The Nation - News from Nov. 18, 1988

A U.S. bankruptcy judge in Columbia, S.C., rejected two offers for the PTL ministry, ordered bidding to “start from scratch” and said he would liquidate the evangelical empire if the sale is not completed by Dec. 13. “It’s either then or nothing,” Judge Rufus Reynolds said. The judge directed PTL bankruptcy trustee M. C. (Red) Benton to draft guidelines for prospective buyers that incorporate certain conditions he previously set forth. The auction between two Canadian businessmen was expected to close the books on the ministry that Jim and Tammy Bakker built before a sex-and-money scandal forced it to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors. The judge, however, said he had decided to “turn all of them down and to start from scratch.” Bidding in the December auction will begin at $50 million to $60 million, Benton said, adding he expected one or two more bidders to appear.