Evangelist Jesse Duplantis defended himself against accusations that he did not do enough to help his community following the devastation of Hurricane Ida in Louisiana.
In a video on the Facebook page of Jesse Duplantis Ministries (JDM), captured by The Christian Post (CP), the minister and his wife, Cathy, claimed that the organization has given away generators worth $100,000.
"You're hearing all kinds of rumors that we're not doing this, we're not doing [that], that's all a bunch of malarkey. I could use another word, but you understand what I'm talking about. I made up my mind that we're going to be a blessing and are a blessing. ... We've already given away $100,000 worth of generator."
He went on to say that JDM wants to do more.
Further, he said that the movement is also feeding people in the area.
"Not only have we been giving out spiritual food but we've been giving out physical food, all those kinds of things. But you know, people don't want to hear that because you gotta touch the heart of an individual."
They continued by expressing their gratitude to their donors, as well as the supporters who shared words of encouragement.
The couple then urged the followers to continue their support by donating to the ministry, recalling the time when Hurricane Katrina hit the state and the organization spent $3 million from donations to help the community.
But according to CP, Brandi Abate, who lives in the same area as Duplantis, refuted his claim.
In a Facebook post, Abate stated that she passed by the minister's home and church several times but did not see any activity that shows the ministry is doing anything for the community - no prayer services, ice, food, water or the generators he was speaking of.
In her another post, she shared a video of Duplantis' well-lit home, taken by someone while driving around the place.
"$100,000 worth of generators looks like..." a Facebook user named Shay Posey said in the caption.
Sarah Jory, another local, also criticized the pastor and told the NBC News that she did not know anyone who got one of the generators Duplantis claimed to have donated.
Moreover, Abate shared to the media outlet that she went to JDM and inquired about getting a generator but was told that there is nothing available.
In May 2018, Duplantis was also criticized for saying that God told him to have another aircraft and asked his followers for donations to purchase it. He argued that if Jesus was "physically" in the world, He would have opted to be in an airplane rather than on a donkey to preach the Gospel.
The jet that he wanted was the Falcon 7X, which costs $54 million at that time, USA today said. It would have been the minister's fourth private plane.
However, in an interview the following month, the pastor clarified that he only owned an aircraft at that moment since he already donated the two other planes to other ministries. He added that he would also donate his old jet once he got the new one.
