Kathryn Kuhlman and Her Spirit Guide

Probably no one set the tone for the New Wave movement more clearly than Mrs. Kuhlman. She had a mystic about herself that could not be ignored. Those who knew her or visited her meetings became either supporters or critics. LetÂ’s follow a different approach in reviewing her life and ministry.

Is it possible for a person controlled by a spirit guide from Lucifer to actually believe that this controlling spirit is the Holy Spirit? I believe the answer is clearly, yes. Satan and his minions are master imitators. Hell will be inhabited with a multitude that truly believed that in life they were following God. In fact, Jesus told of the Day of Judgment when men would remind Him of prophesying in His name, but listen to His answer, "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:22-23).

There will also be persons in the eternal presence of Christ whom Satan deceived, who made mistakes because of those deceptions, but who learned in time, repented and ended life in hope of eternal redemption. Thanks to God, Satan loses many of his captives because Jesus came to set the captives free. Whether Kathryn Kuhlman will be in the first category or the last is determined by the sovereign judgment of God and we must wait until eternity for the results. God is a just God and no one who turns wholly to His Son will be forgotten.

The Life of Kathryn Kuhlman
The man who wrote the official biography of Miss Kuhlman declared that she wanted the whole story told, barring nothing. Jamie Buckingham may have believed some very contradictory doctrines and certainly believed strongly that Kathryn was a woman of God, but I do believe his biography of her was honest and factual. He did not tell a very pretty story. Her life was a mystery. Many events of her life were shadowed with half-truths, deception, confusion and misrepresentation. If the righteous or wicked die as they live, then her death was a proof of her disobedience and bondage by false spirits. In fact, of all the mysteries about her, her death was the most mysterious. Something was wrong or something went wrong.

Mr. Buckingham started her biography with these words,

"In death, as in life, she remained shrouded in mystery. She appeared on our TV screens and the faraway platforms as a fantasy figure — gutsy in her preaching yet tender to tears as she proclaimed healing to the sick multitudes. The world, from the Fifth Avenue fashion models to Hollywood’s stars to the hard-hat mill workers in Pittsburgh, flooded to her miracle services. On a planet ravaged by disease and spiritual darkness she represented that one ingredient without which mankind is doomed — hope. Many were healed. Others, seeing in her the glory of God, committed their lives to the Christ she proclaimed. In her speech and life style she seemed to epitomize the health, love and prosperity of the God she so reverently served. To many she seemed almost immortal. In fact, Maggie Hartner, Kathryn’s personal secretary and alter ego, once told me: ‘Miss Kuhlman will never die. She’ll be right here until Jesus comes again.’

"But she did die. On February 20, 1976, in a strange hospital, in a strange city, surrounded by people she hardly knew, with a man she once disdained standing in the wings ready to preach her funeral. The woman whom Time magazine called a ‘veritable one-woman Shrine of Lourdes’ was dead at the age of sixty-eight." (Daughter Of Destiny, Jamie Buckingham, pp. 1-2.)

In the second paragraph above he mentioned a statement by Time magazine in which she was called a "veritable one-woman Shrine of Lourdes." A second biography, written by Wayne E. Warner, entitled The Woman Behind The Miracles, stated that people often used monies saved to visit an apparition of Mary and instead visited a crusade being conducted by Kathryn Kuhlman. It was very apparent that her healing services were on the exact same level as a so-called mystical apparition of Mary.

The mysteries around her life even included the place of her birth. Her official biography writer, Buckingham, stated.

"Exactly why Kathryn always maintained she was born in the big, white, two-story house is another of the many mysteries surrounding her life. Yet she never backed down from the myth." (Ibid, pp. 11-12.)

From her birthplace to her death place, she lived a mysterious life and left a mysterious legacy.

