Hey, Millionaire! You know that we love money on this channel. And that's what we're all
here for! But money can only help you in this life - when you go to heaven, you can't take
it with you. So, for balance, you should probably make a stop at your church. Your pastor will
be able to look after your spiritual side while we take care of the physical world.
That'll help you balance your life because we're all about cold hard cash. But religion
is about living with less so you can give more to others. Well, usually. These pastors
seem to be more on your side than on the right hand of God. They've forgotten about worshiping
Jesus and seem to have decided to worship money instead. Let's have a closer look at
these men who preach the word of god to others while praying to the god of money in their
spare time.
10. Kenneth Copeland Kenneth Copeland is a super famous American
televangelist who founded his Eagle Mountain International Church back in 1967. But exactly
how did this religious man end up with an estimated net worth of $760 million? Well,
it's simple. He preaches to his followers that they should donate generously to the
church and, in return, God will shower them with riches when they get to heaven. Maybe
god will do that, and maybe he won't. But either way, Copeland sure is being showered
with riches right now. All his followers' donations seem to pay for an incredibly lavish
lifestyle. Copeland lives in an 18,000-square-foot luxury waterfront apartment near Fort Worth.
It's so big that there's actually a bridge inside it. Its value is around $7 million,
but because he's claimed it as a "clergy residence," he gets to stay there 100% tax-free. Which
is good for him because otherwise, he'd have to pay an annual property tax of around $150,000.
According to Copeland, if you ever drive past his giant house, you'll know there is a god.
Maybe that's why everyone keeps giving him their money. There's also a tennis court,
two garages, and a boat house on the property, as well as a private airport for the $20 million
private jet and the other slightly smaller jet. He says God wants everyone to be financially
successful. And if that's true, he's definitely following God's word.
9. Bishop T. D. Jakes Bishop T. D. Jakes describes himself as a
"mastermind" on his own website, so that should give you some idea of what you're in for.
He's been called America's best preacher and has featured on the cover of Time magazine,
and he has the cash to show for his fame. He's worth an estimated $150 million. Sure,
maybe not all of that comes from his preaching since he's also well known as a film producer,
which is not a job you often see pastors doing. Despite his huge net worth, he's sure not
losing followers. His church, Potter's House, has 30,000 members, all offering donations.
But I guess it's not surprising that he gets so much attention - you wouldn't expect anything
different for someone who spoke at President Obama's inauguration.
8. Jesse Duplantis Jesse Duplantis is yet another Charismatic
Evangelical preacher. He founded Jesse Duplantis Ministries in 1976 and has since opened branches
around the US, UK, and Australia. He's also a successful author, with more books to his
name than I can count. But even among charismatic preachers, Jesse has a pretty unique approach
to getting rich. Usually, pastors like him promise riches in heaven in exchange for donations.
On the other hand, Jesse is on record as openly asking his followers to contribute to his
purchase of a $54 million private jet. And they did. He has an estimated net worth of
$50 million. I wish I could convince people to give me money that way.
Do you think you could get people to give you money by just asking like Pastor Jesse
did? How would you do it? Let us know in the comments!
7. David Oyedepo It's one thing to make loads of cash in America.
It's a lot harder if you're working in a developing country. But that hasn't stopped David Oyedepo.
This Nigerian pastor is the founder and presiding bishop of Living Faith Church World Wide - better
known as Winner's Chapel. That's no small thing - the church auditorium where he preaches
can seat 50,000 people! Every single person in that auditorium must donate to David because
his net worth is estimated to be $150 million! He supposedly owns mansions in the UK and
US, as well as a private jet. It just goes to show that it doesn't matter where you come
from, you can still get rich if you take advantage of people.
6. Pat Robertson. Pat Robertson served in the US Marine Corps
before heading off to law school. But his life changed when he failed his exams. When
he realized he couldn't be a lawyer, he started studying religion instead. That might be the
best decision he ever made for himself. After completing his studies, he launched the Christian
Broadcasting Network, and it took off in a big way. Soon, it was being broadcast in 180
countries, and Robertson found himself with a net worth of around $100 million! These
days, he runs multiple countries, including the Christian Coalition, which raises money
for conservative political candidates. I'll bet he started that one after he tried to
run for president in the 80s and lost. Don't be sad, Pat - you're filthy rich. You didn't
need to be president too.
