Evangelists: Cashing in on Hard Economic TimesTommi Avicolli-Meccabyline‚ Dec. 15‚ 2008When times get tough, as they are now, people turn to all sorts of things for comfort, drugs and alcohol among them. According to a recent report in the New York Times, they also traditionally find comfort in that great opiate of the masses: religion. Especially of the evangelical kind. Evangelical churches are reportedly booming because of the fear and uncertainty that people feel at a time when unemployment is at a record high and more people in this country are hungry, homeless and without healthcare than ever before. Catholic and Protestant congregations are experiencing a windfall as well, but not to the extent of the fire and brimstone religions that make their preachers into media stars, not to mention very wealthy men. It’s a good time to be in the business of that old-time religion. As one evangelist preacher told the Times, “We have the greatest product on earth.” The world’s oldest profession might dispute that. |