Russian Orthodox Church rebukes priest for flaunting designer goods on Instagram

Instagram seems to be facilitating an ecumenism of prosperity preaching, as in the item in the post below, and the following, as reported by Matthew Bodner of the London Daily Telegraph, December 10, 2018 (link in original):

The priest, Father Vyacheslav Baskakov, displayed Louis Vuitton bags and Gucci shoes in his Instagram posts

The Russian Orthodox Church is pursuing disciplinary action against a priest in the city of Tver for a series of immodest Instagram posts in which he flaunts Gucci shoes and Louis Vuitton handbags, a church spokesman has said.

The account, belonging to priest Vyacheslav Baskakov, drew social media heat on Friday when users noticed posts featuring his luxury swag. The account has since been deleted, but not before Instagram users took snapshots of high price Louis Vuitton slippers, among other things.

“I hope this will bring this shepherd to account,” said Alexander Volkov, a spokesman for Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, “and to find the words and actions to bring him to reason, so that these kinds of things will not happen again.”

This isn’t the first time Russian Orthodox Church officials have been caught with high end fashion accessories, though it is perhaps the first time one of these holy men have been so blatant about it.

In 2012, Patriarch Kirill himself was spotted wearing a $30,000 Breguet wrist watch in a photo posted on the church’s website. After a wave of outrage, a photo appeared with the wristwatch photoshopped out.

However, Patriarch Kirill’s hand was resting on a table that reflected an image of the watch -- a detail overlooked in the photoshopped image. The original photo, with watch in clear view, was later put back on the website.

All things considered, this was not Russia’s greatest luxury watch controversy. In 2015, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accidentally flashed a $620,000 Richard Mille RM 52-01 watch, of which only 30 were reportedly made, in a photo taken at his wedding in the resort town of Sochi.

While perhaps marginally more appropriate in the halls of power, Patriarch Kirill’s spokesman laid into Father Baskakov with some harsh words for his Instagram posts, saying that his “immodest and unrestrained way of life” has no place in the church. “The life of a priest cannot be divided between the personal and public and no clergyman can act like a priest in a church from the morning until lunch and then be whoever he wants from lunch until evening,” he said.

South Carolina megachurch pastor gives his wife a $200,000 Lamborghini as an anniversary present

Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. Matthew 6:1-4

The prosperity gospel seems to work for prosperity preachers, which no doubt enables them to do their alms "in the streets;" I believe the scholarly term is "doing well by doing good." As reported by Charles Duncan of the Charlotte Observer, December 12, 2018 (links in original):

A megachurch pastor from Greenville, South Carolina is catching heat for buying his wife a $200,000 Lamborghini as an anniversary present last week. John Gray, of Relentless Church, is the same pastor who drew praise from around the world for giving tithes directly from the collection plate to veterans, single parents and widows.

A video posted on Instagram, which has since been deleted, shows Gray dressed in black tie leading his wife through a crowd and surprising her with the car.

The gift drew criticism on Instagram, the Christian Post website reports, noting that some people “were angry that a preacher would indulge in such display of opulence.”

Defending the gift from her husband, Aventer Gray posted to her own Instagram account: “My hubby is a hard worker, he worked his whole life and he saved to bless his wife.”

She pointed to his income outside of the megachurch, including producing movies and writing songs.

Her husband, she writes, “Gives away cars, full houses of furniture, coats off his back.”

“I don’t see anyone screaming about how basketball players drive what they do while you paying $$$ to see them play in arenas and on fields,” she wrote on Instagram.

MY HUBBY IS A HARD-WORKER, HE WORKED HIS WHOLE LIFE AND HE SAVED TO BLESS HIS WIFE!!! REALJOHNGRAY AUTHOR X 2 SILENT ENDORSEMENTS (YOU KNOW BECAUSE EVERYONE DOESN’T HAVE TO BRAG ABOUT WHO THEY ARE SIGNED TO) 6 TV SHOWS MOVIE PRODUCER SONG WRITER TOURS Gives away cars, full houses of furniture, coats off his back... Checks before pastoring and tithes that in its entirety between 2 churches AND those he feels lead to at any given moment... BEEN WORKING FOR YEARS...GET OUTTA HERE WILLSTAY OFF MY HUSBAND... I don’t see anyone screaming about how basketball players drive what they do while you paying $$ to see them play in arenas and on fields... We don’t live for people! We live for God! Back to my regularly scheduled grocery store trip!!! Happy Sunday!

A post shared by grayceeme (@grayceeme) on DEC 9, 2018 AT 4:10PM PST

Gray was praised just two weeks ago for a video that went viral of him giving money to needy members of his congregation. “The role of the church is also to meet the needs of people in the house,” Gray said in the video.

“Any single mothers in here?” he asked. “Any widows? Are there any single fathers, any veterans that don’t have what they need to make ends meet? Come to the altar. There’s some money in these baskets.”

Just one question, Chief: If there's nothing wrong with Pastor Gray giving his wife an expensive car for an anniversary present, why was the video of the event deleted?

Nigerian charismaniac "prophet" T.B. Joshua performs "healings" on men with overactive or permanently erect penises

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple. Romans 16:17-18

For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. II Corinthians 11:13-15

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. II Peter 2:1-3

North American televangelists and false prophets are known for making preposterous claims, but I've never heard even Ernest Angley say "You malfunctioning penile demons come OUT!" As is the case with other charismaniac claims, I doubt that the evidence for the alleged healings performed by "Prophet" T.B. Joshua will stand up. As reported by John Owen Nwachukwu of the Lagos Daily Post, June 12, 2017:

The founder and General Overseer of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, SCOAN, prophet T.B Joshua, has reportedly healed a man who has been having persistent erection for 5 months now after patronizing prostitutes.

According to the report, the young man, identified as Sunday went in with a prostitute after attending church with his father, earlier that day.

When he got home that evening after sleeping with the woman, his erection remained.

As he confessed in front of the church members, he could hardly stand or move, even sitting was difficult as a result of his erection.

Sunday told the church that he was forced to explain his plight to his father who took him to the doctors who could only recommend an operation.

They declined and continued making efforts to solve his excruciatingly painful problem.

Sunday Akinrinwa became housebound for five months because of the permanent erection!

His father who is a reputable man in Ondo state, brought him to SCOAN.

The whole process was shown live on Emmanuel TV.

When Prophet T.B. Joshua prayed for Sunday, his whole body began to shake.

After the prayer, Prophet T.B. Joshua told him to urinate.

The young man advised youth that they should not fornicate or commit adultery but rather commit their ways to God.

"Prophet" T.B. Joshua followed that with a similar event, as reported by Nsikak Nseyen in the Daily Post, October 10, 2017 (links in original):

The founder and General Overseer of Christ Mercyland Deliverance Ministry, Warri, Delta State, Prophet Jeremiah Omoto Fufeyin, a.k.a, Warri TB Joshua, has shocked the world again when he prayed for a man with rectal mal-function in front of his members. The man who almost went unclad was believed to be tormented by a spirit. He had his penis controlled by the pastor before the congregants; as it tossed up and down inside his boxers.

Recall that the pastor recently prayed for an obese woman to lose weight, with no visible result at the end.

Few months back, he called out single men and women in his church and asked them to select their partners from among themselves.

The Warri based acclaimed man of God had told his critics that they were indirect promoters of his ministry, stressing that criticisms spur and encourage him to do more for the people.

In the video trending online, the pastor constantly commanded the man’s penis and it obeyed, even as it tossed up and down to the awe of the onwatchers.

The man’s manhood protruded to an outrageous limit in front of the members.

For some strange reason, the video of the event described above has been removed from the page.

"Prophet" T.B. Joshua makes some unusual claims about his background, as reported by Mr. Nwachukwu in the Daily Post, January 27, 2018:

The founder of the Synagogue Church of all Nations, SCOAN, Temitope Balogun Joshua, popularly called T.B, Joshua, has made some shocking revelations about his beginning.

Speaking in a interview with Vangaurd, T.B Joshua said he spent over 15 months in his mother’s womb.

The renowned cleric also revealed some mysteries that came with his early development, while giving account of his school days.

Joshua said, “Don’t forget, that I was born in a rustic village of Arigidi in Akoko, Ondo state, Nigeria; I spent 15 months in my mother’s womb.

“My birth and early development was said to be shrouded in mysteries after narrowly escaping a boulder from a nearby quarry which came crashing inches near me in my parents’ house hence the name ‘Temitope’, meaning “what you (God) has done for me is worthy of thanks,” I attended St. Stephens’ Anglican Primary School but failed to complete secondary school due to poverty.

“While in primary school, I was referred to as the small pastor and led evangelical activities. My ambition to join the Nigerian Army crashed after the train that was to convey me developed fault along the way and left me stranded for six days.

“I also washed people’s feet on the muddy corners of Lagos and worked as a poultry attendant to earn a living. My ministry, (The SCOAN), alongside the Emmanuel TV Partners, had today become synonymous with acts of charity, healing and humanitarian efforts across the globe.”