Her Marriage and Separation
While pastoring a very successful church in Denver (from a storefront building to a congregation of 2,000), she invited an evangelist, Burroughs A. Waltrip, to hold a revival. He came back for a second revival and later announced his wife had deserted him. It was learned that he had written his wife and two sons to say that he would not be coming home (Daughter Of Destiny, p. 78.). He and Kathryn had apparently become involved in an affair. She and Waltrip were married in 1938, but reports concluded that they were involved as early as 1935. The following report reflected an eyewitness account,

"Had it not been for a deep commitment which he had made only weeks earlier, recent convert Dennis Brown would have dropped out of church forever after he saw Kathryn Kuhlman compromising her convictions with Burroughs A. Waltrip, a married evangelist, that summer evening in 1935.

"‘I parked the car, and my wife and I were walking toward the auditorium, past the church office,’ Brown remembers. Since the door was ajar, the Browns got an eyeful, and it nearly floored the new believers: ‘[Miss Kuhlman] was in the evangelist’s arms.’

"The Browns turned around and walked away from the Tabernacle, got in their car and left. They found a new church home in Harvey SpanglerÂ’s Baptist Church across town and never returned to the Denver Revival Tabernacle." (Telephone Interview with Dennis Brown, February 25, 1992 as reported in "The Woman Behind The Miracles.")

Here is the official report of her announced commitment to Waltrip made in the Denver church in 1938.

"Standing before her congregation in Denver, Kathryn announced at the Sunday morning service on October 15 that God had revealed a new plan. She and Waltrip had decided to combine their ministries. Headquarters would be in Mason City, Iowa. She and Waltrip would take turns commuting back and forth to Denver for the services — 800 miles. ‘The two of us can accomplish far more than either of us separately,’ she proclaimed.

"Although she had not mentioned marriage, everyone seemed to know. A ghastly hush fell over the congregation. All the rumors they had been hearing about Waltrip divorcing his wife in order to marry Kathryn — it was all true. Women began to sob. Several got up from the choir and walked out. Men sat stony faced in their pews, looking at Kathryn in disbelief. How could she do it? This woman, who had preached such dynamic messages about purity and holiness. This woman who had been such a model of decency and divine compassion. Was everything she had said a myth? Was she unable to follow the Lord she had so diligently encouraged them to follow for the last five years? Where was the inner strength? The power? Others could sin and fall away from God, but not their leader. Because she had been given much, then much was required. It was a hard life she had chosen. No one doubted that. All knew what she had sacrificed. Marriage. Children. Just to build the work in Denver. But to give it all up? To throw it away for a divorced man who had left his wife and two children? It wasn’t worth that."

"‘No, Kathryn, don’t say it. Don’t do it. Please!" It was Helen Gulliford, standing at the piano bench, her face ashen, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Earl Hewitt, KathrynÂ’s business manager and substitute preacher, dropped his head to his knees. Broken. Mr. Anderson sat. Silent. That which he feared had come to pass.
"Kathryn waved her hands dramatically and tried to make light of the entire situation. ‘Don’t you understand,’ she said almost gaily. ‘I’m not leaving you. I’ll be back.’" (Daughter Of Destiny, pp. 82-83.)

Very shortly after the wedding both Walter and Kathryn left the two different churches where they pastored. Buckingham says that she sold her share in the Denver Tabernacle to Earl Hewitt. His book stated,

"He offered to buy her share of the building. She accepted and handed him the keys to her kingdom. Like a person possessed, she could not stop what she had started, even though the weight of it was already more than she could bear." (Ibid, p. 84.)

Waltrip and Kuhlman continued to evangelize either together or in separate meetings for eight years. They reportedly separated in 1946 and never saw each other again. Mr. Waltrip died in prison reportedly for bilking a woman out of money. According to Kathryn Kuhlman official biographers, she often refused to admit she had ever been married. Writer Jamie Buckingham reported one occasion when she actually lied to reporters who questioned her,

"Then, just as the contest was about to hit its crest, a front page story appeared in the Akron paper revealing that a team of reporters had dug into KathrynÂ’s past and discovered she had married a divorced evangelist a number of years before.

"Kathryn exploded. That just wasnÂ’t fair play. For almost seven years she had been free from that old scandal, now here it was, raising its ugly head again just when she felt she had won a victory.

