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'{{Infobox person |image = |name = Jack Hyles |birth_name = Jack Frasure Hyles |birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|09|25}} |birth_place = [[Italy, Texas]] |death_date = {{Death date and age|2001|2|6|1926|9|25|mf=yes}} |death_place = |death_cause = |resting_place = |residence = |nationality = USA |ethnicity = |citizenship = |other_names = |education = |alma_mater = [[East Texas Baptist University]]<br>[[Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary]]{{Citation needed|date=August 2009}} |occupation = [[Pastor]] |years_active = |home_town = |predecessor = Owen L. Miller |successor = Jack Schaap |religion = [[Independent Baptist]] |spouse = Beverly Hyles |children = |website = }} '''Jack Frasure Hyles''' (September 25, 1926 &ndash; February 6, 2001) was a leading figure in the [[Independent Baptist]] movement, having pastored the [[First Baptist Church of Hammond]] in [[Hammond, Indiana]], from 1959 until his death. He was also well known for being an innovator of the church bus ministry that brought thousands of people each week from surrounding towns to Hammond for services.<ref name="Janega">Janega, James Rev. ''Jack Hyles; Led bus ministry'' Chicago Tribune, February 9, 2001</ref> Jack Hyles built First Baptist up from fewer than a thousand members to a membership of 100,000. In 1993 and again in 1994, it was reported that 20,000 people attended First Baptist every Sunday, making it the most attended Baptist church in the United States<ref name="shun">Lehmann, Daniel J. "Fundamentalists Shun a Society They Try to Save" ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'', June 6, 1993. pg. 5</ref><ref name="Pastor Linked">Lehmann, Daniel J. "Pastor Linked to Sex Abuse Lashes Out," ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'', June 2, 1993. pg. 5</ref><ref name="Chalfant">Chalfant, H. Paul, ''Religion in Contemporary Society'' (3rd Edition), Itasca, Illinois: F.E. Peacock Publishers (1994); pgs. 363-364</ref> In 2001, at the time of Hyles death, 20,000 people were attending church services and Sunday school each week.<ref name="Janega" /> He was accused of several controversies while pastoring the church, and his doctrinal positions often put him at odds with other Christians &mdash; even with other fundamentalist [[Baptists]]. ==History== ===His early life and beginnings of his ministry=== Hyles was born and raised in [[Italy, Texas]], a low income area in [[Ellis County, Texas|Ellis County]] south of [[Dallas, Texas|Dallas]]. Hyles often described his less-than-ideal upbringing which, he said, included a distant father. At the age of eighteen, Hyles enlisted in the [[United States Army]] and served as a [[paratrooper]] with the [[82nd Airborne Division]] during [[World War II]]. He and his wife, Beverly, were married during the war. After the war was over, Hyles completed his college education at [[East Texas Baptist University]] (then College) in [[Marshall, Texas|Marshall]], the seat of [[Harrison County, Texas|Harrison County]]. After his graduation from East Texas, Hyles started preaching at several small Texas churches, whose memberships began to grow.<ref name="Janega" /> These churches included: Marris Chapel Baptist Church, [[Bogata, Texas]]; Grange Hall Baptist Church, [[Marshall, Texas]]; and Southside Baptist Church, [[Henderson, Texas]]. After receiving his education Hyles pastored at the Miller Road Baptist Church in [[Garland, Texas|Garland]] in [[Dallas County, Texas|Dallas County]] for about six years. During this time the congregation grew from 44 to 4,000 members.<ref name="Janega" /> It was during those days that Hyles left the Southern Baptist Convention and became an independent Baptist. Hyles then led Miller Road Baptist Church as an independent preacher for a while.<ref name="Janega" /><ref name="BJH">Falsani, Cathleen ''Brother Jack Hyles of Hammond dies at 74'' Chicago Sun Times, February 8, 2001.