As they used to say in Get Smart, "I find that very hard to believe."

Nigerian Charismaniac pastor claims that church members have an obligation to tithe to the pastor--even if the pastor embezzles it

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple. Romans 16:17-18

For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. II Corinthians 11:13-15

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. II Peter 2:1-3

Preachers of the false gospel known as the "prosperity gospel" aren't just to be found among the ranks of North American televangelists. The Lagos Daily Post contains more articles on these false shepherds than this blogger is prepared to examine (readers are encouraged to click on the link above and search for themselves), but enough to give the impression that Nigeria has more than its share of prosperity preachers (is it just a coincidence that Nigeria is notorious as the country of origin for more than its share of Internet scams?).

Submitted for your disapproval, the following item, as reported by Ameh Comrade Godwin of the Daily Post, January 14, 2018:

Pastor Seyi Adeyemi, the Senior Pastor of The Worship Centre, has reacted to the debate on whether pastors are entitled to collect tithes from members.

The cleric said it was a must for people to pay tithe, even if their pastor embezzled it.

Speaking with Vanguard, the cleric said tithing had been in existence since Abrahamic era and could not be stopped for any reason.

He said, “When you speak about the things of God, you need to speak out of the knowledge which reveals the mind of God and not from convenience or circumstance. A lot of the people who spoke against tithe spoke because they don’t pay and they probably want to get people to align with them.

“Second, they spoke because they felt that recession is biting so hard and they felt that tithe was taking part of their income and, therefore, affecting their ability to live which, in itself, is ignorance. Third, because I know that whenever you see a campaign against biblical principles and doctrines, the devil is behind it. The scriptures that talk about tithe began as far back as Genesis where Abraham paid tithe to Melchizedek. Then it moved on to Deuteronomy where the people of Israel were required to make 10 per cent contribution to the house of God in order to take care of the Levites.

“That is how the issue of tithe was established in the Jewish setting and, of course, when it got to Malachi, which is the popular scripture, Malachi 3:10, the Bible says ‘bring all tithes into the house that there may be meat in my house’. That is the first part of that scripture. Then it says ‘prove me now if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing’. Now here’s the question, by demanding tithe, does God really need our money? No. God requires man, wherever there is a physical demand for anything in church, it is not because God is in need, it is because God wants us to learn how to honour Him with what He has given to us.

“People need to understand that the needs in the house of God will be met whether or not people decide in their own wisdom or knowledge to bring. So people need to come to the understanding that we are not doing God a favor by obeying that scripture, we are doing ourselves a favor. The argument that tithe was given as a commandment to Jews and that it was supposed to be paid to the Levites, and we are not Jews and neither are pastors Levites simply shows the ignorance of those who say so.

“The Bible makes it clear that everything that took place in the Old Testament was an example for the future. It used physical things to give analogy for the understanding of spiritual things that were going to come. So when we talk about tithe, there is a need in the house of God that transcends just meat and drink. The Church has a role to take care of the brotherhood. The Church has a role to step in and try to bridge the gap where government fails as far as people’s welfare is concerned. The Church has a role to propagate the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ for God till the end of the earth. All these assignments require money and that is what tithe is meant for.

“Do people arrogate tithe and offerings to themselves? Yes! But the misuse of something does not nullify the authenticity of its command. Every man, pastor will give an account of his stewardship to God. So if somebody is not being faithful, it does not nullify the Commandment of God. It simply means that you are being unfaithful to the commandment of God. So, if somebody takes the tithe that belongs to the church and uses it for his own personal need, that is unfaithfulness. I don’t believe that the money that comes from tithe and offering is enough to buy private jets. We need to talk about something else.”

Fortunately, not everyone in Nigeria is taken in by the prosperity preachers, as reported by Fikayo Olowolagba in the Daily Post, January 10, 2018:

Reno Omokri former aide to ex president Goodluck Jonathan has spoken against issue of tithe and ownership of jets by pastors.

Making reference to richest men in the world: Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, Omokri said tithe does not guarantee riches as those men don’t pay their tithes but were the richest.

According to him, point of faith is salvation, not prosperity.

He also condemned ownership of jets by pastors, saying Jesus never flew jets but his message was everywhere.

“If paying tithes makes you rich, then @BillGates and Mark Zickerberg would have been poor. Go to Forbes lists of the top 10 richest men-none of them pay tithes. And bedsides, the whole point of faith is salvation, not prosperity.

“While some do, very very few pastor need a private jet to do the work of God. There are commercial flights that can get you there ON TIME. Jesus never flew but His message is everywhere. Your lifestyle preaches more than your message. Live like Jesus. Die to self.

“One of the greatest deception satan has perpetuated in churches is that financial breakthroughs and prosperity is evidence that God is pleased with you. People don’t realize that satan can give wealth if it will deceive you as to your true spiritual state,” he said.

I've become increasingly convinced in recent years that tithing isn't for the church, but was limited to Israel under the Old Testament. The tithe in the Old Testament was of food grown in the Holy Land, not income. Nowhere in the New Testament are Christians commanded to tithe; it's worth noting that when the apostles and elders came together in Jerusalem in Acts 15 to discuss the requirements for Gentile converts to Christianity, there was no mention of tithing (or sabbath-keeping, for that matter). The New Testament standard for giving is that of II Corinthians 9:7:

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

10 years ago: Good riddance to Rex Humbard

On September 21, 2007, Rex Humbard died of congestive heart failure at the age of 88. Mr. Humbard, born in Little Rock, Arkansas, but based in Akron, Ohio, made his first appearance on television in 1949, and became the first televangelist in the United States to have a weekly program, which ran from 1953-1982. His $4-million, 5,400-seat Cathedral of Tomorrow in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, which opened in 1958, was built to accommodate television.

Mr. Humbard's program was internationally broadcast and his ministry became a big business (helped in part by loans from Teamsters union President Jimmy Hoffa--see the article mentioned below), but in 1973 Mr. Humbard ran into problems with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission because bonds and promissory notes that he had sold since 1959 were sold by his own salesmen, and were not registered with the SEC or sold through licensed brokers. A planned revolving restaurant was never built, and a transmission tower was eventually sold to a local businessman.

Mr. Humbug Humbard, like so many televangelists, preached a prosperity gospel of "seed-faith," i.e., if you sow a financial seed with his ministry, God will give you a return on your investment of as much as tenfold or a hundredfold. It's a false gospel that enriched the likes of Rex Humbard and Oral Roberts, but never enriched their donors, as far as I know. I have to agree with Christian apologists John Ankerberg and John Weldon--why don't these prosperity preachers practice what they preach and give some of their money away? If what they preach is true, they'll receive so much back in return that they'll never again have to ask anyone for money.

Mr. Humbard eventually retired to Florida, and his son Rex, Jr. took over the ministry. What remained of the Cathedral of Tomorrow was sold to notorious fraud and fellow Akronite Ernest Angley in 1994.

For an excellent examination of Rex Humbard, his history and scandals, click on the link for the article Jesus for Sale by Denise Grollmus in Cleveland Scene, October 31, 2007.

10 years ago: The death of Tammy Faye Bakker

So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. Proverbs 1:19

On July 20, 2007, Tammy Faye Messner, formerly Tammy Faye Bakker, died at the age of 65. Mrs. Messner, born Tamara LaValley, was the daughter of Pentecostal preachers, and was married to Jim Bakker from 1961-1992. The two founded the PTL Club (Praise the Lord) television program in 1974, and spent years preaching a false gospel of financial prosperity, using donations from viewers to finance their opulent lifestyle. The "ministry," which included the Heritage USA theme park, collapsed in sex and financial scandals in 1987, and Mr. Bakker went to prison for fraud. The couple divorced, and Mrs. Bakker married building contractor and family friend Roe Messner in 1993.

Mrs. Messner spent her final years promoting alternative medicine and becoming a sodomite icon, appearing in sodomy pride parades. She died after an 11-year battle with cancer, which I suspected may have been caused or exacerbated by chemicals from the outrageously large amounts of makeup she always covered herself with.

See my posts 25 years ago: The PTL scandal breaks, while Oral Roberts demands $8 million--or else! (March 17, 2012) and 25 years ago: PTL gives Jim Bakker the left foot of disfellowship (May 14, 2012).

90 years ago: The death of Émile Coué

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Jeremiah 17:9

On July 2, 1926, Émile Coué de la Châtaigneraie died at the age of 69. Mr. Coué was a pharmacist in Troyes, France from 1882-1910 who discovered the placebo effect among his clients, leading him to become a pioneer in promoting autosuggestion for self-improvement; he and his wife Lucie founded La Société Lorraine de Psychologie appliquée (The Lorraine Society of Applied Psychology) in 1913.

Mr. Coué wrote the book La Maîtrise de soi-même par l'autosuggestion consciente (Mastery of One’s Self through Conscious Autosuggestion) (1920), but is best remembered for the saying, which he encouraged people to repeat to themselves as a mantra, "Tous les jours à tous points de vue je vais de mieux en mieux (Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better)." Repetition of this phrase became known as La méthode Coué (The Coué method), or Couéism.

