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By John Davies
Mark 4:22 "For there is nothing hidden which will
not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it
should come to light
Few had heard of Rodney Howard-Browne before he led a series
of revival meetings in Lakeland, Florida in 1993. A lot has happened
since then; some of it is commendable, and some of it is reprehensible.
In theory Browne came to America from South Africa to "revive"
a largely sleeping church. He quickly got labeled as a Holy Ghost
"bartender" because of the manifestations of "holy
laughter" dominating his ministry. In his meetings he taught
that no only it was the pastor's job to fleece the sheep but
only God was to judge pastors, not the (dumb) sheep! He also
taught that thieves were to be blessed and rewarded, not judged
for this is what Jesus would want them to do! He also taught
that it was more important to give than to receive and spend
a lot of time receiving offerings that he spent on himself and
family members. Rodney learned about nepotism from his good friend
Senior Pastor Karl Strader of Carpenter’s Home
Church, Lakeland, Florida, for the bible stated:
1TM 5:8 But if anyone does not provide for his own,
and especially for those of his household, he has denied the
faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Christmas morning, Dec 25, 2002, changed the lives of Dr's
Rodney and Adonica Howard-Browne forever. It was early hours
of that morning, that Kelly, their 18 year old daughter, passed
away in his arms. She had suffered from the incurable disease,
Cystic Fibrosis for 18 years.
As she passed away, Rodney and Adonica offered up to Jesus the
best gift they had to offer, their daughter. Rodney then vowed,
that because the devil had taken their daughter with this dreaded
disease, he would pay with 100 million souls over the next 10
years.
Thus began the burning of the vision for 100 million souls.
The Kelly May foundation was born and the beginnings of World
Outreach began with the planning of two great crusades this year.
The first in May/June 2003 in Mexico and the second Oct/Nov 2003
in Soweto, South Africa. There will be 6 crusades next year
and 12 each year thereafter.
Hence it was not a surprise to learn that Gil & Loraine Howard-Browne
were moving to Tampa this March to help Evangelist Rodney Howard-
Browne win "One hundred million souls for Christ over the
next 10 years?" Considering the Howard-Brownes are naturalized
Americans who don't belong to ECFA and are accountable to no
one but themselves, this is a very stupid and impossible vision,
especially considering that there have never been one hundred
million souls won for Jesus in a period of ten years through
out earth's history.
".... " A first-hand Account, Accurately Reported by
Yves A. Brault.
I saw him in Florida as he was a guest-speaker at the Orlando
Christian Center. I also attended his services in British Columbia,
where he held a series of meetings from Nov. 19 through 23, 1996,
in a popular charismatic church of Vancouver.
More than once in this 2,000-seat church auditorium, a member
of his organization advised us to be careful at the altar and
not step on those lying on the carpeted floor because "even
if they are under the power of the Holy Ghost, they still feel
pain!" Howard-Browne played a very active human role in
the laughter manifestation. He joked again and again, "I'll
read from The Amplified Bible, so if it comes out loud, it's
because it's amplified." Himself a Caucasian, born and raised
in Africa, now living in America, he came to this conclusion,
"That makes me an African-American!" At the time of
the offering he suggested, besides cash and check giving, "You
can use your credit card: MasterCard, Visa, American Distress."
The crowd was ecstatic.
Adonica - his wife - also made a brief appearance on the stage.
At the very first meeting she was asked to greet the audience.
Estimating that the crowd's response lacked enthusiasm, she said,
"Are you just shy Canadians, or what? Are you just as the
Americans?" A remark that lacked some tact! The Holy Ghost
"bartender" seemed to believe that he needs to instruct
people on laughing and behavior. He even defied those who would
not respond according to his expectations.
It came close to threatening when he accused the more conservative
people by saying, "We'll cast the religious devil out of
you." He did not miss an opportunity to put his critics
down, "Some people have got more faith in believing the
devil can come into this place tonight to touch people. How dumb
can you get and still breathe!" Referring to North American
theologians, which he named dead heads, he said, "Bunch
of whitewash, full of dead bones, like a constipated mule."
Americans and Canadians, in particular, did not weigh much in
his eyes. I don't know if his attitude has changed, but he said,
"Jesus is alive. It's only North Americans that don't believe
that."
