Trinity Foundation (Dallas)
Encyclopedia
The Trinity Foundation is a watchdog ministry founded by Ole Anthony
in 1972 and based in Dallas
, Texas
(USA
).
Trinity has primarily investigated televangelists such as Benny Hinn
, Kenneth Copeland
, Joyce Meyer
, Paula White
, Robert Tilton
, W.V. Grant
, pastor Edwin Barry Young, and the Trinity Broadcasting Network
. Much of its information comes from disgruntled former employees, mole
s working for ministries who secretly (and under constant threat of termination and lawsuit) provide information to Trinity, and dumpster diving
for information. (Under American law, items placed in the trash are considered abandoned and thus can be legally obtained by anyone.)
The Trinity Foundation has an extensive video library of televangelists. They routinely take notes of the televangelists broadcasts. The notes go back at least ten years for most shows that air on religious networks. This information is used to aid reporters who are investigating televangelists. The head investigator at The Trinity Foundation is Pete Evans, who is a private investigator.
Regarding Hinn, Trinity claims to have evidence showing that Hinn's ministry does not qualify as a church under Internal Revenue Service
guidelines, as reported by The Dallas Morning News
in July 2005. Specifically, Trinity claims that Hinn's ministry does not hold regular public worship services at its facility, as access is strictly limited to employees with access badges.
Trinity has also investigated the St. Matthew's Churches
, a "seed-faith ministry" which targets the poorest zip codes in America with religious mailings.
Since 1996, Trinity has published The Wittenburg Door
, a Christian satire and humor magazine.
Former members of the group have been critical of it and Anthony.
Ole Anthony
Ole Anthony , a native of Minnesota, is the current editor of The Door, a magazine of Christian satire. He was the subject of a lengthy profile in the December 6, 2004, issue of The New Yorker. As head of the Trinity Foundation, he is also involved in investigating the financial activities and...
in 1972 and based in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
).
Trinity has primarily investigated televangelists such as Benny Hinn
Benny Hinn
Toufik Benedictus "Benny" Hinn הין; born December 3, 1952) is a televangelist, best known for his regular "Miracle Crusades" – revival meeting/faith healing summits that are usually held in large stadiums in major cities, which are later broadcast worldwide on his television program, This Is Your...
, Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland
Kenneth Copeland is an American author, public speaker, and televangelist. He is the founder of Kenneth Copeland Ministries, which preaches a “prosperity gospel”: "Prosperity gospel assures followers that the more they give including in the form of tithes to the church, the more they will receive...
, Joyce Meyer
Joyce Meyer
Joyce Meyer is a Charismatic Christian author and speaker. Meyer and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her ministry is headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Fenton, Missouri.-Early life:Meyer was born Pauline Joyce Hutchison in south St. Louis in...
, Paula White
Paula White
Paula Michelle White is a Christian author, speaker, and church leader. She is co-founder of Without Walls International Church; a large, influential, non-denominational, charismatic church with two locations in Florida...
, Robert Tilton
Robert Tilton
Robert Tilton is an American televangelist who achieved notoriety in the 1980s and early 1990s through his infomercial-styled religious television program Success-N-Life, which at its peak in 1991 aired in all 235 American TV markets , brought in nearly $80 million per year, and was described as...
, W.V. Grant
W.V. Grant
Walter Vinson Grant, Jr., who goes by W. V. Grant, is an American televangelist whose ministry has been based in the Dallas, Texas, area...
, pastor Edwin Barry Young, and the Trinity Broadcasting Network
Trinity Broadcasting Network
The Trinity Broadcasting Network is a major American Christian television network. TBN is based in Costa Mesa, California, with auxiliary studio facilities in Irving, Texas; Hendersonville, Tennessee; Gadsden, Alabama; Decatur, Georgia; Miami, Florida; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Orlando, Florida; and New...
. Much of its information comes from disgruntled former employees, mole
Mole (espionage)
A mole is a spy who works for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty ostensibly lies with his own nation's government. In some usage, a mole differs from a defector in that a mole is a spy before gaining access to classified information, while a defector becomes a spy only after gaining access...
s working for ministries who secretly (and under constant threat of termination and lawsuit) provide information to Trinity, and dumpster diving
Dumpster diving
Dumpster diving is the practice of sifting through commercial or residential trash to find items that have been discarded by their owners, but that may be useful to the dumpster diver.-Etymology and alternate names:...
for information. (Under American law, items placed in the trash are considered abandoned and thus can be legally obtained by anyone.)
The Trinity Foundation has an extensive video library of televangelists. They routinely take notes of the televangelists broadcasts. The notes go back at least ten years for most shows that air on religious networks. This information is used to aid reporters who are investigating televangelists. The head investigator at The Trinity Foundation is Pete Evans, who is a private investigator.
Regarding Hinn, Trinity claims to have evidence showing that Hinn's ministry does not qualify as a church under Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
guidelines, as reported by The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News is the major daily newspaper serving the Dallas, Texas area, with a circulation of 264,459 subscribers, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported in September 2010...
in July 2005. Specifically, Trinity claims that Hinn's ministry does not hold regular public worship services at its facility, as access is strictly limited to employees with access badges.
Trinity has also investigated the St. Matthew's Churches
St. Matthew's Churches
St. Matthew's Churches, formally St. Matthew Publishing Inc., is an evangelical "Christian ministry". It is primarily a mail-based "ministry" with an address in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with churches in New York and Houston. In 1999 St. Matthew Publishing Inc. reported $26.8 million in revenue...
, a "seed-faith ministry" which targets the poorest zip codes in America with religious mailings.
Since 1996, Trinity has published The Wittenburg Door
The Door (satirical Christian magazine)
The Wittenburg Door, sometimes known as simply The Door, is a Christian satire and humor magazine, published bimonthly by Dallas, Texas USA based, non-profit Trinity Foundation. The publication bills itself as "The World's Pretty Much Only Religious Satire Magazine"....
, a Christian satire and humor magazine.
Former members of the group have been critical of it and Anthony.