Texas Televangelist Joel Osteen Spreads Message Of Tolerance During Visit To Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Televangelist Joel Osteen was preaching tolerance on a visit to San Francisco on Monday promoting his August 8th "Night of Hope" event with wife Victoria at AT&T Park.
He talked to KPIX 5 while he was in town.
Osteen said there needs to be a movement of understanding in the nation.
"Love God with all your heart. (It is) what we're about, loving people, regardless, we love them for who they are," he said.
Osteen said his ministry is about uplifting people and letting people find their own journey.
He is the Senior Pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, the largest Protestant church in the United States.
Osteen's acceptance of the LGBT community puts him at odds with some of his fellow Christian teleevangelists such as Franklin Graham.
When Wells Fargo released a national ad featuring a lesbian couple last April, Graham closed his accounts at the bank and deposited them in North Carolina-based BB&T.
Graham may not have realized BB&T is also considered a gay-friendly bank. In fact, BB&T has sponsored a Miami Beach Gay Pride fundraiser.
Victoria and Joel Osteen will return to San Francisco for the 7th annual "America's Night of Hope" >at AT&T Park, with tens of thousands of Christians expected to attend.
"Victoria and I love the people of California," said Pastor Joel Osteen. "We're excited to be at AT&T Park for the first time, and we believe everyone who attends will be uplifted and filled with an expectation that their best days are still to come."
