Victoria Osteen and FBI have different views on what occurred aboard airliner

Houston Chronicle ^ | 12-22-05 | ANNE MARIE KILDAY

[pepperhead]

Thanks for the link.

[RobbyS]

Protestants have forever complained about the "riches of the Vatican." and the pomp and circumstance" of the episcopacy of both the Roman and Anglican churches. Now we have a preacher who lives "higher" than any American bishop, and on the same level as a CEO. Not exactly apostolic poverty.

[Always Right]

I'm not talking about a monopoly of churches, but a monoply within his church. People go there because they think it is the right place to be, i.e. that it will help them with holiness or entering heaven.

Back in the day, they had one temple. To say that Lakewood is somehow a monopoly is a claim that blows my mind. I have never been to Lakewood, but I doubt Joel sells books from the pulpit.

I'm sure his books are sold in bookstores, but It would be ridiculous to think that his own books are not sold in the church bookstore. Once again reinforcing in his members that they should buy his books and they will get them to heaven.

You are reaching.

[devane617]

...one of his congregation members may have gifted them with first class seats...

It's the "under the table stuff" that concerns me about each of these guys, jim baker, jimmy swaggart, joel osteen, etc. I can tell you for a FACT joel is reaping HUGE benefits from his position. Paying him a salary would be a joke.

[theFIRMbss]

>it was truly a minor misunderstanding and did not escalate into what you saw or read in the news. Contrary to those reports ...

[Mopp4]

Vicky can say all she wants to say, but getting cross-ways over a wet seat to the point of holding up a commercial flight is not something she should ever say another word about.

I agree..the more I think about this the more it sounds like she created a big stink. If you think about it, 1st Class seats are leather - anything spilled on them would wipe right up - not soak in like a coach seat. It seems like it would have been an easy matter to clean it up and everyone just move on. I don't usually get to sit in 1st class seats so am I wrong on this ??

[Always Right]

Uh, you ever been kicked off an airline flight? I've flown for 35 years, and I've never even SEEN it happen, nor do I know anybody that it's happened to.

911 changed a lot of things. Used to be flight attendants had to put up with drunken idiots. Now they will kick people off for any offensive behavior. Doesn't happen often, but it is happening more and more. I am sure Victoria was not the angle she implies she was, but I would also bet the flight attendant was pretty short with her.

[AmericanDave]

The Red Cross chief and some other orgs are paid very highly; the Salvation Army head gets the least, but I think it's a few hundred thousand. The S.A. has the highest ratio of donation to helping; or I should say by far the least waste on overhead.

The Lutheran Church has the largest food donation organization around the world following the Gospels: "feed my sheep".

[socal_parrot]

Do you know who I am?!?

Exactly. Substitute Victoria with Tuh-RAY-zuh Heinz Kerry and FReepers cutting this woman slack would be singing a different tune.

[AmericanDave]

He has reportedly given up any salary from the church and lives off his book income.... sold at bookstores....

[pepperhead]

Joel does not accept a salary from the church.

To me this is like Heidi Fleiss opening up a Bunny Ranch and drawing a salary for a few years. Then writing a book and not drawing one and claiming to be virtuous. We all know how they got started.

[pepperhead]

I think if I belonged to his church I would send my Christmas donation to the Salvation Army.

Me too.

[AmericanDave]

He could sell them at cost.. lets get real somebody has to pay for printing them; not his congregation.

[frgoff]

So it's cool to make a buck on Jesus if you do it in a book?

[pepperhead]

They are professional entertainers, and as such are entitled to make money in accordance with the degree to which they are skilled at telling the public what the public wants to hear. ;)

Isn't everyone one on TBN? ;)

[Manfred the Wonder Dawg]

I don't mean to be ignorant, but I can't read your mind. Why do I need to excuse you? I was referring to Joel Osteen's predilection of preaching heresy. Clear enough?

[AmericanDave]

Why do we always assume the worst about someone?

EXCELLENT POINT, the media has us trained like Pavlov's dog, to salivate at every breaking story; and the stories are always negative!

[frgoff]

And the husband didn't offer to take her seat for her because?

And they didn't lay down some towels because?

And they didn't see if there was another seat she could sit in because?

[hgro]

Preaching makes millionaires of some folks.

And bitching makes fools of others.

[frgoff]

An awful lot of them do seem to have come from a background in sales or motivational speaking.