</ref> ===The move to Hammond, Indiana=== In 1959, Hyles moved to the church provided parsonage at 8232 Greenwood ave. Munster, IN and became the pastor of [[First Baptist Church of Hammond]]. When he arrived, the church had a membership of about seven hundred, said to be mostly "high-society types." About a third of the members left the church after hearing Hyles preaching style, which was much different than that to which they had been accustomed. Hyles then led the church to its status as an independent Baptist church—freeing it from its ties with the [[American Baptist Churches USA|American Baptist]]s. Hyles started his bus ministry and soon shepherded the church from a congregation of several hundred to more than 20,000. In the early 1990s a national survey ranked First Baptist as the largest church in the nation, by average weekly attendance figures.<ref name="Chalfant" /><ref name="BJH" /> Beginning in 1969, and continuing for several years, First Baptist received recognition for the size of its Sunday School. In 1969, [[Elmer Towns|Dr. Elmer Towns]] wrote a book called ''The Ten Largest Sunday Schools and What Makes Them Grow'' which analyzed First Baptist's Sunday School.<ref name="FBC1">{{cite web | url = http://www.fbchammond.com/the_voice/01%20decembervoice2003.pdf |format=PDF| title = First Baptist Church... Helping People for 116 Years, and Counting! | work = The Voice of First Baptist Church | accessdate = May 1, 2006 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060616113937/http://www.fbchammond.com/the_voice/01+decembervoice2003.pdf <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = June 16, 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Towns | first=Elmer | url = http://www.elmertowns.com/books/online/10_largest_ss/10_Largest_SS%5BETowns%5D.PDF |format=PDF| title = The Ten Largest Sunday Schools and What Makes Them Grow | publisher = Baker Book House | accessdate = May 1, 2006 }}</ref> Towns presented a plaque to Jack Hyles in 1971, naming First Baptist Church of Hammond the nation’s largest Sunday school.<ref name="FBC1" /> In 1972, and for several years following, ''Christian Life Magazine'' proclaimed First Baptist Church of Hammond to have "the world's largest Sunday School".<ref name="FBC1" /> In 1972, Jack Hyles and Russell Anderson founded [[Hyles-Anderson College]], an [[school accreditation|unaccredited]] [[bible college]], to specialize in training Baptist ministers and Christian school teachers.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/005/11.25.html | title = Megachurch Pastor Jack Hyles Dead at 74 | work = [[Christianity Today]] | accessdate = April 2, 2001 }}</ref> Hyles-Anderson College never sought accreditation because Hyles insisted [[school accreditation]] would undermine his ability to control how the college ought to run.<ref>[http://www.jackhyles.com/accreditation.htm Accreditation], Jack Hyles.</ref> ===The ministry of Hyles=== One of the most notable aspects of Hyles is his church bus ministry that he helped innovate. As early as 1975, ''Time'' magazine described the phenomenon in an article titled, "Superchurch." The ''Time'' article notes that First Baptist Church of Hammond Sunday School, which regularly ran almost 14,000 people, pushed the church to a record attendance of 30,560 on March 16, 1975, thanks to a boisterous contest between two bus route teams.<ref name="Time">''[http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,913788,00.html Superchurch]'' [[Time (magazine)|Time]] December 1, 1975 (retrieved June 4, 2006)</ref> In that year, the First Baptist bus route ministry consisted of 1,000 workers using 230 buses to ferry as many as 10,000 people every Sunday.<ref name="Time" /> In 2001, a fleet of over 200 buses was regularly ferrying 7,000 to 15,000 people from all over the area.<ref name="BJH" /> Hyles spoke at '[[The Sword of the Lord]]' conferences with [[John R. Rice]] and his own annual "Pastors School". The school continues to attract as many as seven thousand annual visitors to the Hammond area.<ref>{{cite web | last = Zabroski | first = Steve | year = 2006 | archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090414133420/http://nwitimes.com/articles/1997/10/04/export247369.txt|archivedate=April 14, 2009|url = http://nwitimes.com/articles/2006/03/24/news/lake_county/2970eb71e3fc94308625713b0014b869.txt | title = Faithful flock to Hammond | work = [[Northwest Indiana Times]] | accessdate = March 24, 2006 }}</ref> Hyles wrote approximately fifty works in his lifetime with over 14 million total copies in circulation, including the popular ''Is There A Hell?'', based on a sermon he preached at a National Sword of the Lord Conference.