Pastor Tries To Pray Away Hurricane Maria–And Fails (VIDEO)



Early on Wednesday morning, Puerto Rico was hit with the full fury of Hurricane Maria. The storm blasted Puerto Rico with winds of up to 155 mph–easily the most powerful storm that the island had seen in 85 years. Many areas were expected to get as much as 35 inches of rain, with flooding reported on much of the island. As of Wednesday night, the entire island is without power.

The winds were so intense that they broke two National Weather Service radars on the island. Although calls for help started pouring in, first responders couldn’t go out there because the winds were too strong. Governor Ricardo Rossello said that first responders will not go outside in winds greater than 50 mph.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way. After all, right-wing pastor Lance Wallnau had his followers join him in an 11th-hour effort to get Maria to change course.

While on a trip to Israel to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, Wallnau had his followers on Periscope join him in praying that Puerto Rico would be protected from Maria’s wrath. People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch got a clip.

Toward the end of a typical rant–paeans to Trump, cheap shots at the “bitter, hostile, angry” liberals who were supposedly being influenced by an “evil eye”–Wallnau launched into a prayer for Puerto Rico.

“We see that hurricane coming to Puerto Rico. We command the hurricane to veer off course into the ocean. Ricochet off into the ocean, ricochet off into the ocean. You shall not hit nor shall you destroy Puerto Rico.”

Wallnau then got in a dig at Right Wing Watch, saying that they knew it wasn’t just him praying against the hurricane, but “the 5,000 people praying with me.” Claiming his “power over the elements” as given to him by Jesus, he commanded that Maria “depart from Puerto Rico into the ocean.”


As it turned out, it didn’t work. Just hours after Wallnau signed off, Maria made landfall on Puerto Rico.

This isn’t the first time that Wallnau’s attempt to pray away a hurricane went sideways. Two weeks ago, as Hurricane Irma bore down on Florida–with virtually everything from the Keys to Daytona Beach set to get blasted–Wallnau posted several videos on Periscope commanding that it turn into the Atlantic. As it turned out, Irma turned west and churned across the Keys before inundating Fort Myers, Naples, and Tampa Bay.

That didn’t stop Wallnau from taking credit for not only causing Irma to turn away from its original path toward a direct hit on Miami. It also didn’t stop him from claiming that Irma didn’t hit Mar-a-Lago or Trump’s other Florida properties because the Donald has God’s hand on him.

Apparently Wallnau knows there’s no way he can spin this–and yes, the pun was intended. While Periscope videos automatically appear on the user’s associated Twitter feed, all trace of Tuesday night’s video has disappeared from Wallnau’s Twitter.


Hopefully Wallnau’s followers will turn their attention toward helping Puerto Rico rebuild. Carlos Mercader, a spokesman for Governor Rossello, said that in the face of “total devastation,” the island “will never be the same.” They’re going to need all the help they can get to recover.

(featured image courtesy Wallnau’s Facebook)

Darrell is a 30-something graduate of the University of North Carolina who considers himself a journalist of the old school. An attempt to turn him into a member of the religious right in college only succeeded in turning him into the religious right's worst nightmare--a charismatic Christian who is an unapologetic liberal. His desire to stand up for those who have been scared into silence only increased when he survived an abusive three-year marriage. You may know him on Daily Kos as Christian Dem in NC. Follow him on Twitter @DarrellLucus or connect with him on Facebook. Click here to buy Darrell a Mello Yello.