South African Pentecostal Evangelist Rodney Howard-Browne, a
white supremacist in theology, who immigrated with all his brothers
and parents to United States became a naturalized American and
taught that "sheep needed to be fleeced or they would have
too much hair and could not see where they are going.. It was
the pastor’s job to fleece the sheep had been
credited with bringing the laughter revival to America. But from
what really happened in Carpenter's Home Church in 1993 and 1994
and its devastating effect on the community including the robbing,
raping and murdering of the sheep, was not much of a revival.
Roy Aldrich, a retired school teacher, was robbed of $100,000.00
by Pastor Karl Strader and his son Dan Strader of Carpenter's
Home Church Lakeland, Florida. Rodney, who was a personal friend
of Karl Strader who practiced nepotism, and bought him a Lincoln
town car, was asked to help the elderly victims who were robbed
by the Straders and he refused. But when German Evangelist Reinhard
Bonnke's decided to relocate his ministry to Florida, Rodney
Howard-Browne decided he would give Bonnke a house. At first
he offered Bonnke his own house in Tampa, but Bonnke had to locate
in Orlando to be closer to his operational base. It was then
that Howard-Browne decided to build Bonnke a new $250,000 home
in Orlando. Rodney then drove a brand new car to Bonnke's driveway.
How gracious and wonderful of Rodney to be a respecter of persons
to the high and mighty and to ignore the real plight of the poor
and needy?
Nepotism was also practiced by Rodney who had his parents on
the payroll! Rodney's older brother, Gil Howard Browne, who was
burnt out in his ministry, was asked by Rodney to move to Tampa
and help him with the vision God has given him "One hundred
million souls for Christ over the next 10 years." And Rodney's
other brother, Bazil, was also a scoundrel who used a scheme
to get rich by enticing other pastors ordained or not to join
him to "Come under the covering of River Family Church,
and Pastors Bazil & Ann Howard-Browne, receive ordination
through River Family Church, and as a ministry tithe to RFC."
Of course Bazil's ministry, the River Family Church, would profit
from the tithes of all pastors who would join him. Hence it's
not surprising that the Statement of Faith of Bazil ministry
reflects the former bigoted white South African supremacy policy
and states:
The programs and activities of The River shall be based upon
and at all times shall be consistent with the following beliefs:
Section 1. Policy. The government of this Church shall be theocratic,
recognizing that Jesus Christ is the Lord, head and pastor of
the Body of Christ and that he has vested the authority to direct
the affairs of the Church in the person of the Pastor, being
assisted by the Board of Trustees and Staff. The Pastor shall
be recognized by the members and all concerned as the leader
under Christ of this local body. This Church maintains its inherent
rights to sovereignty in the conduct of church life in accordance
with the Articles of Incorporation, and voluntarily enters into
a cooperative fellowship with the Body of Christ.
The fact remains that multi-million dollars Family run Evangelistic
Ministries in America be it the Hinn's of Orlando, the Straders
of Lakeland, the Howard-Browne's of Tampa, the Falwells of Lynchburg,
the Brights of Orlando, the Robertson's of Norkfolk, the Roberts
of Tulsa, the Copelands of Forth Worth, and the Graham's of Minneapolis
are notorious for hiding their total salaries and those of their
family members and special friends in their indirect personally
owned non- profit religious corporation while they live in palatial
palaces like kings and royalty.
Just like with the Bakker's of PTL Club fame personal misconduct,
mismanagement, and pillaging of the treasury and misuse of Ministry
resources are quite common. Benny Hinn had to flee from Orlando
Florida, when the media started to dig into the different scandals
in his ministry. The Straders of Lakeland, personal friends of
the Jim Bakker, Benny Hinn, Oral and Richard Roberts and Rodney
Howard-Browne, went through a major split of Carpenter's Home
Church in 1989 when the Straders refused to relinquish the financial
control they had on the ministry, the church and its assets.
Unlike Jesus Christ who owned nothing, Televangelists Jan and
Paul Crouch who lost their tax exemption for their Trinity Broadcasting
Network are definitely not lacking in any material possession.
Their home is described as "a palatial estate with ocean
and city views and was purchased for around five million dollars.
It has six bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a billiard room, a climate-controlled
wine cellar, a sweeping staircase and a crystal chandelier.
The three-story, nearly 9,500-square-foot house, has an elevator,
also has a six-car garage, a tennis court and a pool with a fountain.