<ref name="Janega" /> Another work, ''Enemies of Soul Winning'' tackled many issues considered controversial in fundamentalist and evangelical circles, which include the doctrine of repentance, [[Lordship salvation]], and the role of the church in soul winning. The ''Calvary Contender'' wrote, "Hyles will be remembered as a one-of-a-kind, ever controversial leader whose ministry touched the lives of multitudes."<ref>{{cite web | year=2001 | url = http://home.hiwaay.net/~contendr/2001/3-1-2001.html | title = Jack Hyles Succumbs To Heart Attack | work = [[Calvary Contender]] | accessdate = May 1, 2006 }}</ref> Jack Hyles was better known as "Brother Hyles" to his tens of thousands of congregants.<ref name="Janega" /> Hyles often held nationwide speaking engagements. In 1984, for instance, he addressed a large gathering in the small city of [[Snyder, Texas|Snyder]], Texas, the seat of [[Scurry County, Texas|Scurry County]], hosted by pastor Luther Wallace "Buck" Hatfield (1929–1995) of Faith Baptist Church. Independent Baptists from throughout the area, such as Ross J. Spencer from Bethany Baptist Church in [[Lubbock, Texas|Lubbock]], organized bus trips to the convention hall in Snyder. Hatfield and Spencer also adapted the bus ministry approach for their congregations. In his book, ''Enemies of Soulwinning'', Jack Hyles taught that one could not be born again unless the [[King James Version]] was used somewhere along the line in that person's life.<ref>''Enemies of Soulwinning'' by Jack Hyles pg 46-47</ref> === Honors, award, and praise === In contrast to the criticism, Hyles has been the recipient of praise, an honorary doctorate, and other accolades throughout the course of his life, even continuing past his death. The ''Washington Post'' compared the "meek" preaching style of [[Jerry Falwell]] to the "spit and fire" of Jack Hyles. The Post suggested that after you heard a preacher like Hyles, "you knew that you'd been preached to".<ref>Harrington, Walt ''What Hath Falwell Wrought?'' Washington Post July 24, 1988, pg W19</ref> Falwell said that "Hyles will be remembered as a leader in evangelism through the local church." Falwell also said, "He inspired me as a young pastor to win others to Christ through Sunday school, the pulpit, and personal witnessing. He made a great contribution to the calls of Christ".<ref name="Janega" /> Hyles received an [[honorary doctorate]] from [[Midwestern Baptist College]], an unaccredited Bible college in [[Pontiac, Michigan|Pontiac]], [[Michigan]]. Students in unaccredited Bible colleges retain credentials only for use within the churches of the denomination.<ref>As discussed along with his misuse of the title on [[Preying from the Pulpit]] in May 1993 by [[WJBK]] of [[Detroit]], [[Michigan]]</ref> In 2001, Hyles' church bought his childhood home and shipped it from Texas to Hyles-Anderson College to build a museum. Ray Young, a close friend of Hyles, said, "We have five thousand to seven thousand independent Baptists who come here each year for conventions. Reverend Hyles was very much adored by independent Baptists across the country. It should be a major attraction for them."<ref>Associated Press ''Texas childhood home of prominent minister planned as Indiana museum'' Schererville, Ind. November 6, 2001</ref> The ''Chicago Sun Times'' wrote about Hyles on the occasion of his death, "When he chose the interests of poor, inner-city kids over millionaire church members, they said he'd never keep the doors of his church open." However, Hyles "proved them all wrong. In the process he built one of the largest congregations in the country, a college, six schools, and a vibrant ministry that will now have to survive without him."<ref name="BJH" /> [[Matthew Barnett]], while discussing his work at an inner-city Los Angeles ministry, explained how he learned from Jack Hyles. Barnett also expounded on how Hyles was a tremendous soulwinner and how Hyles had great influence throughout the entire Chicago area.<ref>[http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2005/001/3.22.html High hopes: Matthew Barnett's secret is to inspire others to dream what God can do&mdash;and dream big] The Leadership Interview from ''Leadership Journal'' January 1, 2005</ref> Hyles was honored by his church with a huge portrait of Hyles and his widow, Beverly, dominating the skyline of the town.