioners nationwide. 'I beg you to forgive me.' He announced his resignation from the Assemblies of God later that year, shortly after the church said it was defrocking him for rejecting punishment it had ordered for 'moral failure'. The church had wanted him to undergo a two-year rehabilitation program, including not preaching for a full year. Swaggart said at the time that he knew dismissal was inevitable but insisted he had no choice but to separate from the church to save his ministry and Bible college. Swaggart's messages stirred thousands of congregants and millions of TV viewers, making him a household name by the late 1980s. Contributors built Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a business that made an estimated $142m in 1986. His Baton Rouge, Louisiana, complex still includes a worship center and broadcasting and recording facilities. Swaggart said publicly that his earnings were hurt in 1987 by the sex scandal surrounding rival televangelist Jim Bakker and a former church secretary at Bakker's PTL ministry organization.