Although Mr. Coué was more popular in Europe than in North America in his own time, he exerted a major influence on North American success/motivation speakers of the later 20th century and beyond, including W. Clement Stone, Rev. Norman Vincent Peale, and Rev. Robert Schuller--some of whom, of course, have been found in high places in evangelicalism. While the success/motivation speakers proclaim a false gospel of self-improvement through self-effort, the Lord Jesus Christ said, "Without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

Charismaniac cult church builds replica of Temple of Solomon in Brazil

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:12-13

The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) is a charismaniac, prosperity gospel-proclaiming church based in Sao Paulo that has been accused of being a cult and a criminal organization. It hardly need to be said that reader shouldn't accept the Wikipedia entry as accurate or authoritative, but the references cited at the bottom are useful.

For information about the UCKG from the organization itself, check out their various sites:

United States

United Kingdom

South Africa

(in Portuguese)

The UCKG has built a replica of the Temple of Solomon in Sao Paulo that serves not only as a place of worship, but as the UCKG's headquarters. The building officially opened on July 31, 2014. As reported by Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz in Breaking Israel News, October 18, 2015:

In Sao Paulo, Brazil, there is a remarkable sight: a full-size replica of Solomon’s Temple. Actually, the Templo de Salomão built by the Universal Church Kingdom of God is much larger – it is four times the size of the original, but precise in every other detail. It is impressive, giving a taste of the glory of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The structure is a magnet for attention, though, admittedly, not all of it is positive.

Bishop Edir Macedo of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) was inspired to begin this massive undertaking after he visited Israel, where he decided to bring a piece of the Holy Land to his congregation in Brazil. It took four years and a daunting $300 million, but he was finally successful in his vision of building a replica of Solomon’s Temple.

Architect and project designer Rogério Silva de Araújo explained that the measurements were taken directly from the Bible. “A cubit was the distance between the elbow and the fingertips—which corresponded to 18 inches or 52.4 centimeters,” he explained. “Based on this piece of information, it was possible to calculate that the house king Solomon built for the Lord was approximately 31.44 meters long, 10.48 meters wide and 15.72 meters high. Also in Haggai 2:9, it says, ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater.’ ”

The UCKG Temple is indeed larger, measuring 126 meters long, 104 meters wide and 55 meters high – the height of an 18 story building. The floor and the walls are covered in $8 million worth of Jerusalem stone brought from Israel and, as in the original Temple, the main doors are made of wood and lined with copper.

Stepping inside the main sanctuary, which has seating for 10,000 worshippers, is said to be a powerful experience, but the most impressive part of the temple is its large central altar. It features an exact replica of the Ark of the Covenant covered in gold leaf. Behind the Ark is the temple’s baptistery, creating a dramatic visual effect.

Miguel Peres, a representative of the church, explained to Breaking Israel News why the project was begun. “We wanted to help people turn to Israel, support its existence and give them an opportunity to touch Jerusalem stones, which for them is a big deal,” he said. “Many Brazilians will never get a chance to go to Jerusalem, so why not bring a piece of Jerusalem to Brazil?”

“We also wanted to rescue the value of the original faith which has been lost along the years. At the courtyard of the Temple we built a replica of the Mishkan (The Tabernacle), ” he continued “Men were taught through the Mishkan how to approach God Almighty through faith and not religion.”

The project has attracted much attention, but the Temple was not built as a tourist attraction. Success is measured in different terms and Peres seems to feel it has measured up to all expectations.

“More than twenty thousand people flock to the Temple every day in its daily services and the things that are happening here are unbelievable,” he told Breaking Israel News. “More than 5 million people have visited the Temple since its opening.”

Though it is clear that it is not a place of Jewish worship, Peres feels it has also helped the Jewish people. “Thanks to our efforts, many people worldwide are now aware that there was a Temple that once stood in Jerusalem and that it needs to be rebuilt,” he said. “We are helping by spreading the story of the Temple. The Temple must be rebuilt in Jerusalem; this is a prophecy and a fact.”

Rabbi Chaim Richman, the International Director of the Temple Institute, which is dedicated to the rebuilding of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, feels differently. He came out strongly against the Templo de Salomão even before it was built.

“This is taking the promise of redemption for all mankind and using it for something altogether different,” he argued. “This is a total bastardization of the sanctity of the Holy Temple.”

He claimed it was expropriating another religion’s symbol or holy site, comparing it to replacing the famous statue of “The Redeemer” in Rio De Janeiro with a Muslim minaret. “Jews have always suffered from this,” he declared, noting that the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount, has been expropriated by the Muslims, with ongoing dire consequences. In strong terms, he refers to the Temple of Solomon in Brazil as a “theological obscenity” and a “stain on the honor of the God of Israel”.

Peres, however, defended the construction of the church. “More than a Jewish symbol, it is a Biblical symbol. The Bible is the Light to all people on Earth,” Peres explained. “At no point did we try to steal the symbol of the Jewish people, but we brought to life a symbol of Faith that once moved a nation to seek God sincerely and wholeheartedly.”

This "Temple," of course, is a counterfeit. There will be a real Third Temple built; it will be in Jerusalem, and Jews will gather there to worship, not in Sao Paulo, as suggested by this anti-Zionist site. The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement has been preparing for many years to rebuild the Temple. Another organization, the Temple Institute, has been busy for many years making vessels and garments for worship when the Temple is rebuilt. Tommy Ice and Randall Price's book Ready to Rebuild (1992) and the companion video with Jimmy DeYoung aren't current, but are still relevant for those interested in a sound Christian perspective on this topic.

70 years ago: The death of Aimee Semple McPherson

A backlog item that I should have posted three months ago:

A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Matthew 7:18

Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law.
And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. I Corinthians 14:34-35

But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. I Timothy 2:12

On September 27, 1944, Canadian-born American evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson died of an apparently accidental overdose of sleeping pills, 12 days before her 54th birthday. Mrs. McPherson, born Aimee Elizabeth Kennedy on a farm in Salford, Ontario, was brought up in the Salvation Army and converted to Pentecostalism in her teens. She married Pentecostal missionary Robert Semple when she was 17. Mr. Semple died in 1910, and Aimee's later marriages, to Harold McPherson and David Hutton, ended in divorce in 1921 and 1934, respectively. Mrs. McPherson founded Angelus Temple in Los Angeles, which opened in 1923; the church evolved into the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel.

Mrs. McPherson pioneered the use of radio for evangelism, and was a forerunner of modern televangelists. She was accused of faking her own kidnapping in 1926, but a grand jury investigation resulted in all charges being dropped.

I have an unsympathetic view of Mrs. McPherson, but readers can visit sites such as Aimee McPherson and Aimee Semple McPherson and come to their own views.

David Yonggi Cho, founder of the world's largest church, is convicted and sentenced for embezzlement

But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. I Timothy 6:9-10

For more than 30 years I've been hearing David Yonggi Cho (formerly Paul Yonggi Cho) held up as an example of a Christian leader, the assumption apparently being that the bigness of a church is in direct proportion to God's blessing upon it. Whether or not the doctrines taught in such a big church are biblical doesn't seem to be important. Mr. Cho has a long history of teaching New Age doctrines, such as man creating his own reality through creative visualization. Dave Hunt and T.A. McMahon, in The Seduction of Christianity (1985), critique several examples of Mr. Cho's false teaching.

Mr. Cho's ability to visualize, or, in a word that he likes to use, "incubate," seems to be failing him lately. As reported by Yonhap News, February 20, 2014:

A Seoul court on Thursday sentenced a pastor of one of the world's largest Christian churches to three years in prison with a five-year stay of execution for embezzling large amounts of church funds.

Rev. Cho Yong-gi, the founder and pastor emeritus of Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, was found guilty of causing some 13 billion won (US$12 million) worth of losses to the church by instructing church officials to buy stocks privately owned by his eldest son, Cho Hee-jun, at prices four times higher than market value, in 2002.

The elder Cho was also convicted of dodging 3.5 billion won in taxes in the process.

The Seoul Central District Court also ordered the 78-year-old disgraced pastor to pay a fine of 5 billion won.

In the same ruling, the court handed down a prison term of three years to the junior Cho, the former CEO of the church-affiliated local daily Kookmin Ilbo, for colluding with his father in the embezzlement scheme.

An investigation into the Cho family was launched last year after a group of members belonging to the church filed a suit for breach of trust and tax evasion.

The church, which claims it has around 800,000 members, has often made headlines in the recent past over a series of internal feuds and various corruption allegations.

Mr. Cho addressed the church on the first Sunday following the verdict, as reported by the Gospel Herald, February 24, 2014:

Pastor David Yonggi Cho, founder of the world's largest Pentecostal congregation, gave his reflection during the first Sunday Service after a South Korean court found him guilty of breach of trust, corruption and tax evasion, and sentenced him to three years in prison with a five-year probation and 5 billion won (US$4.67 million) in fines.

