John Hagee

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John C. Hagee (b. April 12, 1940) is the founder and senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, a non-denominational evangelical church with more than 19,000 active members.

Hagee is the President and CEO of John Hagee Ministries which telecasts his national radio and television ministry carried in America on 160 TV stations, 50 radio stations and eight networks including The Inspiration Network (INSP) and Trinity Broadcasting Network. The ministries can be seen and heard weekly in 99 million homes. John Hagee Ministries is in Canada on the Miracle Channel and CTS and can be seen in Africa, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and is in most developing nations.

He is also the president and CEO of Global Evangelism Television, which telecasts his radio and television ministry. Hagee has received numerous honors and accolades from national Jewish organizations for his unwavering support of Israel. In pursuit of his support of Israel, Hagee helped found Christians United for Israel on February 7, 2006 as a "Christian AIPAC" lobbying Congress to support Israel.

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[edit] Biography

Born in Baytown, Texas, to Rev. William Bythel Hagee and Mrs. B. Hagee, John Hagee graduated from Trinity University, Texas, with a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in 1964. He was on a football scholarship and was on the Academic Dean's List. He holds a Master's Degree from the University of North Texas in 1966. Hagee did his theological training at Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, Texas, where he was president of his class and a member of the College Concert Choir[citation needed]. In 1989, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Oral Roberts University. In 2005, he received another Honorary Doctorate from Netanya Academic College in Israel. Hagee has served on the Oral Roberts University Board of Regents since 1989.

On August 26, 1960, Hagee married Martha. They had two children, Christopher and Tish. In October 1966, Hagee founded Trinity Church in San Antonio, Texas. He resigned his pastorate in May 1975 with a resignation statement before the church board, saying, "My marriage had collapsed and I became immoral in my personal conduct.". He told Martha that he was leaving her for a 24-year-old woman in his congregation, Diana M. Castro, only after resigning from his pastorate with the above statement. Hagee and Martha divorced in September 1975, and Hagee married Diana on April 12, 1976. [1]. [2]. Hagee and Diana have three children: Christina, Matthew, and Sandy. Matthew is the Associate Pastor of Cornerstone Church [3].

On Mother's Day of 1975, Hagee founded Castle Hills Assembly, later known as the Church of Castle Hills. Hagee's 5,000 seat Cornerstone Church was dedicated On October 4, 1987. Dr. W. A. Criswell of Dallas anointed Hagee and Diana before the congregation.

In addition to his work for GETV, Hagee has written a number of best-selling books. He is also a Southern Gospel recording artist.

[edit] Personal beliefs

Hagee has denounced replacement theology, believing that Romans 9, 10 and 11 teaches that Jews continue to have favor with God by the election of grace without necessarily believing in Jesus. Hagee believes that the Bible commands Christians to be supportive of Israel and the Jewish people [4][5].

He argues that the land of Israel has never belonged to the Arabs who now call themselves Palestinians[citation needed] because sovereignty went from the Ottoman Turks (not Arabs) who controlled the land for centuries prior to World War I, to the British, to the United Nations which authorized the creation of the Jewish State of Israel. He emphasizes that the land was first renamed Palestine after the extinct (and non-Semitic/non-Arab) Philistines to punish the Jews for their revolt against the Romans, that there is no Palestinian language and that most of those who now call themselves Palestinians immigrated from Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, and other Arab nations shortly before 1948.

Hagee has said that Iran is a threat to Western civilization and does not believe that the "Islamofascist" mentality will ever respond favorably to diplomacy[citation needed]. He supports an American-Israeli pre-emptive strike on Iran to take out its nuclear capability and supports the Neo-Conservative movement in the United States.

Hagee's preaching is considered relatively traditional compared to some other televangelists. He asks his congregation to stand during the reading of the Biblical text prior to his sermon, and his style is often classified as "hellfire and brimstone". Hagee, like some other evangelical ministers, condemns literature such as J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter, calling it contemporary witchcraft.

Hagee denounces abortion and stopped giving money to Israel's Hadassah hospital when they began performing abortions [6]. He has also spoken out against homosexuality.

In his book Jerusalem Countdown: A Warning to the World, Hagee interprets the Bible to predict that Russia and the Islamic states will invade Israel and be destroyed by God. This will cause the anti-Christ, the head of the European Union, to create a confrontation over Israel between China and the West. A final battle between East and West at Armageddon will then precipitate the Second Coming of Christ.[7] In a discussion concerning Muhammad, he claims that Muhammad was a man of war and that this influence on Islam is the cause of the troubles of Jerusalem[citation needed].

Theologically, Hagee believes in the "baptism of the Holy Spirit", the "absolute authority of the scripture", miraculous healing, anointing with oil, baptism by immersion, the importance of evangelism, and the "worship of the Lord through singing, clapping, and the lifting of hands".[8].

[edit] Ministry

Hagee was awarded the "Humanitarian of the Year" award by the San Antonio B'nai B'rith Council. It was the first time in the history of San Antonio that this award has been given to a Gentile. Dr. Hagee was presented the ZOA Israel Award by U.N. Ambassador Jean Kirkpatrick. This award was given by the Jewish Community of Dallas, Texas. He was presented the ZOA Service Award by Texas Governor Mark White. Houston Mayor Kathy Whitmire issued a special proclamation in his honor declaring Pastor John C. Hagee Day. Hagee has received numerous honors and accolades from national Jewish organizations for his support of Israel.

Hagee has been to Israel twenty-two times and has met with every Prime Minister since Menachem Begin. John Hagee Ministries has given more than $8.5 million to bring Soviet Jews from the former Soviet Union to Israel. Dr. Hagee is also the Founder and Executive Director of "A Night to Honor Israel", an event which expresses solidarity between Christians and Jews on behalf of Jerusalem, the State of Israel and the United States. [9].

