A. Age: 59 ( See the full list of original contributing editors .) There are quite a few others whose lives are unblemished by scandal, whose theology is untainted by heresy, and whose ministries consistently honor the Lord. a writer of any of the four Gospels; a person who evangelizes; specifically : a Protestant minister or layman who preaches at special services See the full definition 71. Yes, Billy James Hargis was steadfast. . Steven Furtick The lead pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, Furtick has written several books including two New York Times best-sellers: Greater and Crash the Chatterbox.. Hal Lindsey is an evangelist and Christian writer. Jerry Falwell Jr. The president of Liberty University, one of the largest evangelical Christian colleges in the U.S., Falwell took over after his fathers and the school founder's death in 2007. She initially gained notice for her work with The PTL Club, a televangelist program she co-founded with her then-husband Jim Bakker in 1974. You just got a dog? 31. He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary, following which he worked with Campus Crusade for Christ. He once sued Hustler for $45 million because they ran a parody piece making fun of him, and took the case all the way to the supreme court. Melton separated from her husband in 2016 and married U.S. womens soccer player Abby Wambach in 2017. He is also an author and regular contributor for Townhall.com. What makes Warnke's case all the more fascinating is that he was actually outed as a fraud by a Christian publication, Cornerstone Magazine, in an expos in 1991. His old jet (not to be confused with his other two old jets) was wearing a little thin at the seams, and he just knew his followers would help him, a humble servant of Jesus. This Newsmax list of the 100 Most Influential Evangelicals in America includes pastors, teachers, politicians, athletes, and entertainers men and women from all walks of life whose faith leads them to live differently and to help others in a variety of ways. He lost. Interestingly, it also states in Matthew that Jesus said, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." He's an archduke, and his armies march on Luxembourg this very night. It turns out that some news just gets spread faster when you're being blackmailed for $7.5 million. To fans of Mike Warnke, it's Sunday morning. He fulfilled that desire by helping immigrant communities in Chicago and sharing the Gospel with whomever would listen. She initially gained notice for her work with The PTL Club, a televangelist program she co-founded with her then-husband Jim Bakker in 1974. Joyce Meyer, founder of Joyce Meyer Ministries, host of "Enjoying Everyday Life" TV and radio show, bestselling author of more than 100 books. Mike Pence The former Indiana governor was chosen by Trump to be his vice president in large part for his traditional Christian conservatism. He was also the guy who got really upset about the purple Teletubby back in the '90s. 18. He only needed a small tithing of millions and millions of dollars to buy a sweet new Falcon 7X passenger jet. He serves on the executive board of Christian Voice and has hosted many Christian TV shows. 35. Michael L. Brown The conservative radio talker Brown hosts the nationally syndicated The Line of Fire and heads the Coalition of Conscience, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based Christian networking organization. Remember the Alamos. Alan Sears As general counsel of the Alliance Defending Freedom, a Christian legal advocacy group, he has won many lawsuits on behalf of conservative Christians. 50. If God created man and man created the small two-way radios that Popoff and an assistant used to have secretly communicate while Popoff was performing, then hallelujah. Art Rorheim As the co-founder of Awana, Rorheim helped create a weekly Bible club for kids that is now used in 19,000 churches in 100 countries and impacts nearly 1.5 million children each week. Who are the most famous televangelists? Matt Walsh A millennial blogger and nationally recognized speaker on conservative cultural issues like abortion, pornography, and LGBT issues. Joel Osteen is an American pastor, author, and televangelist. Some were angry at Warnke for his deception, others were upset at the magazine for calling out a man who was bringing the word of God to the people. You've been to Europe? It sometimes seems that theres no scandal bad enough, no denial deep enough, and no heresy terrible enough to keep people outside the bounds of evangelicalism. AAE promotes the Christ-centered gospel and biblical worldview for human flourishing. Receive breaking news and original analysis - sent right to your inbox. She also holds conferences for women in the U.S. and other countries including Ireland, England, Singapore, Puerto Rico, and India. Yeah, praying for people would be a bummer. 