5. Benny Hinn Benny Hinn was born in Israel, so it's quite
surprising that he made a name for himself as a televangelist. It all started when a
classmate introduced Benny to prayer meetings at school. His family wasn't too happy about
Benny converting to Christianity. But he didn't care - he was determined, and it paid off
big time. After attending a healing service by Kathryn Kuhlman, he knew what he wanted
to do. He opened the Orlando Christian Center in 1983 and was soon filling stadiums all
around the world with his miracle healing crusades. They're exactly what you think they
are - he goes around claiming to cure people who can't be helped by medical science. I
don't know if he really helps anyone, but his followers sure help him - he has an estimated
net worth of $60 million, and his ministries bring in about $100 million per year. With
that kind of cash floating around, you might be surprised to learn that his church was
taken to court in 2021 for $31 million worth of unpaid bills. Oops.
What's your opinion on these prosperity preachers? Tell us in the comments! And keep watching
to find out who's in our top spot!
4. Creflo Dollar With a name like Creflo Dollar, this man was
almost destined to worship money. He's the founder of World Changers Church, the publisher
of two international faith magazines, and the author of 10 books. He's also the owner
of a $1 million home in Atlanta, a $2.5 million residence in Manhattan, a private jet, and
two Rolls Royces. Most sources say his net worth is around $27 million, but even though
he's not the richest man on this list, he's known for his lavish lifestyle. In fact, his
life was so lavish that he found himself named in an inquiry into several pastors who are
suspected of misusing churchgoers' donations. He denies any wrongdoing, but I'd like to
hear him try to explain those two Rolls Royces in his garage.
3. Joyce Meyer Pastor Joyce Meyer, also known as Pauline
Joyce Hutchison, is the only woman on this list, so you'd be forgiven for thinking she
was different from the rest of the people I've mentioned. But she's not. She became
a born-again Christian in elementary school to cope with an abusive home life. Soon, she
was doing Bible study classes that became so popular that Joyce decided to start broadcasting
them on the radio. In 1985, she formed her own ministry called Life in the Term, and
by 1995 she had her own TV show called Enjoying Everyday Life. Now, Joyce Meyer Ministries
shares her teachings via TV shows, Podcasts, and conferences every day. That, combined
with all her books, has made Joyce pretty wealthy. Her net worth is estimated at around
$25 million, and she's known to arrive at conferences in her $10 million private jet,
so everyone knows just how much cash she has.
2. John Hagee You might have already heard of the Reverend
John Hagee. That's because he's the founder of the Cornerstone Pentecostal Megachurch,
one of the most successful Christian organizations in the entire world. As if that wasn't enough,
he's also CEO of John Hagee Ministries - a faith-based multimedia empire - and he serves
as CEO for Christian Evangelism Television. Despite all that, he still has one of the
more modest bank balances, with a net worth of about $5 million. That doesn't sound like
much until you learn that he's also the owner of a $5.5 million ranch in Texas and a 3-engine
jet valued at $20 million. Now that sounds more like it.
And finally, the money-worshiping pastor in our top spot is...
1. Jamal Bryant Pastor Jamal Bryant started his career as
a high-school dropout. But that didn't seem to harm his bank balance. He opened his own
church in Baltimore, and it made him famous - so famous that people started paying huge
amounts of money for him to preach at their church. When bishop Eddie Long passed away,
the board of trustees at New Hope Church knew they wanted Bryant to take over. But he already
had his own church and a comfortable life. So, they convinced him to leave by tripling
his salary, giving him a mansion, and cutting down his schedule from 3 sermons to just 1
every Sunday. He currently has a net worth of about $20 million, but not just from his
salary. Apparently, his speaking fee is huge, but it doesn't seem to stop people from booking
him.