Can ORU Be Saved? In Green We Trust!

Oral Roberts University has been in a bit of a cash crunch lately. Who will come up with the green? Oral Roberts? Not this time.

To relieve that worrisome cash crunch crisis, ORU has been promised a gift of $70 million by Mart Green, the founder and CEO of Mardel Christian educational stores.

David Green (pictured left), father of Mart Green, is CEO of Hobby Lobby, an Oklahoma businessman who founded the Green family Hobby Lobby retail chain, with one small store in the early 1970s.

David Green also happens to be who bought Ambassador College Big Sandy. He took this campus off the books of the WCG at a very good price through a purchase by the Green Family Trust, which owns the 390+ Hobby Lobby retail chain of stores Green built. (David Green then somehow wound up leasing the AC Big Sandy campus to evangelical Bill Gothard, who founded Big Sandy's Alert Academy).

Green said ORU will receive $8 million immediately to meet pressing financial needs. ORU is currently at least $52 million in debt, but who's counting?


The remainder will come after a 90-day review of ORU's accountability practices.

Green said that ORU must demonstrate "good governance'' before the remaining $62 million will be gifted.

Meanwhile, the ORU regents have voted to separate the school from the Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association.

''This has truly been a great day for Oral Roberts University,'' said George Pearsons, chairman of the ORU board of regents.

Richard Roberts resigned as ORU's president, but carries on as president of Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association, OREA.

In 2006, the OREA ministry brought in $12.7 million. While the evangelistic association spent most of that on its weekly television shows, direct mail, crusades and other outreach, many donors give directly to ORU because of the ministry, according to Roberts.

ORU received cash donations totaling $14.3 million from 173 persons last year. Most gifts were in the $10,000 range or more, including three of at least $1 million.

In terms of separating the intertwined ministry and university, out of 15 key officers and trustees of the OREA ministry, 14 are now key officers and trustees of ORU.

Richard Roberts has said the university and the evangelistic association cannot be separated and must not be separated.

Roberts said frequently, people believe they are giving to the ministry and make a check out to ORU. In those cases, the funds go to ORU, he said.

''I will go somewhere to preach or I will go somewhere for a healing service and they will raise an offering and they will make the check out to ORU.''

He said the ministry has traditionally raised funds for campus projects, such as the prayer tower or new carpet in the dorms.

Can ORU Be Saved?