Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, whose ministry was toppled by prostitution scandals, dies at 90

BATON ROUGE, La. – Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, whose multimillion-dollar ministry and immense assemblage dwindled pursuing his prostitution scandals, has died. He was 90.

Swaggart decease was announced Tuesday connected his nationalist Facebook page. A origin wasn't instantly given, though Swaggart had been successful sick health.

The Louisiana autochthonal was champion known for being a captivating Pentecostal preacher with a monolithic pursuing earlier being caught connected camera with a prostitute successful New Orleans successful 1988, 1 of a drawstring of palmy TV preachers brought down successful the 1980s and ’90s by enactment scandals. He continued preaching for decades, but with a reduced audience.

Swaggart encapsulated his downfall successful a tearful 1988 sermon, successful which helium wept and apologized but made nary notation to his transportation to a prostitute.

“I person sinned against you,” Swaggart told parishioners nationwide. “I beg you to forgive me.”

He announced his resignation from the Assemblies of God aboriginal that year, soon aft the religion said it was defrocking him for rejecting punishment it had ordered for “moral failure.” The religion had wanted him to acquisition a two-year rehabilitation program, including not preaching for a afloat year.

Swaggart said astatine the clip that helium knew dismissal was inevitable but insisted helium had nary prime but to abstracted from the religion to prevention his ministry and Bible college.

From poorness and lipid fields to a household name

Swaggart grew up poor, the lad of a preacher, successful a music-rich family. He excelled astatine soft and gospel music, playing and singing with talented cousins who took antithetic paths: rock-'n'-roller Jerry Lee Lewis and state vocalist Mickey Gilley.

In his hometown of Ferriday, Louisiana, Swaggart said helium archetypal heard the telephone of God astatine property 8. The dependable gave him goose bumps and made his hairsbreadth tingle, helium said.

“Everything seemed antithetic aft that time successful beforehand of the Arcade Theater,” helium said successful a 1985 interrogation with the Jacksonville Journal-Courier successful Illinois. “I felt amended inside. Almost similar taking a bath.”

He preached and worked portion clip successful lipid fields until helium was 23. He past moved wholly into his ministry: preaching, playing soft and singing gospel songs with the barrelhouse fervor of relative Lewis astatine Assemblies of God revivals and campy meetings.

Swaggart started a vigor show, a magazine, and past moved into television, with outspoken views.

He called Roman Catholicism “a mendacious religion. It is not the Christian way,” and claimed that Jews suffered for thousands of years “because of their rejection of Christ.”

“If you don't similar what I say, speech to my boss,” helium erstwhile shouted arsenic helium strode successful beforehand of his congregation astatine his Family Worship Center successful Baton Rouge, wherever his sermons moved listeners to talk successful tongues and basal up arsenic if possessed by the Holy Spirit.

Swaggart's messages stirred thousands of congregants and millions of TV viewers, making him a household sanction by the precocious 1980s. Contributors built Jimmy Swaggart Ministries into a concern that made an estimated $142 cardinal successful 1986.

His Baton Rouge analyzable inactive includes a worship halfway and broadcasting and signaling facilities.

The scandals that led to Swaggart's ruin

Swaggart’s downfall came successful the precocious 1980s arsenic different salient preachers faced akin scandals. Swaggart said publically that his net were wounded successful 1987 by the enactment ungraded surrounding rival televangelist Jim Bakker and a erstwhile religion caput astatine Bakker's PTL ministry organization.

The pursuing year, Swaggart was photographed astatine a edifice with Debra Murphree, an admitted prostitute who told reporters that the 2 did not person enactment but that the preacher had paid her to airs nude.

She aboriginal repeated the assertion — and posed nude — for Penthouse magazine.

The surveillance photos that crippled Swaggart's vocation seemingly stemmed from his rivalry with preacher Marvin Gorman, whom Swaggart had accused of intersexual misdeeds. Gorman hired the lensman who captured Swaggart and Murphree connected film. Swaggart aboriginal paid Gorman $1.8 cardinal to settee a suit implicit the intersexual allegations against Gorman.

More occupation came successful 1991, erstwhile constabulary successful California detained Swaggart with different prostitute. The evangelist was charged with driving connected the incorrect broadside of the roadworthy and driving an unregistered Jaguar. His companion, Rosemary Garcia, said Swaggart became tense erstwhile helium saw the constabulary car and weaved erstwhile helium tried to worldly pornographic magazines nether a car seat.

Swaggart was aboriginal mocked by the precocious TV comic Phil Hartman, who impersonated him connected NBC's “Saturday Night Live.”

Out of the nationalist oculus but inactive successful the pulpit

The evangelist mostly stayed retired of the quality successful aboriginal years but remained successful the pulpit astatine Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, often joined by his son, Donnie, a chap preacher. His vigor presumption broadcast religion services and gospel euphony to 21 states, and Swaggart's ministry boasted a worldwide assemblage connected the internet.

The preacher caused different little disturbance successful 2004 with remarks astir being “looked at” amorously by a cheery man.

“And I'm going to beryllium blunt and plain: If 1 ever looks astatine maine similar that, I'm going to termination him and archer God helium died,” Swaggart said, to laughter from the congregation. He aboriginal apologized.

Swaggart made fewer nationalist appearances extracurricular his church, prevention for singing “Amazing Grace” astatine the 2005 ceremonial of Louisiana Secretary of State Fox McKeithen, a salient sanction successful authorities authorities for decades.

In 2022, helium shared memories astatine the memorial service for Lewis, his relative and stone ‘n’ rotation pioneer. The brace had released “The Boys From Ferriday,” a gospel album, earlier that year.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.