Religion Hillsong: Slave labour cult.

[Chief]

Not at all surprising from our Scotty's gang:

'It's a cult': Ex-Hillsong members claim church demanded 'slave labor'

This House of God is run more like a corporation — or a sweat shop — than a place of worship.

nypost.com

Bosch claims that after a representative for Hillsong College — the school affiliated with the church — persuaded her to give up her film career and move from South Africa to Australia to attend the Christian program, she was immediately asked to sign a nondisclosure agreement preventing her from speaking to anyone about her experiences there without express permission. Bosch didn’t sign it, but she says the college quickly began controlling her life in other ways.

“You had to ask a pastor’s permission to date. They had to choose the person you dated as well. If they don’t think your relationship is what they like, they’ll tell you it’s not permissible,” she said. When a student snitched on her for sleeping on the couch of a platonic male friend after a housing mixup, the pair “weren’t allowed to ever talk again,” according to Bosch.

Past BigFooty threads:

Current - Hillsong

* The latest involves allegations of money laundering, tax evasion and fraud. Brian Houston, the founder of the Hillsong Church, is under investigation by New South Wales police over his handling of the sex crimes committed by his father Frank Houston. Frank Houston was a Pentecostal pioneer...

www.bigfooty.com

A Current affairs attack on Hillsong

I normally don't watch A Current Affair but i did watch last night to see there story on Hillsong. I am a Christian and haven't been to Hillsong, I would like to one day out of interest but from what I have seen and heard I don't agree with all of their teachings. Having said that I found the...

www.bigfooty.com

Hillsong United - Where do they rank in terms of Australia's biggest bands?

I want to say from the start that this thread is NOT a debate about religion. My question is purely from a music point of view could Hillsong United lay claim to being the biggest band in Australia? and how do people rate them musically (not your views on Christianity).

www.bigfooty.com

Hillsong 'using schools for recruitment'

Hillsong 'using schools for recruitment' The Christian evangelical church Hillsong has been accused of secretly making a push to convert public school students in New South Wales. The NSW Federation of Parents and Citizens Association says it has received a number of complaints from...

www.bigfooty.com

Article on Hillsong

From The Manic Times by Pinky Beecroft. Who's Afraid Of Hillsong? Most Sydneysiders have an opinion about Hillsong. It’s either a wonderful church that does nothing but good, or an evil cult. Armed only with faith, PINKY BEECROFT, decided to check it out for himself. I was hoping to go...

www.bigfooty.com

Howard & Hillsong

be afraid, very afraid! seriously, Telstra and OPEL are spending billions to create a faster internet (more people want to watch pr0n at high speed) & Howard reckons he's going to stop it from being viewed, who the hell is this guy kidding? You can do it now with a few simple devices on your PC...

www.bigfooty.com

Hillsong getting Government money

Hillsong Youth Services receives funding for early intervention youth services across Australia Member for Mitchell, Alan Cadman, today welcomed the announcement by Senator the Hon N Scullion, Minister for Community Services that Hillsong Youth Services will share in a further $85 million in...

www.bigfooty.com

Andrew Dolt backs Hillsong, while slamming other churches

Naturally, any church who dares to criticise his "little mate", are evil lefties & "Hillsong" are wonderful because they back him. :rolleyes: Column - Kevin hasn't a prayer By Andrew Bolt Friday, October 06, 2006 at 06:51am FEDERAL Labor has a problem in church that’s just like the...

www.bigfooty.com

Aren't they a nice bunch down at Hillsong

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20167713-2702,00.html How that bunch can be called Christian is beyond me,

www.bigfooty.com

HillSong Church: Christianity for the material age?

Dont know how many of you guys watch the ABC but this Monday night on Australian Story (8.00pm) there is a feature story on the Senior Pastor of Australia's largest and most attended Christian church, Hillsong Church, Brian Houston. In the commercial that has been airing to promote this...

www.bigfooty.com

Riverview - WA's answer to Hillsong?

