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Joel Osteen Under Fire for Megachurch Shutdown During Hurricane Harvey

countryboy said:
I guess you didn't even bother to read the article. :roll:
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Oh I've read the article. I've also been following the subject since it was originally raised on Twitter so I know that everything coming out of Osteen's mouth and finger tips is bovine excrement.
 
nota bene said:
From Wiki:

Lakewood Church is a non-denominational charismatic Christian megachurch located in Houston, Texas, US. It is the one of the largest congregations in the United States, averaging about 52,000 attendees per week. The 16,800-seat Lakewood Church Central Campus, home to four English-language services and two Spanish-language services per week, is located at the former Compaq Center. Joel Osteen is the senior pastor of Lakewood Church with his wife, Victoria, who serves as co-pastor. Lakewood Church is nondenominational (not affiliated), while the leadership may be considered part of the Word of Faith movement. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakewood_Church

Word of Faith (also known as Word-Faith or simply Faith) is a worldwide Christian movement that teaches that Christians can access the power of faith or fear through speech. Its distinctive teachings are found on radio, Internet, television, and in many Charismatic denominations and communities. The basic doctrine renounces the idea that Christians must be poor and/or suffer in order to live a godly life and glorify Jesus Christ. The Word of Faith doctrine teaches that based on the definition of the word sozo from which Christians get the word salvation, that the saving work done by Jesus on the cross included health and provision in this life. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_of_Faith
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I asked you about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Not the teaching of Wiki, or some BS interpretation of something or someone called 'The word of faith'.

When Christ said "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven". tells me what kind of hypocrite Ostenn is. Now I KNOW Osteen, and 'others' will change the meaning of this to their own liking, but this and a thousand other times in the Bible Christ is saying Osteen and his ilk are the worse kind of Christians.
 
countryboy said:
Please tell me how Bernie Sanders lifestyle in any way resembles what Karl Marx taught. :roll: Or any number of leftist loons for that matter.
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WTF? We're talking about Christ and Christianity and you're comparing that to Marx? Are you being serious?
 
SenorXm/Sirius said:
I asked you about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Not the teaching of Wiki, or some BS interpretation of something or someone called 'The word of faith'.

When Christ said "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven". tells me what kind of hypocrite Ostenn is. Now I KNOW Osteen, and 'others' will change the meaning of this to their own liking, but this and a thousand other times in the Bible Christ is saying Osteen and his ilk are the worse kind of Christians.
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You said, "Please tell me how his life style in anyway is what Jesus Christ preached and taught." I provided you with facts about the Word of Faith movement/prosperity gospel of which Lakewood Church is a part. Sorry if facts don't suit.

What you want is for me to join you in condemning this man and playing the "Who's a bad Christian?" game. I'm not interested in this or in slinging Scripture.
 
SenorXm/Sirius said:
WTF? We're talking about Christ and Christianity and you're comparing that to Marx? Are you being serious?
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He does imply that Jesus was a "leftist loon". As St Paul said, "The foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of men".:cool:
 
Goshin said:
I've talked to people who were actually there, in Houston, near the church in question.


They said the church had been giving out aid packages since the evacuation began. They also said that despite appearances of being above the water, they had some internal flooding that caused them to question whether housing people in the building would be safe.

I'm not an Osteen fan at all, but let's be fair. They are helping, and most of this criticism comes from people who hated the man to start with.
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Agreed but I think the criticism comes from the image. I'm not sure how big his church is, but it looks like one of the biggest in the country, and for his very public persona, he has kept a very low profile on how he is helping people. Also the spin he did to explain it away was bad. He did everything to make himself look better and not necessarily admitting fault for hesitating to open the doors. A simple, "I'm sorry." Would have worked but he did that after he went on GMA.
 
ModerateGOP said:
Agreed but I think the criticism comes from the image. I'm not sure how big his church is, but it looks like one of the biggest in the country, and for his very public persona, he has kept a very low profile on how he is helping people. Also the spin he did to explain it away was bad. He did everything to make himself look better and not necessarily admitting fault for hesitating to open the doors. A simple, "I'm sorry." Would have worked but he did that after he went on GMA.
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It used to be the arena for the Houston Rockets. Then it had a seating capacity of 17 000 or so.
 
bearpoker said:
There's a lot that can be done for people aside from opening the church as a shelter. Providing food comes to mind, which is why I was kind of shocked that they don't have a kitchen. Many churches also have food pantries to help those in need. The same with donated clothing. My church also has a stock of donated wheelchairs, walkers etc that could be useful for disabled people in a situation like this. I suspect that most of the Houston area churches are busy right now, providing a variety of services.
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Yep there sure is a lot people can do to assist. And what I am seeing happening in Texas there's no shortage of those willing to do whatever they can to help those in need.

There will be help pouring into Texas in the days ahead to assist in cleanup and rebuilding from churches all over the country because that is how Christians roll. This isn't their first rodeo. They are well organized and ready to help. Many will drive down truckloads of goods and supplies from lumber to sheet rock, nails, power tools etc.
 
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nota bene said:
You said, "Please tell me how his life style in anyway is what Jesus Christ preached and taught." I provided you with facts about the Word of Faith movement/prosperity gospel of which Lakewood Church is a part. Sorry if facts don't suit.

What you want is for me to join you in condemning this man and playing the "Who's a bad Christian?" game. I'm not interested in this or in slinging Scripture.
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No. You did NOT prove anything. I can understand why you don't want to 'sling Scriptures'. Because the Scriptures and Jesus's teachings shoot Osteens lifestyle and your excuses for Osteen all to hell.
 
SenorXm/Sirius said:
No. You did NOT prove anything. I can understand why you don't want to 'sling Scriptures'. Because the Scriptures and Jesus's teachings shoot Osteens lifestyle and your excuses for Osteen all to hell.
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1. I've never tried to prove anything nor have I made the claim that I have.

2. No, you really have no idea at all why I don't want to sling Scripture. Not even a whiff of a clue.

3. You're pretending I'm defending Osteen. I'm just not attacking him and sitting in judgment.
 
Hawkeye10 said:
Seats are pretty useless in a 24/7 shelter, it is bed space/kitchens that matter.
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It should I expect still have the concourse where food and drinks were being served when it was an arena. A reasonably large area which I am sure could handle 1000 or so people with cots. It would easily handle that many needing to go to the washroom
 
Lord Tammerlain said:
It should I expect still have the concourse where food and drinks were being served when it was an arena. A reasonably large area which I am sure could handle 1000 or so people with cots. It would easily handle that many needing to go to the washroom
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I have not seen the layout but could be....if so were those 1000 cots needed, were they available? This has smelled like a Lefty Hammering Job all along, and more so today with rabidly Lefty Pro Victim Culture Rag Rolling Stone going:

Joel Osteen Is the Quintessential Religious Figure of the Trump Era
Trump represents the pinnacle of the Republican Party's embrace of prosperity gospel values
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Joel Osteen Is the Quintessential Pastor of the Trump Era - Rolling Stone

Finishing with the hate:
When Trump proclaims, "the evangelicals love me, and I love them," though, he's talking about a particular evangelical subculture in evangelicalism, one that is closer to Trump than it is to Jesus.
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