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Hillsong pastor Brian Houston has returned to Australia ahead of his court date, after a whirlwind tour of the US Midwest preaching with his wife Bobbie.
The controversial church minister is set to appear in court in December to defend criminal charges he failed to report to authorities on his pedophile father, Frank Houston.
Brian Houston took the pulpit on his trip to the US to be candid about the “legacy of baggage” he carried as Frank’s son.
Brian Houston (pictured) entered the pulpit during his US trip to open up about the ‘legacy of luggage’ he carried as Frank Houston’s son
The pastor (pictured, with wife Bobbie) has asked his followers to pray for him as he prepares to appear in court for the three-week special hearing.
Frank Houston (pictured) abused nine boys between 1965-1977 in Australia and New Zealand, while leading the Assemblies of God church
“Legacy on Earth may sound like a good idea… My parents, financially speaking, what I inherited was small, but the reality is it also came through my father with baggage,” he said in a sermon at the James River Church in South West Missouri.
“Because at 45…I discovered that my father was a pedophile many years before that, in the 60s and 70s.”
The event’s headliner told the packed crowd that this was the most “shattering” news he’d ever received.
“The sad thing is that all these years have passed me, I’m 68 and I’m still dealing with things that I inherited, not something of my own, so an inheritance can carry all kinds of baggage.”
Frank Houston abused nine boys in Australia and New Zealand between 1965 and 1977 when he led the Assemblies of God church.
Brian Houston pleaded not guilty in March to charges that he tried to cover up his father’s sexual abuse.
His father’s misdeeds were revealed to him in 1999, according to a Christmas letter to church members in 2020.
The allegations related to his father’s sexual assault of a seven-year-old boy in 1970.
The pastor has asked his followers to pray for him as he prepares to appear in court for the three-week special hearing.
Brian Houston (pictured, with Scott and Jenny Morrison at a Hillsong event) pleaded not guilty in March to charges that he allegedly tried to cover up his father’s sexual abuse
Meanwhile, Mr Houston and his wife Bobbie (pictured together, last year at Park Hyatt in Sydney) hosted an event on November 2 at an undisclosed location in Sydney’s Hills District.
Meanwhile, the pastor’s own behavior is also in the spotlight.
In March, Mr. Houston resigned from the Pentecostal megachurch over charges of “indiscretions” against two women.
The church said it had investigated “two complaints against Pastor Brian” in the past 10 years.
One complaint was filed after a church employee claimed to have received “inappropriate” text messages.
Houston’s longtime friend, Reverend Phil Dooley, said the lyrics are “along the lines of ‘if I were with you, I’d like to kiss and hug you,’ words of that nature,” as reported by Sydney Morning Herald.
The Hillsong Global Board said Mr Houston was “under the influence of sleeping tablets on which he had become dependent” at the time when he sent the messages.
The second incident was when Mr. Houston knocked on the hotel door of a female guest after the 2019 Hillsong conference and entered.
The board defended the pastor over the charges.
In March, Mr. Houston (pictured) resigned from the Pentecostal megachurch over charges of ‘indiscretions’ against two women
“A thorough investigation revealed that Pastor Brian became disoriented … after taking anti-anxiety medication above the prescribed dose, mixed with alcohol.”
Meanwhile, Mr Houston and his wife Bobbie staged an event on Nov. 2 at an undisclosed location in Sydney’s Hills District.
The pastor tweeted this month that he was excited about the ‘Evening With Brian and Bobbie’.
The couple founded the Hillsong megachurch in 1983 and the organization has quickly grown to more than 300 churches in 25 countries and 150,000 weekly visitors.
It originated in the Hills district of Sydney, where the couple owned a lavish gated home that they bought for $165,000 in 1993.
It went up for sale last month for $4.5 million.