John Hagee

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 {fact}.

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, fifty 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 third world 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.

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. 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. Hagee and Martha divorced on grounds of Pastor Hagee's infidelity in September 1975, and Hagee married Diana on April 12, 1976. . Hagee and Diana have three children: Christina, Matthew, and Sandy. Matthew is the Associate Pastor of Cornerstone Church .

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.

Personal beliefs

Hagee has denounced replacement theology, believing that Romans 9, 10 and 11 teaches that the Jewish people continue to have favor with God by the election of grace and as a people of the covenant their salvation is not dependent on belief in Jesus Christ. Hagee believes that the Bible commands Christians to support Israel and the Jewish people .

He alleges the land of Israel never belonged to the Arabs because sovereignty went from the Ottoman Turks who controlled the land prior to World War I, to the British, to the United Nations which authorized its partition and creation of the State of Israel. He claims the land was named Palestine after the ancient Philistines to punish the Jews for their revolt against the Romans, that there is no unique Palestinian language and most of those who claim to be Palestinians immigrated from other Arab nations prior to 1948.

Hagee has said Iran is a threat to Western civilization and that they will never respond favorably to diplomacy. He supports an American-Israeli attack on Iran to eliminate its alleged nuclear programme and supports the Neo-Conservative movement in the United States.

As a result of these beliefs, many in the mainstream of religious and political thought and belief regard Hagee as a controversial religious figure not necessarily representative of other members of his faith. Bill Moyers, a public television journalist, says of Hagee:

Someone who didn't know better could imagine from the very name Christians United For Israel - CUFI -that pastor John Hagee speaks for all Christians. Well, he doesn't.

Like other faiths, Christians are a motley lot. For example, the last time I checked there were at least 27 varieties of Baptists in America, and I can tell you from first hand knowledge, Baptists differ profoundly in how we read the Bible, how we read history, and how we read election returns. Evangelicals come in hundreds of sizes and shapes, and CUFI is just one of the legions of conservative Christian organizations.

You know some of the others -- Pat Robertson and the Christian Coalition, Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority, and James Dobson's Focus on the Family.

What these fellows have forged is a close connection between the White House and the religious right.

But they don't represent all evangelicals -- not even close. Look at this letter to President Bush from evangelicals who don't belong to CUFI: "We affirm your clear call for a two-state solution" "Historical honesty compels us to recognize that both Israelis and Palestinians have legitimate rights stretching back for millennia." and… "Israelis and Palestinians must both accept each other's right to exist."

Thirty-four leading evangelical leaders signed that letter in July.

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 . He has also spoken out against homosexuality.

In his book Jerusalem Countdown: A Warning to the World, Hagee interprets the Bible to predict 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. In a discussion concerning Muhammad, he claims Muhammad was a man of war and this influence on Islam is the cause of the troubles of Jerusalem.

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.".

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. 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. .

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) . 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.

Criticism of the Roman Catholic Church

Hagee has written about the Roman Catholic Church in his book Jerusalem Countdown:

Adolf Hitler attended a Catholic school as a child and heard all the fiery anti-Semitic rantings from Chrysostom to Martin Luther. When Hitler became a global demonic monster, the Catholic Church and Pope Pius XII never, ever slightly criticized him.

Pope Pius XII, called by historians 'Hitler's Pope,' joined Hitler in the infamous Concordat of Collaboration, which turned the youth of the [sic] Germany over to Nazism, and the churches became the stage background for the bloodthirsty cry, 'Pereat Judea'....

In all of his [Hitler's] years of absolute brutality, he was never denounced or even scolded by Pope Pius XII or any Catholic leader in the world. To those Christians who believe that Jewish hearts will be warmed by the sight of the cross, please be informed—to them it's an electric chair. (pp. 79-81)

The Roman Catholic Church, which was supposed to carry the light of the gospel, plunged the world into the Dark Ages.... The Crusaders were a motley mob of thieves, rapists, robbers, and murderers whose sins had been forgiven by the pope in advance of the Crusade.... The brutal truth is that the Crusades were military campaigns of the Roman Catholic Church to gain control of Jerusalem from the Muslims and to punish the Jews as the alleged Christ killers on the road to and from Jerusalem. (p. 73)

Later in the book (pp. 81-2), however, he praises Pope John Paul II for repudiating past anti-Semitism in the Roman Catholic Church.

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 .

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 . (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 . 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" .

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.

Books

• The Beginning of the End (1996) ISBN 0-7852-6772-7 - on the New York Times Best Seller list (NYTBSL) and #1 book in the United States in 1996 in the Association for Christian Retail non-fiction division
• Day of Deception (1997) - on the NYTBSL
• Final Dawn Over Jerusalem (1998) - listed as the #1 book on the NYTBSL
• 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) - second book in the fictional novel series
• The Life Plan Study Bible : God's Keys to Personal Success (2004) - 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)

Quotes

“Most readers will be shocked by the clear record of history linking Adolf Hitler and the Roman Catholic Church in a conspiracy to exterminate the Jews.” - Jerusalem Countdown (revised edition, 2007, p. 114)

"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) [1]

"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) [2]

"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[3]

"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." .

"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

External links

• John Hagee Ministries website
• Cornerstone Church website
• Christians United For Israel (CUFI) website
• John Hagee at IMDb
• Rapture Ready Bio on John Hagee
• The Nation magazine- Birth Pangs of a New Christian Zionism
• Pastor Strangelove, The American Prospect, June 2006 (critical)
• Holy War, The American Prospect Online, July 19, 2006