First African Methodist Episcopal
In recent years, First African Methodist Episcopal (FAME) church has endured struggles regarding their now ex-pastor and incidences of financial mismanagement.
FAME is the oldest church founded by Afrikan Americans in Los Angeles. It is widely known for its large church congregation and influential presence in the surrounding communities.
After a dedicated 27 years of service, beloved Rev. Cecil Murray stepped down as head of FAME after helping the congregation grow to over 19,000 members with a $25 million budget.
Lately, FAME’s presence in the public eye has been due to negative circumstances. Problems began arising once Rev. Murray’s successor, Rev. John J. Hunter, took his place as head of the church in 2004.
After pastoring the church for eight years, Hunter was removed from his position as a result of numerous allegations against him. According to the LA Times, critics of Hunter’s were pleased to see him leave and expressed that he was inaccessible, lived far from his community, and overspent on personal security.
Before the incidents of financial mismanagement were brought to light, Hunter was also involved in a sexual harassment lawsuit involving former church assistant Brenda Lamothe. LA Times reports that the harassment case was settled outside of court for an unknown amount.
Regarding financial affairs, in 2008 the IRS initiated a tax investigation against Hunter after it was discovered that he had been using church credit cards to make personal purchases on items such as vacations and suits. The charges amounted to at least $122,000 reported LA Times. Hunter did issue an apology to the congregation and proposed a repayment plan.
More recently, it was discovered that a reserve with $13.5 million was depleted and the church’s debts are over $500,000.
Just as Rev. John Hunter has been under scrutiny, so has his wife Denise Hunter. According to the LA Times Denise severed the ties between the church and the nonprofits by filing paperwork under her name. As a result of Denise’s actions the church no longer legally owns FAME Assistance Corporations, which focuses on building up community programs and addressing inequalities in underserved areas.
The LA Times notes that the church has filed multiple lawsuits in an attempt to once again have ownership of the nonprofits, which have “seen revenue drops from $4.4 million in 2004 to $2.4 million in 2010.”
In an interview with NBC4, Denise Hunter claimed that her and her husband never misused church funds and that the allegations against them are false. Considering the amount of evidence against them, one would be skeptical to believe that the Hunter’s were involved in no financial issues whatsoever.
The church is also trying to remove Denise Hunter from her current position as president and CEO of FAME Assistance Corp. Hunter believes that she should be allowed to hold her position because according to her, the church and the corporation are “separate corporate entities.”
Last year Rev. J. Edgar Boyd replaced Hunter as head of FAME church. Thus far, it seems that he has a grasp on initiating a positive turn around. “I’m here to help, I’m here to serve, I’m here to heal,” said Boyd in a press statement.
These instances of misconduct bring into question whether there needs to be more checks and balances present in the church. Even if an individual is the head of a church, instances like these demonstrate that absolute power over certain matters can be detrimental to more than the church community.
What are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think that there needs to be more accountability in the church?
Author: Colleen King
Nommo Staff