Posted on 08/13/2005 9:51:17 AM PDT by Laissez-faire capitalist
The tax-exempt status of faith healer Benny Hinn's $6.5 million world headquarters in Grapevine is being examined by the Tarrant Appraisal District after a televangelist watchdog group this week questioned whether the property should be considered a church.
The review of the property at 3400 William D. Tate Ave., triggered by a requset of the Dallas-based Trinity Foundation, is considered somewhat unusual, appraisal district officials said. But any requset for a review is investigated as a matter of policy.
...Trinity contends that the ministry hides its spending from donors and uses donations to provide Hinn with a multimillion-dollar California parsonage and a seven-figure salary.
...[Trinity president] [Ole] Anthony asked chief appraiser John Marshall to re-evualate the gated property, in part because no public worship services are held there and only those with access cards or permission are allowed entry.
..."Designating this organization as a church would be tantamount to naming Interstate Batteries, General Motors, the Dallas Cowboys and other for-profit corporations as churches because they hold periodic Bible studies on their premises," Anthony wrote.
By law, a religious property-tax exemption may be granted if a property is regularly used a a place of worship, she [Vinita Tribble, the district's support services director] said. That can mean anything from individual meditation to a group ceremony to religious education.
(Excerpt) Read more at dfw.com ...
I'm next.
IMHO, BH is a fraud as are many like him but he does have the support of his "worshipers" who continue to flood him with money. I think in the long run we need to suffer fools like him and leave it to his followers if they want to believe his message or not. It's a Slippery Slope argument for sure but unfortunately warranted in this case.
This guy, like Robert Tilton and Jim Bakker, gives Christianity a bad name. It would be fine with me if they nail him.
Here is some additional stuff one may want to look at:
"Preachers who live in big homes and drive big cars ought to re-examine their cxalling." (Benny Hinn, speaking at his church in Florida)
Perhaps Benny should practice what he preaches?
http://www.myfortress.org/BennyHinn.html
AUDIO CLIPS:
"Don't tell me you have Jesus. You ARE everything He was, and everything He is and shall be." Benny Hinn, TBN
http://op.50megs.com/tell!.wav
"Theres a groups here in California that thinks they are the judgement seat of Christ. Dear God in heaven. I wish I just could just...they call it a ministry, my foot. You know I've looked for one verse in the Bible. I just can't seem to find it. One verse that said, "If you don't like 'em kill 'em" I really wish I could find it.
http://op.50megs.com/hinn3.rm
"You see, frankly, That's the way I think about it. I'm sorry, I'm not exactly the normal kind of guy, you know. I'm from Israel. Sometimes I wish God would give me a Holy Ghost machine gun, I'd blow your head off."
http://op.50megs.com/hinn4.rm
I am in strong support of their holdings being scrutinized -- and when found having hidden assets for them to be fined the the Nth of the Law.
We could probably add 100 names to a list of these people that need so seriously be audited.
Rodney Howard Brown
Oral Roberts
Kenneth Hagan Ministries
Kenneth Copeland Ministries
A true con man, and he let everyone know it.
The funny thing is, even though he's dead, his web site says you can still contact him.
What a showman!
Yep, that's just what I was thinking. My uncle has a bunch of Benny Hill videos and they're hilarious!
Television corrupts.
Televangelism corrupts absolutely.
First off if anyone got a whole sack of mail addressed somewhere else, someone would be there in microseconds to retrieve it. I'm sure folks at the Post Office don't take to kindly to anyone suggesting they would deliver a big stack of mail to the wrong place, and not care about it.
LDS temples have restricted access. Not even all Mormons qualify for a temple recommend.
Hinn needs to be deported.
"Adam was a super-being when God created him. I don't know whether people know this, but he was the first superman that really ever lived. First of all, the Scriptures declare clearly that he had dominion over the fowls of the air, the fish of the sea--which means he used to fly. Of course, how can he have dominion over the birds and not be able to do what they do? The word 'dominion' in the Hebrew clearly declares that if you have dominion over a subject, that you do everything that subject does. In other words, that subject, if it does something you cannot do, you don't have dominion over it. I'll prove it further. Adam not only flew, he flew to space. He was--with one thought he would be on the moon." (Benny Hinn"Praise the Lord" program on TBN, 26 December 1991. "Many Faces Of Benny Hinn DVD")
This is so wrong it is pathetic. Paul the Apostles tells us that Adam was "the first Adam." And he tells us that Christ was the second Adam -- Adam was no more a super man than Jesus Christ -- If Christ had by virtue of his God given powers come down to earth the face down the sin and the devil -- the devil would have cried: "Foul. You did it with divine power. So Christ put off his God hood and put on flesh and became the second Adam and in the flesh he defeated sin and the devil.
According to the Law of Moses which was written based on things in heaven to make an earthly pattern -- the lamb could not have any defect of blemish it could not be a giant (Read that as super lamb) or a dwarf -- Christ the lamb of God in order to be an offering for atonement's needed to be a lamb regular fleshly lamb.
So what is the Adam part -- Adam when he was created knew no sin but after the fall in the blood of the human race runs sin and death -- So God via the Holy Ghost overshadowing Mary conceived Christ . scripture says Adam was the son of God and likewise Christ was also the scone of God not being of the blood of his father.
The smartest of the bunch. He used to make it very clear that contributions to him weren't tax deductable.
Anthony is an interesting person, I'm not sure if he is a crackpot or one of the most enlightened people I've read about. Joe Bob Briggs (John Bloom) is a fringe member of his group, and he is now the publisher of The Door . The Trinity Foundation was named after the Bomb, not the God Head.
Doc was refreshing. As for a con-man, I've not seen any of it, con men tend to keep you in the dark in order to manipulate you. Doc simply laid it out, you like what I'm saying keep the money coming and people did. I personally liked his no holds bar approach, loved his straight talk and his teaching was without compare for those who couldn't get past the cigars and his occasionally colorful expression well maybe they should read a little Jeremiah.
The idea that Christ is for losers and idiots is something Doc assailed with vigor and I think he succeeded and what I find that most dislike about him is that he didn't fit their mold and he spoke with authority with a voice that didn't sound like soft velvet and smell of funerary roses. I doubt the apostle Paul could find a place in today’s Christian world. As for the fraud Benny Hinn, I have little to say he is an example of the worst of Christian evangelicals but I'm sure he doesn't a better job spending the money he gets than the real elected thieves in the federal and state governments.
Some interesting links:
http://www.internetmonk.com/cgi-bin/mt-comm.cgi?entry_id=19863
http://www.rotten.com/library/bio/religion/dr-gene-scott/
http://www.ocweekly.com/ink/05/25/news-stacy.php
http://member.newsguy.com/~sjames/home.htm
One has to love his admonition of the bureaucratic monkey band.
Never saw a preacher beat his monkey before this. ;-)
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