A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

A History of Christian Doctrine
in the city opposed the project, saying there were already
excess hospital beds there, but Roberts persevered. His
ministry suffered financially because of the stupendous
investment, and he had to make dramatic appeals for
money to keep the project afloat. On one occasion, he
announced that he had seen a 900-foot vision of Jesus
telling him to complete the work. He even stated that God
would “take him home” if he did not raise the remaining
eight million dollars that he needed. 278 Critics responded
that this claim in effect made God a hostage taker. At the
last moment, the owner of a race track in Florida gave
Roberts a sizable donation from gambling income that
enabled him to meet his goal.
Ultimately, however, Roberts had to close the City of
Faith because it could not sustain itself financially. Tulsa
did not need another hospital after all, and there were not
sufficient patients coming from around the country as
Roberts had expected. Roberts leased the facilities to tenants
and concluded that God intended all along for this to
take place as a means of supporting Roberts’s ministry
financially.
Other Healing Evangelists
A number of other healing evangelists also established
significant ministries after World War II. Kathryn
Kuhlman (1907-76) became the world’s most widely
known female evangelist. She never openly identified with
the Pentecostal movement, and she did not allow public
speaking in tongues in her services. In this regard, no one
knows exactly where she stood in her theology or experience.
Early on, she established a large church in Denver,
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