"When Robert Hoyt of the Akron Beacon Journal interviewed her, she denied having ever been married.

"‘We were never married. I never took my marriage vows,’ she said, her eyes flashing. ‘Do you know what happened? I’ll tell you what happened. I fainted — passed out completely, I tell you — right before I was to take my vows.’

"Shaking her finger in the face of the young reporter, she shouted, ‘That’s the truth, so help me God.’

"Hoyt was insistent. ‘We have a photostatic copy of your marriage application.’

‘If I signed an application for a marriage license, it was brought to me for my signature. I do not remember signing any such thing. Besides, I don’t believe it should make any difference whether I was married or not. And that’s all I am going to say.’" (Ibid, pp. 129-130.)

She Lived Expensively as a Pattern For TodayÂ’s New Wave Leaders
Her clothing was far more than "costly array" that Apostle Paul warned believers to reject (I Timothy 2:9). She was reported to have purchased her wardrobe at the most expensive places and paid up to $1,500 for one stage gown. Present day prices would likely exceed $5,000 plus. Kathryn Kuhlman lived in splendor with expensive art and a life that was close to a movie star. Her official biography said that she was "enamored of the Hollywood mystique." (Ibid. p. 262.)

A Dark Chapter
Her involvement with Dino Kartsonakis was deeply criticized by her staff and friends. Ralph Wilkerson, a California pastor, introduced Dino to Kathryn. He was called, "A handsome young pianist with the ‘Greek god’ look. She hired him on the spot. She introduced him as "Deeee-nooo" with a great television flare. It was officially reported that she "picked out his clothes, finer than he could have ever afforded on his own, and taught him how to wear them in style. She sent him to Italy to have his suits tailored, put him up in the finest hotels and financed his record and sheet music productions."

Buckingham said,

"She, in turn, found it pleasant to be in the company of a handsome young man who could escort her to dinner, sit beside her on the long plane rides, tip the porters, and hail the taxis. Her employees in the Pittsburgh office called him a gigolo — Kathryn’s paid escort.

"Steve Zelenko, Kathryn’s gadfly in the Pittsburgh office, saw the danger and tried to warn her. ‘Look, Miss Kuhlman, it just doesn’t look good. Okay, so the guy is fun. He’s light, He’s airy. He’s someone to cling to as you grow older. But be careful.’ "Kathryn was sure of herself. ‘I know what I’m doing. I know it looks like he’s using me, riding my coat tails. But I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry about it.’" (Ibid. pp. 262-263.)

The Mystery of Her Death
While her life was clouded with many unanswerable difficulties, her death was like a final storm. While she was mysterious in life, she was a sad spectacle in death. She became involved with a Tink Wilkerson and his wife during the last year. Mr. Wilkerson was a regent for the Oral Roberts University. During a few short months of involvement with Mr. Wilkerson, he convinced her to purchase a $750,000 Lear jet plane, controlled every aspect of her life, helped her with his own lawyer to change her will, controlled who visited her in the hospital, controlled every aspect of her burial arrangements, kept her friends from seeing her dead body and finished the last dark chapter of her earthly life.

The report of these events in her biographies reveals what appears to be an extremely sad and sinister scenario. Her closest associates were left heartbroken and utterly disappointed. They will certainly never believe it was meant to happen that way. The Kathryn Kuhlman Foundation was left without one cent, even though a previously written will two years before had made proper arrangements to continue her ministry. The following describes her will of 1974, approximately two years before her death.

"In January 1974, Kathryn had revised her will. In it she bequeathed to Jerome and Helen Stern of Portland, Oregon, a valuable painting ‘in appreciation for the kindness evidenced by Mr. and Mrs. Stern to my sister, Myrtle Parrott, at a time when she desperately needed such kindness.’

"The balance of her tangible articles were left to Marguerite (Maggie) Hartner ‘to be retained by her absolutely or distributed as she deems fit, she knowing my general wishes with respect to the same.’ (Kathryn had given Maggie detailed information on who in the organization was to receive what items from her house and collection of jewelry.)

