New charismatic churches filling the Hillsong void post-Brian Houston

A high-profile American megachurch is the latest Pentecostal group to attempt to step into the void left by Hillsong, following a ‘mass exodus’ prompted by the founding pastor’s sacking.

Churchgoers disillusioned by leadership failures at what was once among the world’s most recognisable churches have scattered, with other Pentecostal churches rising up in Sydney to fill the void.

The 2022 sacking of Hillsong’s founding pastor Brian Houston in the wake of an internal church investigation which led to a misconduct finding sent shockwaves through the world – and saw churchgoers leave in droves.

Some left in loyalty to the ousted Mr Houston, while others sought out new churches, in response to what they perceived as a catastrophic leadership failure.

One former volunteer, who was significantly involved in running the slick, creative services for which Hillsong was once known, described a “mass exodus” after Mr Houston’s sacking.

“I left just before the big exodus after the same-sex marriage vote, (the church’s response) started to make me feel iffy,” she told News Corp.

Hillsong founder Brian Houston and his wife Bobbie.

“(Mr Houston’s misconduct finding) was the breaking point for a lot of people — to learn this about the people we’d spent hours doing things for, to serve this vision, was a massive hit to morale.

“It really affected people who had given up huge parts of their lives to make the vision a reality.”

In the aftermath, other churches are rising to new prominence, with varying degrees of success.

Just this week, another high-profile global church announced its first foray into Australia.

Bethel Church – which, like Hillsong, is known for its prominent music ministry – announced it would plant a church in Sydney for the first time.

The church was established by Bill Johnson in Redding, California in 1952 and has 11,000 members worldwide.

It was embroiled in controversy that made international headlines in December 2019 when the two-year-old daughter of its worship leader Kalley Heiligenthal tragically died of a sudden illness.

Bill Johnson of Bethel Church. Picture: Supplied

The church led several days of prayer and worship, which at times attracted support from some of Australia’s most prominent worship musicians, in an appeal to God to revive the dead child.

“Since learning the news of two-year-old Olive Heiligenthal’s sudden death, we have sought a miracle from God to raise her from the dead,” the church’s leadership said in a statement at the time.

“Faith isn’t denial of the facts or of our emotions, it is knowing that God cares and intervenes in the midst of them.

“Here is where we are: Olive hasn’t been raised. The breakthrough we sought hasn’t come.”

The days of worship and prayer at Bethel’s foundation campus, which prominently featured Olive’s bereft parents, were broadcast live on social media.

The church’s Sydney plant will be led by Australian-born Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry teaching pastor Matt King and his wife Elisabeth.

“It’s been prophesied by leaders in our house that a wave of revival will happen on the eastern coast of the nation,” the church said in a statement.

“We fully believe that we will see God move through Bethel Sydney in powerful ways.”

Brian Houston preaching at Faith Church in the US in June. Picture: Instagram

Many familiar with the Sydney church landscape consider Bethel in Australia would have been unthinkable during Hillsong’s greatest heights.

But the landscape – unquestionably – has changed.

Some Houston empire loyalists followed his daughter Laura and her husband Peter Toganivalu to their new venture, 10km west of Hillsong, in Dural.

The Houstons’ only daughter and her husband – once thought to be Hillsong’s heirs apparent – launched Parable Church in late 2023 at Pacific Hills Christian College.

In a July episode of American pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr’s podcast, Ms Toganivalu reflected on the decision to plant a new church.

“We sensed God speaking to us, you are called, you are anointed, to lead the church, and to build the church, and to love the church,” she reflected.

“It’s not just something that was asked of us from my parents … we made this decision ourselves because we heard from God.”

Laura Toganivalu at her new church’s 2023 information night.

The signage at an interest party held at The Vicar in Dural.

Other Hillsong detractors peeled off to Glow Church, founded by Joel and Ellen Cave on the Gold Coast in 2013 before they launched an inner-Sydney campus in 2018.

Glow Church then incorporated a Western Sydney campus, and the former C3 Cronulla location in Caringbah.

It counted one of Australia’s most prolific social media personalities – fitness influencer Sarah Stevenson of Sarah’s Day – among its members.

But by 2024, Glow Church’s Sydney arm – under the leadership of the former C3 Cronulla head pastor James Murray – was finished.

“Our mission is expanding, branching into three autonomous churches with their own names and legal governance within Australia, each carrying the legacy of Glow Church into vibrant new expressions of community and faith,” Glow Church wrote in a statement.

The Western Sydney location in Girraween rebranded as Altar Church.

The Rosebery and Caringbah locations rebranded as Abide Church – and, after three name changes and leadership restructures in quick succession, some of their members were done too.

Yet another Pentecostal outfit clamouring desperately for attention is the controversial Echo Church in Smeaton Grange in Sydney’s southwest.

Andrew and Noleen Sedra head up Echo Church in Sydney’s southwest.

Lead pastor Andrew Sedra and his wife Noleen spend at least as much time talking about debunked conspiracy theories such as The Great Reset, American President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement and the perils of wokeness as they do about the Bible.

In one recent video, Mr Sedra questioned whether women should even be allowed to vote.

“The heart of women voting really, is them saying that your husband doesn’t care for you,” Mr Sedra said, inexplicably, in a video on September 25.

“Most women vote for high tax … feminism has split the social fabric of society.”

He made headlines in 2021 for refusing to get vaccinated against Covid and opening his church to other unvaccinated people.

Attendance at Hillsong – which grew from a humble gathering at a northwest Sydney primary school into an international phenomenon with more than 150 campuses – collapsed after the church’s board found Mr Houston had inappropriately texted a female staff member.

In a second incident, he was found to have entered a woman’s hotel room while under the influence of alcohol and sleeping pills for 45 minutes during the church’s Sydney conference.

The scandal’s fallout was vast – and swift.

Congregation numbers dipped so rapidly, entire services were wiped off the church’s schedule within months and never returned.

Hillsong founder Brian Houston.

The former Hillsong volunteer said some churchgoers simply left church altogether, while others diverted to an entirely distinct approach.

“I don’t know anyone that would go back to a mega-church,” she said.

“I know people who have gone totally the other way – to services that are very meditative, very personal, very quiet.

“I know people who became Lutherans after this – they said, ‘I just want to have a simple faith’.”

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