TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- The Rev. Carlton Pearson, the
high-profile pastor of Higher Dimensions Family Church and a Grammy-nominated
singer, is under fire from fellow evangelicals for teaching that most everyone
will be saved, even those who do not accept Jesus Christ.
Several assistant pastors have left his church, attendance has dropped and
Pearson says the controversy likely cost him a bid for mayor earlier this year.
His theology has been denounced by several evangelical broadcasters.
Pearson's local alma mater, Oral Roberts University, forced the pastor off its
board and barred him from using its buildings or sending buses so students can
attend his services.
Conventional evangelical belief says Christ's death and resurrection make
salvation available to all people but each person must accept that salvation.
"All will be saved, with the exception of a few," says the
49-year-old Pearson. "Most people on planet Earth will go to heaven,
because of Calvary, because of the unconditional love of God and the redemptive
work of the cross, which is already accomplished."
He believes that includes sincere people who do not directly acknowledge Christ
-- Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists. Hell is for those few who "deny in their
hearts that there is a creator, who have a disrespect for the deity," he
says.