Trinity Foundation

After we reported in December 2020, “Trinity Foundation Investigation: $78.6 Million in Government Guaranteed Loans Given to Televangelists“, more reporters did a lot more digging.  Earlier this year, AP investigators, REESE DUNKLIN and MICHAEL REZENDES, reported that Catholic dioceses around the US requested and received millions in taxpayer aid from COVID emergency Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) funds while maintaining billions in cash and reserves.

In one particular case, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, NC received over $8 million in relief funds while they had roughly $100 million in cash and short-term investments available.  It’s interesting to note in regards to Catholic’s share of PPP funds that, “Catholic entities amassed at least $3 billion — roughly the same as the combined total of recipients from the other faiths that rounded out the top five, AP found. Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist and Jewish faith-based recipients also totaled at least $3 billion.

Catholics account for about a fifth of the U.S. religious population while members of Protestant and Jewish denominations are nearly half, according to the Pew Research Center.”, according to the article. (Read more here)

Trinity Foundation also reported in May 2021 that, in 2020, Trinity Broadcasting of Texas received a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) forgivable loan of $3,308,005.  The Texas-based non-profit also reported $30 million in donations, $24 million in revenue from selling airtime, and $17 million of investment income. Their total revenue for the 2019 year was $933,330,134!

During an episode of Leah Remini’s TV series about Scientology, a chilling strategy from L. Ron Hubbard is displayed onscreen. “Dominance of others is a control system. We are not looking for pleasant control–we are looking for effective control.”

Sometimes, there is little difference between Scientology and churches that claim to be Christian. Pastors and televangelists have employed the same techniques, using legal threats to control victims. At the heart of this scandal is the use of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs).

However, more victims and whistleblowers are fighting back by exposing the abusive practices on social media with the hashtag #NDAfree. A group of whistleblowers have created the NDAfree website featuring their stories.

Christian journalists are also highlighting the problem. Christianity Today news editor Daniel Silliman reviewed at least 15 confidentiality agreements and concluded on Twitter, “Many are so broad that someone who signs one could be in violation at any time.”

Televangelists Kenneth Copeland and Paula White effectively used NDAs to prevent congressional hearings into financial practices among televangelists.

In 2007, Senator Charles Grassley’s office sent faxes to six TV ministries demanding financial records. Copeland responded defiantly to Grassley, “You can go get a subpoena, and I won’t give it to you.”

Three years later the inquiry came to an end when Grassley decided not to issue subpoenas to the televangelists or former employees of their churches.

A Senate Finance Committee report on Copeland’s ministry stated, “Former employees were sincerely afraid to provide statements for fear of being sued since they signed confidentiality agreements.”

Continue reading “NDAfree – Opposing the Practice of Churches and Ministries Silencing Victims”

 

Trinity Foundation has created an online questionnaire for informants to report religious financial fraud. If you have witnessed religious fraud, theft or financial excess, please let us know about it.

Tips play an important role in solving crimes and exposing bad behavior.

According to attorney Stephen Martin Kohn, author of The New Whistleblower’s Handbook, tipsters uncover more fraud than professional auditors and law enforcement combined.

Trinity Foundation specializes in open source investigations. We comb through public databases and government records for evidence of religious leaders living extravagant lifestyles. However, our investigations often result in unanswered questions.

Informants may help investigators understand the big picture by answering the five Ws: who, what, when, where and why.

We will keep your identity confidential unless you authorize us to contact investigative reporters or government investigators on your behalf. We’ve been protecting the identity of confidential informants successfully since we began investigating in 1989.

NDA INFORMANTS WANTED: If you would like to become an informant and have previously signed an NDA, fill out our online questionnaire.

(Photo: GFA World, formerly Gospel for Asia, at NRB’s 2021 Convention in Grapevine, Texas. Gospel for Asia has rebranded after facing a series of scandalous accusations and settling a $37 million lawsuit.)

Where have the televangelists gone?

The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) annual convention was held this year in Grapevine, Texas, which is coincidentally the home of Benny Hinn Ministries.

Some of America’s best known televangelists (James Robison, Robert Morris, Marcus Lamb and Matthew Crouch) have homes within 10 miles of the Gaylord Texan Convention Center, home of the 2021 NRB Convention.

Yet, unsurprisingly, most televangelists and “Christian” TV networks were no-shows at the convention. Daystar Television Network, Inspirational Network and The Word Network stopped being convention exhibitors years ago. The ability to network over the Internet has dramatically reduced the need for in-person communication and the lingering effects of Covid-19 discourage large networking events in 2021.

Continue reading “Televangelists, but not the Religious Right, Abandon Annual National Religious Broadcasters Convention”

If you thought televangelist shoes and watches are expensive, let us introduce you to the extravagant world of ministry aircraft. From the mundane to the exotic, we are tracking trips to ministry events and vacation destinations.

Trinity Foundation recently launched Pastor Planes, an investigative project, with the objective of bringing financial transparency to churches, ministries and Christian universities using privately owned aircraft.

Pastor Planes can be found on Instagram and Twitter.

Trinity Foundation is currently tracking 50 aircraft.

By our calculations, there are days when more than $100,000 is spent on private-jet and charter-jet travel by televangelists, ministry executives and Christian university personnel. In addition to the cost of purchasing or leasing aircraft, jet fuel, pilots’ salaries, inspections, repairs, insurance, landing fees, and hanger fees result in higher travel expenses.

Christian leaders are commanded to be good stewards of resources entrusted to them. 1 Corinthians 4:2 says, ”Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.”

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