The Dark Side of Trump’s Faith Leader? Why Critics Are Calling Paula White Dangerous

Last week, President Trump signed an executive order to establish a White House Faith Office to "combat antisemitism, anti-Christianity and other anti-religious bias." At the National Prayer Breakfast, he announced that this new department would be led by a twice-divorced Pastor named Paula White.

White, who is a longtime televangelist, has served as Trump's top evangelical advisor for years, and is the pastor of a mega-church called New Destiny Christian Center in Apopka, Florida.

This decision has led to significant social media pushback from many Christians, with some calling White a 'heretic' and 'proponent of the prosperity gospel'. Others are altogether opposed to the ordination of women, which is a relatively modern phenomenon and contrary to the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, and many branches of Protestantism.

Let's find out what Paula White has said that has caused so much controversy.

"Christians must learn from Jews, not convert them"

White has visited Israel over a dozen times, she's an avid Zionist, and as recently as 2023, went on a guided tour of the country with a group of Orthodox Jewish Rabbis.

“Paul [the apostle] made very clear that God extended his love to the Gentiles, but he did not take something from the Jews and tell us to go back and course correct or convert them,” she told The Jerusalem Post. “I do not want to convert Jews or send them to [live in] Israel for the rapture. The plan for salvation for the Jews is God's.”

As reported by The Jerusalem Post, White believes God gave her an "assignment" to ensure that the Trump administration stays strong for Israel. An interesting view that many Christians take issue with. The Bible commands Christians to evangelize to all people, including Jews (Matthew 28:19-20).

"To say no to Trump would be saying no to God"

This quote may have been taken out of context, with some interpreting the statement as White saying that Trump's authority over Americans is infallible. White may have been suggesting that when asked to be one of Trump's faith advisors, she felt that God gave her that opportunity and that turning down the offer would mean refusing to obey God himself.

Praising South Korean 'Mrs. Moon' Heretical Cult Leader as a "Jewel from God"

In 2021, White spoke at a 'prayer rally' in South Korea with the Unification Church. The Unification Church, sometimes called the Moonie Cult, is a religious movement that takes Christianity and blends it with the teachings of a twentieth-century figure called Sun Myung Moon who claimed to be the new messiah. Sun has since passed away, but his wife, Hak Ja Yan Moon, now serves as the spiritual leader of the cult. Her followers call her Mother Moon.

When White spoke at this event, she had nothing but positive things to say about the cult and its leader, whose theology deviates from Christianity even further than Mormonism. She opened with: "I want to take a moment and honor, as well as encourage, Mother Moon for her great work as a spiritual leader who loves the LORD and seeks to carry out and to comfort the heart of God in all the areas of conflict in the world. She is truly a jewel from God."

It's unclear why White has chosen to align herself with this religious cult, as well as implying that 'Mother Moon' worships the same God as Christians.

Promoting the 'Prosperity Gospel'

Paula White has been accused of being a proponent of the prosperity gospel, a false teaching that says that true followers of Christ will receive riches in heaven and attain material gain on earth in the form of good health and financial prosperity. Her ministry faced a congressional hearing in 2008, where it was found that White was being compensated with an annual $5 million salary.

The Christian Post reported that White promised viewers in a video appeal that if one of them donated a specific amount of money, they would receive deliverance from a 'spiritual death sentence'.

In another sermon, White told listeners that "salvation includes healing" and that they will not die from sickness: "When you go, it’s going to be because of your appointed time of old age and full of life." A video, which has since been taken down from her website, listed 'financial abundance' as one of the promises of the atonement.

On White's website, a page titled 'First Fruits' requesting donations to her ministry, promises believers that God adds 'things' to people's lives after they seek him, and lists 'next level finances' as one of these 'things'. Despite this being one of her consistent teachings, even as recently as 2025, White has said that she rejects the prosperity gospel.

Multiple Divorces and Remarriages

In 1989, White divorced her first husband, with whom she had a child, and married an associate pastor at her church, who had a wife and three children of his own. The two divorced in 2007 after sixteen years of running a church together.

In 2011, White met her third husband, Johnathan Cain, who is the keyboard player for the rock band Journey. The two met on a Southwest Airlines flight, while Cain was on his second marriage, and got married five years later, in 2016. Cain now leads worship at White's church, and guest hosts on her show. In the video below, Cain says that "the heart wants what it wants" and that he praises the Lord for divorcing his wife. He also tells churchgoers that women should fulfill every sexual desire that their husband 'truly wants,' even if that means bringing pornography into their marriage.

Being a Female Pastor

The primary reason that Paula White has been labeled a false teacher is because traditional Christian theology does not allow for women to be church leaders. Neither the Eastern Orthodox nor the Roman Catholic Church allow female clergy. Many protestant denominations, such as the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the Southern Baptist Convention, also do not allow for women to be lead pastors.

In 1 Timothy 2:12, the apostle Paul says: "I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man;[a] she must be quiet." Paula White has been exercising spiritual authority over men for the past forty years.

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