Jim Bakker | |
|---|---|
 Bakker in 1977 | |
| Born | James Orsen Bakker January 2, 1940 Muskegon, Michigan, U.S. |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 7, including Jay Bakker |
| Church | Assemblies of God (1960–1988) Charismatic (2003–present) |
Congregations served | The PTL Club Heritage USA Heritage Village Church Morningside Church |
James Orsen Bakker (/ˈbeɪkər/;[1] born January 2, 1940) is an American televangelist and convicted felon. Between 1974 and 1987, Bakker hosted the television program The PTL Club and its cable television platform, the PTL Satellite Network, with his then wife, Tammy Faye. He also developed Heritage USA, a now-defunct Christian theme park in Fort Mill, South Carolina.
In the late 1980s, Bakker resigned from the PTL ministry over a cover-up of hush money to church secretary Jessica Hahn for an alleged rape. Subsequent revelations of accounting fraud brought about felony charges, conviction, imprisonment, and divorce. Bakker later remarried and returned to televangelism, founding Morningside Church in Blue Eye, Missouri, and reestablishing the PTL ministry. He currently hosts The Jim Bakker Show, which focuses on the end times and the Second Coming of Christ while promoting emergency survival products. Bakker has written several books, including I Was Wrong and Time Has Come: How to Prepare Now for Epic Events Ahead.
- ^ Ostling, Richard N. (June 24, 2001). "Power, Glory – and Politics". Time magazine. Archived from the original on March 8, 2009. Retrieved November 9, 2008.