José Luis de Jesús Miranda

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José Luis de Jesús Miranda (b. 1946) is the founder and leader of Creciendo en Gracia (Growing In Grace International Ministry, Inc.), a movement that teaches the "doctrine of Grace." It is based in Miami, Florida. He claims to be both Jesus Christ returned and the Antichrist, and exhibits a "666" tattoo on his forearm.[1] He has referred to himself as "The Man Christ Jesus".[2][3] Creciendo en Gracia has been described as a cult by cult expert Rick Ross, and Freedom of Mind's Steven Hassan.[4] [5] [6]

Contents

[edit] Early life

De Jesus grew up in poverty in Puerto Rico. He has said that during this period he served stints in prison for petty theft[7]. He became a Pentecostal minister and then a member of the Southern Baptist Church.

[edit] Current movement

In 2007, the Dallas Morning News reported that De Jesus "preaches to followers in some 35 nations, mostly in Latin America, and has 287 radio programs and a 24-hour Spanish-language TV network."[8]

De Jesus has gained attention in Puerto Rico in particular, where his denomination has opened centers in Guaynabo, Arecibo, Yabucoa, Ponce and Hormigueros.

In early 2007, he acknowledged others' claims that he was the Antichrist and explained that the term is true. It applies because people are no longer to follow the "Jewish teachings" of Jesus of Nazareth, but rather to follow the Apostle Paul's teachings through De Jesus. According to De Jesus, "Antichrist" means "no longer following Jesus of Nazareth as he lived in the days of his flesh". Naturally, controversy has surrounded this.[1][9]

Most recently, followers have shown their support by getting "666" tattoos on their bodies.[1] "666", De Jesus explains, is not a sign of the devil (he preaches that the devil was destroyed), but the number of the Antichrist.

[edit] Controversy

Much controversy began to rise after Miranda made comments about the Roman Catholic Church. De Jesus claims,"There is no sin." and the "Catholic Church is evil." Following this, he has told his followers to burn pictures of the pope and protest outside of churches.

De Jesus has been labeled as a "con man" by both Christian and non-Christian groups due to his comments about children in his ministry. He claims the youth in his church are the "super raza" or "super race" because they have been brought up "pure with no stain of religion." He also went on to say Miami was the center of his faith because "that is where Hispanics are." "Miami is the bridge for all nations," said De Jesus, "That's where Hispanics are, and then eventually I'm going to find a lot of beautiful English-speaking people who will want to believe in me and I'm going to have millions of them." Creciendo en Gracia has also stirred controversy with its protest demonstrations directed at Christian gatherings.

[edit] Link of Catholicism to Creciendo en Gracia

Many state that most of the Creciendo en Gracia members were originally Roman Catholics. Therefore, many point out that Catholics "don't read the bible" and therefore were more susceptible "victims". However, many refute this argument due to lack of evidence.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b He Calls Himself God. MSNBC (February 5, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-02-22.
  2. ^ 'Scarborough Country' for August 25. MSNBC (August 28, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-02-22.
  3. ^ The Man Who Claims To Be Jesus. CBS 4 (September 12, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-02-22.
  4. ^ "Creciendo en Gracia". "Rick A. Ross Institute" (2005). Retrieved on 2007-04-25.
  5. ^ YouTube - Jesus Christ on the Today Show 08/25/06
  6. ^ NBC on De Jesus - Cult information from cult expert Steve Hassan
  7. ^ Crowd Packs Amphitheater For Man Claiming He's Jesus Christ Reincarnated. local6.com (6 May 2007). Retrieved on 2007-05-07.
  8. ^ Miami-based 'Antichrist' banned from Guatemala. DMN (22 April 2007). Retrieved on 2007-04-25.
  9. ^ Miami Church Brands Members With '666' Tattoos. FOX News (February 24, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-03-04.

[edit] External links