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42-463: After PTL declared bankruptcy, the cable network was sold in 1989 to Morris Cerullo World Evangelism of San Diego , California , and was eventually named INSP , now headquartered at facilities that were constructed in Indian Land, South Carolina . Twenty years after his release from prison, Bakker, having gone back into television evangelism, purchased PTL's trademark and logo and relaunched

84-442: A commitment to Jesus Christ and then would pray for healings to happen in the crowd. He would have the school of ministry students test the genuineness of the reports from the people's testimonies. After the large mass meetings he would charge the "SOM," School Of Ministry, students to reach out to their countrymen with the same message being inspired by the results of the public rally. Cerullo often stated that not he, but Jesus Christ

126-537: A dispute with his business partners over his issuance of discount cards to the theme park, the Malaysian entity bought out Cerullo's interest in Heritage USA. As a part of his agreement to purchase Heritage USA , the bankruptcy court also approved Cerullo's $ 7 million offer to purchase PTL's cable television network, The Inspiration Network, which was renamed INSP-The Inspiration Network and transferred into

168-493: A documentary on the BBC , Newsround , reported that a lady called Audrey Reynolds stopped taking medication for epilepsy (although she was never instructed or advised to do so by the ministry) after she believed herself to have been healed during Cerullo's rally. She subsequently died following a seizure in her bath. The story was also reported in a Christian newspaper. Another report from this crusade claimed that Cerullo pronounced

210-423: A four-year-old cancer sufferer to be free from the disease, yet she died from it just two months later. Cerullo has claimed that giving money to send evangelistic booklets to Jewish people would result in family members becoming Christians. Chris Wright , principal of All Nations Christian College , denounced Cerullo's methods as "spiritually perverted and pastorally disastrous". The Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks

252-565: A letter-writing campaign to the parole board on his father's behalf, urging leniency. Bakker was released from BOP custody on December 1, 1994. On July 23, 1996, a North Carolina jury threw out a class action suit brought on behalf of more than 160,000 onetime supporters who contributed as much as $ 7,000 each to Bakker's coffers in the 1980s. The Observer reported that the Internal Revenue Service still holds Bakker and Roe Messner liable for personal income taxes owed from

294-565: A new, separate entity, The Inspiration Networks. Cerullo's son, David, has served as the corporation's president and CEO, and as a member of its board of directors since its formation. In 2005 he was elected to serve as its chairman. The organization, located in Charlotte , North Carolina, is currently building a new multi-million dollar broadcast headquarters facility known as "CrossRidge" in Lancaster County , South Carolina. This

336-725: A program called Praise the Lord on Charlotte station WRET . The Bakkers moved to California , teaming with their former youth pastors Paul and Jan Crouch , to create the Praise the Lord show for the Crouches' Trinity Broadcasting Systems in California . However, the relationship only lasted about eight months due to a falling-out between Jim Bakker and Paul Crouch, causing the Bakkers to leave this ministry as well. The California entity

378-556: A relationship with comedian Sam Kinison and appeared in his music video for "Wild Thing" in 1988. In 1991, she began a relationship with the co-creator of Married... with Children , Ron Leavitt , which continued until his death in 2008. In December 2017, Hahn disclosed that she is married to Frank Lloyd (a film stuntman), is no longer active in show business, and lives on a ranch north of Los Angeles. In July 2023 People magazine reported that Hahn's husband Frank Lloyd had filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences and stating

420-611: A series of articles on the PTL organization's finances. On March 19, 1987, following the revelation of a payoff to Hahn to keep secret her allegation that Bakker had raped her, Bakker resigned from PTL. Bakker acknowledges that he had a sexual encounter with Hahn at a hotel room in Clearwater Beach , Florida , but denies raping her. Following Bakker's resignation as head of PTL, he was succeeded in late March 1987 by Jerry Falwell . Later that summer, as donations sharply declined in

462-509: A three-night stay annually at a luxury hotel at Heritage USA. According to the prosecution at Bakker's later fraud trial, tens of thousands of memberships had been sold, but only one 500-room hotel was ever completed. Bakker "sold" more "exclusive partnerships" than could be accommodated and raised more than twice the money that was needed to build the actual hotel. Much of the money went into Heritage USA's operating expenses, and Bakker kept $ 3.4 million in bonuses for himself. The $ 279,000 payoff for

