Trigger warning. This podcast contains descriptions of various abusive situations.

Listener discretion is advised. My name is Eric Skrinski. As a former religious fundamentalist,

I'm shedding light on the dark side of the church, from the pulpit to the pews. But I'm not

doing it alone. Each week, I'm sitting down with survivors,

advocates, authors, and more to uncover the inner workings of these abusive religious groups

to give tactical tips on how to escape and to find out what we can do to take them down.

You're listening to the Bridge Boys podcast. In 1987, long before he began hawking

emergency food buckets for use in the end times, well-known televangelist and pastor Jim Baker

had plans to expand his Christian theme park, Heritage USA. Per the Charlotte Observer, the park

already featured a 52-foot water slide, Bible-based shops along a pretend main street,

and a TV studio spotlighting the talk show that starred Baker and then-wife Tammy.

Baker's vision, he told investors, included a roller coaster ride through heaven and hell,

a 30,000-seat replica of London's Crystal Palace, and even a five-story Greek-style mausoleum. Construction had already

begun on two other mega-projects, a sandcastle with a 10-story turret that would house the

world's largest Wendy's restaurant, and a high-rise hotel that he called Heritage Grand Towers.

If this Christian theme park scheme sounds at all familiar to you, it may be because it was a major plot point in the biopic, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, which chronicles the rise of Tammy Faye Baker and her husband, Jim.

The concept of a Christian resort slash theme park was also parodied in the HBO series, Righteous Gemstones, and show creator Danny McBride has talked pretty openly about writing plot lines inspired by real religious celebrities, events, and scandals.

Anyway, two months after he pitched investors on this expansion,

Baker was exposed for financial crimes involving wire and mail fraud,

and was also accused of sexual assault by a former ministry secretary named Jessica Hahn. Baker contended in his book

that this sexual encounter was consensual. In light of these public scandals, his plans were

scrapped and the ongoing construction was halted. Baker was also sent to prison for five years,

...