Jim Whittington
Rev. Jim Whittington | |
|---|---|
| Born | James Whittington February 16, 1941 |
| Occupation(s) | Televangelist Author Missionary |
| Website | http://www.jimwhittington.com |
Reverend James "Jim" Whittington (born February 16, 1941 in Dillon, South Carolina). is an American televangelist ordained minister, preacher missionary and faith healer. Whittington has been in the ministry for 51 years. His father, Rev. A.B. Whittington, pastored and ministered in the Pentecostal demnomination for more than 50 years. Rev. Jim Whittington's uncle, Rev. H.L. Whittington of Atlanta, Georgia, was also a minister who built more than thirty churches, and also lived to be 104 years old.
Ministry
Whittington's ministry is now aimed at Jamaica and the Caribbean area. His organization, World Deliverance International, donated three containers of chicken to the children and needy families in December 2011. There was 160,000 cans of chicken distributed throughout the island. On June 12, 2012, another shipment of food was delivered to the island of Jamaica, with 270,000 meals on it. 50,000 of these meals are designated for Maxfield Children's Home, in Kingston, Jamaica, the oldest and largest orphanage in the island. In the past, Rev. Whittington has been active in bringing in US $1,000,000 worth of textbooks. These textbooks were given to Penwood High School and two other schools in Kingston.[1]
Controversies
In 1989, the Internal Revenue Service began investigating the operations of 20 prominent radio and television ministries, which included the Oral Roberts minstry, Jim Bakker's The PTL Club, Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network, and Whittington's Fountain of Life ministry. [2]
Donation controversy
On July 23, 1992, Whittington, along with four other evangelists, was indicted and convicted by a Florida Court jury of stealing $848,532USD from a Lakeland, Florida widow, Valeria Lust, who donated to his then Fountain of Life ministry. Whittington served ten years in prison before getting released in 2002.[3][4][5] In 2005, Whittington was ordered by a U.S. District Court judge, Maloolm Howard, to start monthly payments to her estate after years of dodging repayment, according to federal prosecutors. Ms Lust died in 1995.[6]
References
- ^ Whittington, Jim "World Deliverance International donated three containers of chicken", Atlanta, 28 June 2011 Retrieved on 13 June 2012.
- ^ IRS Investigating at least 20 ministries, by Kenneth R. Weiss for the Spartanburg (SC) Herald-Journal, September 25, 1989, accessed September 8, 2012.
- ^ Evangelist may learn fate today, AP article, for the Wilmington (NC) Morning Star, July 23, 1992.
- ^ Fundamentalist TV Scandals, Fundamentalist blogspot.com article, accessed September 8, 2012.
- ^ Ex-Minister Guilty of Bilking Widow, Associated Press, July 25, 1992, accessed July 28, 2013.
- ^ Preacher ordered to repay $848,532, By Sarah Ovasak for the Triangle News & Observer (NC), November 2, 2005, published by RickRoss.com, accessed September 8, 2012.