Swaggart Admits Starting Church’s Probe of Bakker

Fire-and-brimstone evangelist Jimmy Swaggart admitted today that he instigated a church investigation into rumors of Jim Bakker’s sexual misconduct, triggering Bakker’s resignation and launching a “religious civil war.”

But Swaggart, whose $130-million ministry is based in Baton Rouge, La., said he had no intention of taking over Bakker’s PTL empire and said his organization had nothing to do with the Charlotte Observer’s learning of Bakker’s sexual indiscretion.

Swaggart told the newspaper that he first brought up rumors of sexual misconduct before Assemblies of God denomination officials in a July 30 meeting in Springfield, Mo.

He said he urged the executive presbytery to issue a statement distancing the denomination from PTL so the Assemblies of God would not “be dragged through the mud” in any scandal but officials told him they needed concrete proof first.

Both in Denomination

Swaggart and Bakker are both ministers in the Assemblies of God. Bakker resigned from the church Friday when he turned over his $172-million PTL empire to Jerry Falwell, but church officials said his resignation will not be accepted until their investigation is complete.

Bakker has yet to name Swaggart, but in a videotaped segment of Monday’s “Jim and Tammy” show on the PTL network, he accused a well-known minister of a “diabolical plot” to take over PTL.

Bakker resigned as president of PTL, which stands for both “Praise The Lord” and “People That Love,” after revealing that he had paid money in “blackmail” to cover up an extramarital affair seven years ago.

A 27-year-old secretary has confirmed that she had a sexual encounter with Bakker but she denied any use of blackmail against him, according to a published report today.

Received ‘a Few Dollars’

Jessica Hahn confirmed the 1980 encounter with Bakker and said she later received “a few dollars” of the $115,000 that PTL officials reportedly paid after she complained to them about the encounter, New York Newsday reported.

She insisted that there was “no blackmail” but refused to give a detailed account of her alleged part in Bakker’s downfall, the newspaper said.

“I didn’t come forward in the first place,” Hahn told the newspaper. “There were other people who used the information.”

Hahn portrayed herself as a sincere churchwoman who has spent most of her adult life working for the Massapequa Tabernacle Church on Long Island, east of New York City.