Customer Reviews

Swaggart

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have long held the theory that there is little difference between a popular televangelist and a rock star. They just play to different audiences. Both undergo the same temptations. Both face the same potential pitfalls that are the side-effects of fame. The life of Jimmy Swaggart is in many ways intertwined with that of his cousin, rock-and-roll legend Jerry Lee Lewis (and, to a lesser extent, with his other famous cousin Micky Gilley). This book gives insight into how these relationships, along with his poor Southern upbringing and his youthful religious experiences shaped him into to the well-known Christian celebrity he later became. Soberingly, it also points out that the seeds of his downfall were planted early in life, and the demons that would gain victory over him were the same ones he struggled against his entire life.

What really impresses me about this book is the fact that it is anything but a hatchet job. In fact, Jimmy Swaggart had many admirable qualities, despite his struggles with anger and sexual temptation. The author points out many times that the media was unfair in their assessment of Swaggart. She bends over backwards, in fact, to be fair and even-handed. The book does make it fairly clear that much of the ambition to make it to the "top" and the later drive to maintain a lavish lifestyle comes from his wife, who rules the Swaggart empire with an iron hand. If there is any fault in this book, it's that it barely mentions the years since the scandal, where Jimmy maintains a more modest, scaled-down ministry. But that is a minor fault. All the important stuff is here.

I like this book a lot. It engaged me from the first page. I grew up in the South and, in fact, last year I drove through Swaggart's hometown to my father's burial about 30 miles down the road. So, I was curious to see whether Seaman got it right, especially as people from outside the Deep South usually can't even figure out when people say y'all. Well, she nailed the ambience, the rules, the mores, the unspoken and the ineffable; she writes like a soulful cultural anthropologist, and her novelistic musings about time and place are my kind of history. Also, she's done a lot of work, as evidenced by her documentation. The book is a great read and would be a surprising treat for anyone who expects a biography to be dry. If you want to understand America, you need to read this book.

I assumed this book would be just another expose~ on the fallen King of the Televangelists. Not so. The author takes great pains to put Swaggart in the context of his highly dysfunctional family and his--dare I say it?--highly dysfunctional culture in general. We see Swaggart the oppressed, pressured, and confused boy trying to be a normal kid in an impossible situation. (Recall Wordsworth's line--"the child is the father of man.") We see Swaggart the adult battling his "demon oppression," his sexual repression, and his explosive temper until his unmasking in the late eighties. Hats off to Seaman for taking great pains to put this spectacle in psychological perspective. This is a must read for Swaggart's critics, his remaining loyal flock, and the once loyal.

I found this account of the saga of Swaggert to be both educational and eminently readable. Seaman is fair and thorough. This is a good read.

This book is thouough in its coverage of the salient details of Rev. Swaggarts life and times. The author approached the subject with neither disdain nor hero worship. Her viewpoint was free from any such bias and presents a clear picture of his life and the circumstances and events that shaped it.

A wonderfully readable book that left me better educated on the subjects of religion, rock & roll, and humanity. Ms.Seaman unveils evangelist Jimmy Swaggart's strengths and weaknesses by leading her readers through the grimly fascinating world of Louisiana's backwater culture with sharp insight, biting wit, and warm compassion.

C. Ruth's review, below, says much of what I had planned to write about this book. In addition, I think that Ann Seaman, as a woman, is particularly well suited to write about the influence of Frances Swaggart on Jimmy and the Swaggart Ministries. Frances comes across as an iron fist inside a velvet glove, responsible for much of the success of Jimmy and the organization, and Seaman's revelation that Frances prefers women to men goes a long way towards explaining Jimmy's dalliances with prostitutes.

The Lewis-Swaggart-Gilley family is just as complex and interesting as the Kennedys or the Bushes, and may also justifiably be described as part of America's "aristocracy". If nothing else, they have come a long way from those tiny shacks, without running water or electricity, in Ferriday, Louisiana. How many of the rest of us could do as well?

This book surprised and delighted me. It is a well written story of the man and also of the whole history and background of the evangelical movement in that part of the world. I couldn't put it down, it was that good! Reads like a novel, only it's all true. I highly recommend this book.

"Swaggart" is readable, carefully researched, and objective.

The media focus on the scandals, and these are covered in the book. Ms. Seaman also discusses many of the good things this minister and his ministry have accomplished, such as feeding the hungry, building churches, and supporting missionaries overseas.

Mrs. Swaggart is often portrayed as a "dragon lady," but Ms. Seaman is quick to point out the important, positive and supportive role she has played in her husband's life and ministry.

This book is well worth the price.

I bought and read this book in two days. The story of Jimmy Swaggat captures my heart because I too am an Assemblies of God pastor. I too have seen the fall of many sincere Christians because they got focused on power, money, greed, sex, or anything other than preaching the Word of God (Col. 3:16).

This book offers the reader an inside view of the life of Jimmy Swaggart. It is rather long though from his family background until Swaggart becomes the world famous evangelist he was to be prior to his fall into sin.

The details of the sexual fall of Swaggart are troublesome for those who are not use to strong sexual language. The negatives of this book is that Seaman does use offensive language at times and she is very harsh on Pentecostals and other conservative Christians. Seaman, at times, seeks to put the blame not on Swaggart himself but upon the Assemblies of God and the Church of Jesus Christ. This of course is not the case for anyone who is committed to being a true disciple.

One final note, I do not doubt Swaggart started out with a sincere heart for people and for God but he allowed his unconfessed sins and unrepentance to keep him from obeying God. Be sure, the Bible says, yours sins will find you out. And in the end, God exposed Swaggart to the world but thankfully we serve a sinless Savior. As Jim Elliott once wrote, "We are all nobodies seeking to glorify somebody."