A good friend of mine, who isn't particularly religious, watches his show often on Sunday mornings. He says it's a drug free alternative to Xanax.
Bigtexxx walk over to your mantle and take all those hardcover Osteen books down and put them in the closet.
Who hates Christians? I don't know anyone that hates the people, now the religion itself......and it's hypocrisy...sure. Religion is the bane of humans everywhere. DD
I will admit I don't know too much about Joel Osteen or the Lakewood Church which is why I wanted to ask about what other charity work they'd done. What little I've seen of Osteen and the Prosperity Gospel I find it to be simplistic, shallow, soporophic and not something that I would consider leading to a deeper understanding of spiritualtiy and the meaning of existence that I look to religion for. I think the celebration of wealth and material being by Osteen and other preachers of the Prosperity Gospel is troubling and one that blurs the line of material gain with spiritual attainment. I'm also troubled by reports that many who donate to such churches and preachers are themselves not materially well off and have bought into a message of the Prosperity Gospel that the more they give the more they will eventually receive. As someone who isn't a Christian though I'm not one to judge if whether the Prosperity Gospel is truly Christian or not. Further I believe people should be free to donate to Osteen and if it does bring them comfort then that is some good.
Hmmm... I think you all are wrong about this. Mr. Osteen was willing to open his doors. He merely stipulated that he was limiting it to 2 of every animal species.
The church is fairly active in charitable causes. What % of the income it receives goes to true charity? I honestly don't know. I do know that Joel Osteen early on dedicated a lot of money to charitable causes and made damn sure the media covered it. A skeptic would say he did so in an effort to avoid the fate of other televangelist labeled as frauds. Osteen does keep it simple and that is his brilliance. He is able to take the every day persons stresses and worries and hopes and loosely relate it to Christianity. He also avoids wedge issues such as homosexuality, abortion and politics. As a result he is able to appeal to a wide group of people that otherwise may not be religious at all. The Prosperity Gospel isn't consistent with the life of Jesus presented in the accepted books of the Bible or even the fringe books mostly viewed as radical. The problem is the teachings of Jesus are not really consistent or lend themselves well to capitalism. So Prosperity Gospels sprung up and appealed to people. It doesn't take being a Christian to reach that conclusion. Ready of the Books of the Bible, banned Gospels and a historical understanding of the time period is more than sufficient. I have always viewed Osteen as ultimately harmless. He makes a lot of money but he sells them hope and a sense of community. He doesn't really preach hatred or dwell or sin or hell. Osteen lives in a $10,500,000 fortress in River Oaks. He is good at what he does. I am sure there are nights where he stays up tossing and turning while Victoria is asleep... and he wonders if there is a hell and will he be going there.
I suppose the definition of a Christian is fluid. That said, humility and meekness are common themes found in the Bible and Jesus teachings. However I understand many Christians do not stop with the teachings of Jesus and often dig up the Old Testament to fit their narrative. Prosperity Gospel is rejected by mainstream Christians and they see it what its truly for. There is nothing wrong with alternative ways to impact others. Jesus was not about condemnation and bigotry, so there is no fault if Osteen wants to avoid hot topic issues like homosexuality. If Osteen wants to leave out the Bible and teach and inspire other to do better in the life and help out others, that is just as well. However using the Bible and God to guilt others into tithing/offerings is immoral, especially when one is raking in millions. This is a common theme found in many churches, not just Osteen. I do understand many small churchs struggle to literally keep the doors open and need to beg for money, however my sympathy goes out the door when a church must divide and start a new sect over petty differences. I believe all churches (and any organization) who wish to remain tax exempt should make their accounting books public.
I've never thought about this, but I'm surprised this isn't already the case. 100% agree this should be law.
