Christian podcaster Mike Winger posted on Saturday a nearly six-hour evidence-filled video slamming “prophet” Shawn Bolz and charging that an array of prominent Charismatic leaders failed to warn people about him for years even after learning that Bolz was sexually harassing young men who worked for him and altering people’s lives with faked “word of knowledge” prophecies. Bolz has reportedly continued to deny the allegations.
At conferences, Bolz reportedly used information he learned from people’s Facebook pages to call them out from a crowd, pretending that God was giving him that information and using it to deliver messages that God reportedly had for that person. Winger reported examples of a woman entering into disastrous abusive marriage and a couple sacrificing their retirement funds on the basis of bogus prophecies. Bolz has also been accused by young men who worked for him of sexually harassing them by parading naked and masturbating in front of them while sharing a hotel room on ministry travel.
Winger’s video marshals evidence that some Charismatic leaders who had endorsed Bolz and given him access to larger platforms distanced themselves from him privately but refused to denounce him publicly, choosing to protect their own reputations and ministries rather than people who might be harmed by a false prophet.
Among the powerful leaders of the dominionist New Apostolic Reformation movement that Winger identifies as being part of “coverup culture” are: Bill Johnson, head of the hugely influential Bethel megachurch; Kris Vallotton, another Bethel leader; Che Ahn, an NAR leader who is currently running for governor of California; Sid Roth, host of “It’s Supernatural,” Sean Feucht, missionary-musician turned MAGA activist; and "prophet of joy" Georgian Banov.
Winger links the “cover-up culture” to other scandals involving charismatic leaders Mike Bickle, Paul Cain, Bob Jones, Rick Joyner, and Chris Reed.
One of the more devastating episodes cited by Winger is Bethel’s Bill Johnson appearing with Bolz in 2023—well after Vollotton says Bethel had privately banned Bolz from its ministries. Johnson endorsed Bolz’s “incredible” book and “the life that backs it up,” saying, “It’s what you dream of. It’s like, if you could see, if you could have a perfect relationship with the Lord and see its impact on humanity, that’s what it would look like.”
Winger doesn’t talk about secular politics on his video about cover-up culture, but it’s hard not to notice a connection between a culture of protecting corrupt leaders and many of these leaders’ enthusiastic devotion to President Donald Trump.
