During a lecture on ‘taking care of God’s shepherd,’ a pastor from Missouri allegedly chastised his ‘poor’ audience for not honoring him with an expensive watch he requested a year earlier.
Pastor Carlton Funderburke of Kansas City was filmed calling his congregation ‘poor, destitute, broken, and dissatisfied’ when they still hadn’t purchased him an expensive Movado watch – which costs between $395 and $3,295 – a year after he initially requested it.
I am not worth the price of a McDonald’s meal. On August 7, he questioned the Church at the Well audience as he walked the stage, “Am I not worth your Red Lobster money?” I’m not worth your St. John Knits – you cannot afford it.
He continued by explaining that he wanted his followers to know “what God is saying” before growing irritated and declaring, “Oh, you can purchase a Movado watch at Sam’s Club, and you know I asked for one last year. And here we are in August, and I still don’t have it.
Permit me to kick down the door and speak with my low-class children.
Since then, Funderburke has issued an apologetic video in which he states, “The video clip does not represent my heart or my feelings for God’s people, but it is not apparent in the tape.”
He provided no justification for his behavior. The preacher apologized to the congregation while reading from a visible script.
“No context could obliterate the words I used. I apologize to everyone whose feelings have been wounded, outraged, or otherwise affected by my statements.
He went on to apologize to his church for not treating them with’respect’ or ‘love’ and to all other pastors whose conduct would now be investigated. He remarked, “For those who know and love me, thank you for your support.” I sorry that your first image of me is one of wrath, hatred, and resentment, for those who now know me because of this video clip.
The DailyMail.com attempted to contact Funderburke for comment but was pointed to the apology video.