<ref name="BJH" /> He is also honored in Founder's Park at his college, where they laid 30,000 bricks as flooring for life-sized statues of Hyles and his widow.<ref>[http://nwitimes.com/articles/2001/10/20/export348149.txt News briefs Illinois edition: Dedication to unveil college founder] October 20, 2001 Northwest Indiana Times</ref> == Controversies == In 1989, the paper [[The Biblical Evangelist]] published a story "The Saddest Story We Ever Published", accusing Jack Hyles of sexual scandals, financial misappropriation and doctrinal errors.<ref>{{cite web | year=1989 | url = http://www.biblicalevangelist.org/jack_hyles_chapter3.php | title = The Saddest Story We Ever Published | work = [[The Biblical Evangelist]] | accessdate = February 4, 2011 }}</ref> These charges were denied by Hyles who deemed them "lies".<ref name="lies">{{cite web|last=Hirsley|first=Michael|title=Charges All Lies, Hammond Pastor Says|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1989-05-28/news/8902040871_1_church-deacon-church-office-fundamentalist|work=Chicago Tribune|accessdate=8 July 2010|date=28 May 1989}}</ref> In October 1997, an [[Indianapolis]] lawyer filed a lawsuit against [[First Baptist Church of Hammond]], accusing the church and its pastor of allowing a mentally retarded woman to be sexually assaulted for six years. The civil suit filed in Lake Superior Court in [[Gary, Indiana|Gary]] claims the [[Chicago]] woman was "induced by agents" of the church in 1991 to ride a bus to attend [[Sunday school]] at First Baptist. While in the care of the church, the lawsuit alleges, the woman was sexually assaulted, molested, battered and raped more than once through the Fall of 1996.<ref name="Suit Claims">Debra Gruszecki [http://web.archive.org/web/20090622113038/http://nwitimes.com/articles/1997/10/04/export247369.txt Suit claims rape at church] ''Northwest Indiana Times'' October 4, 1997</ref> For that reason, lawyer Vernon Petri said, the church and its [[pastor]], the Rev. Jack Hyles, have been named as defendants in the suit. "Both failed in their duty to protect her," Petri said. Hyles called the accusations ridiculous. "There's nobody in this world who is more opposed to this sexual molestation nor anything like that," he said. "We even preach against divorce. We are totally opposed to sexual sin. There is nothing more obnoxious and abhorrent than that." Petri, who is a party in the suit filed on behalf of the woman, now 42, and her sister, alleged in the lawsuit a pattern of assault can be traced to a Sunday in 1991, when a First Baptist teacher saw someone abusing the woman and reported it to church leaders and police. The parents were never told, Petri said, so the woman kept going to church, where the suit claims she was threatened into silence.<ref name="Suit Claims"/> "The thing that broke the camel's back came in the fall of 1996 when (the woman) developed a horrible infection and was taken to a doctor to find out what was wrong," Petri said. "When the doctor couldn't understand where the infection was coming from, she was admitted to a hospital where they found, embedded in her, a plastic object." The woman then told what happened, Petri said, recalling that a church program instructor led her to a room and served as a lookout while two to three males raped her. Hyles said he would have been the first one to want someone punished for such an act. Hyles said the church told police about the teacher's report in 1991. "We reported it immediately," he said. “And that's the only case we know of. In fact, our records show the girl has not attended our church since that occasion." Hyles said accurate records are kept of attendance. "For them to bring this up, when our records show no attendance since 1991, is a total shock to me," he said. Anthony Mancini, a [[Chicago]] lawyer who also represents the woman, said his client has been in a type of shock. "She has suffered an incredible amount of emotional harm and physical pain over this," he said. "This was her life, this was her church. This was her place of worship, and she was violated by it." <ref name="Suit