In October 2012, the Pew Research Center released a study on religion that found that one-fifth of the United States did not identify with any religious faith or church. All faiths saw a significant drop, but the most dramatic change was for the Protestant (non-Catholic Christian) church. For the first time in the nation’s history, Protestants make up less than 50 percent of the population. The top reason given for leaving the church? Greed. Many feel the church is too concerned with power and money.
Local news outlets reporting on this study pointed to the growing attendance and influence of Elevation Church as a bright spot in this darkness. The narrative was that Elevation’s a kind of model for the new generation of the Protestant church — a highly successful megachurch with the ability to reach young people and get them excited to do the Lord’s work.
By all appearances, these assertions were true. Facebook users fawned over Elevation’s pastor, Steven Furtick, commenting on everything from his latest sermon to his facial hair. Cars sporting bumper stickers of the church’s ubiquitous logo crowded Charlotte’s streets. The church band had the No. 5 album on the iTunes chart. Even my mailbox was full of slick, eye-catching flyers urging my kids to come in for special programs.
A year later came the news that Furtick was building a multi-million dollar home, visible only by helicopter, in a forest of thick woods in Weddington. Once the story became public, he called the home “a gift from God” and said he’d used proceeds from his best-selling book to pay for the 16,000-square-foot mansion, which is one of the largest homes in the state. (For comparison’s sake, Panthers owner Jerry Richardson’s house is about 7,000 square feet.)
It was revealed that Elevation doesn’t disclose Furtick’s salary to the congregation — or to anyone, really. A board made up of megachurch pastors from other states determines what Furtick is paid. All employees sign a non-disclosure agreement, with the threat of being sued if they leak financial information. This lack of transparency seems problematic for a church that is supposed to be a model for the new generation. Beyond edgy graphic design, a chart-topping band and a pastor with a rock star image, didn’t the Pew study tell us that more than anything, modern church-goers wanted to trust their churches?
Perusing Elevation’s website seems to confirm its priorities. There’s a tithing app for your smartphone, instructions on how to use donation kiosks, which act as one-way ATMs from your debit card to the church bank account, and a statement about accepting donations of precious metals, stocks, bonds and vehicles. If you’d like to contact the church for things like prayer requests, salvation or baptism, you’re taken to an online form to send into the Internet abyss. If you have a question about giving, you’re taken directly to the church finance office’s inbox.
“Yes, the church wants your money! Guess what? It’s not your money! God gave you that money, Big Boy!” Furtick yells out in one of his video sermons.
I expected a backlash against Furtick and these new revelations. Maybe not PTL levels of backlash, but at least an expression of disappointment from his followers and an apology from him for not being more forthcoming about where their money goes. Elevation members did react with outrage — but it wasn’t directed at their pastor. It was aimed at the media, for reporting these facts. His congregation staunchly defended him on every blog, every article, in every private conversation I had with them.
They said things like, “If [Furtick] was compensated properly for his good works, he would own Dilworth. Not a house, but the entire neighborhood of Dilworth, and it still wouldn’t be enough.”
A YouTube video of Furtick calling out his “haters” went viral. Cries of a media smear campaign permeated social media, culminating with Furtick’s brother sending aggressive, enraged tweets to WCNC’s Stuart Watson, who broke the story about Furtick’s mansion, while Furtick’s wife, Holly, cheered her brother-in-law on via her Twitter account.
The opinion that seemed to dominate among Furtick’s followers who spoke with me was that the church does so much good, a multi-million dollar home for its pastor is a small price to pay.
Elevation claims it has given nearly $10 million to charities since 2006 and gives 12 percent of its operating budget to local nonprofits. When you consider the offering plate is reportedly just shy of half a million tax-free dollars every week, that amount seems like nothing to scoff at.
When a church puts this kind of money into the community to help those less fortunate, is it then morally acceptable for the pastor to reap millions? I posed this question to other pastors in our community, but surprisingly, on the topic of Furtick, most were uncharacteristically silent about what was right and wrong.
Another area megachurch, Forest Hill, told me that an independently audited financial statement of its financials is prepared for its congregation and posted on its website every year. Like Furtick, Senior Pastor David Chadwick is an author, but unlike Furtick, he gives 100 percent of his book earnings back to the church. While Forest Hill leaders declined to comment on Furtick, these glaring differences between the churches and their pastors gave some insight into what they believe is ethical.
Mark Upton, pastor of Hope Community Church, discussed Presbyterian Church norms and what he thought appropriate in terms of pastoral compensation.
