Joel Osteen: ‘I Have Not Chosen To Be Straight,’ But Gay Still A Sin

Joel Osteen, the popular megachurch pastor, talked with CNN’s Soledad O’Brien this morning and admitted that he had never “chosen to be straight,” and acknowledged he just “feels” he is. Regardless, as LGBT activist and Clinton White House adviser Richard Socarides asked him, how can he still view being gay as a sin? Osteen, as you can see in the video below, says “I try to stay in my lane,” and stick to what has made him “successful,” namely, trying to lift people up.

O’Brien, who recently has become a much more through, hard core journalist, pressed Osteen, asking him what message is he sending to the 45,000 people who attend his megachurch weekly.

Osteen repeatedly attempted to both sidestep the issue, and claim that he just deals with the parts of the Bible he likes. But he also listed a litany of sins, like being prideful and lying, to which O’Brien responded, “Those are all things you can change.”

Socarides point-blank asked Osteen, “You think you can choose to be gay or not gay? You think you choose to be straight?”

“I know I have not chosen to be straight” Osteen replied. “I just feel like that’s who I am.”

So, Pastor Joel Osteen admits that he did not choose to be straight, but assumes others have chosen to be gay — or engage in homosexual behavior, as the anti-gay religious claim homosexuality is not inborn, but a “behavior,” — and still insists being gay is a sin. Because that’s what’s in the Bible.

In April, Osteen told Fox News that he doesn’t hate gay people, but given the way he interprets his Bible, he is forced to believe that homosexuality is a sin — but that doesn’t mean he is a “gay hater” or a “gay basher.”

Last year, Joel Osteen suggested that homosexuals are not whole persons, and that if they are loved enough they will stop being gay, and that he didn’t believe homosexuality is “God’s best” for a person’s life.

http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/.element/apps/cvp/3.0/swf/cnn_416x234_embed.swf?context=embed&videoId=bestoftv/2012/09/20/exp-point-osteen-homosexuality.cnn

Crab puff, anyone?

Related:

Joel Osteen Doesn’t Hate You, But His Bible Really Hates Your Homosexuality

Joel Osteen: Gays Are Bullied Because They Let Bullies Steal Their Power

Joel Osteen: I’m Not Out To Bash Anyone But… Yes, Homosexuality Is A Sin