Erwin McManus

Erwin Raphael McManus (born Irving Rafael Mesa-Cardona. August 28, 1958) is a Salvadoran-American author, filmmaker, and fashion designer. He is the lead pastor of Mosaic, a megachurch based in Los Angeles. McManus is a speaker and writer on issues related to postmodernism and postmodern Christianity.

Early life Born Irving Rafael Mesa-Cardona in San Salvador, El Salvador, McManus was raised by his grandparents for the first years of his life. They were Catholic but McManus says he attended Mass only sparingly during his childhood.

McManus, along with his brother Alex, immigrated to the United States when he was young, joining his mother. He grew up on the east coast – primarily in Miami, Florida, but also in Queens, New York, and Raleigh, North Carolina.

Personal life McManus and his wife Kim have three children.

Christian minister While working on his master's degree in Dallas/Fort Worth, McManus began two congregations while serving among the urban poor.

McManus has used psychological personality metrics in his church, such as the Myers-Briggs type indicator and Gallup's Strengths Finder. He is currently an advisor with the Awaken Group, a transformation design company.

Motivational speaker

McManus is active as a motivational speaker, having been paid by Fortune 100, Fortune 500, and companies such as Nike, HYPEBEAST, Sony, Fox News, Apple, Liberty University, and TED. He speaks on topics like reinventing organizations, culture, community, equality, humanity, leadership, general motivation, futuristic ideas, inspiration, and spirituality.

Controversies

Stance on LGBTQ and human equality On May 28, 2019, McManus in HYPEBEAST said that the church he is the senior pastor and CEO of, Mosaic, are inclusive to the gay (LGBTQ) community."I don’t have data on this, but I'm going to guess that we probably have more people who identify themselves in the gay community at Mosaic" he adds. "And so our posture has always been we're for everybody."On June 25, 2019, the writer of the article, Emily Jensen, updated it after several verified ex-Mosaic staff members claimed that McManus's position on the LGBTQ community is false, and that he and the church itself are anti-LGBTQ. They also claimed that McManus's leadership training spoke less of women, treated the homeless poorly, and do not allow LGBTQ members to be in church leadership positions.

McManus responded by saying, "To be clear anyone and everyone is welcome at Mosaic. Mosaic is one of the most diverse communities that exists. There are currently many people of varied race, color, ethnicity, economic status, sexual orientation, and religious beliefs who attend Mosaic."

In 2020, McManus launched a TV show called McManus on Trinity Broadcasting Network's Hillsong Channel with his son Aaron McManus. The show includes a group of millennials discussing the "hottest, hardest topics" and current events.

Selected filmography