Joel Osteen
Joel Scott Osteen (born March 5, 1963) is an American pastor, televangelist, and author, based in Houston, Texas. As of 2018, Osteen's televised sermons were seen by approximately 10 million viewers in the US and several million more in over 100 countries weekly. Osteen has also written several best-selling books. Early life and family. Osteen was born in Houston, Texas, and is one of six children of John Osteen and Dolores ("Dodie") Pilgrim. His father, a former Southern Baptist pastor, founded Lakewood Church (of which Osteen is the current senior pastor) in the back of an  old feed store. He graduated from Humble High School, a public high school in the city of Humble, Texas, in 1981, and attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he studied radio and television communications, but did not graduate; he did not receive a degree from a divinity school. In 1982, he returned to Houston, founded Lakewood's television program, and produced his father's televised sermons for 17 years until January 1999, when his father died unexpectedly from a heart attack. Career. On January 17, 1999, Osteen preached his first sermon. On October 3, 1999, he was installed  as the new senior pastor of Lakewood Church. In 2003, Lakewood Church acquired the Compaq Center, former home of the NBA Houston Rockets and the AHL Houston Aeros and renovated it. According to Osteen in 2008, Lakewood Church's weekly service TV program was viewed in more than 100 countries. Lakewood Church estimates that 7 million viewers per week watch the services. Osteen was included on Barbara Walters's list of the 10 Most Fascinating People of 2006. Former presidential candidate John McCain described Osteen as his favorite inspirational author. The Osteen family attended Easter breakfast hosted by President Barack  Obama at the White House in 2010. As of 2014, Lakewood's attendance had grown from 5,000 to 43,000 people. Preaching style. Osteen's sermon preparation involves memorizing his remarks and listening to himself on tape. Osteen says he chooses to focus more on the goodness of God and on living an obedient life rather than on sin. He says that he tries to teach Biblical principles in a simple way, emphasizing the power of love and a positive attitude. When asked why he does not focus more on sin, the devil and hell in detail, Osteen stated in an  interview with CBN News: Events. Since 2004, Osteen, along with his wife, have hosted Night of Hope events, as well as their annual stadium event called "America's Night of Hope", in the U.S. and around the world. The event incorporates contemporary Christian music and inspirational messages to reach the masses at the venue and others watching online. Osteen also hosted an event at his Lakewood Church in 2018, in collaboration with rapper Kanye West, called Kanye’s Sunday Service. As per media reports, the event was attended by 17,000 as well as joined by many people streaming online. He  also held his Easter service during COVID-19 with Mariah Carey and Tyler Perry. Books. Osteen's first book, "", was released in October 2004, and reached the number 1 position on "The New York Times" Best Seller list. He released his second book, titled "Become a Better You: 7 Keys to Improving Your Life Every Day", in October 2007. It also topped "The New York Times" Best Seller list and had a first printing of three million copies. Osteen has said that the book focuses more on relationships and not getting stuck where we are in life. Besides those two books , Osteen has written more than 18 others. "See", Book list. Personal life. On April 4, 1987, Osteen married Victoria Osteen (née Iloff), who later would become co-pastor of Lakewood Church. They have a son and daughter. In 2002, his older siblings, Paul, Lisa, and Tamara, and his younger sister, April, were also involved in full-time ministry, and his half-brother Justin was doing missionary work. Osteen lives with his family in a 17,000 square-foot mansion in River Oaks, with an estimated value of $10.5 million. Osteen says that as senior pastor, he draws no salary from  the church, which has an annual budget of $70 million, and that he instead relies on income from book sales. Political and social views. Osteen has generally avoided discussing or preaching about controversial issues such as gay marriage, abortion, and politics. Having gone on record saying homosexuality is "not God's best", he has stated he believes the church has a tendency to become overly focused on single issues (such as homosexuality) to the point of neglecting others. When asked if he thought God approves of homosexuality, Osteen said homosexuality is a sin according to his interpretation of Scripture , but said gay people are welcome in his church without judgment. In an interview on Fox News in 2008 during the Republican Party presidential primary race, when discussing whether he thought that Mormons were Christians, Osteen indicated that he believed that they were. He further revealed that he had not studied the religion. In an interview in 2011, Osteen stated his support for Israel. Controversies. Prosperity gospel criticism. Osteen's sermons and writings are sometimes criticized for promoting prosperity theology, or the prosperity gospel, a belief that the reward of material gain is the will of God for all pious  Christians. On October 14, 2007, "60 Minutes" ran a 12-minute segment on Osteen, titled "Joel Osteen Answers His Critics", during which Reformed theologian Michael Horton told CBS News correspondent Byron Pitts that Osteen's message is heresy. Horton stated that the problem with Osteen's message is that it makes religion about us instead of about God. Osteen is estimated to have a net worth of over $50 million, with his church taking in $43 million a year in collections. Hurricane Harvey response. During the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, Osteen received significant criticism  for not making Lakewood Church, a 606,000-square-foot, 16,000-seat former sports arena, available as an emergency shelter for those displaced by the storm. On August 27, posts from the church and a Lakewood Church associate pastor's social media accounts stated that the church was "inaccessible due to severe flooding," and associate pastor John Gray posting further, "If WE could get there WE WOULD OPEN THE DOORS." Lakewood spokesperson Don Iloff later described floodwaters as one foot from spilling over the facility's floodgate and surging into the building. He also stated that pictures showing Lakewood free of  flooding were taken on Monday, after the flood waters had lowered. Osteen disputed the claim that flood waters closed the church, saying "the church has been open from the beginning," and, "[w]e've always been open ... How this notion got started, that we're not a shelter and we're not taking people in is a false narrative." This contradicted his earlier statement that the church would open when other refugee centers were full. On the evening of August 28, it was announced by Lakewood that it would open at noon the next day as an available shelter to storm victims  and emergency personnel, which it did. On August 15, 2018, less than a year after Harvey struck, the City of Houston and Mayor Sylvester Turner proclaimed a day in honor of the assistance of Lakewood and Osteen in rebuilding efforts across the Houston area. It stated that Lakewood and its pastors had provided "assistance to more than 1,150 Houston-area families whose homes were damaged or destroyed by floodwaters" and bought "1.1 million dollars in building materials, furniture, appliances, and paid labor, as well as through the contribution of more than 2,500 volunteers". Other. In 2011, Osteen and Lakewood Church  were sued by the band The American Dollar for copyright infringement. A judge in 2012 ruled in favor of Osteen, but gave The American Dollar leave to amend the case. In 2020, Osteen's Lakewood Church accepted $4.4 million in federal PPP loans for COVID relief. The church began repayment in October 2021.