Source: ABC News
Much criticism has been levied as of late against Joel Osteen for his delay in making available the facilities of his mega church for displaced victims of Hurricane Harvey. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this criticism has extended to the so called Prosperity Gospel of which Osteen is considered the chief exponent. In a nut shell the philosophy is one of self empowerment, encouraging believers to approach God with faith and confidence that he will supply their material needs and bless them abundantly. Basically a form of Gospel - based self - help or spiritual psychology (which has deep roots in the New Thought movement), it places emphasis on the ability of the individual to better themselves and deepen their relationship with God through a spirit of optimism, positive thinking, affirmative prayer, and faith; veering away from the traditional Christian sense of redemption, atonement and reconciliation to God through belief in Jesus Christ as personal Savior.
Though popular (as the success and reach of Osteen's ministry, books, and other products demonstrate) the Prosperity Gospel is not without its detractors, Christian and secular alike. More conservative ministries and theologians consider it a radical misreading of the Bible at best and outright blasphemy at worse, elevating "filthy lucre" to the level of God. Adherents of the progressive Social Gospel as well as secular critics contend it does away with Jesus' emphasis on social justice, helping the oppressed and downtrodden as well as promoting a culture of victim blaming, in which the sick and poor are responsible for their conditions due to "negative thinking."
In a recent New York Times op-ed entitled "The Cheap Prosperity Gospel of Trump and Osteen", University of Pennsylvania religious studies professor Anthea Butler compares both the President and Osteen's responses to the disaster of Harvey, which she says stem from their shared belief in the tenants of the Prosperity Gospel:
"Natural disasters like Hurricane Harvey are the worst kind of crises for people like Mr. Trump and Mr. Osteen, who purvey their own versions of the prosperity gospel. This is a belief that says if you think positively and make affirmations, God will reward you with financial success and good health. If you don’t, you may face unemployment, poverty or sickness. (Mr. Trump in particular always speaks in laudatory terms about himself and his companies.)
Though popular (as the success and reach of Osteen's ministry, books, and other products demonstrate) the Prosperity Gospel is not without its detractors, Christian and secular alike. More conservative ministries and theologians consider it a radical misreading of the Bible at best and outright blasphemy at worse, elevating "filthy lucre" to the level of God. Adherents of the progressive Social Gospel as well as secular critics contend it does away with Jesus' emphasis on social justice, helping the oppressed and downtrodden as well as promoting a culture of victim blaming, in which the sick and poor are responsible for their conditions due to "negative thinking."
In a recent New York Times op-ed entitled "The Cheap Prosperity Gospel of Trump and Osteen", University of Pennsylvania religious studies professor Anthea Butler compares both the President and Osteen's responses to the disaster of Harvey, which she says stem from their shared belief in the tenants of the Prosperity Gospel:
"Natural disasters like Hurricane Harvey are the worst kind of crises for people like Mr. Trump and Mr. Osteen, who purvey their own versions of the prosperity gospel. This is a belief that says if you think positively and make affirmations, God will reward you with financial success and good health. If you don’t, you may face unemployment, poverty or sickness. (Mr. Trump in particular always speaks in laudatory terms about himself and his companies.)
But the problem is that it’s hard to promote “Your Best Life Now” or “The Art of the Deal” to people whose houses have flooded or been blown away, or to evacuees who have only the clothes on their backs."
Furthermore, she adds,
"This empathy-less prosperity gospel also permeates attitudes about the role of our government. Consider when Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said in March that poverty was a “state of mind.” (See my post on Carson's statement from earlier this summer here) Representative Mo Brooks of Alabama echoed this in a May interview when he said that “people who lead good lives” don’t have to deal with pre-existing medical conditions. This kind of thinking by the Republicans, that individual effort and religious faith are paramount, has desensitized them to poverty, disaster and the vagaries of disease. They have already cut millions from federal disaster aid, and if an uptick in disasters occurs, many more people will die."
All valid points to consider, especially for those of use who are practitioners of New Thought/Mind Metaphysics/Positive Thinking. It can be very easy for us, upon seeing or hearing news of personal or collective misfortune, to become judgmental and say that the person, group, city, town, country, etc. brought it on themselves by "holding fear thoughts", "becoming immersed in the race mind/law of averages", "not staying prayed up", etc. This neglects the hard fact that, despite our best efforts via affirmations, visualizing, and meditation, we live on a physical plane and are susceptible to the cycles and effects of physical forces. While the application of metaphysical principles can aid immensely in overcoming and, as the great Neville Goddard phrased it, "cushioning the inevitable blows of life", we cannot completely escape them as long as we live on Earth.
