Ep. 453: Johnny Hunt and the SBC and Paula White’s Passover Controversy

On today’s program, a judge dismisses all but one of Johnny Hunt’s claims in his defamation case against the Southern Baptist Convention. The SBC has already spent more than $3 million in legal fees on the Hunt case. We’ll have details. Plus, Paula White is promising donors who give $1,000 to her ministry during Passover week seven “supernatural blessings” from God. MinistryWatch reporter Kim Roberts spoke with a scholar who specializes in the book of Exodus to dig into the Scripture Paula White uses to back her claims. And, a new report shows that 1 in 12 Christians could be impacted by President Trump’s mass deportation pledge…and a group of evangelical and Catholic leaders hope this and other findings will alert Christians to the plight facing their fellow brothers and sisters. But first, a judge says a Texas pastor must pay out $124 million to two sisters who say he sexually abused them as children. The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get database and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, and Casey Sudduth. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Jessica Eturralde, Bob Smietana, Adele M. Banks, Fiona Andre, Kim Roberts, Tony Mator, Jack Jenkins, Skylar Laird, and Christina Darnell. A special thanks to South Carolina Daily Gazette for contributing material for this week’s podcast. Until next time, may God bless you.   MANUSCRIPT:    FIRST SEGMENT Warren: Hello everybody. I’m Warren Smith, coming to you this week from Charlotte, North Carolina. Natasha: And I’m Natasha Cowden, coming to you from Denver, Colorado, and we’d like to welcome you to the MinistryWatch podcast. Warren: On today’s program, a judge dismisses all but one of Johnny Hunt’s claims in his defamation case against the Southern Baptist Convention. The SBC has already spent more than $3 million in legal fees on the Hunt case. We’ll have details. Plus, Paula White is promising donors who give $1,000 to her ministry during Passover week seven “supernatural blessings” from God. MinistryWatch reporter Kim Roberts spoke with a scholar who specializes in the book of Exodus to dig into the Scripture Paula White uses to back her claims. And, a new report shows that 1 in 12 Christians could be impacted by President Trump’s mass deportation pledge…and a group of evangelical and Catholic leaders hope this and other findings will alert Christians to the plight facing their fellow brothers and sisters. Natasha: But first, a judge says a Texas pastor must pay out $124 million to two sisters who say he sexually abused them as children. Warren: A jury says a Fort Worth pastor is liable for $124 million in damages in a sexual assault civil case—following a settlement that included giving the church property to his victims. In 2017, police arrested and indicted Jose Francisco Bernal for allegedly sexually assaulting two girls in his church's youth department at Tabernaculo de Vida-Iglesia (Tabernacle of Life) Pentecostal Church. The women, sisters who are now adults, claim Bernal repeatedly sexually assaulted them since they were 7 years old. Natasha: The COVID-19 pandemic interrupted the trial's progress until September 2022. Prosecutors dismissed the charges after a mistrial. The jury deliberated over 10 hours and could not reach a verdict. Warren: But two years after Bernal's arrest on June 4, 2019, one of the women filed a separate lawsuit against Bernal through the Tarrant County District Court. The survivors also named two churches in their lawsuit: Bernal’s Tabernaculo de Vida-Iglesia in Fort Worth and Tabernaculo de Vida in Dallas. Both churches are part of United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI), and the Fort Worth location is the daughter church of the Dallas church. Natasha: What’s happened to the churches? Warren: In 2023, the churches settled by agreeing to pay $100,000 and transferring ownership of the Forth Worth church pr...