Observers, Detractors and Preachers of Religion Who Died in 2021

died in 2021
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Luis Palau

Luis Palau in 2016. Photo by Lauren Natalie Photography, courtesy of the Luis Palau Association

The evangelist whom some called the “Latino Billy Graham” conducted his crusades in English and Spanish and shifted to “festival evangelism” near the turn of the 21st century with outdoor gatherings that were upbeat and edgy.

Palau died March 11 at age 86.

Taking the advice of his sons and younger associates, Palau held free outdoor festivals featuring Christian hip-hop music and athletes, BMX races and skateboarding. While few religious symbols were in sight, the messaging was overtly Christian.

Over five decades, his Oregon-based Luis Palau Association reached an estimated 30 million people in 75 countries and worked with thousands of churches as it held gatherings in cities such as Hong Kong, Chicago, Madrid and Washington.

“Never let the fire of evangelism fade. Stand strong for the Gospel!” Palau said in what was likely his last letter to close friends. “I know I will close my eyes to this world and open them to glory…to the face of my Savior.”

Ole Anthony

The longtime president of Dallas-based Trinity Foundation Inc. was a critic of prosperity gospel televangelists.

Anthony died April 16 at age 82.

His Texas nonprofit helped the homeless, held Bible studies and featured a radio show before Anthony spent three decades investigating televangelists such as Robert Tilton, Benny Hinn and Jan and Paul Crouch. The foundation’s investigation of Tilton’s direct mail operation was highlighted on ABC’s “Primetime Live” broadcast. Tilton’s ministry denied the foundation’s claim that it threw away prayer requests but kept checks from donors.

Ole Anthony, who died April 16, 2021, at the age of 82, came to fame after his investigation of televangelist Robert Tilton was featured on ABC News' Prime Time program. Courtesy photo

Ole Anthony, who died April 16, 2021, at the age of 82, came to fame after his investigation of televangelist Robert Tilton was featured on ABC News’ “Primetime Live” program. Courtesy photo

“It was awesome,” Anthony told the Dallas Observer in 2006. “The one aspect of the program that everybody remembers is when Tilton crossed over the sleaze line. They remember the prayer requests in the trash. A producer at ABC told me it was the No. 1 topic on talk radio for weeks.”

The Trinity Foundation’s tribute at the time of Anthony’s death noted his “abrasive style” and acknowledged some group members had left due to accusations of “cult-like tactics.” But it added: “Most disagreed and remained, however, and the community he founded survived and evolved.”

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AdelleMBanks@churchleaders.com'
Adelle M Bankshttp://religionnews.com
Adelle M. Banks, production editor and a national reporter, joined RNS in 1995. An award-winning journalist, she previously was the religion reporter at the Orlando Sentinel and a reporter at The Providence Journal and newspapers in the upstate New York communities of Syracuse and Binghamton.

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