Secondly, engaging in such thinking runs contrary to the model of compassion demonstrated by Jesus in the Gospels: every time someone approached him for a healing, he didn't read them the litany of their sins, karmic debt, or tell them "You brought it on yourself with all those bad vibes!" as the Pharisees would have. He simply asked, "What would you like me to do for you?" and proceeded to lift them up through the power of faith and belief in their inherent goodness, empowering them to an awareness of their unity with the "Father within" to overcome their difficulties: "Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” (Matthew 9:22)
With that said, criticisms like Professor Butler's fail to acknowledge the rich history that such prosperity preaching has had in marrying the aims of Emersonian self improvement with societal well - being to help bring about a better, more compassionate and philanthropic world. Early 20th century New Thought writers such as Wallace Wattles, author of The Science of Getting Rich, championed an attitude of creative cooperation in acquiring and using wealth for one's self and their fellow man. Citing the ethic of "What I want for myself, I want for everybody," Wattles ran for Congress twice on the Socialist ticket and, during his brief stint as a Methodist minister, refused to take collection offerings from congregants who operated sweat shops (which lead to his subsequent dismissal from the pulpit). Elizabeth Towne, the publisher of the popular and lucrative New Thought magazine Nautilus, was a suffragette who in 1926 was elected the first female alderman in Holyoke, MA.
This ethic is alive and well today, as we've seen in the days after Harvey. New England Patriots owner and multi-billionaire Robert Kraft has pledged to match up to $ 1 million in donations to the American Red Cross for disaster relief; Business titans Google, Amazon, and Facebook will all be matching up to $1 million each in donations, with Apple already donating $2 million, Microsoft $100,000 (and counting), and AT&T pledging up to $350,000 to hurricane affected communities; Houston Texans star defensive end J.J. Watt has raised over $10 million, while countless other celebrities have all donated to various relief organizations and have encouraged their fans to do likewise.
In the Gospel of John Jesus is quoted as saying, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10) If the "prosperity preaching" of Joel Osteen - whatever his personal shortcomings - and others has motivated inspired people to procure life more abundant in all its forms - physically, financially, creatively, spiritually - for themselves and others (and I humbly submit that it has), then we would be well served to give the "Prosperity Gospel" a second look.
"This empathy-less prosperity gospel also permeates attitudes about the role of our government. Consider when Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson said in March that poverty was a “state of mind.” (See my post on Carson's statement from earlier this summer here) Representative Mo Brooks of Alabama echoed this in a May interview when he said that “people who lead good lives” don’t have to deal with pre-existing medical conditions. This kind of thinking by the Republicans, that individual effort and religious faith are paramount, has desensitized them to poverty, disaster and the vagaries of disease. They have already cut millions from federal disaster aid, and if an uptick in disasters occurs, many more people will die."
All valid points to consider, especially for those of use who are practitioners of New Thought/Mind Metaphysics/Positive Thinking. It can be very easy for us, upon seeing or hearing news of personal or collective misfortune, to become judgmental and say that the person, group, city, town, country, etc. brought it on themselves by "holding fear thoughts", "becoming immersed in the race mind/law of averages", "not staying prayed up", etc. This neglects the hard fact that, despite our best efforts via affirmations, visualizing, and meditation, we live on a physical plane and are susceptible to the cycles and effects of physical forces. While the application of metaphysical principles can aid immensely in overcoming and, as the great Neville Goddard phrased it, "cushioning the inevitable blows of life", we cannot completely escape them as long as we live on Earth.
Secondly, engaging in such thinking runs contrary to the model of compassion demonstrated by Jesus in the Gospels: every time someone approached him for a healing, he didn't read them the litany of their sins, karmic debt, or tell them "You brought it on yourself with all those bad vibes!" as the Pharisees would have. He simply asked, "What would you like me to do for you?" and proceeded to lift them up through the power of faith and belief in their inherent goodness, empowering them to an awareness of their unity with the "Father within" to overcome their difficulties: "Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” (Matthew 9:22)
With that said, criticisms like Professor Butler's fail to acknowledge the rich history that such prosperity preaching has had in marrying the aims of Emersonian self improvement with societal well - being to help bring about a better, more compassionate and philanthropic world. Early 20th century New Thought writers such as Wallace Wattles, author of The Science of Getting Rich, championed an attitude of creative cooperation in acquiring and using wealth for one's self and their fellow man. Citing the ethic of "What I want for myself, I want for everybody," Wattles ran for Congress twice on the Socialist ticket and, during his brief stint as a Methodist minister, refused to take collection offerings from congregants who operated sweat shops (which lead to his subsequent dismissal from the pulpit). Elizabeth Towne, the publisher of the popular and lucrative New Thought magazine Nautilus, was a suffragette who in 1926 was elected the first female alderman in Holyoke, MA.
This ethic is alive and well today, as we've seen in the days after Harvey. New England Patriots owner and multi-billionaire Robert Kraft has pledged to match up to $ 1 million in donations to the American Red Cross for disaster relief; Business titans Google, Amazon, and Facebook will all be matching up to $1 million each in donations, with Apple already donating $2 million, Microsoft $100,000 (and counting), and AT&T pledging up to $350,000 to hurricane affected communities; Houston Texans star defensive end J.J. Watt has raised over $10 million, while countless other celebrities have all donated to various relief organizations and have encouraged their fans to do likewise.
In the Gospel of John Jesus is quoted as saying, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10) If the "prosperity preaching" of Joel Osteen - whatever his personal shortcomings - and others has motivated inspired people to procure life more abundant in all its forms - physically, financially, creatively, spiritually - for themselves and others (and I humbly submit that it has), then we would be well served to give the "Prosperity Gospel" a second look.
