Jimmy Swaggart Biography
Jimmy Swaggart Biography – Jimmy Swaggart (born March 15, 1935, in Ferriday, Louisiana, died July 1, 2025) was a prominent American televangelist and gospel musician. His religious career was marred in 1988 when he was defrocked by the Assemblies of God following a scandal involving prostitutes.
Jimmy Swaggart grew up deeply rooted in Pentecostal traditions; his father, originally a sharecropper, became a preacher with the Assemblies of God in the 1950s. From a young age, Jimmy Swaggart was immersed in church life. Influenced by his famous cousins, rock and roll icon Jerry Lee Lewis and country singer Mickey Gilley, he pursued music but remained devoted to ministry work. He began full-time evangelism in 1958 and was ordained by the Assemblies of God in 1961.
During the 1960s, he released multiple gospel records. In 1969, he launched The Camp Meeting Hour, a nationally broadcast radio program featuring gospel music and sermons. His growing popularity led to the start of a television ministry in 1975. By the mid-1980s, Jimmy Swaggart’s weekly broadcasts reached an estimated two million American households, establishing him as one of the most influential televangelists of his time.
Profile
- Full Name – Jimmy Swaggart
- Date Of Birth – born March 15, 1935
- Age – Died 90 Years Old
- Place Of Birth – Ferriday, Louisiana
- Wife – Frances Anderson
- Children – Donnie
Jimmy Swaggart Early Life
Jimmy Lee Swaggart was born on March 15, 1935, in Ferriday, Louisiana, the eldest of two children to Willie Leon “Sun” Swaggart, a sharecropper-turned-Pentecostal minister, and Minnie Bell Herron, a homemaker. His extended family was closely intertwined through various marriages, forming a tightly connected clan. He was related to both Jerry Lee Lewis and Mickey Gilley.
In 1952, at the age of 17, Jimmy Swaggart married 15-year-old Frances Anderson, whom he met at church in Wisner. The couple had one son, Donnie. To support his family, Jimmy Swaggart worked a series of odd jobs and began singing Southern Gospel at local churches.
According to his autobiography To Cross a River, Swaggart and his family endured significant poverty in the 1950s, surviving on as little as $30 per week, often residing in church basements or motels. Despite receiving a potentially lucrative offer from Sun Records producer Sam Phillips to become their first gospel artist, Jimmy Swaggart declined, stating his calling was to preach.
Jimmy Swaggart Career
Early Ministry and Ordination
Jimmy Swaggart began preaching full-time in 1955, initially delivering sermons from a flatbed truck. His revival meetings gained traction across the Southern U.S. In 1960, he started recording gospel albums and broadcasting on Christian radio. Ordained by the Assemblies of God in 1961, he launched a radio ministry soon after and founded the Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge in the late 1960s.
By 1971, he had a weekly 30-minute television program and had purchased WLUX, a local Christian radio station. The station aired preaching, music, and religious content, appealing to fundamentalist and Pentecostal audiences. He later sold most of his stations during the 1980s and 1990s.
Expansion into Television
By 1975, Jimmy Swaggart’s television ministry had expanded nationwide. In 1978, his show became a full hour, and by 1980, he added a daily broadcast. By 1983, over 250 stations were airing his programs, solidifying his place as a major religious broadcaster.
Support for RENAMO
In the 1980s, Jimmy Swaggart Ministries was among several evangelical groups accused of supporting RENAMO, a rebel group in Mozambique linked to war crimes. Portuguese translations of his religious texts were found at RENAMO headquarters in 1985. Allegations resurfaced during the 1988 trial of missionary Ian Grey and again in 1991, but were overshadowed by media coverage of Jimmy Swaggart’s sex scandal.
Sex Scandals and Fallout
In 1988, Jimmy Swaggart was implicated in a scandal involving a prostitute, leading to his suspension and eventual defrocking. The scandal emerged after Jimmy Swaggart had accused another preacher, Marvin Gorman, of infidelity. Gorman retaliated by exposing Jimmy Swaggart, who was photographed with a prostitute named Debra Murphree. After initially promising to apologize, Jimmy Swaggart delayed, prompting Gorman to go public.
Despite a failed polygraph by Murphree and accusations of a setup, the Assemblies of God extended Jimmy Swaggart’s suspension to two years. On February 21, 1988, Jimmy Swaggart gave his tearful “I have sinned” speech on live TV, but the church deemed his repentance insufficient and removed his credentials.
He continued his ministry independently, founding Jimmy Swaggart Ministries and broadcasting through the SonLife Broadcasting Network.
In 1991, Jimmy Swaggart was caught with another prostitute in Indio, California. When confronted, he told his congregation, “The Lord told me it’s flat none of your business,” and temporarily stepped back from leadership.
Ministry Operations
Radio
Jimmy Swaggart later launched SonLife Radio, a commercial-free, in-house network featuring Southern Gospel music and preaching. Its main station, WJFM, is based in Baton Rouge and streams online.
Television
began televising his ministry in 1973. In 1981, he started A Study in the Word, broadcast on networks like TBN and CBN. His influence declined after the scandals, with many TV stations canceling his programs.
Publications
Jimmy Swaggart authored around 50 books, including The Expositor’s Study Bible, dozens of commentaries, and study guides. His ministry also publishes The Evangelist magazine. In 1985, he wrote Religious Rock n Roll: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing.
Music
In 1981, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for Worship in the Best Gospel Performance, Traditional category. On June 30, 2025, two days before his death, he was inducted into the Southern Gospel Hall of Fame.
Political Involvement
While Jimmy Swaggart was influential within the Christian Right, he did not affiliate with any political party. In 2018, former President Donald Trump mocked his emotional 1988 confession during a rally.
Jimmy Swaggart Personal Life and Family
Jimmy Swaggart married Frances Anderson in 1952, and they remained together until his death. They had one son, Donnie, who followed in his father’s ministerial footsteps. Donnie’s son Gabriel also became a preacher, continuing the family legacy into a fourth generation.
Jimmy Swaggart Death
On June 15, 2025, Jimmy Swaggart was hospitalized in critical condition after suffering cardiac arrest. His son, Donnie, noted his father’s condition was grave. Jimmy Swaggart died on July 1, 2025, in Baton Rouge at the age of 90.
Net Worth
Details about his net worth is not disclosed to the public eyes at the moment.