The 78-year-old disgraced megachurch pastor said that it was the hardest day of his 50 years of ministry when he heard the verdict on Thursday.

"Through this suffering, I've learned a homework. An individual shouldn't possess anything," Cho told his congregation at Yoido Full Gospel Church on Feb. 23, 2014. "Besides health, status, fame, authority, money... these are all matters that are outside the body and unworthy of any pursuit..."

...Cho did not argue against the judgment, but, instead, examined himself from the perspective of faith.

"God forbid, if God calls me back today, I will still be able to go to the Kingdom of God," he said. Cho then asked that the congregation to pray for his successor pastor Young Hong Lee.

In his sermon, Lee apologized to the congregation for the negative impacts that Cho's case have brought upon them. He encouraged them to forget the past and press on towards the future, and to continue the spread of the Gospel to those who have yet to receive the great love of Christ.

Senior pastor Lee said that Yoido Full Gospel Church was purchased with a heavy price - the blood shed by Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore no power of darkness can divide the church. Lee encouraged the congregation to become one body in the Holy Spirit and to be more diligent in the Lord's Holy work.

As might be expected, Mr. Cho's conviction doesn't prevent his supporters from defending him, and blaming everybody but David Yonggi Cho for the scandal. As reported by Luke Leung of the Gospel Herald, February 26, 2014:

News of Pastor David Yonggi Cho's indictment has spread like wild fire among the global Christian communities, where followers of the disgraced South Korean megachurch pastor searched for an explanation on how did their spiritual leader became entangled in the crime of breach of trust and corruption, embezzling $12 million of church funds.

Dr. Bob Rodgers Sr., pastor of Evangel World Prayer Center in Louisville, Ky., is a close confident of Cho, and he and his father have served on his church growth board for a combined 38 years. With the hope of restoring the public's trust towards Cho, he published a letter disclosing details surrounding the case that were disclosed behind close-door meetings which have not yet been made public.

Cho's eldest son, Hee-Jun, was indicted for the same charge and sentenced to three years in prison. He was immediately taken into custody following the court order, because he was considered a flight risk, Rodgers wrote.

"Cho has three sons. The second and third are very productive and work in church-related ministries. His eldest son has been the prodigal. He has been married four times and has been involved in sexual scandals with national personalities," he said, noting that he has closely followed the trial in Seoul. "In addition, he has served prison time for investment scams and embezzlement. His scandalized life has been an embarrassment to his family and the church."

In 2002, while serving as chairman of a church-affiliated newspaper Kookmin Ilbo, Hee-Jun sold the church 250,000 shares of stock in 1-Service, a cleaning company, at four times more than the market price. He "purposely defrauded" the church of more than $12 million, according to Rodgers, president of Church Growth International of the Americas.

"[David Yonggi] Cho testified that he trusted his elders and son and didn't check and read the thousands of pages of paperwork, which was prepared for him to sign," he wrote. "Because Cho relied upon the direction of his choice elders and son, he signed the paper. He never received any monies from the transaction."

However, the prosecutors, representing a group of elders from Yoido Full Gospel Church, had identified Cho as an accomplice to his son's embezzlement scheme, claiming that he used the money to help his son recover losses made in stock investments, the hankyoreh reported. In addition, they claimed that Cho had allegedly directed the transaction to be dealt with as quietly as possible despite his full knowledge of the potential "uproar" from the elders and congregation.

In light of these reports, Rodgers provided the presiding judges' final ruling, "The court considered that even though Pastor Cho had the final say in the church, he never took the lead in any of the crimes, including tax evasion, committed on the suggestion of the accounting firm.

"The court also considered Cho's life journey as a religious leader and his long-term contribution to social welfare as mitigating circumstances on his behalf. The court ruled that his son, Cho Hee-Jun, was the instigator of the crime related to the purchase of the shares of 1-Service stock."

Cho, 78, founded Yoido Full Gospel Church in 1958 and it now claims more than 450,000 followers. His disciples have built their own "disciple churches" across the country, creating a congregation of roughly one million people, with Cho as the leader.

Rodgers shared in conclusion that Cho lives a simple life in a 1,000-square-foot- church apartment and does not own a car, and he has raised and given personally to the church more than $170 million.

Taiwanese Pastor Mao-Song Chang, who pastors Top Church in New Taipei, Taiwan, has close ties with Cho and his church, released a statement, providing further details of the court verdict. He said that one of Yoido's church elder[s] had visited him in January and explained in detail about the case to him. Then, Pastor Lee also visited him in mid-Feb.

"First, when the elders filed a lawsuit against Cho, accusing him of embezzling $20 million, Cho knelt before the congregation and apologized, admitting his mistake for not having a good family testimony, resulting in the harm to church," he wrote.

Second, Cho faced the court honestly, he wrote. "Some elders from the incident have either passed away or no longer work as elders; some said that they don't remember. However, around 1,000 other elders testified that 'Pastor Cho is innocent,' and they asked why the judge doesn't believe in the testimonies of 1,000, but of 30."

"Third, the presiding judge once told Cho, 'We know that this case is not your problem. You just need to blame it on your son, then you will have no responsibilities,'" Change wrote, adding that Cho refused, "My son can be unrighteous to me, but I cannot be unrighteous to my son."

"Fourth, Yoido Full Gospel Church's position is to continue their full support of Pastor Cho, advociating for his innocence!"

Chang urged all to maintain an objective perspective towards the case and not to judge Cho because of his son's crime...

One con man undermines an Edmonton church's prosperity gospel

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold. Proverbs 22:1

Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven. Proverbs 23:5

But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. I Timothy 6:9-10

Cal Switzer, goatherd pastor of Victory Christian Center in Edmonton for the last 30 years, is a typical graduate of the notorious Rhema Bible Training Center in Tulsa, an institution founded by Word of Faith heretic Kenneth Hagin (which may explain why Pastor Cal spells "center" the American way). It seems that Pastor Cal's prosperity gospel message has run into a roadblock lately. As reported by Brent Wittmeier of the Edmonton Journal, July 22, 2012:

EDMONTON - Positive messages abound at the bright and clean Victory Christian Center.

On Sunday morning, the screen inside the spacious white sanctuary at 11520 Ellerslie Rd. lights up with the church’s vision, paraphrased from the Gospel of Mark: “Build a dream with love … produce a harvest beyond your wildest dreams.”

Following praise songs and announcements about backpack giveaways and a kids’ slide at Capital Ex, pastor Calvin Switzer paused during his sermon to discuss “some reports that came out this week” that there have been financial wrongdoings against the church. Lawyers are making “supernatural progress” in efforts to recover millions of dollars owed to the church, Switzer said, reading a lawyer’s statement deploring the “wrongful and unconscionable” actions of Kevyn Frederick, a developer who owes the church $2.8 million, court documents say. The allegations in those documents have not been proven in court.

Switzer deemed the problems a possible stepping stone for greater outreach in the city.

“When the enemy comes in with a flood, God comes in with a bigger flood,” Switzer said. “As a church, we should go after what’s ours because this is a family, a spiritual family, and it’s God’s house.”

He was interrupted by Wally Glimm, a former member of the church, who stood up and yelled.

“I’ve got something to say,” Glimm shouted at Switzer, before ushers came and ejected him from the building. “You’re trying to blame it all on Frederick. You are the one to blame for all of this.”

Earlier this month, the eight-hectare chunk of prime south Edmonton real estate was put on the block by Toronto-based creditors. The church building, school, Bible college, daycare, and the land are expected to fetch $14 million, according to CBRE Ltd., the court-appointed broker.

Glimm isn’t the first to point to Switzer, who also acts as president of Victory Christian Center Inc., for financial obstacles facing his church.

Four years ago, Victory Christian Center sold its Ellerslie Road property in an $18-million cash- and land- swap with Frederick, court documents show.

The 41-year-old developer would later be known for his involvement with the troubled Bellavera Green condos in Leduc, where fire code violations and other problems led to an emergency evacuation order for 85 completed suites in February. After the property was placed into receivership the next month, Frederick was the subject of numerous law suits.

But in exchange for the Victory swap, Frederick gave the church a $2.8-million down payment, transferred over a $2.6-million Leduc County property, and promised an additional $12.6 million to be paid later. Although Frederick took ownership of the church land, he didn’t register a $12.6 million “take back” mortgage, a safeguard to default the land back to the church if he couldn’t make payments.

The next year, the church took out a $2-million mortgage on its new Leduc property to help Frederick buy out Gary Korzan, his partner in the Bellavera Green condos. Frederick told the church he planned to pay his debts from sales of Bellavera Green condos.

At no point were lawyers involved during those deals, court documents say.

Switzer owns 98 per cent of the common shares in Victory Christian Center Inc., reports an affidavit signed by Korzan this past April. The affidavit notes the organization had an agreement with Frederick to build a church on the Leduc County land.

“Switzer signed the mortgage renewal agreement in front of independent legal counsel and swore an affidavit that he had authority to bind the (church),” Korzan’s affidavit reads. “The (church) knew that they were pledging their property for the purpose of business dealings that they had with (Frederick).”

