Latest news with #televangelist
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Yahoo
Lakewood megachurch founder and mom to televangelist Joel Osteen dies at age 91
The mother of televangelist Joel Osteen and one of the Lakewood megachurch founders has died at the age of 91. 'It is with a heavy heart that Victoria and I, along with our family, announce the passing of our cherished mother and grandmother, Dolores 'Dodie' Osteen,' Osteen wrote on X Wednesday. 'Dodie' Osteen was cherished by followers as a matriarch of Lakewood Church, Houston – one of the largest evangelical churches in the U.S. that boasts millions of Christian followers worldwide. 'Known as 'Mama Dodie' to the entire Lakewood family, together, we celebrate her amazing life and lasting legacy,' Osteen's statement continued. Osteen said that his mother died of natural causes. In 1981, 'Dodie' was diagnosed with metastatic liver cancer, which doctors said was terminal, according to the family. She was given this week to live, according to a 2020 Washington Times feature. 'Dodie' said that she and her husband, John Osteen, both rejected the prognosis and turned to prayer. Her late husband, a former Southern Baptist pastor, founded Lakewood in the back of an old feed store in 1959. He hosted his weekly John Osteen television program for 16 years, laying the foundations for what was to become one of the most popular evangelical churches in the world. John died in January 1999 at the age of 77, paving the way for his youngest son to become the senior pastor. Osteen took the opportunity to rapidly expand his father's church. Since then, Osteen has become a prevalent figure in American life and Christianity worldwide. Last month, Osteen was faced with the news that Texas authorities were reopening an investigation into the murder of his elderly great-aunt, who was found bludgeoned to death inside her home nearly 20 years ago. Johnnie Daniel, 84, was found beaten to death inside her home in August 2006 with her face smashed and a copy of the New Testament and a pencil on her chest. A hammer was also found wrapped in a bloody towel beside Daniel, who was the aunt of Dodie Osteen. Back in 2006, authorities charged a then-29-year-old Houston man, Edric Wilson, with Daniel's murder. At the time DNA evidence linked him to Daniel's killing, Wilson was already in custody on a separate aggravated assault charge. Meanwhile, in February, Osteen's megachurch in Houston was targeted by a gunman who opened fire, injuring a 57-year-old man and wounding a seven-year-old boy, believed to be her son. The shooter, identified as 36-year-old Genesse Ivonne Moreno, was heard threatening to 'blow up' the church, police said. The Lakewood franchise has attracted big names in the past, including controversial rapper Kanye West, who brought his 'Sunday Service' to the Osteen megachurch in 2019. 'I know that God's been calling me for a long time and the devil's been distracting me for a long time,' he said before a crowd of about 17,000 at Osteen's church, the Los Angeles Times reported. 'Ye' has since faced severe criticism after expressing far-right views online and has been accused of glorifying Hitler and Nazism in this latest music. Solve the daily Crossword
The Independent
31-07-2025
- The Independent
Lakewood megachurch founder and mom to televangelist Joel Osteen dies at age 91
The mother of televangelist Joel Osteen and one of the Lakewood megachurch founders has died at the age of 91. 'It is with a heavy heart that Victoria and I, along with our family, announce the passing of our cherished mother and grandmother, Dolores 'Dodie' Osteen,' Osteen wrote on X Wednesday. 'Dodie' Osteen was cherished by followers as a matriarch of Lakewood Church, Houston – one of the largest evangelical churches in the U.S. that boasts millions of Christian followers worldwide. 'Known as 'Mama Dodie' to the entire Lakewood family, together, we celebrate her amazing life and lasting legacy,' Osteen's statement continued. Osteen said that his mother died of natural causes. In 1981, 'Dodie' was diagnosed with metastatic liver cancer, which doctors said was terminal, according to the family. She was given this week to live, according to a 2020 Washington Times feature. 