In late March 2025, a rumor spread online that U.S. President Donald Trump’s senior faith adviser, Paula White-Cain, promised “seven supernatural blessings” in exchange for people making $1,000 donations to her ministry during Passover season from April 12 to 20.
Social media users wrote about White-Cain’s purported promise on X, Facebook and Reddit. The claim was based on a video posted on the YouTube channel of her Florida-based evangelical church, Paula White Ministries, on March 23.
MSNBC commentator Rachel Maddow
“When it comes to trying to achieve a long life and take sickness away, it’s nice to know at least someone in the White House is working on those things, even if they are charging for them. You may be able to buy those things by sending a thousand dollars to the head of the White House Faith Office,” Maddow said.
Trump appointed White-Cain, a
White-Cain’s supposed solicitation for donations in exchange for blessings even attracted attention from Dolly Parton’s sister, country singer Stella Parton, who called it a “grifter scam.”
Paula shut up with your grift. I’ve met you and worked on the same show with you. You need to go repent and stop this charade. I’m a Christian and this is not at all Christian. It’s a grifter scam. STOP. 🛑
— Stella Parton (@StellaParton) March 25, 2025
The video at the center of the controversy does ask viewers for donations to
Speaking via email, an unnamed spokesperson for Paula White Ministries called the rumor a “deceptive smear” and said that donations to the ministry do not “directly benefit” White-Cain.
“Pastor White specifically says in the very same video, ‘you’re not doing this to get something,’ and the solicitation which was later in the program makes it clear that any donation to the ministry should only be ‘as the Holy Spirit leads,'” the statement said.
Breaking down the video
On March 23, Paula White Ministries posted a video on YouTube titled “Passover Season: God’s Divine Appointment with You! | Pastor Paula White-Cain.”
At 1:46, White-Cain
I want to give you an opportunity to bring His tithe [described by Merriam-Webster as “a tenth part of something paid as a voluntary contribution or as a tax especially for the support of a religious establishment”] and your offering into the storehouse. Let’s give generously to God. He’s a good God. And if He’s blessed you, be a blessing to this ministry … you can click on the link right there that is on your screen, you can give by CashApp, all the different ways you can give, but thank you for being a generous and a liberal giver.
During this passage, a message appears on-screen encouraging viewers to make financial contributions to Paula White Ministries via numerous methods, such as PayPal, Apple Pay and more.
White-Cain then proceeds to talk about the Passover season and how she believes people can honor God while quoting passages from the Bible. She says people can honor and thank God through prayer, praise, bringing friends and family together and giving to God. Options for making financial contributions to her ministry pop up on screen repeatedly throughout these passages.
From 29:07, a narrator introduces a passage from the Bible that says: “None shall appear before the Lord empty-handed.” This message is immediately followed by a call to action urging viewers to make a “Passover/Easter resurrection offering” of varying amounts between $50 and $1,000. In return, viewers are told they will receive various gift sets (as seen below), depending on the amount they donate. The narrator then says: “Don’t miss your moment to release seven supernatural blessings and provision into your life,” appearing to connect the donations to the release of the blessings.
(Paula White Ministries on YouTube)
The list of seven blessings does not appear when the narrator talks about gifts of $50 or more and $125 or more. (Paula White Ministries on YouTube)
The seven blessings include people having an angel assigned to them, receiving prosperity, having sickness taken away and receiving long life.
However, the narrator does not explicitly state that people will only receive these seven blessings if they make a donation to the ministry. (While the narrator is speaking, the list of blessings does, however, appear alongside the gift set people will receive if they make a $1,000 donation, as seen in the above screenshot.)
For example, at 31:31, White-Cain says: “I believe that when you honor God on Passover … you can receive these seven supernatural blessings for you and your house.” As White-Cain stated earlier, she believes there are numerous ways to honor God that do not necessarily include financial donations to her ministry, such as prayer and praise. Therefore, it is fair to assume that she was saying that people will receive the blessings by honoring God in any way choose to, which may or may not include making a financial contribution to her ministry.
She then continues (emphasis ours):
You’re not doing this to get something, but you’re doing it in honor to God, realizing what you can receive. And God declares in Exodus 23:15, “none shall appear before me empty-handed.” We always bring to God. That’s how He says from Genesis to Revelation.
Ministry takes money. And if you have the ability to stand with us, I want to ask you to put your faith during this very holy time — because I give just to give, and I pray there are others, but also know we want to get you some special gifts.
As shown above, White-Cain is saying that viewers can send her ministry money and this message was closely linked to the receiving of the seven blessings. In fact, as she speaks, the text that appears below her asks viewers to “Honor the Lord for His sacrifice during His most Holy Season of Passover” and shows a QR code that led to a page on her website asking for donations.
However, at no point does she ask for a specific amount of money in return for donations. (She does take Exodus out of context, though, according to theologian and Old Testament researcher Carmen Imes, who called White-Cain’s appeal “deeply problematic” in Christianity Today.)
(Paula White Ministries on YouTube)
The page where her ministry asks for donations also does not specifically promise the blessings in exchange for $1,000, instead asking “to consider giving God your Best Passover Offering today” and listing amounts between $50 and $1,000 or more. The donations, the page says, will help the ministry “preach the gospel and help with humanitarian efforts around the world.”
Therefore, while a viewer may justifiably infer, based on the video, that White-Cain promised that seven blessings will arrive should the viewer give $1,000 to Paula White Ministries, neither White-Cain nor the narrator explicitly promise anywhere in the video that giving $1,000 or more will result in people receiving the seven blessings.