After being escorted outside on Sunday, Glimm talked about attending Victory church for about five years in the 1990s. His daughter was a principal at the Victory school, Glimm said, and donating money was encouraged as an integral part of receiving God’s blessing.

“When I was here, it was nothing but money, money, money, money,” Glimm said.

By his own estimates, Glimm donated $300,000 to $500,000 to the church while running a successful auction and realty business. When his business went badly, the church wouldn’t help him, he said. Glimm still believes in God, but wants to see the church shut down.

“I just hope that real truth and honesty prevail in this,” Glimm said. “(Switzer) did it himself, so why put the blame on somebody else? If he had taken five or six people in there, maybe they would have said, ‘hey, we don’t like this, no.’”

Switzer couldn’t be reached for comment.

Victory Christian Center, Inc. is registered as a charitable organization with Canada Revenue Agency. The information provided by VCC to CRA for the years 2000-2010 can be found here by following the links.

For an earlier article on VCC's financial troubles, see Victory church in land-sale battle from the July 20, 2012 edition of the Edmonton Journal.

Just one question, Chief: What part of Mark is that "Build a dream..." passage cited above "paraphrased" from? It doesn't resemble anything I've seen in Mark, or any other part of the Bible.

August 29, 2012 update: On August 11, 2012, the Edmonton Journal published a lengthy feature article by Mr. Wittmeier titled The rise and fall of the 'Miracle Church'.

November 19, 2012 update: Today's Edmonton Journal contains another article by Mr. Wittmeier titled Future of Victory Christian Center linked to pending hotel deal:

EDMONTON - Like the game of Monopoly, the future of Victory Christian Center might just rest on hotels, mortgages, and bankruptcies.

Two months have passed since the initial deadline for offers on the eight-hectare site — listed in July for $14 million — where the financially troubled south Edmonton church sits. And while CBRE Limited — the court-appointed real estate company looking after the sale — is still shopping 11520 Ellerslie Road, other court documents show the fiscal fate of the church itself may rest several kilometres north, at the 307-room Crowne Plaza Hotel at 10111 Bellamy Hill Road, best known for its revolving rooftop restaurant.

The connection between the two properties and Kevyn Frederick — a troubled developer and convicted fraudster currently in a maelstrom of lawsuits — is detailed in a June 22 decision by Court of Queen’s Justice Donald Lee granting a sealing order on financial details of the hotel’s pending sale and bidding process.

In Aug. 2008, Victory Christian Center signed its Ellerslie Road property over to Frederick’s numbered company, 1410973 Alberta Ltd. In the $18-million cash and land swap, the church received a $12-million “take-back” mortgage promising to return the land if Frederick defaulted, and made a deal for Leduc County land for a new facility Frederick would build. The church also signed a five-year lease with Frederick for $334,668 per year to remain on the land until April 2013, other documents show.

Frederick used the church land to register a $6-million mortgage with Ram Singh, a retired dentist. In Oct. 2010, he used Singh’s money — and the collateral of the church property — in the $47.8-million purchase of the Crowne Plaza Hotel from Chateau Lacombe Limited Partnership. To complete the deal, Frederick borrowed $32 million from Toronto-based Romspen Investment Corporation, and more than $11 million from Allied Hospitality Services Inc...

...Lee’s decision notes that appraisals conducted on the hotel have placed its value “well below” what is owed to Romspen and Alliance. And while a deal on the Crowne Plaza still hasn’t been completed, other court documents show it’s close. After two rounds of offers, CBRE received an unsolicited offer on Aug. 17 — details of which are known to Romspen, Alliance, Singh, and the church — “for a significantly higher price” than all previous bids. Originally expected to close Oct. 1, the final deadline has been extended several times, most recently on Nov. 7, when Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Julianna Topolniski granted an additional 90 days to close the deal.

By then, it all may be moot for Victory Christian Center. Despite the $14-million price tag on the Ellerslie Road property, a valuation report completed in February estimated the property’s value at $7.5 million, or just $6.6 million if the sale is forced. And after Romspen and Singh receive their due, little might be left over.

When I try to read stories about complicated financial deals, I begin to suffer from what a former professor of mine referred to as the MEGO syndrome (My Eyes Glaze Over), so those who are interested in all the details of these complex deals may want to read the full article. I find it interesting and amusing that the Court of Queen's Bench Justice who made the ruling was Donald Lee. Two pages earlier in the November 19, 2012 edition of the paper, Justice Lee is the subject of another article. Justice Lee has had two of his decisions quashed by the Alberta Court of Appeal because his judgments in these cases consisted largely of plagiarizing--cutting and pasting--the arguments of the lawyers.

May 28, 2013 update: As reported by Brent Wittmeier of the Edmonton Journal, May 25, 2013:

Victory Christian Center — a church, daycare and K-12 school — will have to vacate its south Edmonton site by end of July, according to a deal approved Friday in the Court of Queen’s Bench.

Justice Juliana Topolniski approved a cash offer of between $6.6 million and $7.1 million for the eight-hectare site at 11520 Ellerslie Road. Details of the transaction are under a sealing order until the deal closes June 28.

The church, which has occupied the site since 1989, lost its title five years ago during an ill-fated $18-million deal with mortgage fraudster Kevyn Frederick. The church receives nothing from the sale, which came in at about half of the $14-million price tag from its July 2012 judicial listing. Barring an appeal, Ram Singh, one of Frederick’s partners, will also lose claim to a $6-million mortgage agreement signed with Frederick.

“The market has spoken,” Topolniski said. “This is a difficult case for many: the congregation, the students at the school, children at the play school, Dr. Singh.”

The land was auctioned on behalf of creditors owed tens of millions by Frederick, whose finances collapsed in late 2011. Proceeds of the sale will go to Romspen Investment Corporation, a Toronto-based mortgage company that loaned Frederick $32 million to buy the Chateau Lacombe hotel in downtown Edmonton in Aug. 2010. That hotel recently sold under court order for $27.5 million, leaving Romspen roughly $8 million short of recouping its losses.

A last-minute offer nearly saw the church become a mosque. Less than an hour before the hearing, Topolniski received word that the Southwest Muslim Community Centre had submitted a new and higher offer. The group placed a $1-million deposit on the land, offering to pay $500,000 by December and the rest of the money next year.

Despite two counter-offers tendered in the early afternoon, Romspen rejected that deal, opting for the earlier cash bid.

June 16, 2013 update:
As reported by Brent Wittmeier in the Edmonton Journal, June 8, 2013:

Land once owned by Victory Christian Center could soon be replaced by a private seniors' care facility, Alberta Justice confirmed this week.

An offer for the eight-hectare site at 11520 Ellerslie Rd. - currently occupied by the church, its K-12 school and daycare - was approved in Court of Queen's Bench on May 24 and is expected to close June 28.

The offer was submitted by Assisted Care Services Inc., Alberta Justice spokeswoman Michelle Davio said this week. The Edmonton-based company was formed in 2006 by Lorenzo Clonfero, president and owner of Rosedale Developments, which operates a 58-suite, six-storey seniors' facility at 10053 111th St.

Details are sealed until the deal closes on June 28, but the price fell to roughly half of the $14-million asking price. Clonfero's offer was between the land's appraised $7.5-million market value and its $6.6-price tag under "distressed" conditions, court heard.

Clonfero's lawyer argued the buyer should remain anonymous under the sealing order. Justice Juliana Topolniski disagreed...

...Several offers were tabled in the 10 months before Clonfero's unconditional cash offer on May 3, according to an affidavit filed last month by Bradley Gingerich, senior vice-president of court-appointed commercial real estate firm CBRE Limited.

Real estate companies submitted bids in July and October that failed to meet conditions. On Oct. 31, the Christian and Missionary Alliance denomination made an offer that didn't "meet the market value" of the land. In mid-December, a numbered company with the address of a south Edmonton law firm submitted a failed offer requiring interest-free financing for seven years.

More recent offers were submitted by a trio of Muslim organizations. The non-profit Muslim Association of Canada submitted a bid on Feb. 14 that didn't meet due diligence conditions. Later offers were jointly submitted by a pair of Mill Woods-based charities, the Southwest Muslim Community Centre and the Markaz Ul Islam Society, which were rejected for "uncertain" payment terms and a final closing date another 10 months away.

The group continued to submit last minute offers on May 24, the day courts were slated to approve Clonfero's offer.

Under the terms of the approved deal, programs affiliated with Victory Christian Center must vacate the site by the end of July.

Rosa Ritzmann, administrator of the private K-12 school operated out of modular classrooms on the land, wrote in an email that "plans are in place for the upcoming (school) year," though she wouldn't say where classes will be held. The school receives 70 per cent of its funding through the province - roughly $5,000 per student - and had 169 students last year.

Court action created disruptions for Victory Christian School officials. Eight teachers left last summer, six after the property went on the market, said Melanie Stevens, a former teacher at the school. Last August, Concordia High School spokeswoman Erin Stevenson said Victory representatives were shown a 15,000-sq.-foot facility at 830 Saddleback Road, then subject of a lease dispute that would cause the 90-yearold Lutheran school to permanently close its doors.

