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Televangelist Jimmy Swaggart remains in critical condition Tuesday after suffering a cardiac arrest in his Louisiana home.
Swaggart, 90, went into cardiac arrest early Sunday morning. Medical personnel were able to revive a heartbeat and rush him to the hospital, Jimmy Swaggart Ministries said in a news release.
“He remains in the ICU, where he is under close medical care,” a statement from the ministry noted.
Swaggart’s son, Rev. Donnie Swaggart, described the incident during a special Sunday evening prayer service at the Family Worship Center and also asked for prayer for his father.
“He never regained consciousness,” Donnie Swaggart said. “We both took turns giving him chest compressions until the EMT could get there. I’ve never seen so many people arrive at one time, and I want to thank them. They were able to get a heartbeat back. Right now he is in the ICU and without a miracle, his time will be short. But we believe in God — we’re not giving up.”
He added that the family “will give the Lord an opportunity to work.”
Donnie later posted to Instagram writing, “I thank everyone who has been praying with us already today. We can feel those prayers touching heaven.”
Swaggart was born on March 15, 1935, in Ferriday, Louisiana. After a “dramatic salvation experience” at the age of eight, Swaggart felt the call to ministry. He launched into full-time ministry in 1955. He currently serves as the pastor of the Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and he runs the SonLife Broadcasting Network.
At the height of his ministry, Swaggart was the top-rated preacher in America, with his program broadcast in two million homes. He was also a recording artist who sold more than 15 million albums, and he authored nearly 50 books.
In 1988, Swaggart made national headlines when he was photographed outside of a New Orleans-area hotel with a prostitute. In a tearful televised apology, Swaggart admitted to sinning but did not specify the nature of his moral failure.
He was defrocked by the Assemblies of God denomination but continued to preach.
Three years later, he was stopped by police with another suspected prostitute in his car in Indo, California.
Swaggart continued to preach despite the scandals, although his ministry never regained the same level of notoriety. It currently operates out of Baton Rouge, running TV and radio networks, a school, and a Bible college.
Please continue to pray for the Swaggart family.
“‘The prayer of faith shall save the sick and the Lord shall raise him up.’ On this Father’s Day, we urgently ask you to pray for Brother Swaggart. He needs a miracle from heaven right now, this morning. We must have the Lord intervene in this situation and we need your prayers,” reads a prayer request on Swaggart’s Instagram page.
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