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504-446: Is an American model and actress. She frequently appeared on The Howard Stern Show throughout the late 1980s and into the 2000s. Hahn first came to public attention in 1987 after the disclosure that televangelist Jim Bakker had paid for her silence in response to an allegation against him of rape , which led to Bakker's announcement that he was stepping down as head of PTL Satellite Network and Heritage USA . According to Hahn, on

546-513: Is available on Amazon Fire TV , Roku , Apple TV and carried by cable television systems nationwide. Morris Cerullo Morris Cerullo (October 2, 1931 – July 10, 2020) was an American Pentecostal evangelist . He traveled extensively around the world for his ministry. He hosted Victory Today , a daily television program, and published more than 80 books. Cerrullo bought the assets of Jim Bakker 's PTL ministry in 1990 including The Inspiration Network cable television network. He

588-482: The trademark to the former PTL name and logo and that the ministry's Generation Now Network, would be rebranded to incorporate the PTL name and logo. The channel was renamed PTL Television Network and is based in Blue Eye, Missouri. The network carries current Bakker programming; classic episodes of The Jim Bakker Show as well as programs produced by other ministries. It is broadcast in 720p high definition , and

630-572: The $ 500,000 fine, and ordered that a new sentencing hearing be held. Jim and Tammy Bakker were divorced on March 13, 1992. On November 16, 1992, a sentence reduction hearing was held and Bakker's sentence was reduced to eight years. In August 1993, Bakker was transferred to a minimum security federal prison in Jesup , Georgia , and was subsequently granted parole in July 1994, after serving almost five years of his sentence. Bakker's son, Jay, spearheaded

672-486: The 1980s when they were building the PTL empire, taxes assessed after the IRS revoked PTL's nonprofit status. Messner said that the original tax amount was about $ 500,000, with penalties and interest accounting for the rest. Notices stating the IRS liens list still identify "James O. and Tamara F. Bakker" as owing $ 6,000,000, liens on which Jim Bakker still pays. On July 1, 2015, Bakker's ministry announced that it had purchased

714-515: The Bakkers felt betrayed by Falwell, who they thought during Bakker's resignation had intended to help in Bakker's eventual restoration as head of PTL. Following a sixteen-month federal grand jury probe, Bakker was indicted in 1988 on eight counts of mail fraud , 15 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy . In 1989, after a five-week trial which began on August 28 in Charlotte,

756-882: The PTL Television Network. The parent company changed its name to Heritage Village Church & Missionary Fellowship in 1976–77. The purchase of the Heritage USA properties in Fort Mill , South Carolina , began at that time. PTL uplinked from Heritage Village on Park Road in Charlotte until December 1986. The Heritage Village Property was sold and satellite and video tape editing operations moved to Heritage USA. PTL's fund raising activities between 1984 and 1987 underwent scrutiny by The Charlotte Observer , eventually leading to criminal charges against Bakker. From 1984 to 1987, Bakker and his PTL associates sold $ 1,000 "lifetime memberships," which entitled buyers to

798-403: The accounting irregularities. Reporters from The Charlotte Observer , led by Charles Shepard, investigated and published a series of articles regarding the PTL organization's finances. This precipitated Bakker's resignation and the publication of Hahn's claims. In his 1997 book, I Was Wrong , Bakker disputed Hahn's account, claiming that he was "set up" and that the sex was consensual. After

840-453: The afternoon of December 6, 1980, when she was a 21-year-old church secretary, she was drugged and raped by Bakker and another preacher , John Wesley Fletcher . Hahn was given a $ 279,000 (equivalent to $ 748,250 in 2023) pay-off for her silence, which was paid with PTL's funds to Hahn through Bakker associate Roe Messner . Bakker, who made all of the financial decisions for the PTL organization, allegedly kept two sets of books to conceal

882-641: The age of 88. Cerullo is considered by some critics to be controversial, with concerns having been raised about his financial practices. He was indicted for income tax evasion in California. Those charges were dismissed by the court. As a Christian of partially Jewish origin, he has carried a few evangelistic campaigns targeted at the Jewish community, drawing some condemnation from anti-missionary organizations and claims of deceptive practices. While no charges were brought against Cerullo's ministry, Cerullo