Claims"/> Mancini said he knows of no arrests in connection with the woman's case in 1991 or in 1996, as a request to review files will be granted only with a subpoena. "Now that we have filed suit, we will seek out the records to open up the case and learn more about what happened." <ref name="Suit Claims"/> ==Works by Hyles== ===Books=== *''Seeing Him Who Is Invisible'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (1960) ISBN 0-87398-754-3 *''How to Boost Your Church Attendance'' -- Zondervan (January 1, 1961) *''Let's Build an Evangelistic Church'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (1962) ISBN 0-87398-502-8 *''Kisses of Calvary and Other Sermons'' -- Sword of the Lord Pub (1965) ISBN 0-87398-479-X *''Let's Hear Jack Hyles (Burning Messages for the Saved and Unsaved)'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (1972) ISBN 0-87398-504-4 *''Hyles Church Manual'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (November 1982) ISBN 0-87398-372-6 *''Church Bus Handbook'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1970) *''How to Rear Children'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (January 1, 1972) 193 pgs. *''How to Rear Infants'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (January 1, 1979) 143 pgs. *''How to Rear Teenagers'' -- Revival Fires! Publishers (January 1, 1998) 155 pgs. *''Blue Denim and Lace'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1972) *''Let's Go Soul Winning'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (January 1980) ISBN 0-87398-503-6 *''Hyles Sunday School Manual'' -- Sword of the Lord Publications (November 1982) ISBN 0-87398-391-2 *''The Blood, the Book and the Body'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1992) *''Enemies of Soul Winning'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1993) 148 pgs. *''Please Pardon My Poetry'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (January 1, 1976) 123 pgs. *''Logic Must Prove the King James Bible.'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications *''Is There A Hell?'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications *''Jack Hyles Speaks on Biblical Separation'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1984) 112 pgs. *''Salvation is more than Being Saved'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1985) 150 pgs. *''Teaching on Preaching'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (1986) 153 pgs. *''Grace and Truth'' -- Hyles-Anderson Publications (January 1, 1975) 222 pgs. *''The Miracle of the Bus Ministry'' -- Ray Young Publications (1996) *''Fundamentalism in My Lifetime'' -- Hyles Publications (2002) ISBN 0-9709488-4-0 *''What Great Men Taught Me'' -- Berean Publications (2000) *[[Truman Dollar]], [[Jerry Falwell]], [[A.V. Henderson]], & Jack Hyles ''Building Blocks of the Faith (Foundational Bible Doctrines, Special Faith Partner Edition)'' -- Fundamentalist Church Publications (1977) ISBN 0-89663-006-4 ===Other=== *Introduction to the [[Dino Pedrone|Dino J. Pedrone]] book ''What is It All About?'' Sword of the Lord Publications (2000) ISBN 0-87398-932-5 *Introduction to the Beverly Hyles book ''Woman, the Assembler (Making Your Husband a Leader)'' Hyles Publications (1995) ==References== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags--> {{Reflist|2}} ==External links== {{wikiquote-simple}} ===Hyles Ministry=== *[http://jackhyles.com/ The Jack Hyles Home Page] &ndash; Books, sermons, & links *[http://www.hylespublications.com/ Hyles Publications] &ndash; A publisher of books and bibles including many by Jack Hyles {{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> | NAME =Hyles, Jack | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = | DATE OF BIRTH =September 25, 1926 | PLACE OF BIRTH =[[Italy, Texas]] | DATE OF DEATH =February 6, 2001 | PLACE OF DEATH = }} {{DEFAULTSORT:Hyles, Jack}} [[Category:King James Only movement]] [[Category:1926 births]] [[Category:2001 deaths]] [[Category:Religious scandals]] [[Category:Baptist ministers from the United States]] [[Category:Christian fundamentalists]] [[Category:Baptists from the United States]] [[Category:East Texas Baptist University alumni]] [[Category:People from Garland, Texas]] [[Category:People from Lake County, Indiana]] [[simple:Jack Hyles]]'