“You’re supposed to make enough to live at the same standard of living as your congregation, because a pastor must be able to move in the circles of people he ministers to,” Upton said, “but you have to stay within bounds.” He cited Titus 1:6-9, biblical scripture which says those entrusted with the Lord’s work must be disciplined, trustworthy and above reproach. “You can’t ever be cagey or sneaky about you get paid,” he said, “because then you undermine the trust of those you lead.”
I asked if he ever saw a problem with greed in his church. “We have the opposite problem, actually. Our church had to set a minimum pay. We had guys coming into the ministry because they love helping people, and they never insist on getting paid a retirement, they opt out of social security, and when they die, their widows are left with nothing.”
I asked what he would say to that large percentage of people who said last year that they’d left the church because it’s too concerned with power and money.
“There are plenty of churches led by guys making sacrifices. The body of Christ is very diverse, and you can’t paint it with a broad brush. I hope they keep looking, because there is a church for them.”
This article appears in Dec 11-17, 2013.
Matthew 21:12
And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves…
Think of that every time your pastor starts reminding you that God wants you to give the pastor 10% of your GROSS income.
Insightful article!
The purpose of giving to the church is not to pay a pastor’s salary and fund a pastor’s unaudited (unlimited?) budget. Yes, the staff of the church needs to be paid, but the purpose of tithing is to fund the work of the church. And the allocation of those funds — from paying the electricity bill, to funding community organizations, to helping people who are in distress — is decided BY the church — by the members of that congregation, who hold each other accountable. Not solely by a pastor. All is — and should be — transparent. I don’t understand this cloak-and-dagger approach to Elevation’s finances. Churches must avoid even the hint of impropriety — to avoid creating the appearance of greed and further driving people away. Yes, some things need to remain confidential ie. donors who wish to remain anonymous. But a church’s books should be without reproach.
Our pastors need not be paupers. What kind of people would we be if we demanded our ministers and their families live in poverty, and all of the stress and hardship that comes with that? I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. But — Elevation’s finances and pastor compensation reeks of excess and inappropriate boundaries, at the very least. It is very concerning and alarming for other churches, that this kind of behavior taints their mission and work.
Sigh, if only you could reply directly to comments. DLP, your use of Matthew is so out of context…
1) Giving 10% goes all they way back to Genesis – “Then Jacob made a vow, saying, ‘If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.’ ” – Genesis 28: 20-22
2) Jesus came to fulfill the law and never spoke against this in any of the New Testament. Not to mention, the money changers weren’t collecting tithes, but extorting pilgrims and the poor with over-priced livestock for the burnt offerings they needed.
3) Tithing is meant to sustain the entire church in all of its financial needs not just the salary of a pastor.
…Now, with all that being said. There is a history of independent, non-denominational churches running into issues for fraud and embezzlement because there is no true accountability structure or transparency. I love watching Elevation online and pray that they can change to a more open financial model. The work they are doing is really amazing and should not be overshadowed by stories like this.
Great article Erin! It baffles me how vocal Christian leaders can be when it comes to issues like gay marriage, abortion, etc. but when it comes to money… mum’s the word. Jesus was unequivocally clear regarding his feelings about the rich. Why do so many Christians continue to ignore those parts of the Bible?
I believe that the role of the Evangelical church is to help people to come to an awareness that the dominant narrative of greed, denial, anxiety, self sufficiency and so on will never give you what you want so come over to this world of trust, abundance and TRUTH TELLING, and that one will give what you want for safety and joy. If the church is faithful to that than our way of being in this world contradicts the way the world wants us to be. Now the problems is that most of us want to have it both ways but the scriptures tells us that nobody can’t serve two masters. The church is a place where the covenant people gather around the God of the Gospel who is going to give you a different life. I find it hard to believe that buying mansions, not disclosing financial statement details such as the pastor’s salary and so on it is far a part of the Gospel’s world. By the way Tyler, DLP’s comment was not taken out of context. To believe that Jesus was targeting the money changers at the temple by overthrowing their tables is to misunderstand the text. We as Christians know who the real targets were. If not ask Mr. Furtick, he knows.
Why not? Because hypocrisy is the core of religion.
Mr. Tyler:
Your rationalization about the “money changers” not being part of the church ranks right up there with the weird story I heard that the wedding feast miracle is not in conflict with the Baptist prohibition against alcohol because in biblical times people called unfermented grape juice “wine”. Apparently the faithful will believe, without question, anything that is spoken from the pulpit.
Religion is a business. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s your money, give it to the charlatan if you like, but I don’t understand why it is tax free.
DLP, the comparison you just made has absolutely no logical foundation. …again.
Jesus’s first miracle of creating wine vs. members of Southern Baptist Convention who abstain from alcohol has no bearing on your original argument. I personally don’t understand that belief myself, but you’re essentially saying “Oh look, those baptists have a whacky belief about the Bible, therefore you do as well”.
