Pastor Falls Victim To Crypto Hackers
Rick Warren’s X (formerly Twitter) account was briefly hacked on Wednesday night, during which a post promoting a meme coin appeared. The hacker mocked Warren for his recent change in views on women’s roles in church leadership. The tweet claimed that Warren had launched the “$LORD coin” on the Solana blockchain, framing it as a symbol of challenging traditional beliefs and seeking truth, similar to his own journey of transformation.
The hacker’s tweet quoted Warren’s June 2023 statement explaining his change of heart regarding women in leadership roles, a stance that led to Saddleback Church’s removal from the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). The fake tweet was quickly deleted, and Warren soon regained control of his account. He then took to his other social media platforms, like Instagram, to warn his followers about the hack and cautioned them not to fall for the cryptocurrency scam. Warren emphasized that he has never promoted any business or asked for money through his social media accounts.
Warren did not provide details on who hacked his account or their methods but focused on ensuring his followers were aware of the scam. Earlier in the year, Saddleback Church’s expulsion from the SBC was a result of its decision to list Stacie Wood, wife of the new lead pastor Andy Wood, as a teaching pastor, which the SBC deemed incompatible with their beliefs.
Rick Warren has faced public scrutiny before. In a separate incident, he deleted a tweet suggesting Jesus would have been a political moderate, following backlash. He later apologized, clarifying that his intention was to highlight Jesus’ transcendent role beyond earthly politics, rather than labeling Him as a centrist.