Swaggart: The Unauthorized Biography of an American Evangelist - Softcover

Seaman, Ann Rowe

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0826412904 ISBN 13: 9780826412904

Publisher: Continuum, 2001

Synopsis

By 1987 Swaggart was one of the most popular video preachers in the world, with a weekly television audience of 2.1 million in the US and a worldwide audience of millions more in 143 countries. But then, in a cheerless motel west of New Orleans, Jimmy's life and ministry took a calamitous turn. This the tale of the rise of two intimately linked colossi of the American century: Pentecostalism, the fastest growing religious movement in the world, and its "evil twin", Rock 'n' Roll. A major theme of the book is how the religious ecstasy of Pentecostalism - the rousing music, the speaking in tongues, the reception of the Spirit - combined with its severe sexual repression leads to the kind of furtive acting out that brought down not only Jimmy Swaggart but also other evangelists. It is the story, too, of the rapid rise of the Religious Right, with its competing personalities and ideologies. In the end, the author sees Jimmy as a victim - like many others - of a primitive faith colliding with the forces of the late 20th century fame.

About this title

About the Author:

Ann Rowe Seaman, a native of Austin, Texas, is the author of Swaggart: The Unauthorized Biography of an American Evangelist.

Review:

"Jimmy Swaggart's story is inevitably that of rocker Jerry Lee Lewis, too, which helps Seaman's conceit of rock 'n' roll and Pentecostalism as evil twins. . . . Everything you ever wanted to know about the biggest televangelist who ever took a fall and his wild and wacky clan."-Booklist

“An intelligent and smoothly readable personal history that chronicles a fascinating slice of Americana.” —Publishers Weekly (Publishers Weekly)

“Well-documented ... honest, evenhanded.” —Library Journal (Library Journal)

"Engrossing, insightful . . . You can almost smell the funk: lust for money and fame, male rivalry, the emotional power of the pulpit, trancelike visits of the Holy Spirit, and raw sex."-Christian Century

"This respectful yet honest biography of Swaggart intertwines his life with two intimately linked themes of the American century: Pentecostalism and Rock and Roll."—Book News

"Richly textured, honest, tragic, ironic, respectful, Jimmy's story, entwined with that of his first cousin, Jerry Lee Lewis, intimately links Pentecostalism, the fastest growing movement worldwide, and its 'evil twin,' rock and roll." —Missiology

“A remarkable account of a preacher whose complexities provide a mirror on the lurching changes in religion, sex and media in the late 20th Century. That [Seaman] resisted the temptation to sensationalize, or satirize, certain sins of the flesh is one of the many virtues of her book.”—Chicago Tribune (Chicago Tribune Magazine)

Jimmy Swaggart could be an easy target. The former crown prince of televangelism, who channeled the Holy Ghost with unprecedented made-for-TV gusto and turned quickly on fellow Assemblies of God pastors embroiled in sex scandals during the mid-1980s, was the butt of many jokes after his own less-than-pure habits came to light in 1988 courtesy of a vengeful former colleague. But Seaman, an editor and native Texan, approaches her subject not with Old Testament invective but with a patience that conveys an intimate understanding of the man's world. While not an apologist for Swaggart, Seaman probes beyond the headlines for the factors that shaped the pastor's psyche and defined his world. The result is an intelligent and smoothly readable personal history that chronicles a fascinating slice of Americana. Swaggart was part of a trinity of first cousinsAalong with country star Mickey Gilley and rock icon Jerry Lee LewisAall natural entertainers in an intermarried clan of dirt-poor laborers and moonshiners in tiny Ferriday, La., during the heart of the Depression. Desperate to establish an identity within a family increasingly dedicated to the growing Pentecostal movement, Swaggart became inextricably wedded to his role as crusader. The final chapters bring the story full circle with a detailed account of Swaggart's 1990s comeback attempts (one capacity 1991 San Diego crusade was followed less than a week later by another well-publicized rendezvous with a prostitute), and the book ends with the indomitable evangelist preaching to a tiny church with a choir of four people. (Publishers Weekly)

This well-documented account of the life of evangelist Jimmy Swaggart is based on interviews with key people and a thorough literature search. Beginning with a fascinating look at his family background, the author traces Swaggart's rise from obscurity to fame, his fall (because of sexual misconduct), and his subsequent efforts to make a comeback. Along the way, the reader becomes acquainted with other celebrities of televangelism and catches a fascinating glimpse into behind-the-scenes religious power politics. Seaman neither whitewashes nor vilifies Swaggart, instead examining him and seeking explanation for both his tremendous accomplishments and tragic flaws. Though unauthorized by the Swaggarts, this honest, evenhanded biography strives for objectivity. It is also the only biography of Swaggart currently available. Recommended for public and academic libraries.AC. (Library Journal)

Jimmy Swaggart's story is inevitably that of rocker Jerry Lee Lewis, too, which helps Seaman's conceit of rock 'n' roll and Pentecostalism as evil twins. At a Swaggart service, "people stood up, clapped to the beat, sang out strongly and . . . there was barely a whisper of difference between it and that devil's music played by Jimmy's cousins Jerry Lee Lewis and . . . Mickey Gilley." Seaman keeps her ear on that whisper in the fullest portrait of Swaggart to date. She also probes Jimmy's wife, Frances, who, rarely giving interviews, remains an enigma, though Seaman asserts that she "never approached the bimbo territory that . . . Tammy Faye Bakker and Jan Crouch staked out." Fellow TV preacher Marvin Gorman pops up as the agent of Swaggart's downfall (see Lundy's Let Us Prey ), and as sources, so do Jerry Lee's sisters Frankie and Linda Gail and cousin, ex-wife Myra Lewis Williams. Perhaps this is everything you ever wanted to know about the biggest televangelist who ever took a fall and his wild and wacky clan. (Booklist)

About this edition

• Publisher: Continuum
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0826412904
• ISBN 13: 9780826412904
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 438