Joel Osteen
Joel Scott Osteen (born March 5, 1963) is an American pastor, televangelist, businessman, and author based in Houston, Texas, United States.Known for his weekly televised services and several best-selling books, Osteen is one of the more prominent figures associated with prosperity theology and the Word of Faith movement.[16][17][18][19] Osteen says he chooses to focus more on the goodness of God and on living an obedient life rather than on sin,[20] and that he tries to teach Biblical principles in a simple way, emphasizing the power of love and a positive attitude.[25] Osteen also hosted an event at his Lakewood Church in 2018, in collaboration with rapper Kanye West, called Sunday Service.[27] On February 11, 2024, a woman with a history of mental health issues, Genesse Ivonne Moreno, accompanied by her 7-year-old son, entered the church between services and began firing an AR-15 rifle.[32] Osteen says that as senior pastor, he draws no salary from the church, which has an annual budget of $70 million,[33] and that he instead relies on income from book sales.[39][40][38][41] 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.[46] According to the Houston Chronicle, Osteen denied taking any pandemic CARES Act assistance, but U.S. Small Business Administration data revealed his church actually received $4.4 million from the fund.[48] During the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, Osteen was criticized 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.