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924-733: The alliance. Following Cerullo's resignation, Britain's then-largest church, Kensington Temple , also left the Alliance in protest. In 1999, the Christian Channel , a UK cable channel, broadcast an advertisement for one of Cerullo's European rallies which claimed that "Satanic hordes" had "occupied the principal palaces of power." As a result, the channel was fined £20,000 for breaching advertising codes requiring political impartiality, for denigrating other religious beliefs, for potentially frightening viewers, and for making statements prejudicial of "respect for human dignity". Cerullo

966-579: The crowd stormed the dais challenging the efficacy of his healing power". In 2009, Cerullo was invited to be the guest in the television show in Brazil. During the interview, he introduced his special financial healing to the televiewers. He asked for 900 Brazilian Reals in order to avail this ‘God’s life-time annointment’. His action was refuted by the overall servant of Members Church of God International (MCGI) Bro. Eli Soriano (deceased). Jessica Hahn Jessica Hahn (born July 7, 1959)

1008-518: The death of his mother. For many years Morris Cerullo conducted repeated "Schools of Ministry" in several countries like Mexico, Brazil, the Philippines , Korea, Zimbabwe , South Africa , Kenya , Nigeria , Indonesia, the Netherlands and many others. During these "SOMs" one of the days of the conferences he would preach in an open air crusade, or a large theater/arena, and lead people in

1050-511: The early 1990s. In 1991, British authorities suspended the license of a satellite station for broadcasting the program, Victory with Morris Cerullo . The license was reinstated after the station agreed to precede the program with the disclaimer, "Morris Cerullo World Evangelism cannot substantiate the claims made by those participants featured in this programme," and advising all persons suffering from illness to seek medical attention. Following Cerullo's Mission at Earl's Court London in 1992,

1092-606: The guidance of a nurse in the Clifton orphanage. Soon after, Jewish orphanage directors restricted him from practicing certain matters of his new faith, so he ran away from the orphanage. He began preaching the gospel at the age of 16, after claiming to have seen a vision from God, in which he witnessed people suffering torments in Hell. He attended and graduated from divinity school in New York state in 1953, and began ministering with

1134-723: The help of his then soon-to-be bride, Theresa. In the early 1950s, he was ordained in the Assemblies of God . The Cerullos are the parents of three children, David (b. 1952), Susan (b. 1954) and Mark (b. 1957). At the time of his death, he had 7 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren. Morris had one brother, Abe Cerullo and three sisters, Pauline Cerullo, Frances Cerullo and Beatrice Cerullo. Morris also had two half brothers, Richard Cerullo and Albert Cerullo, and three half sisters, Dolores Cerullo (Stricchiola), Helen Cerullo (Pickel) and Lilian Cerullo (Mozer) born when his father, Joseph Cerullo remarried to Josephine Kastella after

1176-584: The jury found him guilty on all 24 counts, and Judge Robert Potter sentenced him to 45 years in federal prison and a $ 500,000 fine. Bakker served time in the Federal Medical Center, Rochester in Minnesota, sharing a cell with activist Lyndon LaRouche and skydiver Roger Nelson . In early 1991, a federal appeals court upheld Bakker's conviction on the fraud and conspiracy charges, but voided Bakker's 45-year sentence, as well as

1218-612: The network. In 1960, Jim Bakker met Tammy Faye LaValley while both were students at North Central University in Minneapolis , Minnesota . Tammy Faye worked in a boutique, while Jim found work in a restaurant inside a Minneapolis department store. They were married on April 1, 1961, and left bible college to become itinerant evangelists. In 1966, the Bakkers began working at Pat Robertson 's Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) in Virginia Beach , Virginia , which at

1260-494: The public revelation of the Bakker scandal, Hahn posed nude for Playboy (November 1987, December 1987 and September 1988) and videos appeared in several television shows, including Married... with Children . She was also known for her frequent appearances on The Howard Stern Show throughout the late 1980s and into the 2000s. Hahn was born in Massapequa, New York , and graduated from Massapequa High School . She had

1302-508: The silence of Jessica Hahn , who was mistakenly supposed to be a Bakker staff member, was paid by Tammy Faye's later husband, Roe Messner . Hahn was actually a onetime acquaintance of Bakker set up by a "friend" in 1980. Bakker, who apparently made all of the financial decisions for PTL, allegedly kept two sets of books to conceal the accounting irregularities. Reporters from the Observer , led by Charles Shepard, investigated and published

