Draft:Josh Howerton
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Josh Howerton is an American evangelical pastor. Since 2020 he has been senior pastor of Lakepointe Church, a multisite Southern Baptist megachurch based in Rockwall, Texas.[1][2] He previously led The Bridge Church in Nashville, Tennessee.[3]
Howerton preaches on marriage, gender, discipleship and contemporary politics, and hosts the podcast Live Free with Josh Howerton.[4] In 2024, Chron reported that Lakepointe drew more than 20,000 weekly attendees across its campuses.[5] His ministry has also attracted national criticism, including allegations that he used other preachers' material without attribution, remarks about women in a 2024 marriage sermon, and political preaching before the 2024 United States presidential election.[1][6]
Early life and education
[edit]Howerton is a third-generation minister; both his grandfather and his father, Rick Howerton, served as pastors.[4] He has said he had a religious conversion at age 16.[4]
He holds a degree in biblical studies from Union University and attended The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.[3]
Ministry
[edit]Before moving to Texas, Howerton served for about ten years as pastor of The Bridge Church in Nashville.[3]
In 2020 he succeeded Lakepointe's longtime senior pastor, Steve Stroope.[1] The church operated six campuses in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex as of 2024, reporting more than 16,000 weekend worshippers in 2023 to Outreach,[1] and by 2026 described itself as operating eight campuses.[3]
Howerton hosts Live Free with Josh Howerton, a podcast produced by the church covering theology, relationships, culture and politics.[4]
Theology
[edit]Howerton preaches complementarianism, the position that men and women are equal in worth but hold different roles, with men exercising authority in marriage and church leadership.[2] ChurchLeaders has described him as among a younger generation of pastors presenting that position in contemporary language, alongside established complementarian figures.[2]
Sermon attribution allegations
[edit]In 2022, Christian marriage author Sheila Wray Gregoire alleged that Howerton had used material from other evangelical preachers in a marriage sermon without attribution, identifying phrasing she traced to figures including Andy Stanley, Steven Furtick, Rick Warren and Mark Driscoll.[7] The report quoted theologian Scot McKnight and ministry professor Andy Rowell, who said distinctive borrowed material should be credited.[7]
Howerton responded that attribution norms in preaching differ from those in academia and journalism, that pastors commonly share material with permission, and that he did not endorse presenting another person's personal story as his own or delivering an entire sermon as original work.[8]
The question recurred in April 2024, when commentators noted that Howerton's apology for his marriage-sermon remarks closely resembled an earlier apology by Florida pastor Joby Martin.[1][9] Howerton said Martin had helped him prepare the response and supplied language for it.[10]
Marriage and gender
[edit]In a February 2024 sermon, Howerton told men that because their wives had spent years planning their wedding day, they should follow their wives' wishes for the ceremony. Turning to the women, he said of the wedding night that they should "do what he tells you to do", telling them this would make their husbands happy.[1]
The remarks were widely criticized after a clip circulated online.[1] Gregoire argued that the comments reinforced harmful expectations about women and marital sex.[11] Howerton said the clip omitted the preceding portion directed at men and maintained that the remarks were intended as a joke.[1][11] In an April sermon he apologized to those hurt by his wording while continuing to say the remarks had been intended humorously.[12]
In a January 2026 sermon from the Song of Solomon, Howerton described four traits of a "godly wife". ChurchLeaders reported that the sermon divided evangelical opinion, with some treating it as ordinary complementarian teaching and others as patriarchal rhetoric.[2]
Political preaching
[edit]In October 2024, weeks before the presidential election, Howerton preached a sermon titled "How to Vote Like Jesus", arguing that Christians should weigh candidates on abortion, border security, religious liberty, family policy and transgender rights.[6] Chron reported that while he did not explicitly instruct congregants how to vote, his framing favored the Trump–Vance ticket.[6]
Following the sermon, the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service alleging that Lakepointe's political activity violated the Johnson Amendment, which restricts campaign intervention by tax-exempt organizations.[13] Chron reported that Howerton had stopped short of an explicit endorsement, while the foundation argued the sermon amounted to prohibited electioneering.[13]
In April 2025, Howerton was among several Texas pastors invited to meet senior officials at the White House; Donald Trump was not present.[14] Howerton defended attending, citing biblical figures who engaged political rulers.[14]
During the 2026 Texas election cycle, The Texas Tribune reported his criticism of Democratic legislator James Talarico over Talarico's interpretation of Christianity.[15]
Response from former members
[edit]In June 2024, Chron interviewed former longtime Lakepointe members critical of the church's direction. Author Mary DeMuth, an attendee of more than two decades, said she left over what she considered a misogynistic tone in sermons; former ministry leader Amanda Cunningham criticized what she described as an increasingly right-wing, male-focused culture.[5]
Those interviewed said hundreds of people had left. Chron did not independently verify that figure, and Lakepointe did not respond to requests for comment; the same report noted the church continued to draw more than 20,000 weekly attendees.[5]
Personal life
[edit]Howerton is married to Jana Howerton; they have three children.[4] His father, Rick Howerton, later joined the staff at Lakepointe.[16]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Smietana, Bob (May 14, 2024). "Texas megachurch hits the brakes after trying to skew a traffic study". Religion News Service. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Pastor Josh Howerton Told Wives to 'Be Aggressive' Sexually. Evangelicals Are Divided". ChurchLeaders. January 2026. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "Start Here". Lakepointe Church. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Josh Howerton". Lakepointe Church. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Killelea, Eric (June 4, 2024). "Texas pastor's controversial sermons have driven 'hundreds' away from church". Chron. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Killelea, Eric (October 9, 2024). "Lakepointe Pastor Josh Howerton tells church 'How to vote like Jesus'". Chron. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 Shepherd, Josh (September 10, 2022). "Popular Marriage Author Calls Out Dallas-Area Megachurch Pastor for Alleged Plagiarism". The Roys Report. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ Howerton, Josh (September 9, 2022). "On 'Sermon Plagiarism' Accusations". Josh Howerton. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ "Megachurch pastor responds to accusation he plagiarized apology for joke about wedding nights". WFAA. April 17, 2024. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ Foley, Ryan (April 18, 2024). "Megachurch pastor responds to claims he plagiarized apology for viral wedding night 'joke'". The Christian Post. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 Foley, Ryan (April 4, 2024). "Megachurch pastor says viral comment about wives on wedding night was a joke". The Christian Post. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ Foley, Ryan (April 10, 2024). "Megachurch pastor apologizes for viral wedding night joke". The Christian Post. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 Killelea, Eric (December 17, 2024). "These Texas churches violated the Johnson Amendment, new complaint alleges". Chron. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- 1 2 Killelea, Eric (May 2, 2025). "Trump's White House courts young non-denominational DFW-area pastors". Chron. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ Guo, Kayla (March 12, 2026). "'God is nonbinary': GOP activates over Talarico's past comments characterizing him as too radical for Texas". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
- ↑ Pastor, Paul J. "Josh Howerton: Answering the Call—Part 1". Outreach. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
External links
[edit]Category:Living people Category:Union University alumni Category:People from Rockwall, Texas