By TJ Sheridan // Sex Abuse // EEW Magazine Online

The leader of the Australia-based global megachurch Hillsong is stepping down to fight a charge of covering up child sex offenses committed by his father, he announced Sunday.

As previously reported by EEW Magazine Online, Brian Houston was charged in Sydney in August with concealing a serious indictable offense and said that he had already been advised to step aside from all Hillsong boards late last year.

“In December, during our board meeting, Hillsong’s external legal counsel gave the board advice regarding the current charge I am facing — that it would be ‘Best Practice’ for me to step aside completely from church leadership during the court proceedings,” Houston, 67, wrote in a statement.

“We have talked about the effects of the situation with my father, which go back many years up to the current legal case, and the impact this has had on me emotionally,” he wrote. “The result is that the Hillsong Global Board feel it is in my and the church’s best interest for this to happen, so I have agreed to step aside from all ministry responsibilities until the end of the year.”

“I need to be fully committed to preparation and engagement with the case and work closely with my lawyers in defending this charge,” said the pastor who plans to plead not guilty. 

Supporters of Hillsong were stunned in August when Australian police said they would “allege in court the man (Houston) 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.”

A government inquiry uncovered the fact that Houston was aware of allegations against his preacher father, Frank Houston, in 1999 but let him retire quietly instead of reporting him to police. His father confessed to the abuse before he passed away in 2004 at age 82, The Associated Press reported. 

According to an NBC News report, Houston has suggested that the charge against him was related to allegations that his father had abused a boy over several years in the 1970s.

He also said the charge of concealing the abuse came as a “shock” and that he was innocent. “I welcome the opportunity to set the record straight,” Houston said.

Houston told the government inquiry that he did not report his father’s abuse because the victim by that time was in his 30s and did not want the authorities involved, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.  

With the fierce battle ahead of him and being forced to step aside, many wondered what would be next for the megachurch. That answer came Sunday when Houston said his wife, Bobbie, co-global senior pastor, “intends to remain fully engaged in church life,” while Phil and Lucinda Dooley, the lead pastors of Hillsong Church South Africa, will be interim Global Senior Pastors.

In a statement, the Dooleys said, “We know that Hillsong Africa is healthy and strong and this has made it easier for us to be obedient to the call to lead our global church for a season.”

They added, “Your prayers would be much appreciated during this time. Please pray for Pastors Brian and Bobbie as they navigate a very challenging season.”

Disgraced leader Frank Houston was the founder of Sydney Christian Life Centre, which, under Brian Houston’s leadership, merged to become Hillsong, self-described as a “contemporary Christian church,” founded in Australia in 1983.

Since its inception, it has expanded to more than 20 countries with locations in the U.S. including, New York, New Jersey, California, Arizona, Georgia, Missouri, Nevada, Texas, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The Hillsong brand includes a Grammy-winning record label and has attracted a number of celebrity worshipers.

Its once pristine reputation has been tarnished since the church has faced several waves of controversy in recent years. Among the most memorable is Pastor Carl Lentz, superstar pop singer Justin Bieber's one-time spiritual confidante, being fired in 2020 over "moral failures" amid reports he had multiple extramarital affairs.

Watch Brian and Bobbie Houston address Hillsong below.