![]() More recently, the church has been a target of scandal and criticism, much of it connected to its leadership.Ī statement from Hillsong’s board published last week said that Mr. Houston had been Hillsong’s charismatic face, known as a friend of Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia and photographed with high-ranking officials and celebrities alike. Its thousands of congregants included stars such as Justin Bieber, Kylie Jenner and Selena Gomez, as well as others drawn to the church’s pop-inflected worship music, powered by a successful record label.įor decades, Mr. At its peak two years ago, it had congregations on six continents, as well as an average weekly attendance of 150,000, according to the church. In recent decades, the church has become a multimillion-dollar enterprise, standing at the cutting edge of evangelicalism and Christian youth culture. Houston’s father in 1977, and Hills Christian Life Center, founded by Mr. His resignation came as another potential blow to Hillsong, which grew out of the merger of two organizations: Sydney Christian Life Center, founded by Mr. ![]() Houston has vigorously denied the accusation, saying that the allegations “came as a shock to me, and it is my intention to vigorously defend them.” Houston in August 2021 with one count of concealing a serious indictable offense, alleging that he “knew information relating to the sexual abuse of a young male in the 1970s and failed to bring that information to the attention of police.” The Australian police charged the younger Mr. ![]() Houston’s resignation comes after he stepped away in January from his ministry duties, citing a need to fight a criminal charge of concealing past child sexual abuse by his father, Frank Houston, also a pastor. The resignation, the culmination of a series of scandals surrounding the church, was announced by Hillsong’s board in a statement published on Wednesday that said, “We acknowledge that change is needed.” There was no immediate statement from Mr. MELBOURNE, Australia - Brian Houston, the founder of the Australian megachurch Hillsong, has resigned after an internal investigation found he had breached the church’s code of conduct at least twice over the past decade by behaving inappropriately toward two women.
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