Wondering about relatively new teachers seen or heard in the Christian media?  One of them is Joel Osteen, pastor of one of the largest churches in the U.S., the Lakewood Church in Houston.  He is also the son of the church's founder (and Trinity Broadcasting Network regular), John Osteen, who died in 1999.  Since taking over, Joel Osteen has become incredibly influential -- and he is on the list of the top 20 influencers of the Pentecostal/charismatic community, according to a magazine.  But all is not well.  He proclaims aberrant doctrine centered on wealth and success.  Read Jackie Alnor's new article just posted with this e-update: Joel Osteen: the Prosperity Gospel's Coverboy.     
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The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly -- We reserve the right to publish your letters and E-mails as it states at the bottom of each E-update and indeed at the bottom of most pages at www.cultlink.com.  Sometimes they challenge us, sometimes they anger us, but more often they bless us.  Click here to see some of our recent letters.     
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See the Catholic Answers page for Jackie Alnor's latest article, "But I Say Unto Thee." Over the past century, various popes have written their encyclicals that make void the Word of God. Take a look at the pope’s decrees versus the words of Jesus and Scripture. You be the judge as to whom is speaking the truth. (Click here to go directly to the story).      
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Extended Offer for June:
Ray Yungren's important book, A Time of Departing, exposes the deceptions of a new spirituality sweeping the planet. To read Jackie Alnor's review of this book click here. 

Cost: $10, plus $1.75 shipping.  To order this book by invoice click here to tell Bill you want it.  Give him the title.   To go to our order form, click here.  

    
The Christian Sentinel is proud to be offering the modified version of 703-page paperback edition of The Kingdom of the Cults as part of our resource list.  See our articles on this topic in the March and April E-updates.  (See also the Rische's statement on the book by clicking here.)  The late Walter Martin actually performed the wedding ceremony for Bill and Jackie Alnor more than 15 years ago in San Juan Capistrano, Calif.  Click here to go to our order form.  

Cost: $14.99 plus $1.75 postage.  To order this book by invoice click here to tell Bill you want it, and we'll get a copy right out to you.  To go to our order form, click here. 
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Read Christian Sentinel President Bill Alnor's latest book, UFO Cults and the New Millennium.  Price slash to $5 continues. 

In this 1998 book, which normally retails for $14.99, Bill exposed the dangerous theologies of Malachi York and the Raelian movement (the UFO cult that recently claims to have cloned two human babies) and other UFO cults.  A little more than a month ago York fell into more scandal by admitting to having sex with children in his cult, the Ancient Mystical Order of Melchizedek.

CRI President Hank Hanegraaff's Salary Now Cracks $250,000  
The Christian Sentinel Advises Christians to NOT contribute to the Christian Research Institute. 