25. Unfortunately for Swaggart, hell hath no fury like a minor television celebrity scorned, and Gorman had Swaggart followed and photographed during a rendezvous with a local prostitute. The best-selling author of "The Martyr's Oath: Living for the Jesus They're Willing to Die For," Moore also owns The KAIROS Company, which does PR for many Christian organizations and personalities. Speaking to the New York Times after being fired from the company, Koper stated that her "job as finance director was to find ways to label extravagant personal spending as ministry expenses.". Other so-called climate experts have foretold global doom and gloom for more than hal. A. Moore refused to endorse Donald Trump before the 2016 presidential election and encouraged Christians to vote for a third-party candidate. He was a spiritual adviser to President Barack Obama. Mother Angelica; Ernest Angley; John Ankerberg; Garner Ted Armstrong; Herbert W. Armstrong; Kay Arthur; David Asscherick; B. Jim Bakker; Danny Berrios; It's so hard to focus your anger sometimes! He's also an executive producer for the show and produces the CBN childrens animated series Superbook.. Their methods were questionable and their message was a horror show, but otherwise, it was an unspectacular enterprise. Pastor Harry Thomas This New Jersey pastor co-founded the Creation Festivals, held in central Pennsylvania and southeastern Washington, which are the largest yearly Christian music festivals in the U.S. and possibly in the entire world. He pastors the largest church in America, Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, with some 45,000 weekly attendees. Report: Google Fiber Heading to Austin as Cities Race to Boost Web Speeds, The Trouble Lurking on Walmart's Empty Shelves, Size Does Matter: Study Shows Women Judge Male Attractiveness by Penis Size, Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day Is Today, April 9 And More Freebies Coming, Quebec's War on English: Language Politics Intensify in Canadian Province, Why Stretching May Not Help Before Exercise, Add Inches!! Warnke was sort of a big deal back in the day. It all started in 1969 with a small ministry an hour outside Hollywood run by married couple Tony and Susan Alamo (ah-LAH-mo, but who cares). Rich Stearns The president of World Vision U.S., Stearns runs an aid organization that works with the poor around the world to better their lives and teach them how to be self-sustaining. Miles McPherson A former San Diego Chargers player, McPherson is the current pastor of the Rock Church in San Diego, which boasts a weekly attendance figure of more than 15,000. Ernest Winston Angley (born August 9, 1921) is an American Christian evangelist, author and television station owner based in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Alvin Plantinga Once described as Americas leading orthodox Protestant philosopher of God by Time magazine, Plantinga was awarded the Templeton Prize Laureate in 2017 for his life's work proving that philosophy and religion can coexist. To most people, it's exhausting. Right IconThis ranking is based on an algorithm that combines various factors, including the votes of our users and search trends on the internet. He is one of the most popular televangelists in the world, with his televised sermons being watched by millions of people every week in over 100 countries, including 10 million viewers in the US alone. She later formed the Mourning to Joy Ministry, to help women survive post-abortion trauma. Dr. James Dobson A psychologist who founded Focus on the Family in 1977, Dobson has written many books on parenting and family life and hosted radio programs for both Focus on the Family and his later nonprofit Family Talk, which he founded in 2010. He is also renowned for performing exorcisms over Skype and on calls. In fact, there are some in the top-ten (and far more in the full list) who are clearly not even true believers in Jesus Christ. However, he was able to salvage his image and returned to televangelism. Find out more about the greatest American Televangelists, including Joel Osteen, Jim Bakker, Jerry Falwell, Kent Hovind and Jimmy Swaggart. There's a lot of ground to cover with Jerry Falwell. Dr. Tony Evans Along with being the longest-serving NBA team chaplain with the Dallas Mavericks, Evans hosts the successful radio show, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans." He is also executive editor of The Christian Post and president of Southern Evangelical Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. It's also extra-strength shady, according to allegations made by Jan and Paul's granddaughter Brittany Koper. Alex and Stephen Kendrick These brothers and Georgia pastors founded a movie company through their church and have created increasingly popular faith-based movies, including the surprise hit War Room in 2015, which was No. Billy Graham's songleader looks back on the groundbreaking 1948 Youth for Christ songbooka memorable combination of beloved traditional hymns and contemporary praise songs for . 41. To avoid Swaggart's potential power grab, he handed Jerry Falwell Sr. the keys to the kingdom. She spent time as a commentator for Fox News and is the popular author of several books on faith and politics. 7. In theory, it's a beautiful way to spread a message of faith to the masses. But his influence is felt beyond the call of invitation as well. 82. Loren Cunningham The founder of the international mission organization Youth With a Mission and University of the Nations, Cunningham has given thousands of Christian young people the opportunity to serve and do outreach around the world. Not his anti-labor union manifestos or the fact that he'd light up a room with his smile when you brought up segregation or his connection to a series of bombings in the 1960s. It is these people who protect the true and infinitely powerful gospel against the endless pretenders. The Pew Research Center estimates that about 25.4 percent of Americans, or about 62 million adults, are evangelicals. David Barton A biblical scholar who teaches that the United States was founded as a Christian nation, Barton rejects the separation of church and state as a principle of the Constitution. ", 64. He's the founder of the Daystar Television Network, the second-largest Christian TV network on Earth. Attendees of his sermons were amazed when he'd call out strangers by name, knowing exactly what afflicted them through the divine providence of God. Jakes denies the doctrine of the Trinity while Creflo Dollars gospel is not ultimately about salvation through faith in Jesus Christ but about personal enrichment. Take a look at these twelve pastors who made religion look less than inspiring. His show Wisdom Keys with Mike Murdock has been a hit. 23. Unsubscribe at anytime. Jennie Allen A Bible study teacher and author of several award-winning books, Allen also founded the IF: Gathering conferences to equip women for ministry. A month later, they've outgrown the darned things, and you have to ask your parishioners for $54 million to buy new ones. He also heads a faith-based organization with his wife that provides support for adoptions. 