The dropping of Swaggart’s TV ministry by the three largest religious cable networks also has drastically reduced his audience, which was shrinking even before the scandal broke in February. Sunday attendance at Swaggart’s Family Worship Center has dropped from 5,000 to 2,000. Swaggart was defrocked in April by the Assemblies of God after church officials learned of his involvement with a prostitute. The cracks in Swaggart’s credibility have seriously jeopardized his ability to regain his stature as America’s No.
Swaggart, 52, returns as his $150 million-a-year ministry is hemorrhaging money and personnel. “We’ll take it anyway you want to do it,” he said with a chuckle. They could be mailed in, tossed in the collection plate or handed directly to Swaggart after the service. We’ve always been about to go under.”Ĭhecks could be made payable to the Family Worship Center or Jimmy Swaggart Ministries. Ever since the day we started 20 years ago there have been too many people to be saved to hoard money. “I’m told that CNN this morning stated that Jimmy Swaggert Ministries was about to financially go under,” Swaggart said. Swaggart resumed his high-tech ministry by appealing to his congregation and TV audience to help keep his debt-ridden church financially afloat.
