Rod Parsley
Rodney L. Parsley (b. 1957) is an American televangelist, and the senior pastor of World Harvest Church, a pentecostal megachurch in Columbus, Ohio and the Founder of The Center for Moral Clarity. His Breakthrough telecast can be frequently seen on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. Parsley, a social conservative, is a frequent critic of liberal positions on social issues and has appeared at public events with Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, U.S. Senator Zell Miller, Ann Coulter, Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, and others. He has also been a guest on FOX News program Hannity and Colmes.
He is married to Joni Parsley and they have one son (Austin), who is autistic, and one daughter (Ashton).
World Harvest Church
In 1977, Parsley's seventeen person bible study formed the Sunset Chapel, and later Word of Life Church in Canal Winchester, Ohio. His church has grown into the current World Harvest Church which now encompasses 400,000 square feet (37,000 m²) and has a 400 person staff.
The church's first facility was built in 1979. That building is now known as Alpha Hall and is one of four buildings on what is now the campus of World Harvest Bible College. In 1986, ground was broken on 57 acres to build what now includes a 5,200-seat sanctuary, Children’s and Youth Ministries, Family Life, Ministry Resource Centers, a Bookstore and Administrative Offices. The church's main property now comprises 132 acres.
Future plans for the church include the Breakthrough Command Center, international headquarters of Breakthrough, the television, radio and direct mail outreach of Bridge of Hope. This state-of-the-art facility will include a 24-hour Phone Center and Broadcast Center.
Harvest Preparatory School, a private Christian prep school, operates on the church grounds. In the fall of 2005, Pastor Parsley launched Harvest Prep Virtual Academy, a college-preparatory online school available for 3rd-12th grade students nationwide.[1]
Breakthrough Ministries
Breakthrough is the television broadcast produced by the World Harvest Church. The show features sermons and bible studies by Parsley as well as segments concerning the Center for Moral Clarity.
Breakthrough is carried on 1,400 stations and cable affiliates, including Daystar Television Network, INSP, Cornerstone Television, World Harvest Television, The Church Channel, Trinity Broadcasting Network, ENLACE (which broadcasts in Spanish to 20 nations), Vision TV (Canada), and Europe 7.
Political activism
During the Summer of 2004, Parsley openly criticized Sweden for the arrest and subsequent conviction of Ake Green under Sweden's hate crimes legislation. During the same time, he founded The Center for Moral Clarity to address social issues and influence politics from what he considers to be a Christian point-of-view, but is most accurately described as a traditional conservative persepective. On October 3, 2004, Parsley preached a sermon titled "Uncensored: While Freedom Still Rings," which was in many ways the mission statement for the Center for Moral Clarity. In the two part sermon, Parsley expressed his distaste for the following: separation of church and state, same sex marriage, partial birth abortion, hate crimes legislation in California, Canada, and Sweden, sexual orientation themes in children's books, racism, and poverty.
A few weeks before the 2004 election, Parsley encouraged his congregation and those who watch his television program to vote for Ohio's state constitutional amendment to limit marriage to one man and one woman. He also encouraged citizens of other states with similar marriage amendments on their ballots to vote similarly. He was also a part of the "Slient No More Tour" to register "Christian voters," which he defined as persons who would vote the traditional conservative position on issues important to the Center for Moral Clarity.
Parsley is a Christian dominionist who has claimed "I do not believe that our country can truly fulfill its divine purpose until we understand America was founded, in part, with the intention of seeing this false religion [Islam] destroyed."
Parsley and the World Harvest Church supported John Roberts' nomination for the Supreme Court of the United States.
Parsley's extreme conservative standpoints and preachings calling for an end to the religion of Islam have led critics to label him a bigot.
Writings
Parsley is an author of several Christianity-themed books, including Silent No More, his latest, which was released in April 2005 by Charisma House. The book encourages conservative Christians to participate in the political process, and especially to make sure their votes support right-wing positions on social issues. Concerning poverty, Parsley writes that government should "get out of the way", removing many constraints on capitalism. Parsley criticizes Islam, stating that he "do[es] not believe that our country can truly fulfill its divine purpose until we understand America was founded, in part, with the intention of seeing this false religion destroyed.” (Silent No More, as cited in Holy Toledo by Frances Fitzgerald in the New Yorker, July 31 2006)
Criticism of Parsley
Parsley encourages a variation on the Biblical concept called tithing. Though tithing is taught by many pastors, the view held by Parsley (and common among televangelists) is that if one tithes, in exchange God will provide virtually unlimited blessings (usually emphasized as being monetary in nature), a variation of word of faith theology. Critics state that this is simply a means for Parsley to benefit at the expense of his donors, and cite Ohio state records that suggest his personal fortune sharply contrasts that of many of his viewers, including adjacent $1 million estates for both him and his father as well as a private jet. During one service he encouraged parishiners to 'give God his due' by taking out their checkbooks, followed by "and you spell thousands t-h-o-u-s-a-n-d-s." Parsley's claims to be able to heal the sick (often in exchange for monetary "steps of faith") are also seemingly contradicted by the existence of his son's autism and his own oft-mentioned "bad back."
Parsley is identified as a prominent player in the dominionist movement by both TheocracyWatch [1] and Bill Moyers [2]
Some have also criticised Parsley for his recent book, Silent No More because of the book's attacks against Islam and separation of church and state (among other popular social issues), and for his support of faith healing. Parsley has identified Islam as an enemy of the United States and Christianity,and went so far as to label Islam a cult during one TBN sermon.
References
- ^ "The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party: Ohio's Patriot Pastors", TheocracyWatch, Last updated: September 2005; URL accessed May 24, 2006.
- ^ 9/11 And The Sport of God Bill Moyers September, 2005. TheocracyWatch, URL accessed May 24, 2006.