"In a characteristic manner she included: ‘During my lifetime I have amply provided for and assisted my sister, Geneva Dickson, and her sons, Gary and Robert, and my niece, Virginia Crane, and her children, Paul, Collene and Theresa, and for that reason I am not making any direct provisions for them herein.’

"The remainder of her estate was to be divided five ways, among her sister, Myrtle Parrott, Marguerite Hartner, Charles Loesch, Maryon Marsh, and Walter Adamack. They were to receive five percent of the ‘net fair market value of the trust estate’ on an annual basis. If there was anything left over after all five died, the remainder would be distributed to the Kathryn Kuhlman Foundation. William Houston and the Pittsburgh National Bank were appointed trustees to distribute the funds to the five persons mentioned." (Ibid, p. 299.)

But this was the old will.

"The new will was entirely different from the one she had made almost two years before. In it she bequeathed specific and substantial amounts to fourteen people who were either relatives or employees in the Pittsburgh office. Among them were Myrtle Parrott, Geneva Dickson, Agnes Kuhlman, Marguerite Hartner, Maryon Marsh and Steve Zelenko. Smaller amounts went to ten other employees. The total cash distribution was $267,500.

"Thereafter the will reads, ‘All the rest and residue of my property, real and personal, of every kind and wheresoever situated, whether vested or contingent at the time of my death, I devise and bequeath to Sue Wilkerson and D. B. Wilkerson, Jr., jointly, absolutely free and clear of any conditions or restrictions whatsoever.’

"Irvine E. Ungerman, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was appointed as the sole executor of the will." (Ibid, pp. 300-301.)

Probably sadder than her will was the treatment of her physical remains and, also, the treatment of those who had given their lives for Miss Kuhlman. The funeral was described as following,

"Tink Wilkerson took care of the funeral arrangements at Wee Kirk o’ the Heather in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California, and her burial there. Even here controversy surrounded Kathryn Kuhlman. Wilkerson, according to Buckingham, ordered that no one was to see the body but Wilkerson and his wife. In planning the memorial service, Wilkerson asked Oral Roberts to speak. But Roberts was unprepared for what he would find at Wee Kirk o’ the Heather. ‘When I arrived at the chapel,’ Roberts told me. ‘I learned that Tink Wilkerson had made me the main speaker.’

"Since Roberts had known Kathryn for only a short period, he said he felt others from Pittsburgh should have been given the main speaking role. He felt honored to give tribute to Kathryn, he said, but felt out of place.

"Leaving David Verzilli and others out of the memorial service, however, was only a small slap in the face for the Foundation. Within days they would learn about the new will, a continuing controversy until this day." (The Woman Behind The Miracles, p. 240.)

Mr. Wilkerson, Oral Roberts University regent and close friend to Oral Roberts, was convicted in 1992 by two U. S. District courts of fraud in connection with his auto business. (Ibid, p. 242.) Since he apparently had some questionable conduct in business matters, it is easy to imagine his conduct in the Kathryn Kuhlman concerns. Was he acting in his own interest or in the interest of directing the Kuhlman wealth, reported to have been in the millions, toward the Roberts University and other ministries? There is, of course, the possibility that all of his strange control of Miss Kuhlman was actually obedience to Oral Roberts. Miss Kuhlman was Oral RobertsÂ’ prime competitor and there were reports of mistrust between the two rivals.

Kathryn Kuhlman And "The One World Religion"
Kathryn Kuhlman was apparently the first minister within the Evangelical/Pentecostal world that laid a foundation for the new unity movement of religions. It was said by her official biographer, Buckingham, that Miss Kuhlman did not like to conduct her services without Catholic priests on her platform. He stated,

"She had a special love for doctors, and wanted them either on the stage or on the front rows of the auditorium. The same was true of priests and nuns — especially if they were ‘in uniform’. Nothing thrilled Kathryn more than to have thirty or forty Catholic clergymen, especially if they wore clerical collars or, better yet, cassocks, sitting behind her while she ministered. Somehow it seemed to lend authenticity to what she was doing — and helped create the proper climate of a trust and understanding which was so necessary for a miracle service." (Daughter Of Destiny, p. 221.)

