The reason I'm so familiar with the issues below is that I worked for sixteen years at an executive level in full time "christian" ministry from 1990 through 2005. I started getting suspicious around 2000 and began shadow auditing all equity, real estate transactions and income streams. After five years of self-denial, I became increasingly aware of the enormous amounts of income and assets being diverted and converted from "church" corporate assets to personal income and assets of the Principals. I literally became physically and spiritually ill when I became aware of what I was involved in. Still in self-denial, and wishing to give the people I had come to love and trust with my life the benefit of doubt, I eventually mustered the courage to confront the Principals of the organizational church where I was employed.
The way fiscal corruption works in the church, is by 501-c-3 incorporation. First, a corporate "non-profit" is established and set up with Principals controlling the resources, especially real estate. Bylaws are established to designate who has exclusive authority to control these resources. "Elders" or "Board Members" are hand picked by one or more of the following criteria; 1.) Family to Principles 2.) Blind loyalty to Principals via fiscal, emotional and spiritual dependency upon, or domination over, and 3.) Active complicity on the part of co conspirators.
Principals establish the appearance of "fiscal accountability or "oversight" by hand picking "Elders" who may, or may not be complicit in the scheme. Two sets of books are kept, one set to generate fiscal reports to "Elders" and unsuspecting groups within the organization and another set records that record total actual equity and income streams. "Ministries" that generate "service income", especially cash income, are collected by persons complicit in fraud. Untraceable income such as cash is siphoned off and laundered through accounts established specifically for that purpose. The sophistication of laundering mechanisms depends on A.) The sophistication of the Principal B.) The discernment level of subordinates C.) The amount of the equity and income and D.) The type of income (cash or check)
TO BE CONTINUED:
Due to my state of perpetual spiritual immaturity, I was unaware of scriptural instructions for confronting corrupt leaders within the body of Christ. I had been taught; "If your brother sins against you, go and rebuke him in private. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 But if he won't listen, take one or two more with you, so that by the testimony of two or three witnesses every fact may be established. 17 If he pays no attention to them, tell the church. Matt 18:15
I cannot describe to you what a mistake this was on my part.
Matt 18:15 If I were more mature, I would have known; .... these false teachers, who claim authority from their dreams, live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at the power of the glorious ones. But even Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, did not dare accuse Satan of blasphemy, but simply said, "The Lord rebuke you."
Principals establish the appearance of "fiscal accountability or "oversight" by hand picking "Elders" who may, or may not be complicit in the scheme. Two sets of books are kept, one set to generate fiscal reports to "Elders" and unsuspecting groups within the organization and another set records that record total actual equity and income streams. "Ministries" that generate "service income", especially cash income, are collected by persons complicit in fraud. Untraceable income such as cash is siphoned off and laundered through accounts established specifically for that purpose. The sophistication of laundering mechanisms depends on A.) The sophistication of the Principal B.) The discernment level of subordinates C.) The amount of the equity and income and D.) The type of income (cash or check)
TO BE CONTINUED: