Joel Osteen

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Joel Osteen Lauds 'Heroes' of Megachurch Shooting
Joel Osteen
Returns to
His Church

Joel Osteen Returns to His Church

Pastor praises law enforcement, his Houston megachurch's security team after Feb. 11 shooting

(Newser) - Lakewood Church was back in business on Sunday, a week after a shooting at Joel Osteen's megachurch in Houston left the shooter dead, her young son critically injured, and another man hurt. The congregation offered up prayers for the injured, as well as for 36-year-old shooter Genesse Moreno, while...

Neighbors Say They Warned Cops About Megachurch Shooter

Her former mother-in-law is also speaking out

(Newser) - The neighbors of Genesse Ivonne Moreno, the woman who opened fire in Joel Osteen's Houston megachurch on Sunday before she was fatally shot by police, say they'd been trying to warn authorities about her for years. The six women held a news conference to describe the harassment and...

Police Identify Megachurch Shooting Suspect

Genesse Ivonne Moreno was fatally shot by off-duty officers inside Lakewood Church

(Newser) - The woman who opened fire in Joel Osteen's Houston megachurch on Sunday has been identified as 36-year-old Genesse Ivonne Moreno, but many details, including the motive, remain unclear. The Houston Chronicle reports that Moreno, who was fatally shot by two off-duty officers working security inside Lakewood Church, was named...

Woman Opens Fire in Joel Osteen's Megachurch

A boy and a man are hurt, and the shooter is dead in Texas

(Newser) - Houston police are sorting out the details after a shooting at celebrity pastor Joel Osteen's megachurch on Sunday. Police say the female shooter was killed, and a young boy and a man were injured, reports KPRC . What we know:
  • A woman holding a rifle and carrying a young boy
...

Sweet End for Plumber Who Found Cash in Megachurch Wall

He'll walk away $20K richer

(Newser) - Update: The plumber who stumbled on cash and checks inside a megachurch wall will walk away from the experience a little richer. While police haven't disclosed the amount that was found, evidence suggests it is connected to theft of $600,000 from Lakewood Church in 2014, reports NBC News...

Kanye Warms Up for Church —in Jail

Two unannounced concerts precede rapper's performance at Joel Osteen's church

(Newser) - Before Kanye West went to church in Houston this weekend, he went to jail. The rapper put on two unannounced concerts Friday at the Harris County Jail—one for about 200 men at a lockup, then one for a smaller audience of female inmates at the main jail. "This...

Joel Osteen Addresses Harvey Controversy in Sunday Sermon

The prosperity-gospel preacher says he did the right thing

(Newser) - Celebrity televangelist and prosperity-gospel preacher Joel Osteen used his first sermon since the devastation of Hurricane Harvey last week to defend his decision not to open his 16,000-seat Houston mega-church to people seeking shelter during the storm. Osteen received criticism on social media for not opening his massive Lakewood...

Tyler Perry Gives Houston $1M, With Some of It for Joel Osteen

A quarter of the money goes to Osteen's church

(Newser) - Tyler Perry is donating $1 million to relief efforts in Texas following Hurricane Harvey, and a full 25% of that amount is going to Joel Osteen's Houston megachurch. Perry announced the donations in a video on Facebook , People reports, and he insisted that though people were upset when the...

Joel Osteen's Megachurch Eventually Opens as Shelter

Announcement comes after major social media backlash

(Newser) - Joel Osteen opened his Houston megachurch to those seeking shelter from floodwaters Tuesday after social media critics slammed the televangelist for not offering to house people in need while Harvey swamps the city, the AP reports. Lakewood Church—a 16,000-seat former arena that was the longtime home of the...

Joel Osteen Megachurch Is Slammed Over Harvey Actions

Lots of contention over whether Lakewood Church is truly inaccessible

(Newser) - Joel Osteen's Houston megachurch lives up to the "mega" part of its name: It's the former home to the NBA's Houston Rockets and boasts a seating capacity of more than 16,000—space that some feel would best serve as a shelter for Hurricane Harvey evacuees....

88% of US Catholics Approve of Pope

And some 75% of Americans like Francis

(Newser) - American Catholics are big fans of the new pope, with some 88% approving of the job Pope Francis is doing, a CNN/ORC International poll finds. ( Eat your heart out, Congress .) As for the country as a whole, CNN reports that about three in four Americans has a positive...

Amazingly Elaborate Hoax Targets Megachurch Pastor

Joel Osteen has renounced his faith, online hoax claims

(Newser) - Somebody has put a massive amount of work into a hoax claiming that pastor Joel Osteen has renounced his faith and is resigning from the Texas megachurch his father founded, the Houston Chronicle reports. The hoax includes a fake Twitter feed, a YouTube video from "ChristianityNews" containing mockups of...

10 Pastors Who Are Absolutely Loaded

God's work can apparently bring in a lot of cash

(Newser) - You probably wouldn't think of "religious leader" as a job that would bring in big bucks, and for the most part, you'd be right: Catholic priests make just $25,000 to $30,000 per year, and the average Protestant pastor brings in $40,000. But get a...

Who We Trust Post-Cronkite
 Who We Trust 
 Post-Cronkite 

Who We Trust Post-Cronkite

From Cooper to Oprah, people weigh in

(Newser) - After the passing of Walter Cronkite, the Washington Post wondered who could compare to his level of trustworthiness. Below are a few of the responses they got from a variety of sources:
  • Anderson Cooper, “because he always has that slight bit of cynicism when it’s deserved,” says
...

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