SIGNS AND WONDERS

Kenneth Copeland and Karma, ACNA Shakeup, Christians and the Paranormal

EDITOR’S NOTE: “Signs and Wonders” is a column that shares thoughts on news items that either do not rise to the level of a news story for MinistryWatch or are slightly (perhaps even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” My goal is to be punchy, opinionated, and not to worry much about being slightly off-brand. If that is not for you, no hard feelings. But if it is…read on.

Kenneth KarmaLand. Courtney Copeland Acuña, granddaughter of televangelist and prosperity preacher Kenneth Copeland, said the “gospel” her grandfather preaches is the same as the worldly ideas of karma or the Law of Attraction. “The Bible calls it sowing and reaping. The Bible says, ‘Whatsoever you sow you shall reap,’” Acuña said to Yanina Oyarzo, host of the “Similarly Different” podcast in an interview Oct. 27. According to ChurchLeaders, “The two women are friends, and Acuña is the producer of Oyarzo’s podcast.”

“The world calls it karma. The world calls it Law of Attraction,” said Acuña. “But when you say, ‘If you sow money, you’ll reap money,’ and you’re a Christian, the world wants to call it the ‘prosperity gospel.’ But the world literally lives their life that way.”

The discerning readers of MinistryWatch do not need me to refute this anti-Christian heresy, but I can’t help but call it out here for what it is. It’s remarkable to me that people who call themselves Christian still support this guy.

What A Difference A Day Makes. MinistryWatch published my call for the resignation of Anglican Church in North America Archbishop Steve Wood over the weekend. By Monday evening, he had not resigned, but did take an “indefinite” leave of absence. I have no way of knowing if our piece had an impact on this decision. My guess is…probably not. But there’s no doubt that social media in the ACNA part of the world has been ablaze since Wood was credibly accused of sexual harassment and other charges in a formal “presentment,” which is church language for formal charges that require an investigation and, potentially, a trial. Mark Marshall, writing on Substack, rightly understands many of the issues in ACNA today as having their roots in the denomination’s inability or unwillingness to resolve the issue of women’s ordination. If you are interested in digging deeper into this issue, I commend his recent article to you.

No NDAs. Robert Leland, a leader of the #NDAfree movement, says that a part of ACNA’s problem is that victims of sexual harassment and abuse do not feel safe in some ACNA churches. He believes that ACNA, and other denominations, should sign the “Can’t Buy My Silence” Faith Pledge. He emailed me after my most recent ACNA article came out: “In Canada, the Anglican Diocese of Quebec and the Anglican Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island in the global Anglican Communion have signed the…Pledge.”

The pledge is simple. It says: We pledge to never request another party to submit to an NDA to stop them from raising complaints or discussing incidents of sexual harassment, abuse or misconduct, discrimination, retaliation, bullying or other harassment in any instance including pre-hiring and severance agreements. We will not use non-disclosure agreements in settlements to cover up sin, silence victims, or avoid accountability.

I think signing this pledge is a good idea, and here at MinistryWatch we commend the efforts of #NDAfree.

DAFs and Year-End Giving. Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) can be great philanthropic tools. My wife and I use one, and MinistryWatch usually gets three to five donations per month from a DAF. But one of the problems of a DAF is that sometimes a donor can contribute to a DAF to get the tax benefit, but then forget the money is there. Over the past five years (end of 2019 to end of 2023), DAF assets have grown substantially, from $145.49 billion to $251.52 billion, or 72.9%. For context, the ministries in the MinistryWatch 1000 database take in about $45 billion annually. In other words, the amount of money just sitting in DAFs could fund the thousand largest Christian ministries for the next five years!

As we approach year-end, let me remind you and myself that the money does no good just sitting in a fund. Give generously to your favorite ministry, but don’t wait. With uncertainties about the stock market, inflation, and the state of the economy looming large, a great hedge against the future is to give now. (By the way, if you’re not familiar with DAFs, I recommend a 2020 article from MinistryWatch that explains them, their value, and some common objections to DAFs.)

Exploring The Paranormal. WORLD magazine had an interesting article about Christians who are promoting an interest in the paranormal. A sub-culture, including podcasts and conferences, have arisen to ponder whether Bigfoot exists. Some say this fascination is the result of renewed interest in the supernatural. Dr. Michael Horton, of Westminster Seminary California, says it reflects a growth in superstition, especially among young people. Charlie Trimm, associate professor and chair of Old Testament at Biola University’s Talbot School of Theology, said, “It becomes a problem if you dive into these topics and ignore clear principles about who God is and what He wants us to do in the world.”

MinistryWatch is “Best in Class.” Thanks to the team here at MinistryWatch, which just earned a prize from the Evangelical Press Association. We got second place in the “Best in Class” category for news websites. One of the judges wrote: “Some great content here—some of the smartest, most insightful writing and interesting ‘niche’ news around.”

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