Evangelical United States: Joel Osteen

There is no doubt that the Baptist pastor Rick Warren, 53, is the most influential evangelical leader of the United States today. In 2005, a cover of U.S. magazine Weekly Times (edition of February 7, 2005) pointed out the 25 most influential evangelicals in America and Warren was at the top of the list. The matter went so far as to assert that Warren "is the successor to the old Billy Graham for the role of minister in America." Newsweek, U.S. publication of equal respect, the recently considered one of the 15 most influential people in the United States. The church led by Warren is a phenomenon of growth (around 30 000 members in just over 20 years of existence) and his book "A life with purpose," a blockbuster. 25 million copies were sold in this single book in just five years, and the USA alone. No other book has sold more evangelical history in so short a time as this book.

But fact is also that the newest "whooping" Gospel in the United States is no longer Warren and his "Purpose Driven Church," but a young preacher smiling, slender and weak expression, which preaches a message full of self-help. I'm talking about the pastor Joel Osteen, 44, head of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. He was voted "The most influential Christian in America" %u200B%u200Bin December 2006 and one of the ten "most fascinating, dear, beloved and endearing in America" %u200B%u200Btoday. Warren, no doubt, remains extremely influential, but now Osteen appears prominently at his side in the secular media and evangelical America. Well, if Joel Osteen is so high there, who is he exactly? Here in Brazil we have heard so much about Warren. But who is Joel Osteen? What's your story? What is your message? What's your profile?

Meteoric rise

The story of Joel Osteen is marked by a rise so meteoric as that of Warren. If not, let's see. Lakewood Church was founded by his father, John Osteen, a pastor of the Southern Baptist Convention in the United States who received the baptism in the Holy Spirit in the 50s and therefore was forced to leave his name, founding with his wife Dodie, the second Sunday in May 1959, on Mother's Day U.S., that church. One of the big names and virtues of the Church of Lakewood since its foundation is the emphasis on diversity. The church membership mixing black, white, Hispanic, etc., being an example to other churches. Another highlight is the dedication from the beginning, with the spreading of the Gospel by all types of media: radio, TV, internet. Just remember that shortly after inaugurating the church, John and Dodie also founded the weekly television program of the Church of Lakewood, at a time when outreach programs on TV were not yet so common in the U.S.. In a few years the program has come to reach 100 million households per week in the United States. The Church of Lakewood has always promoted crusades, conferences and weekly distribution of food to the needy, and always support missionary work throughout the world. But it was only after 1999 that the church underwent a boom, exactly with the arrival of Joel's leadership. That year, Pastor John Osteen died, leaving his wife, his six children and the church with 6,000 members. To direct the work, the church chose the younger son of Osteen, Joel, who, although still in its infancy, was loved by the whole church. Thus, at 36 years of age, even just having preached a sermon to that point in his life and just completed the first semester from Oral Roberts University Theology, Joel was ordained and installed as new leader of the Church of Lakewood . When Joel took the lead, his only experience was in the media and behind the scenes of the ecclesiastical administration of his church. He helped his father for 17 years in the production of weekly television program and in church administration. Now, however, would have to do more than that. And failed. Joel Osteen began to preach, even with his shy, and his message and style were well received by people. His understated style soon captivated. Indeed, to hear him, just stand in it four characteristics: he raised his voice at any time of the message, always speaks calmly and lovingly, smiling all the time and has a quick wit. With this style and always a message "of hope and inspirational," as he usually define, Joel Osteen was conquering people. With the help of family, which today remains fully integrated into church ministry, with each leading a department (his mother, for example, heads the department of intercession and his wife, the women's department), Joel has seen its membership jump incredibly church of 6000 people in 1999 to 42 000 (sic) in 2007, becoming now the largest non-denominational evangelical church in the U.S. amount of members. Due to growth, he had to inaugurate the new temple in 2005 the headquarters of the ministry, with a capacity of 16,000 seats. Just to give you an idea of %u200B%u200Bthe growth of the Church of Lakewood, the second largest church in America is Saddleback Church, in South Carolina, founded in 1980 by Baptist pastor Rick Warren, which has about 30,000 members, and the third is the Potter's House in Dallas, Texas, founded and led by controversial black pastor Pentecostal T. D. Jakes, with about 30,000 members as well; fourth, the World Changers Church International, led by the famous pastor Creflo Dollar Pentecostal, with 25,000 members, is fifth in the Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago, with 20 000 members, founded and led by Pastor Bill Hybels since 1975, and sixth, the New Life Church in Colorado, with 15,000 members, led by Ted Haggard before and today by Pastor Brad Boyd (the church had about 23,000 members, but after Haggard's sex scandal fell to 15 000). In eight years, the Church of Lakewood (picture below) has succeeded in increasing its membership to seven times, jumping from 6,000 members straight to the top, surpassing membership in all these mega-churches and reaching the impressive mark of 42 000 members, which makes it the largest church in America today. Really impressive. But do not stop there.

Joel Osteen decided to invest 30 million dollars in the weekly television program of his church, and now it is transmitted not only to the U.S., but also to over 100 countries and is nearly ubiquitous on Saturday mornings and Sunday on TV channels Americans. The program takes place in two of the largest evangelical television networks of America and three great secular TV channels in that country: ABC, USA Network and Black Entertainment Television. You finish watching the program on one channel and Osteen, switching to another, the program is beginning to be reintroduced there. According to estimates, the program, which was once attended by 100 million homes, is now attended by nearly 200 million households in the U.S. every week. Joel Osteen is also a phenomenon of U.S. sales. In October 2004, he released his first book, Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps to Living at Your Full Potential (The best of his life now: seven steps to live their full potential). Simply, the book topped the bestseller lists of The New York Times for months. Was the number one selling until recently. The book has sold over 4 million copies in less than three years and is still ubiquitous in bookstores. Recently, I saw your book featured in secular bookstores in Atlanta, New Jersey and New York. I also saw people reading his books in the New York subway. Where turned, there was Joel Osteen, with his smiling face on its cover of books. The success is such that his next book, to be released next month, already has his first run confirmed: no fewer than three million copies. After Joel Osteen took over the leadership of the Church of Lakewood, this has also become well known for his praise. Your choir and worship group recorded several CDs over the past five years, selling over a million copies. It is worth mentioning that the biggest name in praise and worship in the evangelical world belongs to the Hispanic ministry of Lakewood: Pastor Marcos Witt. Feeling the growth of his ministry, Osteen decided to invest in the world cross. He recently made his first four crusades: Canada, Ireland, England and Israel. In England, he preached to an audience of 6000 people. The name of his crusades is "A night of hope and inspiration." Well, but now it's time to make a critical assessment of Osteen's ministry. Let's do it.