Hillsong, an evangelical megachurch based in Australia, said its founder and global senior pastor Brian Houston has resigned after an internal investigation found evidence of alleged misconduct
In its statement last week, the church said it received its first complaint against Mr. Houston about a decade ago. The complaint referred to inappropriate text messages that Mr. Houston sent to a staff member, who later resigned, the church said, adding that Mr. Houston at the time was under the influence of sleeping pills, which he depended upon.
The church said a second complaint came in 2019. After an investigation, the church found that Mr. Houston had become disoriented from consuming alcohol and antianxiety medication beyond the prescribed dose after a session at a Hillsong conference. “This resulted in him knocking on the door of a hotel room that was not his, entering this room and spending time with the female occupant,” the church said, resulting in conduct that it said “was of serious concern” and which had breached its code of conduct.
In its statement on Wednesday, Hillsong said it was “extremely grateful for all that Brian and Bobbie have given…We ask that you continue to pray for them, and the entire Houston family, during this challenging time.”Brian Houston wasn’t immediately available for comment. An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to him as Mr. Johnson. Sponsored Offers