It'll Get You Rich!!The Associated Press has written a revealing article on how the Kenneth Copeland financial empire has been built from Copeland's "Prosperity Gospel" (read it here: Televangelist's family prospers from ministry).
Copeland's relatives and friends have definitely prospered: His brother-in-law has a lucrative deal to broker Copeland's television time, his son acquired church-owned land for his ranching business and saw it more than quadruple in value, and the board members include other prosperity preachers who rake in the dough through exorbitant honorariums for speaking at Copeland events.
In our culture, in which we are trained from the time we can craw that we must be consumers and that the goal in life is to achieve material wealth, it is understandable that the "Prosperity Gospel" would become increasingly popular.
The true Gospel of Jesus Christ demands deep sacrifice, to deny ourselves for the sake of others, to not store up for ourselves treasures on earth, to take up the cross in order to follow the suffering servant.
Nice to have you back
ReplyDeleteCopeland is going to fight till the end. He realizes that this decision will affect all of us and not just the future of church organizations. Grassley has mishandled this "investigation" from day one, and it has not gotten any better throughout this drawn out process. It's time for Grassley to admit his errors and move on.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Bob. Though they may not mean it to come from this, it seems perhaps related to the American Myth of a prosperity message if you follow the American way. I wonder if there's any correlation at least at times, between the two. I believe we have to bring in some nuance, yet I really think this can end up being a dangerous appeal (1 Timothy 6).
ReplyDeleteTed,
ReplyDeleteExactly.
And while Copeland's heretical take on the Gospel is blatant, it has seeped into the rest of the church. I think a LOT of evangelicals believe that God's plan for us is to live in a nice suburban home and drive two new cars and have a big screen TV. We believe that to have material possessions in our consumeristic culture is a sign of God's "blessing."
This has gone on for a long time now. Grassley has obviously lost any ground he thought he had to stand on or he wouldn't have brought Hammond into it a few weeks ago. Copeland is not going to back down, and I think that like you say 'almost friday' that Grassley needs to just give it up. Otherwise move forward with the subpeonas he has threatened for a while now.
ReplyDeleteWatching this situation from the beginning as an outsider, this situation has been interesting. Grassley did appear to have something against this denomination that all 7 of these organizations fall under in his investgation. Regardless of what you believe or practice, individual American citizens have a right to choose what they believe and where they donate their money to. It seems that Copeland is standing up for his members as much as the churches.
ReplyDeleteThe thing about the prosperity gospel is it draws on a bit of truth... we do have abundance in God... why, if we look around, the world is dripping with abundance in its natural gifts. Perhaps that's part of what makes it seem like a convincing way.
ReplyDeleteAlmost Friday, Jack, and Sidelines,
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that there needs to be some allowance for religious freedom in this issue, I believe that this religious freedom must be balanced with the rule of law that holds people accountable for racketeering.
LL Barkat,
ReplyDeleteGreat observation.
Oh, how God wants us to have life in abundance!! But he does not want us to treat him like a Genie in a bottle. Understanding this is so crucial.