'Dodie' said that she and her husband, John Osteen, both rejected the prognosis and turned to prayer. Her late husband, a former Southern Baptist pastor, founded Lakewood in the back of an old feed store in 1959. He hosted his weekly John Osteen television program for 16 years, laying the foundations for what was to become one of the most popular evangelical churches in the world. John died in January 1999 at the age of 77, paving the way for his youngest son to become the senior pastor. Osteen took the opportunity to rapidly expand his father's church. Since then, Osteen has become a prevalent figure in American life and Christianity worldwide. Last month, Osteen was faced with the news that Texas authorities were reopening an investigation into the murder of his elderly great-aunt, who was found bludgeoned to death inside her home nearly 20 years ago. Johnnie Daniel, 84, was found beaten to death inside her home in August 2006 with her face smashed and a copy of the New Testament and a pencil on her chest. A hammer was also found wrapped in a bloody towel beside Daniel, who was the aunt of Dodie Osteen. Back in 2006, authorities charged a then-29-year-old Houston man, Edric Wilson, with Daniel's murder. At the time DNA evidence linked him to Daniel's killing, Wilson was already in custody on a separate aggravated assault charge. Meanwhile, in February, Osteen's megachurch in Houston was targeted by a gunman who opened fire, injuring a 57-year-old man and wounding a seven-year-old boy, believed to be her son. The shooter, identified as 36-year-old Genesse Ivonne Moreno, was heard threatening to 'blow up' the church, police said. The Lakewood franchise has attracted big names in the past, including controversial rapper Kanye West, who brought his 'Sunday Service' to the Osteen megachurch in 2019. 'I know that God's been calling me for a long time and the devil's been distracting me for a long time,' he said before a crowd of about 17,000 at Osteen's church, the Los Angeles Times reported. 'Ye' has since faced
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
When is Jimmy Swaggart's funeral? What to know about service for TV evangelist.
Thousands are expected to attend the funeral services for the late televangelist Jimmy Swaggart in Louisiana this weekend, a family spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY. The two-day service will take place at the American Pentecostal preacher's hometown church, Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge, on Saturday, July 12, and on Sunday, July 13, the family's publicist, Megan Kelly, told USA TODAY. Among the throngs in attendance are Pastor Jentezen Franklin, a New York Times best-selling author and the pastor of Free Chapel in Georgia, and others who are set to pay their respects to the "world renowned" Reverend Jimmy Swaggart, Kelly said. Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart dies at 90: The preacher died weeks after going into cardiac arrest AMBER Alert issued after Auburn deaths: Missing child located after mom, teen girl found dead; father arrested Jimmy Swaggart's hospitalization Swaggart's 70-year-old son, Donnie Swaggart, said his father was found around 8 a.m. at his home and revived before being taken to a local hospital. At the time of his death, he was co-pastor of the Family Worship Center, which he founded. "His voice echoed through nations, his music softened hearts, and his message never changed: Jesus Christ and Him crucified," a July 1 post on his official Facebook page reads. When did Jimmy Swaggart die? Swaggart died in Baton Rouge on Tuesday, July 1, his family said. He was 90. He had been in critical condition at a Louisiana hospital after going into cardiac arrest on June 15, family members said during a prayer service last month. Earlier this month, Kelly told USA TODAY the late pastor died at about 7:30 a.m. local time while surrounded by his family. Texas flood deaths rise to 120; Search for missing continues days later When is Jimmy Swaggart's funeral? The public is invited to attend both days of remembrance for the late pastor. According to Kelly, Swaggart's funeral arrangements are as follows: Saturday, July 12, 202; from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. - A public viewing and wake will be held at Family Worship Center, 8919 World Ministry Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70810 Sunday, July 13, 2025; 10 a.m. - A regular Sunday morning church service followed by a 6 p.m. celebration of life service at Family Worship Center. Who is Jimmy Swaggart? Swaggart was "a towering figure in global evangelism" for more than six decades, according to a July 11 release obtained by USA TODAY about the upcoming services. The preacher built a ministry reaching millions of people across the country through TV, his music, and in-person crusades. "His legacy lives on through Jimmy Swaggart Ministries (JSM), which continues to impact lives around the world," the release continues. Where was Jimmy Swaggart born? Swaggart was born on March 15, 1935, to the late Willie Leon and Minnie Belle Swaggart in Ferriday, Louisiana. He had one sister, the late Jeanette Ensminger, whose family confirmed died in 1999. He grew up in Ferriday, a town in Concordia Parish, which borders the Mississippi River on the central eastern border of Louisiana. According to Swaggart's family, his cousins included rock-and-roll icon Jerry Lee Lewis and country music star Mickey