Posted on 12/23/2005 4:39:24 AM PST by truthandlife
Victoria Osteen, the wife of Lakewood Church pastor Joel Osteen, said an incident that delayed a Continental Airlines flight for two hours earlier this week was "a minor misunderstanding."
Osteen posted a "Letter from Victoria" on the church's official Web site Wednesday, saying the Monday incident resulted from her choice "to remove myself from the situation."
Osteen left the plane, Continental Flight 1602, with her husband and their two children. The family took another flight to Vail, Colo., where they are taking a ski vacation.
A church spokesman said the family left the plane voluntarily.
However, FBI Special Agent Luz Garcia has said that the Osteens were asked to leave the jetliner after "an altercation."
Garcia also said that Victoria Osteen "failed to comply" with instructions from a flight attendant.
The FBI said the airline contacted the agency about the incident. The agency decided not to investigate.
Continental Airlines spokeswoman Julie King declined any further comment about the incident Thursday.
"There have been various accounts of an incident that occurred on one of our flights, and I have issued earlier statements about that," King said. "We can confirm that there are no remaining issues between Continental and those passengers. ... Both parties feel no further comment is necessary."
King declined to comment on Victoria Osteen's explanation of the incident.
In her letter, which can be read at at www.lakewood.cc, Osteen stated:
"Regardless of how some have portrayed the situation, please know that it was truly a minor misunderstanding and did not escalate into what you saw or read in the news. Contrary to those reports, it was my choice to remove myself from the situation. Nonetheless, it was a most unfortunate event and I truly regret that it happened."
Osteen's letter continued, "The last thing I would ever want to do is let any of you down. And I promise you that I did not act in any way that would cast a bad light on you, my family, Lakewood Church or our Lord Jesus Christ. I value the position that God has placed me in and I can assure you that I will always walk in love and integrity. While I am not perfect, I will always seek to be a peacemaker and seek the high road."
The incident apparently stemmed from a spilled liquid on Osteen's seat in the first class section of the airplane. A church spokesman said the spill was not cleaned up to Osteen's satisfaction, and the family left the plane voluntarily.
Joel Osteen is a nationally known author of self-help books, including the best-selling Your Best Life Now. He became pastor of Lakewood Church in 1999. The church, in the former Compaq Center, is one of the nation's largest with more than 30,000 weekly participants in church services.
And a Merry Christmas to you and yours too. Hope you have a wonderful day tomorrow and the day after.
Tuffy, she would have been in jail so fast... Where's the exit door? Shock! You have to walk towards the cockpit. This woman may be a real pain. I don't know. The preacher acts like he adores her though. Anyway, she's been convicted here just because her husband is a preacher, and successful. That's not right.
Exactly. I think you're totally right.
Don't go. Don't leave me hereeeeeeee!
I gotta run, check your freepmail.
DG .... what is the scuttle butt in Houston regarding this incident?... I'm sure the street has several scenarios but there has to be one that is most likely.
I've heard of several things but the the one that made the most sense to me was the one with the tray table down and a drink, cola, was knoced into the seat. The attendant wiped it up with a wet cloth and didn't anything else at the time. I don't if there is the first shread of truth to the above.
If it is the case then it seems to me that the cushion could have been changed or a towel put down with un used plastic bags placed next followed by a blanket, etc. That should have made the seat dry for the trip.
It also seems that the airlines or the Osteens would make a definitive statement of what happened as they see it.. But suppositions have ran rampant from one extreme to the other, imo. If she refused to sit in the seat then they have little else left to do but deplane them it seems.
I think there was a reasonable solution for the event but reason seems to have gotten lost in the moment.
Then I stand corrected. My bad.
You make some valid points; however, airlines go out of their way to treat first-class passengers like royalty. After all, they make a lot of money off them.
I am not sure why this has been reported. It would have been more adult to keep it under wraps.
I suspect that the affair was very innocuous and someone has sought advantage by reporting it to AP.
Now who would do something like that?. lol
Maybe if we tune in tonight at 9:00 eastern on TBN we can listen to Joel and maybe he'll mention the incident....maybe we'll be enlightened....maybe we'll even get saved. :)
Merry Christmas to all!
I don't know what scenario is accurate. Continental has nothing to gain by making a bigger deal out of it than it was. The Osteens would like to get this behind them, pronto.
But the thing speaks for itself. She made such a stinking scene about something that the plane sat there for two extra hours. She could have fixed the problem herself, voluntarily left the plane, or somehow endured the problem.
I wasn't there and I don't know the details, but I hope I'm never on the same plane with her in the future.
He can't save you
Doggone. Now what am I going to do? Maybe he knows Somebody that can...ya thank? :)
I have been on a flight that landed to put off a mean drunk and a cruise ship that returned to port to do the same.
I guess I am special, where and what is my prize?
well I sure hope so:')
Merry Christmas
I too would leave the aircraft if forced to sit on a blue stained seat, haha.
"Where's Willie? Is Monica aboard?"
Yes, perhaps the thing that would have made sense for Mrs. Osteen would have been to get some paper towels or toilet paper from the lavatory, some dampened and some more that was dry, and go clean the spill up off the leather seat herself. Then if the stewardess didn't take it upon herself to apologize later, she could have let Continental know what happened.
BTW, I'm pretty sure the cloth seats are spill resistant as well. It would be more inconvenience and expense to the airline if they were not.
No way would I do that. You need gloves and disinfectant if you aren't sure what and who's you are cleaning up. Lately, it's been rush and go. Would you even be allowed the time? Maybe the stewardess should have switched seats with her.
Urine is grody but it's usually sterile.
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