Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Megachurch
43,500 weekly attendance
Posted on 08/27/2013 11:53:37 AM PDT by NYer
Megachurch. Two young ladies. Both had left the Catholic Church. Both were now attending “megachurches.” We had a good chat together. I wanted to understand their reasons for why they left the Catholic Church for a megachurch.
Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Megachurch
43,500 weekly attendance
I was at the bank and somehow I got into a spiritual conversation with two Hispanic executives that worked there.
When I asked why they exchanged the Catholic Church for the megachurch, they gave me a number of reasons:
Although these two ladies didn’t articulate it explicitly to me, I could tell that they were very proud of their new churches. I could also discern in them a surprise that I am so “spiritual” and yet I am very excited about being Catholic. They assumed the “with it” people were leaving Catholicism for the bigger and better and deal.
I asked them what they miss about being Catholic. They replied with two answers:
I asked both about the Eucharist: “Don’t you miss the Eucharist?”
This question didn’t phase them one bit. “Oh we still have communion. They pass out little crackers and cups of juice. I like this better because I thought drinking from one big cup is icky. Spreads germs.”
“But in the Catholic Church,” I replied, “we believe that the Eucharist is the real Body and Blood of Jesus?”
I may as well have said, “Don’t you know that there are Martians in my back pocket.” She was unaware that the Catholic Church taught this. No idea.
This, my brothers and sisters, is the crux of the problem. These girls were raised as Catholics, but did not know about the Eucharist. They did not know that the Eucharist is God. They did not understand the Holy Eucharist is the center of the Catholic tradition.
So when they compare our ho-hum Catholic music and pedestrian sermons to snazzy well produced musical productions and highly polished bulleted sermons from handsome professional speakers…where are they going to go?
If they had believed that the Holy Eucharist is truly the Lord Jesus Christ, then they would have stayed. This is the task of the New Evangelization if there is going to be one. Can we communicate the mystery of Eucharist. If we fail in that, everyone is leaving the building.
Godspeed,
Taylor
PS: I don’t mean to suggest that having the Holy Eucharist is an excuse for bad music, bad vestments, bad architecture, and bad sermons. The Eucharist is like a precious diamond. It deserves a platinum setting…not a plastic setting. We can’t say, “Well, we have the Eucharist – so you’re forced to stay and have a miserable experience every Sunday.” We can’t keep the sacraments hostage to mediocracy.
PPS: With 1 billion strong, the Catholic Church is the real megachurch!
Pope Francis at Rio de Janeiro
3 million people
1 Peter 2: 9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
>>the world knows you as a protestant.<<
And I should care about what the world thinks because of which passage in scripture?
oh, No problem. I also Deny that the Pope is the Vicar of Christ. minor problem.
I also deny that salvation is by “faith” and works. Salvation is by Grace alone, through Faith alone, in Christ alone.
I’ll ask you again. Who uses wedding rings in their worship of God?
“Perhaps the Church Jesus founded (Matthew 16:18-20, 1 Tim 3:15, etc.), as well as Sacred Tradition (2 Thes 2:15, 2 Thes 3:6, etc.)?”
You did not answer WHAT specific truth NECESSARY to salvation that is NOT taught in sacred Scripture, BUT IS taught in your other sources.
That is your claim. Please share specifically.
John 20:28
Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
“So... if you’re a student of logic, you’ll drop “sola Scriptura” like a hot potato, since it’s insane to believe in a self-contradiction (e.g. like believing in a whole number that’s even and odd at the same time); and if you’re a faithful follower of “sola Scriptura”, you’ll dutifully obey it, and refuse to trust “sola Scriptura” with matters of salvation.”
If you are a student of history or theology, you would know you misrepresented the principle of Sola Scriptura.
LOL I love that post. Thanks for posting that. I wonder if Catholics can post all the times that Jesus said “it is tradition”.
Don’t worry, In Catholicism the Bible has no weight. It’s the tradition you don’t want to be thumped with. Now that’s got weight with them!
NO, you would still be just following another man made organization at that point because scripture clearly is against divorce.
I imagine the gate is as narrow as the eye of a needle.
I asked you. Why dis Jesus become Incarnate if his flesh was good for nothing?
Have you ever thought about the Incarnation or what it means for God to unite with humanity?
The doctrines relating to Mary came later because the challenges to the person of Jesus came later. Was He truly Man and truly God? All of the Marian doctrines are directly related to the truth of Jesus as the Christ and as the second person of the Holy Trinity.
Yes, the title Mother of God, was a bad decision by the church. It was a title created to emphasize the Deity of Christ, NOT Mary's position. It has led to heretical beliefs the early church DID NOT believe in and continued to be unknown for hundreds of years after the resurrection.
It’s astounding that Catholics don’t see that isn’t it? I think that is what happens when one listens to a “church” rather than scripture.
then you are not an Orthodox Christian...and read James 3:17-20....it makes for good reading and points out that you are wrong.
Isn’t it wonderful that what seems impossible to man is possible with with God?
But, alas, the Catholic must constantly remind people that Jesus’ flesh profited for us our salvation which is everything.
Again and again and again, Jesus had to be spirit and flesh, God and Man or He was nothing, for it is the unity of God and Man, spirit and flesh which is the once for all sacrifice for our redemption.
Without His divinity, Jesus was as many would like to pretend He was, just a good man.
There could only be one perfect, blemish free, sacrifice as taught in the Old Testament.
Poor teaching for children is the problem for the Catholic Church today. They grow up with a second grade understanding of their faith so it’s easy to pull them away from the faith... they don’t understand it! Megachurches prey on the easy pickings of ignorant Catholics and use their weak faith formation against them. Informed, well taught Catholics are impossible to mislead.
I’ve had a cradle Catholic who’s fallen away tell me “Catholics don’t read the Bible.” This was someone who heard the Bible read every Sunday at Mass and attended Catholic school where there were religion classes. How can such a disconnect be possible?
Catholics don’t “spout” the Bible, but we know the Bible. I think the problem is we now spend a lot of time telling the children Jesus loves them, but very little telling them who Catholics are and what we accomplish in this world. We downplay our unique strengths in the name of ecumenism.
It’s a shame because I can’t imagine leaving the Eucharist for any reason whatsoever and I love being Catholic, despite the fashionable Catholic bashing that goes on these days. My heart is wrung when I hear a non-practicing Catholic has thrown away the “pearl of great price.”
Hey Jvette, you’re arguing with what Jesus said, not me.
Ah...Anyone who is dedicating their wedding to the Lord. (Are you new to this stuff) ;) lol.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.