Church 'miracle' advert is banned

Finance | Celina Ribeiro | 17 Feb 2009

A Welsh church has been banned from repeating a direct mail campaign advertising miracles following a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority.

All Nations Church in Cardiff generated the complaint for a poster and direct mail campaign launched last year. The complainant argued that the advert was irresponsible in its suggestion that a visiting evangelist could cure serious health problems, and discouraged people from receiving medical treatment.

The advertisement asked readers ‘Are you ready for a miracle?’ alongside various serious medical conditions, from HIV/Aids to diabetes, cancer and depression. It went on to say that Don Double, a ‘healing evangelist’, would be offering his services at the church from October 23 to 25.

While the church conceded that it should not have used the word “healing” and had quickly taken down the poster after the complaint, it denied that it was irresponsible in the advertisement and argued that it had made no claims of success.

Vulnerable readers could be confused

The ASA upheld the complaints on both counts; agreeing that vulnerable readers could believe that Double had healing powers and could potentially be discouraged from seeking professional medical treatment.

Although pointing out that only one complaint was made, the church agreed that it would not repeat the advertisement in its current form again.

A statement from the church read: “Once the campaign was in place we agreed internally that a member of the public could misinterpret the ‘healing evangelist’ statement and sought for the campaign to be removed. This coincided with the end of the campaign at the earliest opportunity.

“While Don Double is an evangelist through whom many thousands of people have come to faith in Jesus Christ, he is not a ‘healer’, nor does he profess to be.

“All Nations Church will continue their advertising in the city and will actively promote the message of hope and life that is found in Jesus.”

Who's Who: Celina Ribeiro

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