Victory Christian Center will receive nothing from the sale of its former land. Founding pastor and school president Cal Switzer signed away the title in August 2008 in an ill-fated $18-million cash-and-land swap.

Frederick still owed the church $12.3 million when he leveraged the land in 2010 to buy the Château Lacombe hotel in downtown Edmonton, securing a $32-million mortgage with Romspen Investment Corporation to buy the property for $48.7 million.

September 27, 2013 update:
As reported by Brent Wittmeier in the Edmonton Journal, July 31, 2013:

EDMONTON - Whenever Theresa Desjardins tells her toddler that it’s time for daycare, the 16-month-old races to find her shoes and coat.

For the past five months, Desjardins’ daughter has loved going to the attentive caregivers at the Victory Christian Center daycare. But while her daughter ate and slept well there, Desjardins worried.

Journal articles from a couple of months ago explained how tenants of the church at 11520 Ellerslie Road would be evicted by the end of July due to foreclosure of the property. But when Desjardins asked about it, the daycare director told her the stories weren’t true and that any moves were a long way off.

“She told me not to worry, it was business as usual, they’re not moving anywhere,” Desjardins said. “I was told that there’s always been a plan in place to move because they’re outgrowing their facility.”

Desjardins decided to keep her daughter where she was happy. Then on July 18, there were letters taped to children’s’ lockers informing parents care would end July 26. Officials hoped to be up and running soon at a new facility at an undisclosed location, the note said. When pressed for details, they wouldn’t tell parents when or where that would be.

“The director said to me that it was a complete shock, that this was coming out of nowhere, this was so unexpected,” Desjardins said. “I said, there’s a sold sign on your front lawn. How can this be unexpected?”

Victory Christian Center wouldn’t respond to questions or comment about whether it will vacate the site — home to church services, the daycare, and a private K-12 school — later this week. But court documents show the eight-hectare site sold for $6.6 million June 28 to Assisted Care Services Inc., a private seniors care facility developer. Private schools are required to inform Alberta Education of any changes to their location, but Victory hasn’t told the government about any changes, a government spokeswoman said in an email Tuesday. The school received approximately $800,000 from Alberta Education last year, roughly 60 per cent of the school’s budget. There were 150 students there last year, down from 169 the year before.

Nobody from Victory Christian School could be reached, but an administrator told the Journal in June that “plans are in place for the upcoming year,” but wouldn’t say where classes would be held...

...Other parents are just as upset about all the secrecy, Desjardins said. She feels especially bad for staff members, some of whom didn’t bother coming in during the final week of the daycare.

“A week’s notice is not enough time for families to make arrangements,” Desjardins said. “They’re a Christian facility. How could they do this to people? I’m not a religious person, but shouldn’t you be treating people better than this?”

As reported by Brent Wittmeier in the Edmonton Journal, September 5, 2013:

EDMONTON - A troubled south Edmonton church has moved services and its private K-12 school to a location on Saddleback Road.

Victory Christian School will open Monday at a new location at 810 Saddleback Road, an Alberta Education spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday. And while nobody at the church could be reached for comment, a receptionist confirmed church services have also been moved to the site.

The moves come just weeks after the closure of a $6.6-million deal that saw the eight-hectare Ellerslie Road site — home to the church, the school, a daycare and a Bible college — sold as part of foreclosure proceedings against convicted mortgage fraudster Kevyn Fredericks...

...Church services continued at 11520 Ellerslie Road into August. The daycare facility there closed temporarily on July 26, eight days after letters were taped to children’s’ lockers informing parents care would end. Parents say daycare services have yet to resume.

The church was at that site since 1989. The school was first incorporated in 1995 and became its own charity in June 2008, just two months before Switzer sold the property. Private schools are required to inform Alberta Education of any changes to their location, but Victory hadn’t told the government about any changes until last month.

The school received approximately $800,000 from Alberta Education last year, roughly 60 per cent of the school’s budget. There were 150 students there last year, down from 169 the year before.

Televangelists have nothing on Israel's richest rabbis

Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; Jeremiah 22:13a

“Will not all of them taunt him with ridicule and scorn, saying,
“‘Woe to him who piles up stolen goods
and makes himself wealthy by extortion!
How long must this go on?’
“Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain,
setting his nest on high
to escape the clutches of ruin! Habakkuk 2:6,9 (NIV)

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:12-13

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Matthew 23:25

But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Luke 6:24

And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness.
Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.
But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets. Luke 11:39-43

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Luke 12:15-21

The character of religious leaders in Israel doesn't seem to have changed since the days when the Lord Jesus Christ walked in that land. As reported by Daniel Estrin of The Associated Press, July 13, 2012:

Netivot, Israel— One summer night, on the outskirts of a sleepy desert town, a who's who of Israel's elite gathered for an annual feast to honor a rabbi whose gaze is said to pierce the soul.

He's Rabbi Yaacov Israel Ifargan. But he is better known as, simply, the X-ray.

Over the past few decades, he and dozens of other rabbis have carefully positioned themselves at the fulcrum of Israeli power and influence. They have attracted throngs of adherents — most notably some of the country's top business moguls, who pay top shekel for an audience with their rabbi to solicit blessings and discuss business matters.

These magnates have helped fuel the rise of a rabbinic aristocracy whose members have channeled the donations they receive into multi-million-dollar empires. After gaining experience dishing out advice to Israeli tycoons, the rabbis have become shrewd businessmen themselves, managing hefty investments in stocks and real estate at home and abroad — with much of their earnings allegedly kept far from the watchful eyes of Israeli tax collectors.

Their chief critic calls them swindlers and frauds, and some fellow rabbis are critical of their practices.

The Israeli edition of Forbes magazine published a first-of-its-kind ranking last month of Israel's 13 richest rabbis. In the number one spot was 36-year-old Rabbi Pinchas Abuhatzeira from Beersheba, a blue-collar southern desert city, whose wealth is estimated at $335 million. The X-ray rabbi placed sixth, with an estimated net worth of $23 million.

"Every single shekel brings about true peace," announced the X-ray rabbi's half brother, Rabbi Hayim Amram Ifargan, from the dais at the recent gathering, in a gentle nudge to the crowd of VIPs to continue their support.

He, too, is a part of the Ifargan family franchise. His spiritual adherents call him "The MRI." In the women's section behind a laced divider sat "The Arbitrator" or "The CT," Ifargan's millionaire sister Bruria Zvuluni, a go-to spiritual counselor who claims to have mediated feuds between Israeli crime kingpins. Though she is not a rabbi, she made it to the bottom of Forbes' list.

Cozying up at Ifargan's long table were lawmakers, one of Israel's top lawyers, and two of Israel's wealthiest businessmen: Menahem Gurevitch, chairman of a leading Israeli insurance company, and billionaire Nochi Dankner, head of Israel's largest holding company and a close confidant of Ifargan for the last 14 years. The Israeli army's chief rabbi and a top police commander were there, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent his blessings in a recorded video message.

Rabbis who make fortunes for themselves and encourage others to make money with their blessings draw the wrath of some fellow Jewish clerics.

"It's disappointing when religion descends to this," said Rabbi Donniel Hartman, president of the Shalom Hartman institute, a modern Orthodox Jewish learning center in Jerusalem. "It's not some channel of divine power for personal wealth accumulation. That's small religion."

Most rabbis in Israel are not raking in millions. They are instead salaried government employees, assigned by Israel's official rabbinate to perform religious rites for the Jewish public such as marriages and burials, or to enforce Jewish dietary laws in restaurants and hotels.

They are nowhere near the level of the high-flying spiritual gurus like the X-ray.

Such gurus set up public office hours in their homes to receive Israelis on all rungs of the social ladder, as long as they come with cash. In exchange, adherents receive amulets and little pieces of paper containing the rabbi's personalized blessing. The most successful rabbis have founded charitable institutions and small religious seminaries, which act as conduits for the incoming cash flow.

Menachem Friedman, an expert on Orthodox Judaism and professor emeritus at Bar Ilan University, says religious Jewish businessmen since the 19th century have solicited rabbis' blessings for cash to ensure their success — though today the sums have reached unprecedented amounts.

"If the market is dangerous and shaky, the millionaires who benefit from that market have less confidence. They need these rabbis to give them that security," Friedman said.

The country's richest rabbinic dynasty is the Abuhatzeira family, scions of the revered Baba Sali who left Morocco for Israel in 1963, gaining a following among Israel's large Moroccan and Middle Eastern Jewish immigrant population. The Baba Sali died in 1984, but his portrait — a shriveled face wrapped in a white shawl — still graces the walls of Israeli homes, businesses and falafel stands.

His grandson, Rabbi Elazar Abuhatzeira, became the richest of them all, building himself a three-story villa said to include an events hall, deluxe guest rooms for important donors and an underground tunnel allowing him safe passage to his synagogue and office across the street, according to journalist Yossi Bar-Moha, who says he obtained the house plans from the Beersheba municipality.

