Internet sleuths are questioning claims that Joel Osteen’s megachurch is too flooded for Harvey relief
Lakewood Church, the Houston arena-cum-megachurch home of celebrity preacher Joel Osteen, would seem a natural place to house some of the tens of thousands residents driven from their homes by Hurricane Harvey-related flooding this week.
As the former home of the Houston Rockets, its 16,000 seats are spacious enough for big crowds. And one would think a religious institution would be inclined to open its doors to the needy in a time like this as others in the area already have.
Yet as the fallout from the storm continues to devastate the area, the massive building remains empty.
The church said in a Facebook post on Sunday morning that it’s “inaccessible due to flooding” and directed residents to a list of other shelters.
Image: screenshot
But several people in the area are now questioning this claim with photos posted on social media of the building’s exterior and surrounding grounds.
Houston’s @indivisible_usa is acquainted with @JoelOsteen‘s Lakewood Church. They took these pics about an hour ago w/ commentary. pic.twitter.com/YTWrD9UG1z
— Charles Clymer🏳️🌈 (@cmclymer) August 28, 2017
@cmclymer Looking pretty passable to me from this side, stay tuned for further exploration pic.twitter.com/dlrYGeLgBj
— Allie (@AlleyCat_Allie) August 28, 2017
@cmclymer Worth noting that some of their parking is underground (note flood gates) but they could still drop ppl off at the door easily pic.twitter.com/Mso4GTLuF2
— Allie (@AlleyCat_Allie) August 28, 2017
@cmclymer Last one before I packed it in (too wet/windy): the back is blocked off even though it’s bone dry pic.twitter.com/TJ8GQJMTGC
— Allie (@AlleyCat_Allie) August 28, 2017
. It doesn’t make sense why you’re not opening up your mega church to house Houston citizens, help me understand that. Jesus. pic.twitter.com/CzCiEtbkgY
— Emily Timbol (@EmilyTimbol) August 28, 2017
Aside from that initial post this weekend, the church was silent on the matter. Emails were not returned, and an automated phone message said no one could answer because of “inclement weather conditions in our area.”
A statement from the church issued later on Monday afternoon said it had volunteers working in shelters around the city, but made no mention of the status of its building or its prospects as a similar relief zone.
“We are working diligently with the city of Houston to mobilize our many volunteers at shelters around the city as well as various other points of need in and around the Houston area,” the statement posted to Facebook read. “In addition, we are working with Samaritan’s Purse on major relief efforts.”
A church spokesperson told a Slate reporter that the church is open, but it’s social media channels make no mention of that change.
“We ARE open,” he told me. “Anyone who comes there, we’ll let in.” Skeleton staff of 6-8 are on site.
— Ruth Graham (@publicroad) August 28, 2017
Later, the church released a statement saying it’s “prepared to house people once shelters reach capacity.”
New statement from @JoelOsteen and Lakewood Church in regards to Hurricane Harvey backlash pic.twitter.com/KLMNYysc6s
— Anastasia (@AnastasiaElyseW) August 29, 2017
As for Osteen himself, the superstar pastor has punctuated his usual stream of religious aphorisms on Twitter with a few calls to pray for Harvey victims, but he’s stayed mum on the church controversy. Making the optics worse, he’s also reportedly blocked users who’ve asked him about it.
Asked Joel Osteen why he won’t open his megachurch to Harvey victims he blocked me. Church reaps $77M tax free annually #HoustonStrong pic.twitter.com/WhdY1KEKNV
— Facial Merkin (@facialmerkin) August 28, 2017
Photos circulating on Twitter purported to show floods in the church’s lower parking levels on Sunday night, and some users speculated problems in the underground parking and floods in the surrounding roads have been to blame for the church’s response.
There have been two unverified photos posted that purport to show Lakewood Church flooded. But the church still hasn’t said they’re flooded. pic.twitter.com/9ef1zDltde
— Matt Novak (@paleofuture) August 28, 2017
The freeway to get to his church is underwater and so are the bottom levels. Y’all are advising people to drown.
— Deaconess (@AmandaDannielle) August 28, 2017
But judging from the number of social media sleuths who visited on Monday, the place seemed accessible enough.
Stay tuned for updates.
Updated Monday, Aug. 28, 4:40 p.m. PT, with a new statement from the church. A previous version of this story said the flooding claim was most recently posted on Facebook Friday. It went up on Sunday.
Read more: http://mashable.com/2017/08/28/houston-joel-osteen-church-flooding/