She had a special affinity for the Catholic style of high church grandeur. When Kathryn went to Las Vegas for her crusade, the following was reported,

"Kathryn had but one pass through Las Vegas, and she would deliver the gospel with power! Hundreds of people in Las Vegas as well as the faithful in Youngstown, Pittsburgh, and Franklin had agreed to pray that the Holy Spirit would stir the city. Not far away a Roman Catholic priest said a Mass for the meeting the day before." (The Woman Behind The Miracles, pp. 229-230.)

Please remember that a Catholic Mass is believed to be a time when the very bread and wine becomes the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ. Millions of Protestants died as martyrs because they rejected this blasphemous assertion. Did her affinity for Catholic dogmas help start the declension within the Pentecostal circles that has now become a watershed of deception and compromise? I certainly believe so!

"Kathryn Kuhlman was an ecumenist without portfolio." (Ibid, p. 15.)

Jamie Buckingham further stated,

"In 1948 while ecumenists designed programs for denominational unity, Kathryn Kuhlman threw open the heavy old doors of north PittsburghÂ’s Carnegie Music Hall. Streaming through the doors and scurrying for chairs came Protestants, Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Jewish, and other groups, most related to churches but others not. And they were back the next week and the next." (Ibid, p. 15.)

This certainly would have been acceptable if they were led out of these cold-dead churches to embrace a life of separation and New Testament lifestyle. ThatÂ’s certainly what Jesus did. On October 11, 1972, Pope Paul gave her a private audience at the Vatican. Mr. Warner stated,

"Complimenting her on her ‘admirable work,’ he admonished her to ‘do it well!’ and gave her a gold, handmade engraved medallion bearing a dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit." (Ibid, p. 172.)

Slaying People In The Spirit/spirit?
The New Testament, which is our perfect pattern, records no events where a minister caused people to fall on the floor. This particular phenomenon appears, from my research, to have actually commenced with Miss Kuhlman and a handful of other healing evangelists. Without question, every great revival has recorded Holy Ghost conviction where individuals became prostrate with the weight of sin and repentance, usually on their face. The uniqueness about the phenomenon beginning with Miss Kuhlman has been its connection with an individual who laid hands on the person. In some cases, the hands may not have always connected to an individual. Usually the person was caught by those who were called catchers or ushers and they remained on the floor only briefly.

With Kathryn Kuhlman, there appeared absolutely no distinction as to who was slain, including Jewish Rabbis, Catholic priests and nuns, unsaved individuals or simply whosoever might get the attention and special prayer. That in itself is enough to forever settle the absence of validity and biblical support. The Holy Spirit never acts indiscriminately in His Holy touch on human lives. Second, whatever He does brings honor only to Jesus Christ and always has deep and profound purpose. The Kingdom of God does not play with human emotions and sensational activities. The overwhelming factor is that this questionable phenomenon has spread all over the church world and has followed exactly the pattern commenced by Miss Kuhlman.

Kathryn Kuhlman and Her Spirit Guides
I am personally convinced that Miss Kuhlman was controlled by a spirit guide masquerading as the Holy Spirit. There appears to be no other possible answer. Coming to this conclusion has been a very tough and heart-rending experience. The following quote from Benny HinnÂ’s book, Good Morning, Holy Spirit, will give you a glance at her attachment to either the Holy Spirit or a spirit.

"I looked up to see Kathryn burying her head in her hands as she began to sob. She sobbed and sobbed so loudly that everything came to a standstill. The music stopped. The ushers froze in their positions.

"Everyone had their eyes on her. And for the life of me I had no idea why she was sobbing. IÂ’d never seen a minister do that before. What was she crying about? It was told later that she had never done anything like that before, and members of her staff remember it to this day.