Bar-Moha published a series of exposes in Israeli dailies accusing the rabbi of cheating his followers into believing he had no money in the bank, and violently threatening some to pay up.

The Israeli police's national fraud squad opened an investigation in the late 1990s, discovering $125 million in his personal account. He reportedly reached a settlement with Israel's tax authorities to pay a fraction of what he owed them.

Last year, a desperate adherent whose donations to the rabbi hadn't improved his lot stabbed Rabbi Abuhatzeira to death. His son, Rabbi Pinchas Abuhatzeira, inherited his wealth and his spot at the top of Israel's affluent rabbinic aristocracy.

"These rabbis are charlatans, swindlers and cheaters. They have no real knowledge. And people eat it up," said reporter Bar-Moha, who heads Tel Aviv's journalists' association.

An Israeli tax official, speaking anonymously because of the issue's sensitivity, said in the past two years tax authorities have approached some 20 religious figures, requesting earnings reports. Some rabbis have been investigated for tax fraud. No convictions are known, but some have reportedly reached settlements with Israeli tax authorities.

Reached for comment, advisers of some of the rabbis profiled by Forbes either would not comment on the income estimates, or said they were wrong but would not provide other figures. A spokesman for Rabbi Ifargan said his charitable institutions and received donations are above board.

At the end of the feast, adherents followed Rabbi Ifargan up a hill to pray at the hulking stone pyramid that houses his father's grave. Ifargan emerged from the tomb surrounded by paparazzi, bodyguards and a host of followers shouting out requests for the rabbi to pray for their health and for their children to find a good match.

When an Associated Press reporter asked the rabbi the secret to his success, Ifargan stopped. The 46-year-old rabbi with a pointed jet-black beard and brimmed hat fixed his gaze for a few moments, cocked his head up toward the heavens and shrugged.

Then his bodyguards whisked him into a black Mercedes-Benz, and they sped off.

Canadian viewers may help to determine the fate of the Hour of Power

Have you noticed that the "Possibility Thinking" promoted by Robert Schuller didn't seem to work anymore for the Crystal Cathedral when the U.S. economy collapsed in 2008? As reported by Dave Halliday in the Edmonton Journal, February 25, 2012:

Canadian viewers of the Hour of Power television show from Crystal Cathedral will play a role in deter-mining the future of the program.

Sheila Schuller Coleman, Crystal Cathedral's senior pastor, said in a telephone interview that Canadian donations declined when the church encountered financial problems and her father and church founder, Dr. Robert Schuller, was less involved in the Hour of Power.

"We've seen a serious drop in revenue in Canada," Coleman said.

The donations pay for the airtime on Global and Vision TV to broadcast the Hour of Power. If the donations don't rebound, the church will have to look at other options.

"One of the things we can do in Canada is go to a half-hour," said Coleman, adding that the program could also be reduced to a half-hour in some areas of the United States. But she makes it clear that the pro-gram will continue.

"I want to assure you the Hour of Power will remain on television as an avenue for bringing hope to the world," she said.

Crystal Cathedral, located in the Los Angeles area community of Garden Grove, a few kilometres from Disneyland, encountered financial difficulty that forced it into bankruptcy.

A bankruptcy court judge approved sale of the 12.5-hectare church property to the Catholic Diocese of Orange County last fall for $57.5 million US.

The sale process was completed in early February when ownership formally changed hands.

"I'm pleased to know that our creditors get 100 per cent of what we owe them," Coleman said.

The Catholic Diocese won a bidding war for the cathedral property with Chapman University largely because Schuller made it clear he wanted the iconic structure to re-main a church. In addition to the cathedral, the property houses several other buildings including a welcoming centre.

Terms of the deal give the Crystal Cathedral congregation three years to find a new home.

Coleman said she expects that the search for a new location within a 16-kilometre radius will take 18 months to two years. Among the possibilities the church is considering are vacant warehouses.

A vacant warehouse would be a blank canvas that would give the church the opportunity "to create whatever we want," Coleman said. Moving the Hour of Power doesn't present large problems.

"The Hour of Power is one of the easiest to move to a new location," said Coleman, pointing out that the program could be produced in a television studio...

...Schuller, ordained as a minister in the Reformed Church of America, arrived in Garden Grove with $500 to set up a church in 1955. The only location he could find was a drive-in theatre - he preached to parishioners in their cars from a pulpit on the roof of the snack bar.

Eventually, the church moved to the current site where the glass-walled Cathedral was ready for services in September 1980. The Cathedral's distinctive spire was constructed later.

While the local congregation grew, the Hour of Power television program gained strength with an estimated audience of 1.3 million in more than 150 countries at one point.

Coleman said that the program will aim to attract a younger audience and will make use of the Internet and other technology to improve accessibility to the program.

"For example, the Hour of Power released its own app in December and already a member of our staff saw someone watching the show on his smartphone while waiting in line at the airport."

When the Crystal Cathedral congregation moves to a new home, the Catholic Diocese will take possession of a building completely unlike most Catholic cathedrals. But the famous building will not undergo major alterations.

"While renovations are called for, not much deconstruction would be required and the iconic personality of the original architecture and design would, for the most part, be retained," the diocese said.

The diocese notes that the cathedral organ is one of the finest in the country, the quality of light and its allegory in the building is consistent with the enlightenment of Christ and there is ample space for worship and celebration.

However, some changes are required such as installing a central altar, adding the bishop's chair, a baptistery, baptismal font and a tabernacle to house the Blessed Sacrament. Once the changes are made and a dedication ceremony is conducted by the bishop, the cathedral will become a Catholic place of worship.

Before winning the bidding war for Crystal Cathedral, the diocese considered building a cathedral at a cost of $200 million US. The diocese has announced that the Crystal Cathedral will be renamed.

March 12, 2012 update: Three members of Robert H. Schuller's family have been fired the ministry's board, as reported by Roxana Kopetman in the The Orange County Register, March 6, 2012 (updated March 7, 2012):

GARDEN GROVE – Three family members of Crystal Cathedral Founder Robert H. Schuller were fired from their leadership positions in the ministry, officials confirmed Tuesday.

Schuller’s daughter, Gretchen Penner, was terminated from her job as one of the producers of the Hour of Power television show, according to a cathedral spokesman. Her husband, Jim Penner, was fired from his post as executive producer of the Hour of Power. And Jim Coleman, the husband of Senior Pastor Sheila Schuller Coleman, was also fired from his job as director of creative services.

Robert H. Schuller and his wife Arvella abstained from voting with the board on the terminations, according to the spokesman. “So this isn’t a family dispute,” he said.

But Schuller and his wife abstained without knowing who was being terminated, their daughter Carol Schuller Milner said Tuesday. And when they asked during the meeting held by teleconference who would be affected, board members said, 'they'd rather not say,''' she said.

"They would have appreciated some dialogue on the matter," Schuller Milner said. She said her parents felt "grieved" by the board's decision.

On Sunday, Sheila Schuller Coleman is expected to give the sermon.

Meanwhile, the Hour of Power program, which once reached millions of viewers across the world, will replay previous episodes for the next few weeks while leaders “determine a new direction for the show.”

“Organizational changes affecting ministry leaders are never easy to make, especially when it involves individuals who have devoted their lives to this ministry and have served with great distinction,” John Charles, president of the Crystal Cathedral Ministries, said in a statement. “This was a very difficult decision the Crystal Cathedral Ministries board of directors prayerfully deemed was necessary in order to make a change in direction for the ‘Hour of Power’ and reverse recent declining donations and viewership.”

Five other individuals were expected to lose their jobs in the reorganization.
“Because of privacy concerns, we won’t identify them,” the spokesman wrote in an e-mail.
This is the latest shake-up for the troubled ministry. Last month, Schuller Coleman was removed as the chief executive officer and president of the Ministries and replaced by Charles, who had previously held different positions with the Cathedral.

At the time, Cathedral leaders removed both Schuller Coleman and Penner from the board of directors, but Penner continued in his role overseeing the television program.

The board voted Thursday to fire the Penners and Jim Coleman, the spokesman said. The Penners were told on Monday and Coleman was told Tuesday, according to the spokesman...

...Robert A. Schuller, the senior pastor for nearly three years until his forced
resignation in 2008, sees the changes in leadership as a smart move.

“It’s normal business practice to change leadership when the leadership leads an institution into bankruptcy,” Schuller said Tuesday. “My hope is it will breathe some life into the ministry.”

Schuller said he was unaware of the terminations. He is not in touch with his two sisters — Schuller Coleman or Gretchen Penner -- or their husbands, he said. But he saw his parents over the weekend and they didn’t say a word about the board’s vote, he said.

“I had no idea,” he said.

As for the Hour of Power television show, Schuller said re-runs might just be the thing to pump some additional interest and donations to the Protestant ministry.

“I think it can be a very positive situation for the church because my understanding is the reason people stopped supporting the ministry is that they don’t care for the music and the preaching. So if you give them some music and preaching they want, they’ll come back,” he said...