Gilley. Swaggart authored more than 100 books and commentaries, and held evangelistic crusades in more than 40 countries, his family said. As a musician, Swaggart sold 17 million gospel albums. More than 100 countries and a dozen languages Swaggart "faithfully attended small Assemblies of God churches in Ferriday and Wisner, Louisiana, where his passion for ministry first began to take root," according to his family. His full-time ministry kicked off in 1955, and the preacher grew to become "one of the most recognized voices in Christian broadcasting," his family said. During the height of his 1980s exposure, Swaggart became involved in various prostitution scandals, leading to his suspension and defrocking. In 1988, Swaggart delivered his infamous "I have sinned" speech on live TV. In 1995, at age 60, Swaggart founded SonLife Radio Network, expanding gospel programming across North America, which currently broadcasts to more than 300 million TV homes across the globe. In addition to his son and cousins, the preacher is survived by his wife of 70 years, Frances Swaggart. He also leaves behind his daughter-in-law, Debbie Swaggart; his grandchildren, Gabriel Lee Swaggart and his wife, Jill; Jennifer Swaggart Mullis and her husband, Cliff; and Matthew Aaron Swaggart and his wife, JoAnna. He also leaves behind his nine great-grandchildren: Samantha, Ryder, Abby, Lola, Harper, Navy, Harrison, Caroline Frances and Mackenzie. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is Jimmy Swaggart's funeral? What to know about the service
The Herald
15-07-2025
- Politics
- The Herald
State asks judge to clarify ‘factual findings' in Omotoso judgment
News Premium By Guy Rogers - 15 July 2025 After almost eight years in court, televangelist Timothy Omotoso was found not guilty of rape and human trafficking but his rearrest, re-release, deportation and now an appeal by the National Prosecuting Authority is ensuring the controversial pastor stays in the news. On Monday, the state requested 'clarification' in the first part of its appeal against the acquittal of Omotoso, who was found not guilty by judge Irma Schoeman in the Gqeberha high court in April...
The Guardian
03-07-2025
- The Guardian
Jimmy Swaggart obituary
The American televangelist hellfire preacher Jimmy Swaggart, who has died aged 90, fell by the wayside not once but twice with sex workers, spectacularly ending his previously successful TV ministry that screened in 140 countries and was reputed to bring in $150m a year in merchandising sales. On the first occasion, when he was filmed with a woman at a motel near his church in the suburbs of New Orleans in 1988, he prayed for forgiveness in a tearful TV address. On the second occasion three years later in California when he was caught with a woman in his car, he just told his congregation: 'The Lord told me it's flat out none of your business.' His plight had not been helped by his previous denunciations of rival Pentecostal preachers, which suddenly smacked of hypocrisy. When Jim Bakker had admitted to an affair with a church secretary, Swaggart described him as a cancer on the body of Christ, one of those 'pompadoured pretty boys with their hair done and their nails done who call themselves preachers'. He had also hounded a rival televangelist called Marvin Gorman out of ministry with accusations of adultery. It was Gorman who then proved his nemesis, tracking him to the motel. Swaggart's style as a preacher was bellowing alternating with whispering, speaking in tongues, bursts of song and bouts of tears. There were anecdotes of miraculous saves – his car's engine came unclogged on one occasion apparently by the application of anointing oil – and there were dreadful warnings too. These were well within the American Pentecostal traditions of what was called the sawdust trail, pioneered in rural circus tents by earlier evangelists such as Billy Sunday. Indeed Swaggart started his ministry preaching on street corners and from a flatbed truck, and living in church basements when he could not afford anywhere more upmarket to stay. His denunciations were scattergun and not exactly Christian, though he was of course a Biblical literalist. He denounced Catholics and Jews, Mormons and Muslims with equal venom as cultists and heretics, as well as Darwinists, communists, liberals and judges. He suggested that the Jews had brought the Holocaust on themselves by denying Christ – and of course the End Times were nigh. 'Armageddon is coming,' he would proclaim. 