Hank Hanegraaff

Spawned by clearly stated concerns and first hand knowledge of numerous alleged ethical lapses with the leadership at the Christian Research Institute (originally founded by the late Walter Martin), the Christian Sentinel issued a statement in June 2001 calling for the resignation of CRI president Hank Hanegraaff and also for people not to give any money to CRI.   Recently, due to the fact that some of the research links were broken, we decided to take another look at CRI as we were considering issuing a revision.  In addition to proven concerns that Hanegraaff committed multiple acts of plagiarism in some of his work, and the fact that CRI's top financial manager (and Vice President) abandoned his wife in Canada, we also noted some of our concerns over CRI's finances in that report that was based on its June 1999 990 form filed with the IRS.  We said:
These areas include Hanegraaff's outrageous salary at $147,500 a year (not including book royalties); the ministry's unfulfilled fundraising promise of some time ago that they would put the CRI library on line (which would violate copyright laws, and which also sparked a letter of rebuke from the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability [ECFA]); CRI's aggressive use of telephone solicitors to garner more contributions, and other substantive issues. (In the alleged CRI telephone calls, according to a number of pastors who notified Eastern Christian Outreach, a voice came on stating that Hank Hanegraaff wanted to talk to them. But instead they were offended to be subjected to a taped message from Hanegraaff asking for financial support.)
Although we are working on a new statement that will contain new details, we are renewing our call for the removal of Hanegraaff from that once vital ministry, along with the others we listed in that statement.  Part of our concerns have to do with continued multiple complaints we have received about CRI from Christian leaders -- and the fact that Hanegraaff's salary continues to skyrocket without any justification -- all while he condemns the prosperity gospel and has placed himself in a role of being a watchdog over orthodoxy.  In addition, after our publishing disapproval over his $147,500 1999 salary (that was well beyond the levels of CEOs of most ministries even larger than CRI back then), his salary shot up to $186,301 in 2000, $199,000 plus a $60,382 expense account in 2001.  And now in 2002, according to 990 forms filed with the IRS and accessible on the Internet at http://www.guidestar.org, his salary increased again dramatically to $251,886 plus a $17,301 expense account.  We were also surprised, according to the same documents, that his wife, Kathy Hanegraaff, who is the mother of eight of Hanegraaff's nine children, was inserted in an apparently new position as "director of planning" in 2000.  Mrs. Hanegraaff allegedly worked more than 50 hours per week at CRI (since that time to the present) and was paid $73,833.  Mrs. Hanegraaff's salary was then boosted to $95,000 plus a $14,160 expense account in 2001, which  decreased slightly to a mere $87,600 plus a $1,660 expense account in 2002, the documents reveal. But still, this made Mrs. Hanegraaff for the past three years the second highest paid CRI employee behind her husband.  First is Paul Young (formerly of Canada, and who was alluded to earlier) at a mere $130,000!  
In an interesting sidenote, in 1999 there were only three board members of CRI: Hanegraaff, Young and Everett Jacobson, and the financial books were handled by John Luker, then the CRI controller, who made $65,000 to Paul Young's mere $52,500.  But in the next year's report (2000), Luker's name was absent from the report and in his place was the name of Young (who now held  the financial books, the report states, as he was rewarded with a $25,000 raise -- up to $77,821).  At the same time, the report notes, Mrs. Hanegraaff was listed as "director of planning."  There were also two additions to the board: Louis Neely, pastor of the Warehouse Christian Ministries of Sacramento -- who just happens to be an intense golfing enthusiast along with Hanegraaff.  Also listed as a board member was Neely's daughter, Julissa, but her name was crossed out after the report was typed, and inserted in her place by pencil or pen was Chuck Merritt.  The 990 form lists 0 hours per week that Neely or his daughter (or Merritt) put into the job to help guide CRI that year.  (However, in the 2001 and 2002 reports, Neely and Merritt are said to work 5 hours per week on CRI matters.)  It is unknown whether Neely or Merritt ever looked into the plethora of allegations that have swirled around Hanegraaff and Young during the past ten years or so.  Several years back when the Christian Sentinel filed a report critical of some of the goings on at CRI, Neely sent us a note asking to be removed from our e-mail list.  This was a similar reaction that several other Christian leaders/friends of Hanegraaff had over proven bad news surrounding the CRI leader; they either ignored it or denounced it without looking into it.  (More in the future.)  We can't help but wonder, in light of his  legendary golfing outings that have become a matter of discussion  by various pastors coast to coast in the Calvary Chapel movement, whether Neely's five hours per week are spent on the golf course with Hanegraaff.  Ask him, using the e-mail link here, how many golf outings he has been at with Hanegraaff.  Is that when he puts his five hours per week in?  Press him for his knowledge over the serious allegations presented against Hank from multiple sources.  Check some of the links in our original CRI statement for details and ask Neely specifically how he has investigated any of it.  One other thought: if Neely was a serious CRI board member, why is Neely's first name misspelled in every single report since he joined? 
A few other 2002 salaries are listed in the IRS report, including CRI Journal editor Elliot Miller's $56,000.  Hanegraaff's car he uses is also listed at the end of the 2002 report, and "professional fundraising fees" (telephone solicitors and others who among their duties is to  hound potential donors and other similar services) went up to $532,598.  Auto expenses were listed at $51,175 and travel fees were at $47,569.
Of course, the bottom line here is to NOT contribute to CRI, and to ask all of your friends and Christian leaders to also not to give them money.  There is something very wrong with a ministry -- CRI under Hanegraaff -- that continues to constantly beg for money, often complaining of being  near a crisis, that turns around and rewards its clouded leader and wife with exorbitant salaries.  Hanegraaff, in fact, has received raises every year since taking over CRI in the late 1980s, even during times of war, belt tightening and recession!  You should also complain directly to CRI about excessive salaries of the Hanegraaffs and Young and to tell your pastors and other Christian leaders about it as well.  One last fact concerning CRI and money: almost all of its other employees are living on near poverty wages with poor benefits in what has become a money-making machine enriching a few people.  In fact, the documents reveal under the category of "other salaries and wages"  of non officers or directors, that the CRI payroll was higher in fiscal 1999/2000 than it was in fiscal 2001/2002 -- even though CRI reported bringing in $620,000 more during the later time period!
                                                                             -- By William M. Alnor
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Are the United Methodist Bishops listening to The Christian Sentinel?  We challenged the leadership of the second largest denomination in the U.S. in our April E-update with articles on false teachings of retired Bishop Melvin Talbert and an accompanying article about the outrageous salaries of the 51 UMC American bishops, which were set to reach $110,000.  We asked Methodists to pressure their bishops to rescind their raises and reduce them.  Now that's apparently what has happened, though at press time details were fuzzy.  According to a source close to the UMC leadership that was e-mailed  to us by a concerned Methodist layman, the denomination did just that.  Part of the message from a high ranking UMC leader reads: "The General Council on Finance and Administration directors reduced the previously approved salary increase for Bishops in the United States from 7.9% to 4% of current levels at their May 19-22 meeting. . . .  {They} also froze office expenses for bishops at 2003 levels because the reserves have been depleted.  I was only made aware of the Christian Sentinel by the article you attached."

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Summer News: Christian Sentinel Publisher Bill Alnor has been elevated to Ph.D. candidacy at Temple University in Philadelphia and is spending the summer writing his dissertation on plagiarism in the religious media.  He is also surveying evangelical leaders about this communication problem.  To learn more about Bill's "Plagiarism Project," click here.  He could use your help.  Additionally we have a new June update on the Richard Abanes and Winston Frost plagiarism exposes from our April E-update.  Tidbits from our new article that you may access by clicking here: Frost removes some plagiarized material from his school's website, while defending some of it.  He also issued suggestions and editorial changes he would like to see from us.  Meanwhile, Alnor and plagiarism victim Kurt Van Gorden became victims of harassment from Abanes and an associate as Abanes falsely alleges that Van Gorden "rigged" his plagiarism tables! 

Price slashed to $10 for June 2003 E-update readers on our popular video documentary 

The Great Apostasy: The Lost Sign
For us to send it to you today and invoice you for $10, plus $1 shipping, write Bill by clicking here. Click here to print out the June 2003 order form to mail in. 

This video documents the rise of religious deception within the church from the beginning of the 1900s to the present day.  Length: 90 minutes.  It is filled with actual film footage of preachers caught in deception. Jesus warned us of the great falling away.  Yet, many are convincing Christians this very deception is an outpouring of revival.  See for yourselves how the spirit of Antichrist is within our churches.