93. 10. His sermons can be experienced via nationwide TV programs, online livestreams, and through an official mobile app. 95. Garner Ted Armstrong Dec. at 73 (1930-2003) Birthplace: Portland, Oregon Garner Ted Armstrong (February 9, 1930 - September 15, 2003) was an American evangelist and the son of Herbert W. Armstrong, founder of the Worldwide Church of God, at the time a Sabbatarian .more Herbert W. Armstrong Dec. at 93 (1892-1986) Birthplace: Des Moines, Iowa Paul and Jan Crouch got into the televangelism game during its early days, buying up television stations across the country and forming the Trinity Broadcasting Network, best known as the only television station that the TV in your Motel 6 room seems capable of playing. Rick Warren The founder and senior pastor of Saddleback Church, a megachurch in California, Warren became a household name with the release of his book The Purpose Driven Life, which sold more than 32 million copies and is widely billed as one of the best-selling nonfiction hardcover book in history. Philip Yancey He's the best-selling and award-winning author of books including The Jesus I Never Knew and Whats So Amazing About Grace? both of which were selected as books of the year by Christian retailers. Charles Stanley The founder and president of In Touch Ministries and senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, of the Southern Baptist Convention for more than 40 years, Stanley has written more than 60 books, some of them best-sellers. Max Lucado The senior minister at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas, Lucado has written 25 best-selling books and has 100 million products in print including 80 million books that have been translated into 54 different languages. Glennon Doyle Melton is a lesbian who writes books lauded by Oprah Winfrey. Mark Noll A historian and research professor at Regent College, Noll has studied and written about the history of Christianity and the evangelical movement in the U.S. Part of Nolls work has encouraged a more intellectual approach to evangelicalism. 89. Among his other supposed accomplishments: his doctorate in philosophy, his two bachelor's degrees, and the somewhere-between-two-and-five wounds he accumulated in Vietnam. Popoff used a concealed earpiece to receive information about people suffering from ailments during his religious services and claimed that God divulged the information to him. He had everything. Third, it shows that the label evangelical lacks any robust definition. Son Steve also opened the highly anticipated Museum of the Bible this fall near the National Mall in Washington, D.C. 24. Their methods were questionable and their message was a horror show, but otherwise, it was an unspectacular enterprise. Annie F. Downs A blogger, author, and speaker from Nashville, Tennessee, Downs uses humor to talk about human brokenness and Gods goodness to adults and teens. One star player has been Paula White, President Trump's spiritual advisor. My daily, curated collection of Kindle deals for Christians. At least, it is small in numbers compared to the vast quantity of people who fall within a standard label of evangelical and it is weak in influence compared to circles that are welcomed by the worlds most wealthy and powerful. A loving wife. 94. A lot of that has to do with the minister's legal troubles and fall from public grace. His church, the Church of the Christian Crusade, spread a staunchly conservative interpretation of Christianity. Lin, who has been outspoken about his faith, runs an online prayer group. 2019 TIME USA, LLC. Howard and Roberta Ahmanson This wealthy financier couple has funded faith-based projects including intelligent design research, many Christian higher learning institutions, and other prominent Christian organizations. He also established the Liberty University and later tried to revive the PTL after its leader Jim Bakker was accused of rape. Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899), American evangelist, pastor and educator Twentieth century [ edit] (This list is organized chronologically by birth) Fanny Crosby (1820-1915), blind American writer of many famous hymns including "Blessed Assurance" Alexander Maclaren (1826-1910), Scottish Baptist minister Jimmy Swaggart is notable for a number of reasons, but none so important as the fact that his plastic-faced visage is the first thing that pops up if you Google image search "televangelist crying.". 17. He began the "Two-by-Two Campaign" in 1978, touring the world as a Christian missionary. Televangelism. He's a frequent social commentator, author of a dozen books including New York Times best-seller "God's Politics," and sought-after speaker and columnist. Born out of his work as a pastor and author, he founded DesiringGod.org, an online resource of spiritual materials named after his most famous book and based on his many famous sermons as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis over his 33 years behind the pulpit. His shining quote: "Consent is puberty."