An Australian MP accused the church’s founder Brian Houston of spending lavishly using church funds. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Australian megachurch Hillsong is under investigations for financial misconduct by local authorities following allegations that its founder used church funds for his lavish lifestyle, among other things.
Saying that the allegations were leaked to him by a whistleblower, he said they included claims such as the church earned A$80 million more income in Australia than it reported publicly. They included credit card statements, records of the use of private jets, designer gifts and details of first class and business flights.
Mr Wilkie said that the documents showed Mr Houston “treated private jets like Ubers, again all with church money. For example, in one three-month period, Brian Houston’s trips cost A$55,000, A$52,000, A$30,000, A$22,000 and A$2,000.” Mr Wilkie also claimed that the new head of Hillsong Phil Dooley has misled the congregation about his spending.“Sending millions of dollars of Australian charitable donations overseas is illegal in some circumstances,” said Mr Wilkie.The leaked documents also claimed that the church employs celebrity songwriters and designates them as pastors, so they receive a portion of their salary tax-free.
The Sydney Morning Herald article also said that Mr Wilkie claimed that the documents were offered to the Australian Tax Office, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission and the ACNC in 2022 under the whistleblower legislation.
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