Reverend Ike

Reverend Ike (born June 1, 1935, Ridgeland, South Carolina, U.S.—died July 28, 2009, Los Angeles, California, U.S.) was an American clergyman who built his prosperity gospel on the concepts of self-motivated wealth and material satisfaction. His preaching, in which he exhorted congregations to visualize their future riches, was electrifying.

Frederick Eikerenkoetter attended the American Bible College (B.A., 1956) in Chicago and spent two years as a chaplain in the U.S. Air Force. He founded his own church in South Carolina and practiced faith healing in Boston before settling in New York City in 1966. There he set up the Christ Community United Church in an old movie theatre in Harlem. (In order to present his name on the narrow theatre marquee, he shortened it to Rev. Ike.) Then he founded the United Church Science of Living Institute in another old movie theatre, which he purchased (1969) for more than $500,000 and decorated luxuriously.

Reverend Ike’s nontraditional philosophy—which encouraged his congregation to channel the “God in you” in the pursuit of happiness, success, and wealth—drew criticism from traditional Christian clergy and civil rights activists. He built a congregation of about 5,000 parishioners, however, and during his peak popularity in the 1970s, Reverend Ike had an audience of about 2.5 million. His sermons were broadcast on television and some 1,770 radio stations, and he sold motivational books, tapes, magazines, and videos, such as The Master of Money and How to Get Out and Stay Out of the Hell of Poverty, Sickness, and Suffering. With these sales and donations from his supporters, Reverend Ike became a multimillionaire, and he spent liberally on flashy clothing, expensive cars, and luxury goods. His businesses were investigated by the U.S. Postal Service and the Internal Revenue Service. In June 2009 Reverend Ike handed over his ministry to his son, Xavier.