Lester Sumrall

Life and career[edit]

Sumrall was born on February 15, 1913, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to George Sumrall and Betty (née Chandler) Sumrall.^[1] He began preaching at the age of 17 after a recovery from tuberculosis. At the age of 19, he founded a church in Green Forest, Arkansas, and was ordained by the Assemblies of God.^[2]


In 1934, Sumrall began traveling abroad. He preached in Tahiti and New Zealand and established a church in Brisbane, Australia. He traveled with Howard Carter throughout eastern Asia and Europe. In South America, Sumrall met Louise Layman.^[2] The couple were married on September 30, 1944, and had three children: Frank Lester (born 1946), Phillip Stephen (1950) and Peter Andrew (1953–2015).


Sumrall and his family spent many years in the Philippines during the 1950s. He flew to Manila, Philippines upon learning about the possession of Clarita Villanueva, whom he claims to have delivered from two demonic entities in 1953 . The culmination of his evangelistic work in the country was the establishment of the Cathedral of Praise in Manila. With over 24,000 members, it is the largest congregation in the Philippines.^[2]


In 1957, Sumrall established the Lester Sumrall Evangelistic Association. He would also found World Harvest Bible College (now Indiana Christian University) and World Harvest Magazine. In 1963, Sumrall moved to South Bend, Indiana, to pastor Christian Center Cathedral of Praise (now Christian Center Church). It was around this time that he withdrew from the Assemblies of God denomination.^[2]


In 1968, Sumrall began what would become World Harvest Missionary Evangelism (WHME-FM)l.^[2] Sumrall has been called the "father of Christian television".^[3] From 1972 to 1997, he acquired television stations throughout the United States as part of World Harvest Television (also known as LeSEA Broadcasting). In 1987, Sumrall established a humanitarian aid organization, LeSEA Global Feed the Hungry.^[2]


Sumrall wrote many works during his lifetime ranging from topics such as evangelism, miraculous healing, demons and exorcism, angels and more. Some of his works were of a more polemic nature such as warning about the supposed dangers and detrimental effects of movies and Roman Catholicism. He also wrote some autobiographical works: "Adventuring with Christ", The Life Story of Lester Sumrall: The Man, the Ministry, the Vision (as told to Tim Dudley), Through Blood and Fire in Latin America, and My Three Sons.


Sumrall died on April 28, 1996, at age 83, in St. Joseph County, Indiana.^[4]