La Luz del Mundo Church is a fundamentalist Christian organization founded in 1926 by Mexican Eusebio Joaquín González. We explain this church and, ultimately, dive into what happened to it and its leader.
It claims to have 1.8 million followers in Mexico and millions more around the world, but there have always been discrepancies about the actual number. La Luz del Mundo Church describes itself as a “resurgence of the early Christian church.”
Their followers believe church leader Naasón Joaquín García is an apostle of Jesus. The church’s influence spread to the US, particularly in parts of California with large Hispanic populations.
During mass gatherings of the members of the organization, women would keep their heads covered with scarves and would not sit with the men. The emotional gatherings would be very intense and attract thousands of people.
However, as is sometimes the case, the church would be mired in controversy, and a shocking series of revelations would show that underneath the surface, there was a catalog of horrific crimes leading to the arrest of the church leader Joaquin Garcia.
La Luz del Mundo Church Explained
La Luz del Mundo Church was founded in 1926 amid the Mexican Civil War. The fight was between the secular, anti-clerical government and Catholic rebels.
It would build its first temple in 1934. Its founder, Aaron Joaquin Gonzalez, would pass away, and his son Samuel would take over his position.
Three-weekday prayer meetings are scheduled for members, with two on a Sunday. The church would reach a global audience and would not use music crosses or religious iconography in its presentations.
What happened to La Luz del Mundo Church?
Horrific details surrounding the church leaders in 2019 would expose the organization. Accusations of sexual abuse, human trafficking, child pornography, and rape would shock members of the church, and the world would be shocked by the allegations made.
Church leader Naasón Joaquín García was arrested in 2019 along with three female co-defendants accused of the terrible crimes. Garcia was taken into custody when met at Los Angeles International Airport by police officers.
He would eventually plead guilty to three charges in 2022, receiving a sentence of sixteen years and eight months. A documentary that provides the details of the situation was released by HBO in collaboration with RAINN.
The series The Darkness within La Luz del Mundo tells the sickening story of the events that occurred.
Is La Luz del Mundo Church still active?
Yes, the church continues to operate, and despite the guilty verdict, the members of the church believe Garcia to be innocent of the claims against him.
In September 2022, a gathering of thousands of church members would gather to pray for their fallen leader.
Astonishingly, Garcia was able to communicate with the crowd via a phone call.
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