Trinity Broadcasting, established in 1973, has more than 768
TV stations on the air worldwide. The Crouches oversee a $100-million-plus-a-year
enterprise. One of the Crouch estates is TBN's ranch in Colleyville,
TX, just minutes away from the Dallas/Fort Worth International
Airport. The 80-plus acre ranch contains eight houses and horse
stables, is estimated to be worth about $10 million.
Mind you President Clinton did and President Bush does release
his total salary and his personal income tax to the public while
Billy and Franklin Graham and their friends do not. But .. Bill
Clinton seems to have more integrity and accountability than
TV Evangelists do in this area?
It seems that all of these family run ministries are bigoted
and see the dumb sheep as God sent to be fleeced for their own
hidden agenda and growth of their personal kingdom of which they
are kings and rule supreme and are not accountable to the public
but only to God. But they collect their money from people and
not God? And their tax exemption comes from the people and not
God? So whom are they fooling? Not God and not the people!
Is it possible that they are really crooks who use the separation
of Church and State to fleece the sheep as South African Evangelist
Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne had said, it was their responsibility
to fleece the sheep?
The leadership of the Assembly of God denomination both in Lakeland
and Missouri also would not accept the testimony of one of its
members Roy Aldrich that he was robbed and raped by money changers
and wolves in sheep's clothing in Carpenter's Home Church during
the so called "revival". But the State of Florida who
cared about justice, righteousness and truth accepted the words
and testimony of Roy Aldrich about the Straders.
The Florida State prosecutors proved their case and convinced
the jurors that Dan Strader, the son of the senior pastor Karl
Strader, devised an elaborate scheme to attract cash in the real-estate
and mortgage investments. He was selling the securities without
a license and that the securities were unregistered. This was
done in an organized method amounting to Racketeer-Influence
and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO Act.
Daniel, 37, was sentenced to 45 years in prison in August
1995. He was convicted of 238 felony counts for bilking 57 mostly
elderly investors, some members of the church, out of $2.3 million
by selling investments in properties that didn't exist or already
had liens against them. Others who were involved along with Dan
Strader were not pursed by the State of Florida as they felt
that the conviction of Daniel Strader was a good example for
others to take notice.
It is to be noted that Howard-Browne's standard biography claims
he once served as an associate pastor at Rhema. But according
to Rhema church officials contacted, Howard-Browne was never
an associate pastor-nor did he ever hold any pastoral credentials
or responsibilities. Said Kelmeyer: "Rodney was never an
associate pastor here. He was an ordained minister by the state
and a lecturer at our Bible school, but was not involved in any
form of pastoral work."
Howard-Browne also claimed a "doctorate of ministry degree"
from an obscure San Jacinto, California correspondence institution
called "The School of Bible Theology." A state Department
of Education employee contacted likened the tiny school, which
bills itself as "The Seminary to the World" and has
no faculty, to a "diploma mill."
While most doctorate degrees are earned through serious study
at through hard work at a credited University Life Christian
University of Tampa, another diploma mill, gives out honorary
degrees to prominent Charismatic Christians based on stupidity
and has stated:
"Many full-time ministers continue their education to
the doctoral level through our Distance Learning program. These
doctoral programs can include work in which the minister is currently
involved and advanced standing is awarded for published works.
Our illustrious alumni include such internationally-prominent
ministers as:
Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Theology
Dr. Joyce Meyer
Doctor of Philosophy in Theology
Dr. Kenneth Copeland
Doctor of Philosophy in Theology
Dr. Norvel Hayes
Doctor of Philosophy in Theology
Dr. Mike Francen
Doctor of Philosophy in Missionary Evangelism
Dr. Dick Mills
Doctor of Sacred Theology
Dr. Benny Hinn
Doctor of Philosophy in Theology
Dr. Kevin McNulty
Doctor of Missiology in Missionary Evangelism
So why are prominent Evangelical leaders in America so dishonest
about Doctorate degrees and are hiding their total personal salaries?
Are they ashamed that they earn so much or not enough? Or are
they Crooks and Liars? Mind you the latter is more plausible
for Evangelical Leaders in America, be they Billy or Franklin,
Graham, Bill Bright, Pat Robertson, Rodney Howard-Browne, Benny
Hinn, Jerry Falwell or others, have no integrity whatsoever;
especially when it comes to their own personal salaries and those
of their special friends.
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