I've seen them advertising late at night on TV here, presumably to try and attract bigger loser chumps than me :p www.riverviewchurch.com.au Looking round the website, they seem like your typical "make money" 'church'. Anyone had any run-ins/stories with this lot?

www.bigfooty.com

 

[Caesar]

Most of these happy-clappy Pentacostals and Charismatics run the spectrum from scam to cult. Hillsong is the most prominent in Australia but C3/City Church is the same. Guys like Brian Houston and Phil Pringle are parasites.

The whole system of taxation around religious organisations needs to be reviewed. It's reasonable that they get tax exemptions for genuinely charitable activities that benefit the wider community, but (particularly with these modern churches) so much of what they do is designed around funnelling cash and benefits to specific individuals.

 

[CheapCharlie]

Should be referred to as The Hillsong Business which runs Hillsong branded churches and schools

 

[Chief]

The whole system of taxation around religious organisations needs to be reviewed.

I tell you what - if they drop the tax-free stuff I wonder how many of these people would hang around and do God's work for the love of it?

 

[Ned_Flanders]

Most of these happy-clappy Pentacostals and Charismatics run the spectrum from scam to cult. Hillsong is the most prominent in Australia but C3/City Church is the same. Guys like Brian Houston and Phil Pringle are parasites.

The whole system of taxation around religious organisations needs to be reviewed. It's reasonable that they get tax exemptions for genuinely charitable activities that benefit the wider community, but (particularly with these modern churches) so much of what they do is designed around funnelling cash and benefits to specific individuals.

easy solution - let them deduct the costs of the charitable works just like any of us mere lay peeps. id love to see the tax exemption removed, but Freo will win a flag before that happens

 

[Saint]

The scam they're running, the tax exemption is just the icing on the cake and makes it easier to hide their other crimes because so little is officially recorded/reported.

You think Brian Houston would stop his grift if they took away a few %?

He was willing to cover up his dad the paedo, I reckon he'll be able to dodge a few tax requirements.

If anything, removing the tax exemption would just lead to worse treatment of "volunteers".

 

[Cooldude]

These megachurches have achieved the capitalist dream: voluntary slave labor

Use religion as an excuse to rope your followers into volunteer unpaid labor (or even pay you to work for you) and all you give in return is a feeling of "it's good to serve and honor god", basically nothing

The profit margins must be insane for these churches when they run these operations without having to pay 99% of the people working there, add the tax exempt s**t on top

 

[Caesar]

Should be referred to as The Hillsong Business which runs Hillsong branded churches and schools

God Inc.

Use religion as an excuse to rope your followers into volunteer unpaid labor (or even pay you to work for you) and all you give in return is a feeling of "it's good to serve and honor god", basically nothing

Salvation is a product that costs nothing, promises everything, and can't be checked for quality. It's a salesman's wet dream.

 

[Cooldude]

The Carl Lentz s**t makes it even more hilarious, on top of making a lot of money, the top dogs in these churches clearly treat these places as a place to rope in women for sex

Just like most cults: it's about sex and money

 

[The Passenger]

For the more jingoistic amongst us, it must be disheartening to think in a few decades there is every chance Hillsong will be seen as Australia's most influential export.

 

[Malifice]

Just like most cults: it's about sex and money

What isn't about sex and money?

 

[bzparkes]

I met up with a couple of ex staff of mine from Victoria when I was living in Sydney a couple of years ago. They're churchies and they came up to do a song writing course at Hillsong.

Said the course was good but didn't have much else positive to say. They were pretty weirded out by the experiences outside the course.

 

[Chief]

I met up with a couple of ex staff of mine from Victoria when I was living in Sydney a couple of years ago. They're churchies and they came up to do a song writing course at Hillsong.

Said the course was good but didn't have much else positive to say. They were pretty weirded out by the experiences outside the course.

Spill !

 

[bzparkes]

Spill !

