Pat Robertson, founder of the Christian Broadcasting Network, died June 8 at his Virginia Beach home. Robertson was 93.
“Pat Robertson has gone home to be with his Lord and Savior today,” read a tweet from The 700 Club, the news show Robertson hosted until 2021. “Thank you for your prayers for the Robertson family and the ministry of CBN at this time.”
While Robertson was perhaps best known later in his life for controversial comments on current events, his media presence began with the founding of CBN in 1960. The 700 Club launched soon after.
Politics and social issues
Over the years, Robertson spoke out often on politics and social issues, founding the Christian Coalition and pursuing the Republican nomination for U.S. President in 1988.
Robertson also started Regent University in Virginia Beach, the American Center for Law & Justice in Washington, D.C., and the humanitarian organization Operation Blessing.
“Pat was truly a pioneer of the evangelical world,” evangelist Greg Laurie tweeted after Robertson’s death. “If there is a single word that would sum him up it would be, vision.
“It’s been said, ‘Faith sees invisible things,’ and Pat applied his faith to the Great Commission to ‘go into all the world and preach the Gospel’ literally,” Laurie tweeted. “The result was millions of people came to a life-changing relationship with Christ through his television ministry.”
Robertson was preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Dede, who passed away in 2022. He is survived by their four children and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.