On February 7, 2006, John Hagee and 400 leaders from the Christian and Jewish communities formed a new national organization called Christians United For Israel (CUFI) [10]. This organization is focused on communicating the need to defend Israel, in light of Biblically-based matters, with members of the United States Congress.

At CUFI's "Washington-Israel Summit" on July 16, 2007, John Hagee called for a pre-emptive military strike against Iran.[11]

[edit] Financial controversy

In 2003, the San Antonio Express-News reported that, in 2001 alone, John Hagee had received over 1.25 million dollars in total compensation for his position as CEO at his non-profit corporation, Global Evangelism Television (GETV). This made him one of the highest-paid televangelists in 2001 [12].

According to the Form 990 that GETV filed for tax year 2003, Hagee received almost a million dollars in compensation for his work for GETV that year, which amounted to approximately 16 hours per week [13]. (The GETV Board of Directors, which determines his pay, consisted of John Hagee himself, his wife, his son, and a Cornerstone Church member.) However, because he claimed that he worked "80 hours a week" writing books, singing songs, meeting international dignitaries and answering the call to preach the word of God, John Hagee argued: "I deserve every dime I'm getting". Other observers, including many evangelical Christians, criticize Hagee's handling of finances [14]. Considering his combined pay from both donor-supported ministries (his separate church and TV ministries), his pay has been over $1 million per year.

Hagee said he was certain his finances complied with requirements of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) because he hired tax lawyers and accountants to make sure that his books complied with tax laws. Hagee said, 'We want a set of books so that when the IRS comes in here and looks they'll say, those people are clean'", Hagee said. "And I am waiting for the day that the IRS is going to come look at our books. I have spent a chunk of money waiting for them" [12].

In September 2004, Hagee re-registered GETV as a church under the name Grace Church of San Antonio, and became exempt from filing detailed returns with the IRS. A further reorganization in July 2006 moved all assets into Cornerstone Church. [15]

[edit] Books

  • Day of Deception (1997) was also on the New York Times Best Seller List
  • Final Dawn Over Jerusalem (1998) was listed as the #1 book on the Best Seller List
  • His Glory Revealed (1999)
  • From Daniel to Doomsday: The Countdown Has Begun (1999)
  • God's Two-Minute Warning (2000)
  • The Revelation of Truth (2000)
  • The Battle For Jerusalem (2001)
  • Attack On America New York, Jerusalem, And The Role Of Terrorism In The Last Days (2001), revised version of The Battle For Jerusalem
  • Devil’s Island (2001), first fictional novel
  • Avenger of Blood (2002), the second book in the series
  • The Life Plan Study Bible : God's Keys to Personal Success (2004) as editor
  • The Seven Secrets: Unlocking Genuine Greatness (2004)
  • Life Lessons to Live By : 52 Weeks of God's Keys to Personal Success (2005) (daily devotional)
  • Jerusalem Countdown (2005)
  • What Every Man Wants In a Woman/What Every Woman Wants In a Man (2005), co-authored with his wife, Diana.
  • In Defense of Israel (2007)

[edit] Quotes

"Anyone who makes the life of Jewish people difficult or grievous, as did the Pharaoh, as did Hitler, will be cursed by God." - keynote address to AIPAC, (March 12, 2007)
"You will either offend the world and please God, or please the world and offend God." -Faith under Fire broadcast, (September 12, 2005)
"What is the point of having free speech if you have nothing to say?" - "How Free Is Freedom?" (July 2, 2006) [3]
"Jesus did not come to the Earth to start 285 squabbling denominations fighting over the Bible. How like the devil to divide Christians over the Bible." - "How Free Is Freedom?" (July 2, 2006) [4]
"If you live your life and don't confess your sins to God Almighty through the authority of Christ and His blood, I'm going to say this very plainly, you're going straight to hell with a nonstop ticket." October, 2006[5]
"All hurricanes are acts of God because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God and they were recipients of the judgment of God for that." [16].
"Why would you want to be politically correct when you can be right?" -The Revelation Church broadcast, (February 2007)
"The most important thing to the Christian community is not the environment but evangelism." "The Fish Gate" 9/2/07
"Christians don't steal or lie, they don't get divorced or have abortions. If the Ten Commandments were followed by everyone we would be able to fire half the police force and in six months the prisons would be all half empty." "The Fish Gate" 9/2/07

[edit] References

  1. ^ Vital Records, Bexar County, Texas, File No. 67599
  2. ^ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3944/is_200209/ai_n9110193
  3. ^ http://jhm.org/family.asp Info on Hagee's Family
  4. ^ [1]
  5. ^ Oped News, All Roads Lead to Jerusalem, by David Brog
  6. ^ [2]
  7. ^ Richard Allen Greene (19 July 2006), Evangelical Christians plead for Israel, BBC News, <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/5193092.stm>. Retrieved on 2007-10-12
  8. ^ http://www.jhm.org/beliefs.asp John Hagee Ministries beliefs
  9. ^ http://www.jhm.org/pastor.asp
  10. ^ CUFI Website
  11. ^ Rapture Ready: The Unauthorized Christians United for Israel tour (a Hagee organization)
  12. ^ a b http://www.rickross.com/reference/tv_preachers/tv_preachers7.html San Antonio Press news, Analisa Nazareno, January 20th, 2003
  13. ^ http://www.sxws.com/charis/mediaministers.htm
  14. ^ http://open-letter-for-pastor-hagee.org/ Internet Open Letter for Pastor John Hagee's Financial Use
  15. ^ http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06208/709076-84.stm Wall St Journal, Andrew Higgins, July 27th, 2006
  16. ^ http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6097362 Fresh Air with Terry Gross, NPR, September 18, 2006

[edit] External links

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