Oh they didn't go into anything specific, just mentioned that they were a very weird group and outside the course they felt rather uncomfortable.

They're quite religious themselves in a gospel-style church but totally normal (e.g., don't preach) in everyday life. Hillsong spent the whole week trying to recruit them which made it very awkward for them.

 

[Chief]

Oh they didn't go into anything specific, just mentioned that they were a very weird group and outside the course they felt rather uncomfortable.

They're quite religious themselves in a gospel-style church but totally normal (e.g., don't preach) in everyday life. Hillsong spent the whole week trying to recruit them which made it very awkward for them.

Sounds right.

Put on courses and events to bring people in, hit them with the recruitment pitch while you have them captive.

 

[bzparkes]

Sounds right.

Put on courses and events to bring people in, hit them with the recruitment pitch while you have them captive.

Yep, that was the gist of it.

I know most churches do it to some extent but Hillsong take it to a whole new level.

 

[CheapCharlie]

Tanya Levin wrote an expose book back in 2007 about Hillsong. People in Glass Houses: An Insider's Story of a Life in and out of Hillsong, an exposé of the Hillsong Church.

 

[ferball]

easy solution - let them deduct the costs of the charitable works just like any of us mere lay peeps. id love to see the tax exemption removed, but Freo will win a flag before that happens

Essendon* might not win a final tho...

 

[chelseacarlton]

This viper should have had its head removed when the paedo daddy’s son was being investigated for the sins of the father.
It feels like this house of cards is one card away from tumbling.
I really look forward to this day, unfortunately, another viper will quickly fill this void.
Regardless of whether the jew from 2000 years ago actually lived(he most probably didn’t), his story was in stark contrast to what the Houston’s have built.
One card to go.......

 

[Geelong_Sicko]

For the more jingoistic amongst us, it must be disheartening to think in a few decades there is every chance Hillsong will be seen as Australia's most influential export.

As Brian Houston's old man knows, kiddies are thy key. The Wiggles and Bluey combined must curb-stomp this evangelical threat.

 

[Chief]

Regardless of whether the jew from 2000 years ago actually lived(he most probably didn’t)

Roylion alert!!

 

[Evolved1]

Hillsong represent the worst parts of Christianity. In the same way that s**t attracts flies, Hillsong attracts the worst type of humans. Most of us are aware of what they've done in Australia, but some of you wont be aware of the shitshow they've got going in New York.

The Rise and Fall of Carl Lentz, the Celebrity Pastor of Hillsong Church (Published 2020)

A charismatic pastor helped build a megachurch favored by star athletes and entertainers — until some temptations became too much to resist.

www.nytimes.com

 

[chelseacarlton]

Roylion alert!!

We’ve discussed this with Roy Ad-nauseam, it’s a prostrate move/half claim I occasionally use to ruffle their feathers.
It generally follows with either “did Alexander the Great or Socrates exist....?”.

 

[CheapCharlie]

Hillsong represent the worst parts of Christianity. In the same way that sh*t attracts flies, Hillsong attracts the worst type of humans. Most of us are aware of what they've done in Australia, but some of you wont be aware of the shitshow they've got going in New York.

The Rise and Fall of Carl Lentz, the Celebrity Pastor of Hillsong Church (Published 2020)

A charismatic pastor helped build a megachurch favored by star athletes and entertainers — until some temptations became too much to resist.

www.nytimes.com

I wasnt aware of much of that

As the article says..." By now, Hillsong is not just a church, but a brand. Hillsong is a look: neutrals, streetwear, body-conscious fashion. And it is a sound, too. The church’s bands have won a Grammy. Their most popular song, the soaring ballad “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail),” has been streamed more than 235 million times on Spotify. And the formula works. The global church now has congregations on six continents, and claims an average attendance of 150,000 people weekly."

 

[Chief]

an average attendance of 150,000 people weekly

Those are BigFooty numbers.