Celebrity televangelist, Bishop TD Jakes is said to be recovering and in “stable” condition, after suffering a medical emergency while delivering a sermon at his mega-church, The Potter’s House, in Dallas, Texas on Sunday. “Bishop Jakes is stable and under the care of medical professionals. The entire Potter’s House family is grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers, and support from the community,” the church said in a statement on Facebook. As of today, Monday, it remained unclear whether Jakes was hospitalized, or that he suffered a mild stroke as was being speculated in social media circles.
The 67-year-old Jakes, suffered a slight health incident and received immediate medical attention following his powerful hour-long sermon. Images that went viral on social media showed Jakes, shaking during the ordeal as the scary scene unfolded. The church routinely broadcasts its services online. Video of Sunday’s incident posted on social media platforms show Jakes, dressed in jeans and a black, short-sleeved button up shirt and sitting in a chair.
“Oh Lord, my strength, my redeemer, let them go in peace,” Jakes said as his voice trailed off. He then lowered his microphone, went silent and began shaking and jerking involuntarily in his seat before aides rushed to support him. Jakes dropped a black towel he had been using to mop the sweat from his head during the sermon. The church has a capacity of about 8,000, and the crowd was seen reacting to Jakes’ episode in real-time.
A livestream of the sermon ended abruptly and was replaced by an off-camera voice telling those in attendance and those watching from home to “begin to pray.” At the behest of church officials, congregants at the service began to pray aloud for Jakes. Some of the people on stage said “back up” and “give him space” as the pastor appeared disoriented and confused. Shortly after, Jakes’ team offered a brief explanation on the pastor’s X page, while offering some insight on the bishop’s condition. “During today’s service, Bishop TD Jakes experienced a slight health incident and received immediate medical attention following his powerful hour long message,” the statement read. “Bishop Jakes is stable and under the care of medical professionals,” it went on to insist.
The church didn’t share any specifics about what may have led up to the health incident. On Sunday night, Jakes’ daughter, Sarah Jakes Roberts, and her husband, Touré Roberts, who both often deliver sermons at the Potter’s House and are co-pastors at ONE, a Potter’s House Church in Los Angeles gave an update on Jakes’ status on Instagram. “Obviously, today could have been a tragic day, but it wasn’t by the mercy of God, by the grace of God. Bishop is doing well, he’s recovering well. He’s getting medical care, he is strong” said Roberts, Bishop Jakes’ son-in-law. Roberts said jokingly that the family is working to try to get Jakes to sit down. “We’re trying to get him to sit down, he’s the strong Bishop that we know, but we really can’t thank you enough for your prayers.” The family said the prayers are being felt.
The situation sparked an outpouring of concern and well-wishes from his congregation and the wider public. On the megachurch’s Facebook page, more than 2,000 people commented on the church’s statement sharing their prayers and hope for Jakes’ quick recovery. Well-wishes are also pouring in from other Dallas church leaders including pastor Frederick Haynes of Friendship-West Baptist Church. “Bishop Jakes is a once-in-a-generation gospel giant,” Haynes said in a statement to CBS News Texas. “We are praying for him, his family and for the Potter’s House.”
Renowned internationally for delivering long and often boisterous sermons, Jakes, who founded the now 30,000-member non-denominational church in 1996, is one of the most successful televangelists in America, with its reported weekly attendance of 17,000 and capacity helping it rank 10th in a 2008 tabulation of largest congregations in the US. Every week, thousands tune in to the church’s Sunday service. According to the church’s website, Jakes has also counseled former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush and was a featured speaker at Obama’s 2009 inauguration.
A native of West Virginia, Jakes bought the church from disgraced TV preacher WV Grant in 1996, after the latter was found guilty of evading taxes on more than $300,000 of the church’s income, when it was still called The Eagle’s Nest Family Church. Jakes reportedly took home the more-than-100-year-old structure for a total of $3.2-million, and nearly three decades later, is still delivering sermons from the massive church. The Potter’s House according to its website, has more than 30,000 members, and promotes a mission to bring together “the down-and-out, the homeless and other walks of life to worship and serve together in one or more of the 59 different ministries.” In addition to the Dallas branch, he has 58 other ministries scattered across the US.
Several reports aired over the past year peg his net worth as being somewhere in the ballpark of $20million. He has more than a million followers on social media, where he bills himself as not only a man of God, but a “motivational speaker.” Earlier this year, Jakes made headlines when he was mentioned in a lawsuit associating him with Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. The suit, filed by music producer for Combs’ Bad Boy records Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, claims Jones has ‘irrefutable evidence’ of Combs detailing how he planned to leverage his relationship with [Jakes] to soften the impact on his public image of Cassie Ventura’s lawsuit.’
An ex of Combs, Ventura’s civil lawsuit is what led to the rapper being indicted on federal sex trafficking and racketeering charges earlier this year. Jakes debuted a sermon series on Comb’s cable television network, Revolt Media in 2021. He is not named as a defendant in the ongoing civil suit.
