Famed television evangelist Jimmy Swaggart has died at 90. The death was announced via Facebook by Jimmy Swaggart Ministries.

“Today, our hearts are heavy as we share that Brother Swaggart has finished his earthly race and entered into the presence of His Savior, Jesus Christ. Today was the day he has sung about for decades. He met his beloved Savior and entered the portals of glory. At the same time, we rejoice knowing that we will see him again one day,” the post said.

“He was not just a preacher—he was a worshiper, a warrior, and a witness to the grace and mercy of God. He was a man whose faith was steadfast and always entered whatever door the Lord opened. And the Lord honored that faith,” it added.

Swaggart had been hospitalized since June 15 when he suffered a cardiac arrest at his Louisiana home.

Famous family members

A native of Ferriday, Louisiana, Jimmie Swaggart is the co-pastor of Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge. A fiery orator renowned for his emotionally charged sermons and bombastic musical style, he is the cousin of the late singers Jerry Lee Lewis and Mickey Gilley, both of whom passed away in 2022.

Sex scandals

At one point, Jimmy Swaggart Ministries receive an estimated $142 million a year in contributions, mostly from television viewers, even as other prominent preachers such as rival televangelist Jim Bakker was brought down by a sex scandal.

In 1988, Swaggart was propelled into the national spotlight when he spoke from the pulpit after he was photographed going into a hotel with a prostitute. saying “I have sinned against you” as he cast his eyes to heaven. The woman in the case, Debra Murphree, said the two did not have sex but Swaggart paid her to pose nude. Swaggart was detained again in 1991 when he was pulled over for driving on the wrong side of the road with another prostitute in the car.

Swaggart was later defrocked by the Assemblies of God and became an independent and non-denominational Pentecostal minister.

In his later years, he remained the head of Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, where he was often joined by his son, Donnie, who is also a preacher.