Jay Bakker
| Jay Bakker | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Jamie Charles Bakker December 18, 1975 Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
| Residence | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Pastor, Author, Speaker |
| Spouse(s) | Amanda (divorced) Karin Aebersold (2013-present) |
| Website | Revolution Church |
Jamie Charles "Jay" Bakker (born December 18, 1975) is an American pastor, author, speaker and theologian. He is the younger of two children born to televangelists Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Bakker Messner.
During his young adult years Bakker became disillusioned with mainstream Christianity, becoming particularly critical of Christian fundamentalism and the Christian right. He later adopted a much more liberal form of Christianity and became a co-founder of Revolution Church, which was created in 1994 in Phoenix, Arizona. Bakker then preached at Revolution's Atlanta location before pastoring the New York City branch of Revolution Church, which held services at the bar and venue Pete's Candy Store, in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn until Bakker relocated to Minneapolis in 2013 and began pastoring another iteration of Revolution Church there. Much of Bakker's story was retold in a documentary on Sundance Channel called One Punk Under God: The Prodigal Son of Jim and Tammy Faye. His story has also been chronicled in Time Magazine.
The trauma of his father being sent to prison in 1989, combined with the subsequent ostracism by others in the Church and religious community, led Bakker to engage in a period of substance abuse and partying during his young adult years. During his youth Bakker had become deeply distrustful of other ministers and viewed televangelist Jerry Falwell to be instrumental in ruining his family. In his autobiography, Son of a Preacher Man, he claims Reverend Falwell deceived his father into relinquishing PTL and auctioned off much of the church's property, including some of the Bakker family's personal possessions that were left there. After becoming sober, he re-examined his faith and Christianity, adopting a philosophy that God is a loving and accepting entity rather than a judgmental one. Among those who have been significant influences on his thinking are Brennan Manning, Paul Tillich, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Peter Rollins.
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