Saint Matthew's Churches, Inc.

Christians send in money for prayer requests which may just go up in smoke

Comments (0) By Craig Malisow Thursday, Mar 22 2007

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Citing the potential for quotes like the one above, Joyce said he would not make Ewing available for an interview. According to its Web site, the organization perceives those who accuse Ewing as a con artist as "atheists; communists; drug dealers; criminals; the lunatic fringes of society; those who hate the United States, God and Christianity and those who hate us because we are gospel missionaries."

One of these alleged drug-dealing pinko heathens is a former employee named Valerija Kachavos, who is suing Saint Matthew's (as well as Ewing and Joyce individually) under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.

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According to the suit, Kachavos was a computer programmer for Saint Matthew's who began to question her employer's integrity after allegedly seeing the prayer requests hauled to an incineration company. Kachavos claims she was ultimately fired for asking too many questions.

While critics like the Trinity Foundation have accused Saint Matthew's of being a scam for decades, Kachavos's suit may be the broadest legal action taken against the organization.

The suit does not mention the church building on Airline Drive.

However, it does mention other so-called religious organizations Ewing has incorporated in the past. Perhaps the most telling is Reverend Ewing's Evangelistic Ministries.

Otherwise known as REEM.