'My Lord, I am happy. I don't care who it bothers. It thrills my soul.' He came from the tiny rural Louisiana town of Ferriday, part of a tightly knit clan 'entwined like a big tight ball of rubber bands'. His father, Willie Leon 'Sun' Swaggart, was a sharecropper, grocery store manager, moonshiner, fiddle player and occasional preacher, and his mother, Minnie Bell (nee Herron), was from the same rural background. One cousin was the future rock'n'roll star Jerry Lee Lewis and another the country and western musician Mickey Gilley. Swaggart himself had a fine baritone singing voice and might have followed Lewis. He was offered terms by the pioneering Sun Records producer Sam Phillips but turned him down because of his religious calling, which, unlike his cousins, forbade alcohol, dancing, tobacco and secular music. It was said the cousins preached from the opposite shores of the river they called salvation. However it did not stop him later issuing bestselling gospel albums, including This Is Just What Heaven Means to Me, though he claimed characteristically that he had negotiated the contracts through God's help: 'Could you take 90% and let me have 10%?' The albums sold in their millions. Swaggart was ordained by the Pentecostal Assemblies of God sect in 1961 after several years of preaching around the south, began broadcasting to Christian religious radio stations a year later and in 1969 founded his Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge, from where he launched the weekly Camp Meeting Hour radio programme. He promoted himself as an 'old-fashioned, Holy Ghost-filled, shouting, weeping, soul-winning, Gospel preachin' preacher'. It was certainly entertaining. The centre itself grew to hold a congregation of 7,000 and the purchase of a bankrupt television studio in 1975 expanded Swaggart's ministry across the country. Within a few years 200 local television companies were taking his daily programmes. Eventually it was beamed internationally and Swaggart briefly became the biggest star in the televangelical firmament. There were also merchandising opportunities: the sale of knick-knacks including belt buckles, T-shirts, mugs, plates and even replicas of Jesus's crown of thorns. Swaggart himself contributed more than 50 books and bible study guides. The worship centre became the largest mail-order business in Louisiana and the church grounds expanded to 200 acres, at one stage including a bible college. Swaggart was less politically active nationally than his contemporaries Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, though he supported Robertson's presidential bid in 1988 and later voted for Donald Trump. But he did become entangled with the brutal anti-communist, pro-South African Mozambican resistance group Renamo during the country's civil war of the 1980s, with his ministries accused of funding them and certainly supplying the guerrillas with 'improving' literature. At the age of 17 Swaggart had married his childhood sweetheart, 15-year-old Frances Anderson. He would later declare: 'It is impossible for me to stray. My wife is with me all the time. I'm never alone.' This assertion was severely tested by the sex scandals, which came to light after Swaggart fell out with Gorman, both competing for similar television audiences in Louisiana. Swaggart got Gorman defrocked from the Assemblies of God after making allegations of adultery, which led Gorman to employ a private detective who recorded Swaggart visiting a sex worker at a Travel Inn on the outskirts of New Orleans. Gorman offered a deal: he would not release the footage if Swaggart publicly apologised and withdrew his allegations, but when Swaggart did not answer the story rapidly went public. This prompted Swaggart's highly public mea culpa to his television followers. Damp with sweat and ostentatiously crying he called on the Almighty's help: 'I have sinned against you my Lord and I would ask that your precious blood would wash and cleanse every stain until it is in the seas of God's forgiveness, not to be remembered against me any more.' The authorities were notably more forgiving than they had been to Gorman, suspending him from preaching for two years, which Swaggart ignored on the grounds that he could not afford the loss of earnings. Defrocked, he then became an independent preacher. Scepticism about Swaggart's sincerity hardened even among his most devoted followers when three years later he was stopped by police while driving his white Jaguar erratically in Indio, California. His passenger told reporters: 'He asked me for sex. I mean that's why he stopped me. That's what I do. I'm a prostitute.' She claimed the car had been swerving because he was trying to hide pornographic magazines under the driver's seat. With that his national ministry effectively collapsed. He eventually reached a million-dollar settlement with Gorman, but the bible college, private jet and his and hers limousines had to go. He continued preaching but his ministry essentially passed to his son Donnie. Frances and Donnie survive him, as do several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Jimmy Lee Swaggart, television evangelist, born 15 March 1935; died 1 July 2025