...The elder Schuller, now 85, founded the ministry some 50 years ago and became a well-known television figure with his weekly sermons. Today, however, he and his wife "really don't know what their plans are" regarding the Hour of Power, daughter Schuller Milner said.

"They've kept the Schullers in the dark," she said of the board.

Michael Nason, a former aide to Robert H. Schuller, said the latest developments — including the sale of the church and the dismantling of the Hour of Power leadership -- signify “the end of an era” and leaves no clear direction for the once-popular television show.

“If I were to look ahead, say a year from now, what do I see? I think they, the remaining board, would like to see the program continue on television. But they have lost its face. And the face is Crystal Cathedral,” Nason said Tuesday.

“People tuned in from all over the world to see this extraordinary building and they loved (Robert H. Schuller’s) message. The Crystal Cathedral was the face. Schuller was the voice,” Nason said.

In the wake of the bankruptcy and the sale of the iconic building, the ministry will have a difficult time continuing the evangelical television show using the same format, Nason said.

“The face and voice of the Hour of Power have passed,” he said. “If they want to continue the Hour of Power, who will be the voice and where will it be?”

On March 10, 2012, Robert H. Schuller and his wife Arvella announced their resignations from the Crystal Cathedral board of directors. As reported by Roxana Kopetman in the The Orange County Register, March 10, 2012 (updated March 11, 2012):

The Rev. Robert H. Schuller and his wife, Arvella, announced "with great sadness" their resignations Saturday from the Crystal Cathedral board of directors.

"We cannot continue to serve on the Board in what has become an adversarial and negative atmosphere, especially since it now seems that it will not be ending anytime soon," Arvella Schuller was quoted as saying in a news release...

..."(Robert and Arvella Schuller are) removing themselves from the governance of the ministry," Carol Schuller Milner, their daughter, said in an interview Saturday. "They're not cutting all ties. They're still planning on worshipping in the congregation..."

...Cathedral representatives could not be reached for comment Saturday.
The elder Schullers have been embroiled in a legal battle with the board of directors regarding intellectual property and copyright infringement claims as well as back payment for services rendered, Schuller Milner said.

The exact figure for how much is claimed was not available Saturday. Attorneys for the Schullers have made almost weekly offers to the Cathedral's board to settle the claim, which includes a $120,000 annual housing allowance, a $198,000 annual payment in license fees and additional medical benefits, according to Schuller Milner.

Last Tuesday, "the board said we're ending all negotiations. We don't want to negotiate any further and want to go to court," according to Schuller Milner.
"Particularly in these difficult times for the ministry, the ministry's decision to spend its money on attorneys and court proceedings is bewildering to us," Arvella Schuller wrote in the statement. "We cannot continue to serve on the board in what has become an adversarial and negative atmosphere especially since it now seems that it will not be ending anytime soon."

The pending claims by the Schullers have been cited as the reason creditors in the bankruptcy case have not been paid by the church. Schuller Milner disputed that complaint, saying her family "made an offer that would have allowed (the creditors) to be paid in full" but the board rejected the Schullers' offer.

"Our proposals have always been structured in a way that would allow full payment to creditors to go forward without delay while leaving the ministry with more operating capital than originally contemplated in the court approved bankruptcy plan," Schuller family attorney Carl Grumer said in the news release. "We were optimistic that a solution was close at hand which would be mutually beneficial to the Schullers and the ministry. What motivated the board's decision to make a sudden shift after it had seemed that we were so close to a positive conclusion, we do not know."

The news release concludes with a message the founder of Crystal Cathedral posted on his Facebook page: "No matter what, God is still God. No matter what, God is still a good God. God loves you and so do I."

For congregants, the latest development is another painful reminder that the church is on its way out of the cathedral Schuller built. Congregants can lease back the building from the Catholic Diocese for up to three years.

"We truly have lost our church and we know that. Most of us are in mourning," said Anne Waltz, a member since 1956 who still attends a Sunday morning bible study class with other seniors. "A lot of my friends still can't believe it's happening."

Ken Waltz, Anne's husband, said the Schullers' resignation was unavoidable.
"It was inevitable because they lost control," Ken Waltz said Saturday. "The whole thing was controlled by Robert and Arvella. For some reason, they allowed the kids to get in there and reorganize it poorly. The thing was managed so badly financially and spiritually that it fell apart."

And on March 11, 2012, Sheila Schuller Coleman announced that she was leaving the Crystal Cathedral and moving her congregation to a new location. As reported by Roxana Kopetman in the The Orange County Register, March 11, 2012 (updated March 12, 2012):

GARDEN GROVE – Sheila Schuller Coleman delivered her last sermon at the Crystal Cathedral on Sunday, announcing she is breaking away and taking the congregation to a new location under the name Hope Center of Christ.

But moments after her surprise announcement, a Crystal Cathedral pastor told congregants that regular Sunday services will continue in the striking building, leaving congregants to make a choice on where they will be next Sunday morning.

"We are very sad, very sorry about this," said Pastor Emeritus Juan Carlos Ortiz, who began the Hispanic ministry for the Crystal Cathedral. "I hope they both have success – those who stay and those who leave."

Her departure came one day after her parents, the Rev. Robert H. Schuller and his wife, Arvella, resigned from the Crystal Cathedral board of directors – leaving behind a church Schuller founded in 1955, preaching Sundays atop the snack shop of an Orange drive-in theater.

In a news release Sunday afternoon, the elder Schullers said they support their daughter but they "will not be moving with her to the new location" or worshipping at the Crystal Cathedral.

"How we will express ourselves in worship remains up in the air," Robert H. and Arvella Schuller stated in the release.

Instead, the elder Schullers said they plan to focus on "securing and stewarding our legacy that has been our message for almost 60 years."

The Schullers and the Cathedral's board of directors have been fighting over intellectual property and copyright infringement claims and other payments.

No Schuller family members are left with the Crystal Cathedral, some ousted recently by the board majority in the wake of a bankruptcy, sale of the grounds to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange and bitter controversy over money.

Schuller Coleman's announcement surprised congregants who sat through both Sunday morning services.

In both services, the senior pastor read from a book she's writing, with the working title "Fall From Grace, Fall Into Grace." She mentioned her father frequently in both readings, talking about his influence on her life and work.

In the 9:30 a.m. service, attended by some 300 people, Schuller Coleman focused on passages she'd written that deal with the October 2010 bankruptcy and her reaction to what was happening at the Cathedral. While at first she was crushed by the bankruptcy filing, Schuller Coleman said she later came to see it as "an opportunity" and not a failure. She acknowledged her family had "made our fair share of mistakes." And she blamed the recession as "the final blow" that led to the bankruptcy and the sale of the cathedral campus.

Schuller Coleman also said in the first service that the church would be renamed Hope Center of Christ.

But it wasn't until the second service, at 11 a.m., that Schuller Coleman told the congregation that this would be her last sermon at Crystal Cathedral and the congregation would be moving to a new location.

Moments before her announcement, she proclaimed: "I am not resigning. I will not quit." The audience applauded. "I will not quit," she repeated louder, and many of the 400 in attendance – a sparse crowd in a sanctuary that holds thousands – stood up and applauded louder.

Schuller Coleman and her brother-in-law Jim Penner, fired as executive producer from the Cathedral's once-popular "Hour of Power" television program, said after the services that they expect to find a new location in the next few days. They said they have the support of the Cathedral's Consistory, the ruling body of the congregation.

She indicated she had received a $50,000 donation from a supporter to help with the move – "a heck of a lot more than what mom and dad" had when they started, she said.
On their new website, hopecenteroc.org, Penner said they will soon be "praising the name of Jesus ... around the world by television and the Internet."

Schuller Coleman said she is leaving a "hostile work environment" to start anew with Jim and Gretchen Penner, as well as Scott Smith, who headed the church's music program.

On Sunday, morning services featured the Cathedral's organist and an a cappella performing group from Biola University, but none of the usual choir or other performers under Smith's direction.

Jenny Oh, a member of the choir, said she received an email saying the choir would not be performing Sunday because the church was heading in a new direction and leadership.

Like many congregants, Oh will have to pick between staying or following Schuller Coleman.

"I like this campus. I will continue to come here. I like Sheila (Schuller Coleman) and Jim Penner. I will pray for them," said Oh, a member of three years.

Some other congregants said they were surprised and happy to hear of their senior pastor's departure and the apparent return of more traditional music to the Cathedral.

"We're going to have our church back, with good music and good sermons" said Bob Canfield, of Yorba Linda. "They're gone. The Penners are gone. Sheila is gone. (Jim) Coleman is gone. Praise God. We're rid of them. They're the ones who took the Crystal Cathedral down."

It is unclear who will lead services at Crystal Cathedral next Sunday. Ortiz, the pastor emeritus, filled in once before after the younger Schuller, Robert A., was forced to resign. Ortiz said he was asked again this week to fill in as interim pastor, but he declined, he said Sunday night.

"They asked me and I said no," Ortiz said. "It's an embarrassment with what is happening in the church."