Comedian and host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight John Oliver slammed televangelists on Sunday for their greed and extortion as they enjoy mass wealth as a result. To mock the government’s absence of regulation, Oliver started his own church, called “Our Lady of Perpetual Exemption,” naming himself “megapastor” and CEO.
Looks like Oliver struck a nerve. On Wednesday, Christian minister Jennifer LeClaire said Oliver shouldn’t “mock what you don’t understand,” calling him a “false reverend.” LeClaire, who operates the Awakening House of Prayer, admitted there are abusive churches. But she does believe in the concept of “seed faith” — the idea that giving money to a church will result in returns for the giver. “[W]e have to be careful not to paint everyone who believes for an airplane or sows a seed to get out of debt as a heretic,” she writes.
Oliver’s segment hilariously skewered preachers whose fantastic displays of wealth come at a large cost to parishioners who they compel to donate what little money they have. They tend to believe in the conveniently self-serving idea of prosperity as a sign of God’s favor.