Chilean Report Describes Money-for-Miracles Practices at Universal Church Temples, Citing Limited State Oversight

The Chilean outlet CIPER, through reporter Rodrigo Soberanes, spent a month observing how the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (IURD) offers miracles in exchange for money in its temples in Chile. The report is presented as a second part of an earlier series.

CIPER compared its observations with a Criminology manual used by the Investigative Police of Chile (PDI) to identify sects. According to the report, the manual lists the handing over of members’ assets to a group as one characteristic of sects, along with charismatic leaders, a sense of rupture and distrust toward society, and clear and proximate practices. The manual was written by an evangelical chaplain of the PDI, David Muñoz Condell, and was edited by the institution for use by its detectives. The source says the manual’s descriptions closely resemble practices CIPER recorded in IURD temples.

The source notes that some evangelical churches and some authorities have viewed the IURD with suspicion. It also says the group has not faced formal problems in Chile because it has met the legal requirements imposed on it.

The report gives the following account of the group’s legal standing. In September 1995, the Ministry of Justice denied the IURD’s application for legal personality. The source states that the ministry later approved the group in 2002, after a change to the Law on Worship allowed evangelical churches to obtain legal personality, a privilege the source says had until then been reserved for the Catholic Church. According to the report, the Chilean state does not require financial accounts from the IURD or from the other religious entities registered in the country. The source cites the Ministry of Justice’s website, which states that the ministry “does not have legal powers to exercise oversight and control” over churches or religious confessions that are not public law bodies. The source adds that the Law on Worship does not establish financial controls on churches or require them to disclose information about their leaders.

A draft bill, which CIPER says it has seen, would change the framework. As reported, it would require religious entities to inform the Ministry of Justice of appointments of ministers of worship and changes to their statutes, and it would treat omissions, inconsistencies or inaccuracies in that reporting as sanctionable. The source states, however, that the draft does not establish financial oversight mechanisms and does not address the ways religious groups raise money. The bill was described as being prepared by the National Office of Religious Affairs (ONAR) for presentation to Congress by President Michelle Bachelet.

The report also describes a campaign called “Pare de Sufrir” that was underway in Chile, promising healing for the sick, including people with cancer or HIV/AIDS, if followers made financial sacrifices. According to the source, the method at the Nataniel Cox temple involves a small envelope with a printed Bible passage and a sheet of paper on which participants write a petition and the amount they will give, which they are told to keep secret. Envelopes are placed on a stage representing Mount Carmel, and worshippers come forward to collect them, a process the source says often leaves some people hesitating before the envelopes. The campaign reportedly ran until December 13, and the source says followers were told to avoid doubters who might discourage their giving.

The source also describes the church’s founder, Edir Macedo. It says the IURD has faced questions and judicial proceedings in Brazil, where the church originated, and that Macedo is named in those proceedings. A church blog published in November 2012, as quoted by the source, stated that God does not leave without reward those who sacrifice, and that unanswered expectations were due either to a flawed sacrifice or to God preparing the believer for greater things. In 2013, the source reports, Macedo bought 49 percent of the shares of a Brazilian bank the source names as the Ranner Bank, and it states that Macedo has no license to operate in Brazil’s financial market. Forbes is cited as the source of these financial details.

The source further reports that Forbes classifies the church as a producer of communication media. In 2014, according to the report, the IURD inaugurated a replica of the Temple of King Solomon in Rio de Janeiro at a cost of about 200 million dollars. The source also says the church is associated with the Brazilian Republican Party (PRB), which, in the most recent legislative elections, won 21 federal and 32 regional positions.

Source: Read the original report (translated from Spanish)