I’d ask for you to explain the connection, but the fact is that you can’t make a reasoned argument on this because the story of the money changers has no bearing on the religious belief of tithing.
Jesus threw out the money changers because the defiling the Temple by extorting pilgrims and the poor. This is completely independent of the Judeo-Christian concept of tithing. Both involve using currency, but besides that your original argument is pointless.
Tithing is about giving your “first fruits” (i.e. the first 10% of your income) back to God as a sign of faithfulness and thankfulness for His blessings. Let me repeat this is a gift back to God, it’s up to each person how they feel led to distribute that money. It’s also a responsibility of every pastor to remind their congregation of that at times.
Now to clarify, the topic of comparing Elevation to the story in Matthew may have merit if they really have forsaken the message of Jesus in favor of commercialism. But nothing that Elevation or any other single church does can change the fact that Christians are obligated to give 10% of their income.
Churches are religious institutions created by man, so they are susceptible to falling victim to corruption / greed like and individual; however, it doesn’t change my obligation to give to God. You just have to do it with consideration and thought.
Very well written article!
Wasn’t it kind of the point of the new testament to teach compassion, charity, and disdain for greed? Isn’t going almost completely against the word you preach to gratify yourself to such an extent that you could feed a nation with your bank account, but instead choose to build yourself a palace? All these movements show is how “en Vogue” narcissism is to the point that even the church is now preaching it. Disgusting
Tyler, you appear to know just enough about tithing to be dangerous. Those who promote tithing don’t know that it was only landowners who tithed – not tent makers or carpenters or any other worker. If you look at the descriptions of what tithes were, they were only food. (Leviticus 27:30-32)
Second, first fruits had nothing to do with tithes – they fit in a hand-held basket. (Deut. 26:2).
Third, not only did the poor not tithe, they were to “eat their fill” from the tithes. (Deut. 14:22-29, Deut. 26:12)
Fourth, as Christians, we don’t follow the Old Covenant. Paul clearly speaks against that in many places, but see Galatians 3 for a clear warning – to those who wish to live under the curse of the law. Read Acts 15 to see what the disciples had to say about following Old Testament law.
The New Testament teaches how to give freely and not under compulsion in 2 Corinthians 8 & 9
“Some people have…turned to meaningless talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make assertions.” –Paul, 1 Timothy 1:6-7
Im a Brit and have only come across your site so sorry for the late comment….Ive been amazed by how many false teachers..prophets etc are coming out of the woodwork in your country it seems new ones appear nearly every week…the naivity of the American people having their pockets literally picked by these godless wicked charlatons is beyond belief…The two things that binds all of them together is money and greed..I hear them preach some amazing truths from the bible but they obviously dont believe them else they would not do the unchristian things they do..Its why Jesus said many will say to him at the judgement ( Im paraphrasing) but Lord havent we done wonderful things in your name even casting out demons His answer HE NEVER KNEW THEM..in other words they never had a relationship with Him EVER..Its a business and a lucrative one at that…as I once heard from from a pulpit consumerism and physiology runs the show…the LOVE of money is the ROOT of ALL evil and its alive and well in 21st century America
What you need to do is leave this situation alone, because as I know for a fact even poor church’s withold their pastor salaries from public view. In fact, it is the norm in most churches to not discuss salary. How much do you make since you don’t think it is offensive to ask questions like this.
I left church becuz of Greed … plain and simple … whats worse is no one wants to talk about it … I was once told Im not saved becuz I dont believe in OT tithe teaching that pastors guilt you into believing…a wolf shearing the sheep is saved but Im not … hmmmmmm !
There is absolutely no scripture that teaches we are to support the lifestyle habits of a pastor.
Misinterpretation of scripture is why we have this cancer in our church. Its a calling NOT a career. A servanthood not a snake oil salesmen like Furtick. What an arrogant self righteous entitled pastor to promote himself in such a erroneous way … but many do and get away with it through great deception
We can thank the BGs of the world for paving the way for all the money lusts of the SFs.
There is a spirit of delusion on the churches that anyone would be ok with this
Jesus said, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge
How true it is
http://kensellinger.com/2014/04/the-visionary/
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)
6 But this I say: He who soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he who soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
7 As every man purposeth in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly or out of compulsion; for God loveth the cheerful giver.
8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound in every good work.
21st Century King James Version (KJ21)
The above New Testament verses say give cheerfully and NOT forced. In the OT, people depend on churches for their needs — urgent or immediate needs or for the poor people’s needs, and for the whole congregation to gather together and eat together (fellowship with God and with one another); therefore, the 10% tithing was justified. Anyway, give as your heart determines how much. Pray that God will lead you how much to give and how to give yourself to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. and so forth…