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John Charles Hagee (born April 12, 1940) is an American pastor and televangelist. He founded John Hagee Ministries, which telecasts to the United States and Canada. He is also the founder and chairman of the Christian Zionist organization Christians United for Israel.
John Hagee | |
|---|---|
 Hagee in Washington, D.C., July 2007 | |
| Born | John Charles Hagee April 12, 1940 Baytown, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | BSc, MSc |
| Alma mater | Trinity University University of North Texas |
| Occupation(s) | Pastor, author |
| Organization | John Hagee Ministries |
| Spouse | Martha Downing (1960-1975) Diana Castro (1976-current) |
| Website | www |
Hagee has attracted controversy over his comments on the Catholic Church, Jewish people and Islam, and promotion of the blood moon prophecy.
Hagee was born in Baytown, Texas on April 12, 1940.[1] He studied at Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, Texas, and received a Bachelor of Science, and then studied at Trinity University and obtained a second Bachelor of Science. He also studied at the University of North Texas in educational administration and received a master's degree in 1966.[2]
Hagee has been married twice. In 1960, he married Martha Downing, and they divorced in 1975. In 1976, he married a member of his congregation, Diana Castro.[3]
He has a son, Matt Hagee, who is also a pastor.[4]
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Hagee founded Trinity Church in San Antonio, Texas in 1966. In 1975, Hagee wrote a letter to his congregation that he was guilty of immorality, after which he divorced his wife, Martha Downing. Criticism from the divorce caused Hagee to resign.[3]
Hagee founded The Church at Castle Hills in 1975. The church grew in size and following two expansions, its second sanctuary was named Cornerstone Church.[3][5] The church has adopted Pentecostal beliefs, including biblical literalism, speaking in tongues, divine healing, the prosperity gospel, and absolute opposition to abortion.[6] Beginning in 1981 in San Antonio, following Operation Opera, Hagee has organized "A Night to Honor Israel" events aiming to show support for the State of Israel.[7]
Hagee has been politically active. In 1968, he endorsed Democrat George Wallace in his bid for president. His advocacy included organizing and mobilizing a youth movement called "Wallace Youth".[8][9][10]
In 1996, Hagee spoke on behalf of Republican presidential primary candidate Alan Keyes, who in 2004 lost the U.S. Senate election in Illinois to Barack Obama.[11] In 2002, Hagee endorsed the conservative State Representative John Shields in the latter's unsuccessful bid for the Republican primary for the District 25 seat in the Texas Senate. Hagee dubbed Shields's opponent, incumbent Jeff Wentworth, "the most pro-abortion" of 181 legislators in both houses of the Texas legislature.[12]
On February 7, 2006, Hagee and some 400 leaders from across the Christian and Jewish communities formed Christians United for Israel (CUFI). This lobbies members of the United States Congress, using a biblical stance for promoting Christian Zionism. Around that time he received death threats for his activism on behalf of the State of Israel and hired bodyguards for protection.[13]
In 2008, Hagee endorsed Senator John McCain in the presidential contest against Barack Obama.[11] After Hagee's endorsement of McCain, a furor arose over statements made by Hagee that were perceived by some as anti-Catholic and antisemitic.[14][15][13][16][17] Following Hagee's remarks, McCain publicly distanced himself from Hagee.[18][19]
Hagee was the primary funding source for the Israeli Zionist group Im Tirtzu, until he cut ties with the organization in 2013.[20] He is also anti-abortion and stopped giving money to Israel's Hadassah Medical Center when it began offering the procedure.[21]
In 2016, Hagee endorsed Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.[22]
In 2023, Hagee endorsed Nikki Haley in the 2024 Republican Primary.[23]
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LGBT
In 2006, he claimed that Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for a planned pride parade.[24]
Catholicism
Hagee purported that Adolf Hitler's antisemitism was especially derived from his Catholic background, and he also purported that Hitler was "a spiritual leader in the Catholic Church,"[25] as well as purporting that the Catholic Church under Pope Pius XII encouraged Nazism.[26] Hagee also blamed the Catholic Church for instigating the Dark Ages, claiming that it allowed the Crusaders to rape and murder with impunity.[27] William Donohue, the president of the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights, rejected the comments and Hagee's explanations for them. On May 12, 2008, after discussions with Donohue and other Catholic leaders, Hagee issued a letter of apology, expressing regret for "any comments that Catholics have found hurtful."[28][16][17][29] The apology was accepted by William Donohue.[30]
Jewish people
Hagee has stated that he believes the Bible commands Christians to support the State of Israel.[31]
Reform Rabbi Eric Yoffie criticized Hagee for being "extremist" on Israeli policy and for disparaging other faiths.[32]
Hagee has claimed that Adolf Hitler was born from a lineage of "accursed, genocidally murderous half-breed Jews".[14] Citing material from Jewish tradition,[33][13] he claimed that the persecution of Jews throughout history, implicitly including the Holocaust, was due to the Jewish people's disobedience of God.[34][35][36][13]
In 2008, Hagee claimed that the anti-Christ will be "a homosexual" and "partially Jewish, as was Adolf Hitler"[37] and he also claimed that a reference in Jeremiah 16:16 to "fishers" and "hunters" was symbolic of positive motivation (Herzl/Zionism) and negative motivation (Hitler/Nazism) respectively, both men were sent by God for the purpose of having Jews return to Israel, and he suggested that the Holocaust was willed by God because most Jews "ignored" Herzl.[38][39][40][41][13]
Islam
Hagee has made demonizing comments about Islam.[42][43] Hagee has claimed that "Islam not only condones violence; it commands it".[44][45] He has also claimed that a contrast exists between Islam's "violent nature" and Christianity's "loving nature"[44][46] and that the Quran teaches, and Muslims have a mandate, to kill Jews and Christians.[47][48]
Blood moon prophecy
Hagee, along with Mark Biltz, made the blood moon prophecy, which they promoted in a 2013 book. The two men claimed that a tetrad which began with the April 2014 lunar eclipse was a sign of the end times as described in the Bible and the tetrad ended with the lunar eclipse on September 27–28, 2015.[49][50] The prediction was criticized by scientists.[51][52]
Global warming
In 2007, Hagee stated that he does not believe in global warming, contradicting the scientific consensus on climate change, and he also said that he sees the Kyoto Protocol as a "conspiracy" aimed at manipulating the U.S. economy.[53]
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