Atlantis, Fla. – The Rev. Rex Humbard, a former itinerant preacher whose televangelism ministry once reached more parts of the globe than any other religious program, died Friday, a family spokeswoman said. He was 88.
Humbard died of natural causes at a hospital near his Lantana home, family spokeswoman Kathy Scott said.
The son of evangelists, Humbard evolved his ministry from revivals across the country to a permanent home in Akron, Ohio, and television.
“The vast majority of people do not go to church and the only way we can reach them is through TV,” he said in his autobiographical book, “Miracles in My Life.” “We must go into their homes – into their hearts – to bring them the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
His Sunday services were televised by 1953. He began with a renovated theater and eventually built the $4 million domed, 5,000-seat nondenominational Cathedral of Tomorrow. His broadcast, also called “Cathedral of Tomorrow,” developed into a mixture of preaching and music.
By 1970, Humbard’s syndicated program appeared on more TV stations in America than any other program and eventually reached more than 600 stations, according to the 1999 reference work “Religious Leaders of America.” By 1979, the show was broadcast in the U.S., Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Far East, Australia and Latin America.
His ministry suffered from internal disputes and extensive borrowing.
Humbard became pastor emeritus in 1983 and moved his family ministry to Boca Raton.