"It continued for what seemed like two minutes. Then she thrust back her head. There she was, just a few feet in front of me. Her eyes were aflame. She was alive.

"In that instant she took on a boldness I had never seen in any person. She pointed her finger straight out with enormous power and emotion — even pain. If the devil himself had been there, she would have flicked him aside with just a tap.

"It was a moment of incredible dimension. Still sobbing, she looked out at the audience and said with such agony, ‘Please.’ She seemed to stretch out the word, ‘Plee-ease, don’t grieve the Holy Spirit.’

"She was begging. If you can imagine a mother pleading with a killer not to shoot her baby, it was like that. She begged and pleaded.

"‘Please,’ she sobbed, ‘don’t grieve the Holy Spirit.’

"Even now I can see her eyes. It was as if they were looking straight at me.

"And when she said it, you could have dropped a pin and heard it. I was afraid to breathe. I didnÂ’t move a muscle. I was holding on to the pew in front of me wondering what would happen next.

"Then she said, ‘Don’t you understand? He’s all I’ve got!’

"I thought, ‘What’s she talking about?’

"Then she continued her impassioned plea saying, ‘Please! Don’t wound Him. He’s all I’ve got. Don’t wound the One I love!’" (Good Morning, Holy Spirit, Benny Hinn, pp. 8-9.)

Her words reveal a view of this spirit that is extremely unusual. She said, "DonÂ’t you understand? HeÂ’s all IÂ’ve got." Again, she said, "Please donÂ’t wound Him, HeÂ’s all IÂ’ve got. DonÂ’t wound the One I love."

The Holy Spirit absolutely never speaks of Himself. He glorifies Jesus Christ in His church and in you and Jesus Christ alone. Jesus said,

"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you." (John 16:13-14).

She was enamored with this "spirit" that came upon her. Often she spoke of her fear that he would leave her. She would wait behind the stage, even at times while the service languished for this "spirit person" to manifest himself. When he came she was electric and performed as the greatest of actors. Hinn continued in his description of Kuhlman’s emphasis on this spirit whom she called the Holy Spirit. He said, "In my church, the pastor talked about the Holy Spirit. But not like this. His references had to do with the gifts or tongues or prophecy — not "He’s my closest, most personal, most intimate, most beloved friend." Kathryn Kuhlman was telling me about a person that was more real than you or I." (Ibid, p. 9.)

The Modern Day "Holy Spirit"
There is clearly something amiss in our present day emphasis on the Holy Ghost. Apostle Paul stated, "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross our Lord Jesus Christ." (Galatians 6:14a) Deception is rank as churches talk about the SpiritÂ’s operation that is so unfamiliar to biblical truth. Entire events on the church calendar are being planned to promote the Spirit/spirit and to teach people these new ideas. A cross-less Pentecost is nothing but the making of a religious holocaust.

Benny Hinn, who upheld Kathryn Kuhlman as his mentor, states on the cover of his book, Good Morning, Holy Spirit,

"How do you recognize [the Holy Spirit]? It’s as simple as that little voice you hear when you are about to fall asleep, the voice that reminds you, ‘You haven’t prayed today.’ Or He may say, ‘You haven’t read the Word today.’ That’s the Spirit speaking, tugging at your soul. You know Him already, but He yearns for you to know Him more." (Ibid, cover.)

No, never! The Holy Spirit wants you to know Jesus more. He never speaks of Himself, but only of Jesus. Masquerading spirits and spirit guides have become the hallmark of the New Wave churches. I believe it began with Kathryn Kuhlman and other ministers and now continues through Benny Hinn and a large portion of the same brand of churches. The only purity of the church is the living message of the Cross and the finished work of Jesus Christ on that cross. It was bound to occur that the loss of separation and biblical holiness would produce apostasy. That apostasy is now united with a satanically-controlled "One World Religion" preparing to deceive a liberal multitude. This deception will be exposed and those that continue in truth and holiness will be exonerated by the Lord of the Church, Jesus Christ Himself.