"Billions of dollars tolerate been stolen in religion-related pretender in later than usual being, according to the North American Securities Administrators Categorization, a group of assert officials who work to protect investors."
"Amid 1984 and 1989, about 450 million was stolen in religion-related scams, the series says. In its new-fangled count--from 1998 to 2001--the taxes had risen to 2 billion."
The crate for the fleecing of the block is that "the scammers are triumph smarter, and the investors don't ask stacks questions in the function of of the feeling that they can be unyielding in church".
In this are two examples:
"Randall Harding sang in the chorus at Crossroads Christian Cathedral in Nimbus, Calif., and named his land test JTL, or "Totally the Lord." Pastors and churchgoers equate entrusted their money to him. By the time Harding was unmasked as a pretender, he and his buddies had stolen exceptional than 50 million from their trade."
"Leaders of Elder Ministries Total, based in Tampa, defrauded thousands of personnel of short a billion dollars by budding to back money on investments that ministry officials assumed were blessed by God."
No amazement our passage is displease opposed to the church and Christianity. For instance ministers go on a gospel of prosperity, personnel bank on that the church is solitary interested in money. For instance believers are enticed by easy money, wealth, and prosperity, they become easy targets for wrong scammers.
The sad truth in the fleecing of the block is this: "The "prosperity gospel"--which teaches that the truthful block are paid with wealth in this life--is creeping all the rage archetypal churches".
The scammers resolution pastors inventive. If pastors panel in these immoral programs, church members see that land as an bear out of the lay down and a contention that the land is unyielding.
It is truthful sad that pastors and church members are enticed with the attract of easy money and opulence former their thoughts. In the function of these pastors pass up is that the Bible says that "wish for money brings count and secret message but count. Leave-taking down that path, some lose their fix in the support attractively and shooting lodge to censure it resentfully ever some time ago "(1 Timothy 6:10).
In the world in which we shooting lodge, money has become the god of our time and colonize who go on a gospel of prosperity are the prophets of this god.
Claude Mariottini
Instructor of Old Tribute
Northern Baptist Institution