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1344-497: The success of Come On Over , Robertson made Bakker the host of a new prime-time talk show called The 700 Club , which would gradually become CBN's flagship program, and become syndicated on numerous cable channels and network affiliates. In the early 1970s, the Bakkers left CBN and traveled, holding telethons at Christian TV stations. In Charlotte , North Carolina , the Bakkers set up Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) with TV executives Sandy and Martha Wheeler, who began airing

1386-436: The time barely reached an audience of thousands. The Bakkers would make contributions to CBN as a nationally recognized television ministry. The couple hosted Come On Over , a variety program hosted by the Bakkers and several puppet characters. The program was aimed at young children, whom they entertained with comic routines with the puppets, as well as airings of Davey and Goliath , a claymation Bible -story series. Due to

1428-527: The wake of Bakker's resignation and the end of The PTL Club , Falwell raised $ 20 million to help keep Heritage USA solvent, including a well-publicized waterslide plunge there. Falwell called Bakker a liar, an embezzler , a sexual deviant, and "the greatest scab and cancer on the face of Christianity in 2,000 years of church history." In 1988, Falwell said that the Bakker scandal had "strengthened broadcast evangelism and made Christianity stronger, more mature and more committed." Bakker's son, Jay, wrote in 2001 that

1470-423: Was expelled from India in 1992 after disturbances erupted at one of his rallies. The Times of India on October 17, 1992, reported, "A so-called miracle healer, Morris Cerullo, who prefers to call himself a man of God, was declared 'persona non-grata' and bundled out of the country by Calcutta police this morning after mass healing services on Park Circus Maidan yesterday evening turned into a fiasco when members of

1512-657: Was found to have underrepresented his income for 1998 through 2000. However, on August 8, 2007, the US District Court, Southern District of California ordered that the indictment be dismissed as a consequence of the prosecutor's inaccurate explanation of the Duberstein test to the jury. An extract from the ruling was published on Cerullo's website. Cerullo's activities in the United Kingdom have attracted considerable critical attention, particularly during

1554-579: Was interviewed at length by Andrew Neil for his British one-on-one interview show Is This Your Life? , made by Open Media for Channel 4 . In 1996 the Evangelical Alliance considered, but decided against, ejecting Cerullo after the Advertising Standards Authority upheld four complaints against him relating to his claims of being able to offer miraculous healing to the disabled. Cerullo later resigned from

1596-504: Was opened on March 1, 2009. Cerullo and his son David were both featured in a 2009 Charlotte Observer article. Cerullo still travelled as a missionary, and in the 2014 World Conference, he stated that God told him that "Prophets never retire!". In 2015, at the age of 83, Cerullo toured Africa for nine days, during which time he held meetings in six African countries, preaching, holding training sessions and meeting with political leaders. Cerullo died from pneumonia on July 11, 2020, at

1638-419: Was quoted as being "deeply distressed by missionary tactics specifically targeted against Jews". Subsequently, Cerullo was challenged on British television to produce his three best examples of claimed miraculous healing for scrutiny by a panel of doctors. Their final report was "there is no evidence that anything has occurred that is outside the realm of normal clinical experience". On 19 August 1995 Cerullo

1680-471: Was rebranded as TBN, which would grow to become the world's largest faith-based network in later years. Before leaving and moving east, the Bakkers managed to retain the rights to use the initials "PTL". What began as a local TV broadcast in Charlotte changed when several members of the Bakker's staff in California moved to Charlotte in February 1974 and with the local ex-TBN staff, into what became known as

1722-674: Was the healer. He would encourage faith in, as he would say, "the written and the living word of God." In 1990, Cerullo purchased, from the United States Federal Bankruptcy Court in Columbia, South Carolina , the assets of Jim Bakker 's bankrupt ministry, PTL . These assets included the Heritage USA Christian theme park in Fort Mill, South Carolina , which he purchased in partnership with Malayan United Industries (Berhad) . After

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1764-620: Was the subject of criticism for some of his fundraising efforts, and for claims made on television programmes, particularly in the UK, regarding his healing ministry. Cerullo was born in Passaic, New Jersey , to an Italian father and a Russian Jewish mother. His mother committed suicide when he was very young and his father died of a stroke at age 62. He was raised in various orphanages, the last being an Orthodox Jewish orphanage in nearby Clifton, New Jersey . He converted to Christianity at age 14 with

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