Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen‘s ministry has gone viral, but not in the way he’d like.
Since Hurricane Harvey rained down destruction on the Houston area, Osteen’s initial failure to open his church’s doors to flood victims quickly became a trending topic on social media.
When called out, Osteen claimed that “safety issues” prevented him from using the church as a shelter, then he said it was because the city never asked. “If they would have asked us to become a shelter early on, we would have prepared for it,” he told the Today show on Wednesday.
But the excuses didn’t do him any good and the memes because circulating with a furor.
Below are a few examples:
Another #JoelOsteen user upload…is it #Funny or #Offensive? #Osteen #Noah #Harvey2017 #Houston #HoustonStrong pic.twitter.com/otr00lZpxv
— IsItFunnyOrOffensive (@IsItFOO) August 31, 2017
It's a @JoelOsteen tax shelter, not a church. pic.twitter.com/28mfvq2TIf
— Rube Bait | Emo Fears Free Speech (@RubeBait) August 30, 2017
https://twitter.com/HITEXECUTIVE/status/902914507038629888
When they asked Joel Osteen about opening his mega church to survivors during #HurricaneHarvey pic.twitter.com/4IHfaKD0zI
— Robert Vincent: Since 1984 (@RobertVincent3) August 29, 2017
https://twitter.com/_KingComplex/status/903417542819106818
My friend Bethany made this Joel Osteen meme on Facebook and I'm inconsolable 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/7QWWhef4ez
— Nicole Nichelle (@alamanecer) August 30, 2017
https://twitter.com/TrevJSiemian/status/902324163339096064
I wasn't asked to give food
I wasn't asked to give shelter
I wasn't asked to help
So I didn'tTil I got bad PR.
Fake Christian @JoelOsteen https://t.co/Io0pLJLpMy
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) August 30, 2017
https://twitter.com/Smart_Sapper12B/status/902333535805206529
b4 u JUDGE Joel Osteen how about u hear his side? pic.twitter.com/uhpSOJJo4U
— Ali the ¢abbage (@AliMaadelat) September 1, 2017
If you're a Christian more outraged by people criticizing Joel Osteen, than by Osteen this week, you may want to rethink your priorities.
— John Pavlovitz (@johnpavlovitz) August 31, 2017
Now @JoelOsteen is asking for money donations to house victims in his church.😡 How about open your church and just use some of your big 💰 pic.twitter.com/VUdZvRfjEf
— Infidel Angela🇺🇸 (@InfidelAngela) September 1, 2017
Joel Osteen earned his place on this photo spread! pic.twitter.com/nX1p1CQHQL
— Rogelio Garcia, Lawyer (@LawyerRogelio) September 1, 2017
[HuffPo] Featured image via Twitter