Franklin Graham, Good News International Ministries, Unification Church, Korea, Legal
"Franklin Graham, the president and CEO of two of the largest Christian ministries in the country, has quit his organizations' membership in a financial accountability group that sets standards for evangelical nonprofits.
Graham, who leads Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, withdrew from the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability over new standards the group had set for "leader care."
The ECFA, which requires member nonprofits to have audited financial statements and to make those public, among other things, recently announced it was adding leadership integrity requirements to prevent the kind of abuse and scandals that have rocked so many Christian leadership ranks.
Just in the past year, Texas megachurch founder Robert Morris pleaded guilty to child abuse, Dallas megachurch pastor Tony Evans stepped back from leading his church due to undisclosed "sin," and the Church of England's Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby resigned over allegations that he failed to immediately report child abuse.
The new standard requires all ECFA member organizations to develop a care plan for their senior leader, including regular communication with a board-led spiritual team and dedicated time for rest, retreats, and physicals.
In a letter to the ECFA's president this past summer, Graham wrote that the new leader standards "put ECFA into the role of trying to be the moral police of the evangelical world."
"The Leader Care standard," Graham wrote, "deals with personal spiritual maturity and behavior matters clearly outside the scope of ECFA's expertise. While ECFA has proven expertise in nonprofit organizations' financial practices, it does not offer its members expertise in developing 'care plans' for leaders.
The withdrawal of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association represents the end of an era for the Graham family. Franklin Graham's father, the late evangelist Billy Graham, was instrumental in founding the ECFA alongside the U.S. branch of World Vision back in 1979."
France24: Cults, mass graves, 'encounters with Jesus': In Kenya, freedom of worship comes under scrutiny
"In April 2023, Kenyan human rights defenders discovered a deadly cult in the Shakahola forest. They exhumed more than 400 bodies from mass graves. The pastor of the Good News International Ministries, Paul Mackenzie, had convinced his followers that by starving themselves to death, they would meet Jesus before the apocalypse struck the Earth. In Kenya, there is complete freedom of religion – anyone can preach as they wish. But in this case, the consequences were disastrous. A trial is currently taking place. "
Korea JoongAng Daily: Unification Church leader Han Hak-ja indicted on charges including political bribery and destruction of evidence
"A special counsel team indicted Han Hak-ja, the leader of the Unification Church, on multiple charges, including political bribery, illegal political donations, and destruction of evidence, on Friday.
Han's detention period expires on Sunday. She had filed a request for a court review of her arrest on Sept. 29, but the court rejected it.
According to the special counsel, Han allegedly instructed or approved a 100 million won ($70,400) cash payment made in January 2022 by Yoon Young-ho, who was the head of the Unification Church's global headquarters at the time, to Rep. Kwon Seong-dong of the People Power Party (PPP), a close aide to former President Yoon Suk Yeol.
The money was allegedly given in exchange for favors, in violation of the Political Funds Act.
Han is also accused of conspiring with Jeong Won-ju, her former chief secretary, and Yoon Young-ho to funnel about 144 million won in Unification Church funds to lawmakers of a political party between March and April 2022 through a so-called "split-fund scheme," also in violation of the same law."
The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not imply that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly endorse the content. We provide information from multiple perspectives to foster dialogue.
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