Rick Warren Deletes Viral ‘Jesus Was A Centrist’ Tweet, Posts Apology

Staff Writer

Former Saddleback Church founder Rick Warren has apologized for a controversial tweet that went viral last week, saying that he “wrote poorly” about the since-deleted missive.

Last week, Warren found himself in hot water for sharing the following message, quoting scripture while offering:

“John 19:18 “They crucified Jesus with two others on each side & Jesus in the middle.” The guys on both sides were thieves. If you’re looking for the #realJesus, not a caricature disfigured by partisan motivations, you’ll find him in the middle, not on either side.“

The post, seen over 3.5 million times, drew widespread scorn for its questionable exegesis and application, prompting Warren to delete it.

Yesterday, Warren offered a ‘mea culpa of sorts,‘ writing, “I apologize. I wrote poorly. I don’t believe Jesus was a centrist. He stands far above it all. “My kingdom is not of this world…” Jn.18:36 Jesus demands our total allegiance as the center of our lives.”

While many thanked him for doing the right thing, other were not as satisfied.

Saddleback has been the subject of a few controversies over the last few years after it was uncovered that they have several gay-affirming church leaders on staff who run a gay-affirming ministry for parents of LGBTQ+ children (the same as Andy Stanley’s North Point Church) and for having a “Blacks Only worship service” where no white members were allowed in, so the “black fold” could have a “safe space” to “heal.” They also came under fire after they blasted white Christians for having ‘no discernment’ and accusing them of not caring about black people. He recently claimed that ‘Your #1 purpose in life is to ‘let God love you.” and during Covid times where he described not wearing masks as “unloving”