Jim Bakker, televangelist and ex-husband of Tammy Faye, dies at 86

Televangelist Jim Bakker died on Monday evening at the age of 86, following a career defined by building a Christian broadcasting empire and serving federal prison time for fraud, according to thewrap.com.

Lori Bakker Confirms Death of Jim Bakker

Lori Bakker confirmed her husband’s death in a statement posted to the Instagram account for “The Jim Bakker Show,” noting that his cause of death was not immediately revealed. It is with a broken heart that I share that my beloved husband, Jim Bakker, went home to be with the Lord this evening, Lori Bakker wrote.

Rise and Fall of The PTL Club

In 1974, Bakker founded “The PTL Club” (The Praise the Lord Club) alongside his first wife, Tammy Faye Bakker (later Tammy Faye Messner), as reported by thewrap.com. dailymail.com noted that the program reached up to 13 million viewers daily and generated an annual revenue of as much as $129 million. The enterprise expanded to include Heritage USA, a Christian theme park built by contractor Roe Messner. The broadcast empire collapsed in the late 1980s amid financial and personal scandals.

Bakker Resigned After Fraud Conviction and Assault Allegations

Bakker resigned from the ministry in 1987 after allegations that he paid hush money to church secretary Jessica Hahn. dailymail.com reported that Hahn stated she was sexually assaulted by Bakker at age 21, an account Bakker disputed while maintaining the encounter was consensual. Following his resignation, Reverend Jerry Falwell took over the PTL ministry and publicly criticized Bakker. In 1989, Bakker was convicted on 24 federal counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy after raising and misusing $400 million in ministry funds, according to dailymail.com. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison and a $500,000 fine, suffering a mental breakdown during the trial before being released in 1994 after serving about five years.

Later Ministry and Final Years

After his release from prison, Bakker established a new ministry called Morningside in the Ozarks of Missouri. In 2003, he brought on his second wife, Lori, to host his daily TV show, “The Jim Bakker Show,” which later focused on selling doomsday products for the end of the world. Tammy Faye Messner divorced Bakker while he was incarcerated and later died of cancer in 2007.

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