A lot more than $43 million owed by bankrupt Crystal Cathedral

The Crystal Cathedral is planning on filing for individual bankruptcy. This is one of the initial megachurches built in the United States. When the Crystal Cathedral gets thousands of visitors a month, it is not their only product. The Crystal Cathedral also produces the “Hour of Power” telecast. A large group of creditors claim that Crystal Cathedral owes over $40 million. This contains millions of dollars to local vendors.

Bankruptcy issues for Crystal Cathedral

Individual bankruptcy is a real possibility for the Crystal Cathedral. In fact, it has been for a few months now. In April of this year, a committee of creditors agreed to a moratorium. This had been meant to give the creditors and Crystal Cathedral church a chance to negotiate repayment plans. The moratorium was no help. It did not work. About $7.5 million is owed to vendors and $36 million in mortgage payments are what the Crystal Cathedral needs to pay.

Collectors of Crystal Cathedral

The chapter 11 bankruptcy the Crystal Cathedral is filing for allows reorganization. If chapter 11 is of course, the Crystal Cathedral would be allowed to continue operations when attempting to pay down creditors. There are currently a number of lawsuits and writs on the Crystal Cathedral, including one $50,000 debt owed to a woman who rents out camels for the Crystal Cathedral’s yearly nativity pageant. The church might make an effort to reorganize and settle debt while being protected, if the Crystal Cathedral individual bankruptcy is granted.

What bankruptcy proceeding will change in Crystal Cathedral

While attempting to pay off creditors and file for bankruptcy, Crystal Cathedral is taking on a new financial plan. The church is paying cash for all expenditures, out of the nearly $2 million it receives each month in donations. The church has slashed 50 employees and a number of stations from the “Hour of Power” broadcast. The church and its leaders say that they have each intention of paying off all collectors, ultimately. When Crystal Cathedral is nevertheless in individual bankruptcy, the courts have to oversee the repayment. For a megachurch that encourages financial responsibility, this will be the ultimate test of whether Crystal Cathedral can practice what it preaches.

Information from

Yahoo News

news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101018/ap_on_re_us/us_crystal_cathedral

Christianity Today

blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2010/10/crystal_cathedr_1.html