Why the Oral Roberts Obituaries Are Wrong
But still, Roberts always seemed to be dismissed as a "faith healer" by both evangelical gatekeepers and the mainstream media. And that, says Harrell, is one of the reasons why Roberts turned back to associating with Word-Faith preachers later in life.
"Oral was more culturally at home [at the Hagin camp meetings] in a way he would never be in a Methodist church," he wrote. "To some extent, Hagin had reintroduced Roberts to the burgeoning charismatic movement he had done so much to create. In a time when his ties to the Methodist church were shaky, the independent charismatic revivalists showed Oral a whole new constituency that loved and honored him."
It was to that constituency and other Pentecostals that Roberts appealed for the remainder of his life, as he was (somewhat inaccurately) tied to the televangelism scandals of the 1980s and the rise of the "religious right," and as he faced economic troubles regarding the City of Faith Medical and Research Center (it closed in 1989).
So when Roberts's 1987 fundraising warning made headlines and late-night talk-show monologues, it tended to cement views of Roberts that were already in place, and ultimately is a footnote to Roberts's story.
As Wacker told the Associated Press, "For true believers it made sense. For the rest of us, it was like, 'Well, all right. This is an embarrassment. Let's move on.' I don't think there's any question it was an embarrassment for millions of Pentecostals. But overall it is so minor, measured against the magnitude of his accomplishment."
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Related Elsewhere:
Earlier articles on Oral Roberts and Oral Roberts University include:
Q+A: Mark Rutland on Oral Roberts's Legacy | The Oral Roberts University president reflects on a man who had a big vision. (Dec. 16, 2009)
God's Man in Tulsa: The Life and Ministry of the Original Televangelist | Oral Roberts was a larger-than-life figure in American Christianity. By Roger Olson (Dec. 16,2009)
Healing ORU | $70 million and Mart Green's business acumen are repairing a scandal-scarred school. (September 3, 2009)
Fund Raising: Did Oral Roberts Go Too Far? | The television evangelist links receiving $8 million to the extension of his early life. (February 20, 1987)
The 'Handicap Icon' Gets New Life
Sidelining the Stigma of Mental Illness
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sebastian
There will always be both sides... however, there is and never will be any proof on healing by Oral....just a fact.
doranna cooper
Sorry, Mike and Abigail but as Christians we still have all our warts until we get to heaven and Oral Roberts had many. Yes, the University has produced some good Christian leaders and workers but he didn't bother to clean house when Richard was speanding money recklessly. I am glad that the university has new leadership that is ethical and responsible. I also question the number of converts he supposedly led to the Lord Jesus Christ, many Christian leaders of that era spoke "evangelistically" when they reported their numbers which were to be taken "with a grain of salt". That is why Billy Graham took the path he did in accountablility and honesty but some leaders in the prosperity movement still refuse to honest, moral and ethical. Doranna Cooper
mike ross
It amazes me, how the term 'independant' came into being, as though it is in any way associated with the True Christian Church. The Christians of the Apostolic Era, and the Early Church Fathers, did not apparently think 'independance' was a virtue. The Early Church , followed a set Liturgy (as St Paul and Barabus...were 'called' during such Liturgy, and with prayers..), and was interdependant, as in community. Such as the Lord Supper is called the 'Communion' of the Saints, the Mysteries of the Lord, the Body and Blood of Christ GOD. How did the folk religion of the Americas become some touted world standard of Protestantism, and all her cultic , sectarian sisters..? So, now, anyone who picks up a Bible and claims a 'calling' can call themselves a 'preacher of the gospel', only, just not according to the Apostolic Faith, and Tradition of the Church. God will be the Judge.