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Brian Houston, the founder of global megachurch Hillsong, has resigned after an internal investigation into two incidents the church said breached its code of conduct.
The Hillsong board confirmed it had accepted Mr Houston's resignation as global senior pastor and thanked him and wife Bobbie for their service to the church.
"We understand there will be much emotion at this news, and we all share these feelings," the Hillsong board said in a statement this afternoon.
"Hillsong Church was birthed out of Brian and Bobbie's obedience and commitment to the call of God and we are extremely grateful for all that Brian and Bobbie have given to build His house."
The church said it "acknowledge(d) that change is needed" and would undergo "an independent review of our governance structure and processes".
Last week, Hillsong revealed an internal investigation had found two incidents involving Mr Houston had breached its moral code.
Mr Houston allegedly sent inappropriate texts to a staff member a decade ago and was involved in a more recent event at a conference when he entered a woman's room after mixing medication and alcohol.
"We have sadly been dealing with two complaints made against Pastor Brian over the last 10 years," the church said in a statement last Friday.
"The first issue was approximately a decade ago and involved inappropriate text messages from Pastor Brian to a member of staff, which subsequently resulted in the staff member resigning.
"At the time, Pastor Brian was under the influence of sleeping tablets, upon which he had developed a dependence.
"He immediately apologised to the person. We also worked closely with Pastor Brian to ensure he received professional help to eliminate his dependency on this medication, and this was achieved successfully."
The second incident was in 2019 at a Hillsong conference, the church said.
"Following an in-depth investigation, it was found that Pastor Brian became disoriented after a session at the Hillsong Conference, following the consumption of anti-anxiety medication beyond the prescribed dose, mixed with alcohol.
"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."
Hillsong determined Mr Houston breached the church's code of conduct.
"We apologise unreservedly to the people affected by Pastor Brian's actions and commit to being available for any further assistance we can provide."
Mr Houston initially stepped aside from his role in January to defend a charge alleging he covered up his father's child sexual abuse.
He was charged with concealing a serious indictable offence of another person in October.
He returned to Australia from the US to defend the charge, to which he pleaded not guilty.
The 67-year-old is accused of knowing about the sexual abuse of a young male in the 1970s involving his late father Frank Houston but failing to tell police.
The elder Houston, who was accused of abusing a total of nine children, left the church on a full retirement package which he enjoyed until his death in 2004.
Source: 9News
