Evangelist Benny Hinn opened up to his viewers Thursday, talking about his marriage, mistakes he’s made and the recent accusation against him of an affair.
Hinn’s wife, Suzanne, filed for divorce in February. On the Aug. 5 edition of his show “This is your Day,” Hinn admitted the two had “challenges,” but that he never expected her decision to end things.
“We had troubles for a long time. And I would ask her often… ‘Would you ever divorce me?’” Hinn shared. “She said, ‘Never because I fear God too much. She said, ‘My covenant is with God, not you.’”
“And I guess she could no longer handle it. One day she did it to my shock,” he added.
Painful Admission
The pair married in 1979 and have three daughters and a son.
Hinn said it’s often painful to talk about their separation, which began well before the divorce was announced.
“We’ve had to be very quiet to protect the ministry, the work of the Lord,” he said. “But sadly when you are a public person, everything you do becomes public.”
“I don’t care how strong you are,” Hinn continued. “I don’t care if the anointing of God is mighty on you. Nobody wants to be alone. I don’t care who you are. I am a human being just like you.”
In a heartfelt moment after his children joined him on stage during the show, Hinn said he was oftentimes so “busy in the ministry” that he forgot about his family.
“That’s probably what broke the whole thing up. And they’ve said to me… ‘hey daddy, you’ve never been here,’” Hinn said. “So I’ve made mistakes because I wasn’t the perfect husband and the perfect dad because I was always gone traveling the world.”
He urged those watching to focus on their family an not lose sight of what’s important.
“Because if you neglect your family you’ll suffer pain. You got to focus on your family,” Hinn said.
No Infidelity ‘And That’s a Fact’
The televangelist firmly maintained that no infidelity was involved in his divorce and denounced a recent story by the National Enquirer suggesting otherwise.
“She and I kept a clean life, that’s a fact,” Hinn said. “We kept our marriage vows. There was nothing immoral ever on her part or my part. And I want you to know to this minute, I am clean and so is she.”
In a July 23 article, the National Enquirer claimed Hinn was having an affair with fellow evangelist Paula White and published photos of the two leaving a Rome hotel together holding hands.
Hinn called the article a “pure lie.”
“They did not even call me to ask me questions. They simply came up with their own story,” he said. “That’s wicked. It’s totally wicked.”
Hinn explained that he was appointed “Patron of the Arts” by the Vatican and asked to find donors so their art collections could be maintained. He chose White as one of those donors.
“I let her come with me to Rome so she can donate money. That was stupid on my part. And for that, I do ask forgiveness,” he said. “But that was an innocent mistake — nothing to do with stupid stuff.”
Hinn added that it was “sad” that even some ministers believed the article.
Communing with Christ
The televangelist has spent more than 30 years in worldwide ministry and says he’s using prayer time to focus his attention even more on God.
“Now, I’m going to go on serving Jesus with all my being,” Hinn said. “And whatever the future holds, that’s His business.
Hinn asked for prayer as he continues his journey and also prayer for his family.
“This Is Your Day” is a widely watched Christian program, broadcast daily in 200 countries.
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