What do you do when you hand over all your money before a promised Doomsday, but Doomsday never comes? You go find the next best thing: a lawyer. That is the situation in Australia where a court has frozen the assets of Pastor Rocco Leo and his associates at Agape Ministries after followers demanded their money back. While there appears to have been no written contract, this appears a novel inverse of a force majeure claim: the act of God never came.
Former church member, Martin Penney, and another plaintiff are suing to get back more than $400,000 and $1 million they gave respectively to the church based on promises of a Doomsday.
It appears that Judgment Day will be relocated to a more mundane forum at the Adelaide District Court. Of course, the pastor still has time to make good on the Doomsday promise.
Source: ABC.
god help the defense department if Mike A and mespo move into the Pentagon
AY’s suggestion of reading material on the Millerites is one I’m going to follow up … I’ve never heard of them and the subject intrigues me. Thank you, sir.
Might as well been looking for Mr. Goodbar as well….
These folks should have given their money to Dr. Strangelove.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmCKJi3CKGE&hl=en_US&fs=1]
Elaine M.,
You are so correct, now, they can go to the Mega Churches and be really Fleeced….
I wonder if they would turn as white as snow…
vlf2112–
“A fool and his money are soon parted.”
I guess these folks thought the saying was: A fool and his money are soon DEPARTED.
Buddha,
After the above, where do we sign Bdaman?
LMAO – “A fool and his money are soon parted.”
I think the 7th Day Adventist/Jehovah’s Witnesses have been through this at least twice maybe 3 times
The plantiffs already received something of value, their LIVES.
How crazy does one have to be to sue for not dying?
Mike A,
If you will look at a book that was published by a UT-Austin Doctoral Candidate, Philosopher I think. The Doomsday Soothsayer….or something like that.
It charted the path of the Millerite and they seem to end where the Mormon’s picked up. The groups both left upstate NY and some went around the northern part of Ontario and the others took the southern route. Then somehow or another they meet in IL and they all head west. I even think that I recall that he was killed by an angry mob of dissenters…
A lot has been left out to keep this short.
AY, I vaguely remember reading about the Millerites. These sorts of groups still flourish, of course. They seem to like the west.
The Church of Scientology has been involved in a lot of litigation including allegations of fraud, I think.
mespo, LOL. Should we volunteer for the defense?
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matthew 24: 36)
Reminds me of all the folk who like or dislike the “Arizona Law” or the “Health Reform Law” but have never read them.
The blind leading the blind?
mespo,
If you claim that they are insane, exactly when did this mind set, set in?
Mike A,
Hey man its happened before. It called the Millerites, in which I believe was the church before the Morman’s were run off to UTAH.
Pete,
Australia another Texas Repeat…..or is that Pete…..
Mike A:
I see great minds not only think alike but simultaneously at 9:20 a.m.
Were I the court, I would deny relief on the basis that no sane person could reasonably believe the promised event would occur. Unreasonable reliance will not support a contract action and I would leave the credulous “followers” exactly like I found them. My advice to the faithful: take your tax write off.
I’m with the defendant on this one. A contract in which one undertakes to bring about Doomsday in return for money ought to be unenforceable as violative of public policy. If the plaintiffs proceed on a fraud theory, they run up against the issue of reasonable reliance. Fools and their money.
This would be funny if it weren’t soooo sad!!!! Becoming clearer and clearer concerning the ‘blind leading the blind.’ lol. These folks are willing to give away their money ONLY if they will no longer need it, huh? So much for ‘sell all you have…give it to the poor..come follow me”!!!
Interesting post. Thanks.
Carolyn
That’s embarrassing. Two mentions in a week for my home country.