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It’s easy to guess that donating something is voluntary; people can choose whether they want to do it. So why is there a Texas pastor holding congregation hostages until they donate to the Church? Texas pastor Marvin Sapp, 58, wasn’t lucky enough because an old video of him resurfaced where he is trying to convince the 2000 attending in real life and virtually to donate. He even went as far as telling the ushers to close the doors. Since then, the internet has gone after him to the point where he has to clarify what happened.
The video takes place in 2024, when the Texas pastor was preaching at the 109th Pentecostal Assemblies of the World Convention in Baltimore, Maryland, according to Fox 26 Houston. Toward the end of his sermon, Sapp talked about how he needed $2,000 to raise the conference’s budget. He said the following.
How am I going to preach up here and not lead by example? Leadership leads, and they understand the cost that is involved.
The Texas pastor didn’t stop at asking churchgoers to donate, but he started telling the ushers to close the doors. He repeated the sentence several times, and while we can’t see how the people attending reacted, the internet’s reaction was against Sapp. People even started calling what happened a hostage situation, which is understandable. If you close the doors and no one can leave, that sums up what it means to be a hostage.
It’s not like he was asking for one or two dollars. No, the Texas pastor was asking for $20. He wanted those attending in the sanctuary, who reached 1000, and those watching virtually, also 1000, to donate $20. He emphasized that this will mean $40,000. The pastor even asked the preachers on stage to donate $100.
The Internet Reacts to Texas Pastor
Almost the entire internet went after Sapp as soon as the video resurfaced. One X user said: “I’m not surprised that he held that congregation hostage until they gave $40K” and that they “NEVER WOULD’VE PAAAAAAAAID IT.” The video even made it to Reddit, where people criticized the Texas pastor. One user pointed out how Sapp was wearing a gold bracelet, gold chain, and an expensive-looking watch, which honestly makes him look bad. If you require money, you won’t be wearing expensive items. It is as simple as that.
Another Redditor said that they would have gladly called the police and said, “Uh, yes, 911 operator, my pastor is holding us hostage.” Others found humor in the situation, as another user said, “I too would like 1000 people to give me $20.” Another user replied to him, saying, “I’m not greedy. I’ll take $10 from 1000 people.”
Sapp Issues A Response
Following this harsh criticism, Sapp had to issue a statement through his Facebook page. In his statement, Sapp tried to provide context to the situation and said that it was “misinterpreted as holding people hostage as well as offensive.” He tried to say that closing doors while receiving donations is normal. He explained that this is a “vulnerable” time for security teams. He then gave examples from the Bible, showing that donating is okay.
Despite the Texas pastor’s attempts, he still received criticism in the comments under his post. One user said:
“If closing the doors is standard protocol during offering, why did you have to instruct the ushers several times to do so? Wouldn’t this be something that they would know if it’s done regularly?”
This is honestly a good point. The good news for Sapp is that several people came to his defense in the comments. Their comments, however, were met with laughing reactions. While some internet users said they would have called the police, TMZ learned that police weren’t called back then. I think the Texas pastor realized how bad the situation looked and tried to fix things, but to some, he only made it worse. You can’t force people to donate.
