The Church Business

Yesterday, I mentioned the spiritual dilemma of one of the largest megachurches in the U.S., which displayed a unique change of heart from one of the chief purveyors of American Christianity's love affair with capitalism. Though pastor Greg Hawkins' statements may send his community up in arms (what do you say when your pastor admits he's been incorrectly preaching to you, and you've believed everything he's said?), I admire his honest attempt to be a beacon for the Lord, and reevaluate himself where he sees issues with his ministry — for better or for worse.

On a slightly related topic, I have a couple more stories regarding the other side of church doctrine, the one that is after the bottom line.

First off, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that U.S. Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa is probing several preachers across the nation (two of which are in the Atlanta area), all "known for preaching that financial blessings are part of Christian life." This invocation is not terribly uncommon; however, Grassley's inquiry comes in context with these preachers' propensity to live well beyond the means of their congregations.

For example, Bishop Eddie Long of New Birth Ministry in Lithonia, Ga., already was investigated by the AJC, which ran a story in 2005 "that looked into Long's founding of a charity that paid the minister more than $3 million over a 3-year period, bought him a $1.4 million house and paid for the use of a $350,000 Bentley car."

Other stories of the like fit in here, and it raises the question of where all the money these churches are making goes. Clearly, there is much charitable work being done, and obviously, much of the capital goes into improving church facilities (see the sprawling campus of Marietta, Ga.'s Johnson Ferry Baptist Church for an example); however, much of that money often goes into the pastor's pocket.

While I do hope that these allegations are untrue and that they are isolated cases, the cynic (some might call it realist) in me believes that these investigations are occurring with legitimate cause. These large churches, especially in affluent areas, make ungodly amounts of money (pun intended), and under the whole "separation of Church and State" premise, many of the church leaders sneak their way around paying taxes.


Moving westward, New Life Church in Colorado Springs — famed parish of the notorious Ted Haggard — is in rebuilding mode in the wake of Haggard's homosexuality scandal.

Basically, Haggard was one of the chief voices in American Evangelicalism, consistently decrying homosexuality as well as dealing with other moral/political issues, until he was mired through the outing of his relationship with a male prostitute in addition to his penchant for methamphetamine use.

Yesterday, The Colorado Springs Gazette reported on New Life Church a year after Haggard's dismissal.

Immediately following the scandal, "active membership dropped from 14,000 to 10,000 and donations to the church dipped by 10 percent. Layoffs hit the church’s staff. The church has withdrawn from the national political scene. And New Life members say their swagger is gone, replaced by humility."

However, since Haggard's replacement at the top of the church hierarchy, New Life is back on its feet: “Sunday attendance has jumped from 6,000 to 7,500 since [new pastor Brady] Boyd was named senior pastor in August, and thousands attend high school groups, college groups or small groups throughout the week. Giving is growing, now down about 8 percent to 9 percent from its peak. The church has a $12 million operating budget and 150 full-time staff members.”

In other terms, these situations are quite reminiscent of the famous Enron scandal — or any other large corporate misdeed, for that matter — and the key point in these news items are their financial ramifications. The way in which these churches are represented paints a picture not of a house of worship, but simply a corporation with a corrupt leader.

This, then, begs a question that is commonly overlooked in our capital-obsessed media: what does this do to spirituality in these congregations? If financial success is preached as a sign of Godly favor, how does the revelation that this success has not been legitimate for some of these pastoral figures affect the beliefs of the masses?