Brazil charges church leaders with embezzling millions from poor

[xchrom]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/sep/13/brazil-church-embezzling-millions-poor

Three leading members of one of Brazil's most powerful churches have been accused of laundering millions in church donations and using worshippers' money for personal gain.

The charges, unveiled on Monday by São Paulo's public prosecutor, relate to 404m reals (£150m) allegedly obtained from mostly impoverished churchgoers by leaders at Brazil's Universal Church of the Kingdom of God.

The money was subsequently channelled out of the country via a network of offshore bank accounts and money changers, federal prosecutors claimed.

Among those charged is Bishop Edir Macedo, a controversial televangelist who founded the church in 1977, and his financial director, Alba Maria Silva da Costa.

[patrice]

1. Q. What accounts for the rapid huge expansion of evangelism south of the equator? A. a ponzi scheme

known in some quarters as Dominionism.

[jwirr]

2. The name of the church sounds like a rw church and the actions of

the leaders does to. Anyone know what denomination?

[Meshuga]

3. Edir Macedo is the sleaziest asshole of all

His church used to fill Maracana stadium to capacity and they would carry out huge bags of money. And at one point you could fit almost 200k people at Maracana stadium. I am searching for the footage from the time I saw it but the image of the bags was unbelievable and very disgusting since it was money taken from very poor people.

[MisterP]

4. a Virgem chutes de volta

[LeftishBrit]

5. That's incredibly wicked

Has anyone else read or seen Moliere's play 'Tartuffe'? From the 17th century, but portraying a disgusting character type (religious hypocrite, who uses a show of piety to con and rob others) all too prevalent today.