(Screenshot: Mike Winger exposes Shawn Bolz with cell phone in hand delivering a false prophecy on stage with Bethel Redding pastor Bill Johnson.)
“A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare.” – Proverbs 21:6 NIV
False prophecy is a gateway to fleeting riches. Three of the techniques of prophecy merchants were revealed in YouTube Bible teacher Mike Winger’s recent exposé of false prophet Shawn Bolz: the creation of false prophecies from data harvesting, targeting of high-net-worth individuals for financial support and building a church community with lies.
These techniques deserve further investigation.
A Short History of Data Harvesting False Prophets
False prophecy in the church has been normalized, with many preachers delivering weekly “words of knowledge” coming from their vain imagination, not God.
“I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.” – Jeremiah 23:21 NIV
For centuries false prophets have used the same techniques as mentalists and psychics to make educated guesses about their targets. Knowledge of a person’s physical appearance, family or friends can provide an abundance of clues for discussion. Where the facts end, the imagination takes over.
Before the creation of social media websites, false prophets routinely obtained information from prayer request cards and telephone prayer lines. With the advent of the Internet, false prophets employed new tools in their deceptions.
Popoff
In 1986, James Randi, the famous magician and co-founder of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson to expose evangelist Peter Popoff’s fake faith healings.
Popoff would surprise people on stage by telling them their address which was previously obtained from prayer request cards filled out at the venue.
A technician working with Randi used a radio scanner during a Popoff healing crusade to obtain evidence that Elizabeth Popoff, Peter’s wife, was feeding him information through a wireless earpiece.
(Screenshot: Inside Edition investigated Peter Popoff’s comeback. Popoff offered miracle spring water to his viewers.)
Cain
Paul Cain, the mentor and role model for Shawn Bolz, delivered prophecies for decades, starting in the 1950s. If he truly had the gift of prophecy, there would be abundant proof of fulfilled prophecies.
In 1989, journalist Lee Grady attended a conference in which Cain delivered prophecies to approximately ten of the conference attendees. A year later, Grady reviewed the prophecies only to learn they failed.
In his book The Holy Spirit Is Not for Sale: Rekindling the Power of God in an Age of Compromise, Grady wrote, “To one pastor and his wife, personal friends of mine, Cain mentioned the number 4001 (their church office was located at 4001 Newberry Road) and predicted they would experience great revival in their Florida city.”
Meanwhile, the exact opposite occurred. The church closed. The pastor and wife eventually were divorced.
How did Cain get the street addresses? Grady has a theory: “It also seemed puzzling that all the information Cain ostensibly received from God (mostly street numbers) was printed in a staff address directory that I knew was easily available to conference speakers.”
Church prayer lines are another source of data mined for profit.
When viewers of televangelist broadcasts call the 800 number on the TV screen, their names and addresses are collected along with a reason for the call, whether it is for prayer, to donate or receive information from the ministry. The callers are added to the televangelist’s mailing list. Those mailing lists then solicit donations and become a lucrative source of income.
Tilton
In 1991, ABC Primetime Live broadcast an exposé of pastors Robert Tilton, W.V. Grant and Larry Lea. The investigative report featured a secretly recorded meeting between Jim Moore, head of Response Media, and Trinity Foundation founder Ole Anthony. Moore told Anthony, “Give them something free. You know, we ought to mail you the latest copy of X and get their name and address. New names is the key, new names.”
Prayer request cards were found in a bank dumpster in Tulsa, Oklahoma. ABC News revealed that Tilton didn’t pray for the prayer requests his donors mailed to the ministry.
After the allegations of fraud aired on network television, Tilton continued his grift.
(Screenshot: In this old video Robert Tilton demands that viewers donate $1,000.)
In March 1992, televangelist Tilton sent a fraudulent letter to Mary Harrison who had previously contacted the ministry because she had cancer.
Dear Mary:
God really touched my heart and told me to send you a message of hope and faith for the miracle touch that you need today. And he told me to touch your needs . . . personally . . . and to ask God with you through the prayer of agreement for his miracle touch. And on Thursday, April 9th . . . I am going to do exactly that for you!!!
. . . I know when God speaks to me. I am saying this to simply tell you that God spoke to me and told me to send this letter to you.
Mary died the previous year from cancer. God never spoke to Tilton telling him to send Mary a letter. Mary’s husband sued Tilton after receiving the letter. The case was settled out-of-court for an undisclosed amount of money.
During another civil case, Tilton’s attorney J.C. Joyce told the court, “The right to believe what we choose to believe is absolute. We even have the right to defraud people with that belief.”
Bolz
During an appearance at Bill Johnson’s megachurch Bethel Redding, Shawn Bolz informed church employee Chris Gore that his disabled daughter would be healed. Before delivering the prophecy, Bolz claimed that God revealed to him the family had a Maverick dog.
The Mike Winger exposé showed the Facebook post where Chris Gore announced his family had a new dog named Maverick. Sadly, Gore’s daughter was never healed.
Jubilee Dawn, a former student at Bethel Supernatural School of Ministry, is another victim of Bolz’s prophecies. Dawn had recently started dating an older man when Bolz prophesied they would marry.
Due to the prophecy, Dawn married the boyfriend who turned abusive during the marriage. The husband strangled Dawn on two occasions. Dawn was reluctant to leave the marriage because of the prophecy.
After being exposed for his false prophecies, Bolz announced he is taking a sabbatical. On social media, Bolz appears to be rebranding himself as a journalist.
Postscript: The next article in this series will explore the topic of churches and ministries targeting high-net-worth individuals for donations.