Comedian Keraun Harris, better known as King Keraun, has criticized celebrity televangelist Joel Osteen for not opening up his Lakewood Church in Houston to help with relief efforts.
“People need help,” said the comedian who is originally from Houston, in a video obtained by TMZ. “So for you to say you’re not gonna help but I bet you you’ll open up the church on Sunday and I bet you you’ll open up offerings on Sunday.”
Osteen is currently under Twitter fire for not opening his church, which holds 16,800 people, to victims of Hurricane Harvey.
Keraun went on to say that he’s confused as to why the church leader isn’t helping because sitting back not doing anything doesn’t seem to be in a part of any religion the comedian knows of.
“Everybody can be Houston, but you’ll see who really is Houston and who really loves this city when a time like this happens because this is when it’s time not to get paid,” added the 29-year-old.
Keraun, who has appeared on HBO’s “Insecure” and ABC’s “Black-ish,” is currently back in his home city doing what he can to help.
Lakewood Church’s Facebook page on Sunday said the church was “inaccessible due to severe flooding,” though the message doesn’t clarify whether the church itself is flooded. Pictures of the church purportedly taken since Harvey made landfall seem to show that it is less affected than other areas of Houston. Here’s a photo:
Front of @JoelOsteen's huge Lakewood Church in Houston at 11 am. Closed due to "flooding". Person who took it asked to be anonymous. pic.twitter.com/gOndOncFuC
— Charlotte Clymer ?️⚧️?? (@cmclymer) August 28, 2017
On Osteen’s Twitter, he is encouraging his followers to visit the church website to help with relief. The link he provides offers a donation button and a volunteer button, the latter of which shows a partnership with Samaritan’s Purse, a disaster relief organization. “We know the need is great. That much is clear. We do not yet know all the ways we can help,” the church’s website says. Well, for one, many on Twitter say, is to open up the church for those who are in need of shelter.
According to Harris’ social media account, the comedian flew out to Houston ahead of the storm so that he could be closer to his daughter. In the past couple of days, Keraun has uploaded videos showing him driving around the city with his friends trying to rescue people in need.