Sydney Hillsong student’s shock when the church threatened her with a $50 fine for having sex

A former Hillsong College student has revealed she was once threatened with a fine after having sex with her boyfriend, as the celeb-loving megachurch comes under investigation by Australia’s charities watchdog.

Canadian Alyssa Harper, 22, travelled to Sydney in 2019 to join the church’s college in Australia, but was shocked when another student complained to leaders that she was sitting next to her boyfriend in public.

She was then forced to write an essay on the ‘dangers’ of sex before marriage and told she could be fined $50 if caught in the act.

‘They basically said if they’re together, sitting under a blanket in public, what could they possibly be doing in private?’ Ms Harper told Daily Telegraph.

She explained that there was a culture of ‘dobbing in your friends’ as churchgoers believe it shows leadership ‘you care more about Hillsong than your friends’.

The student was hauled into a leader’s office and told to explain herself, where she revealed she had sex before marriage. 

She was then forced to write a traumatic essay on why sex before marriage was wrong as she feared she would lose her visa if she got kicked out of college. 

‘We were told we had to read a book and we had to write an essay based off of that book where we basically just had to lie through our teeth and say that we thought sex before marriage was so bad,’ she said.

It comes as claims of fraud, money laundering and tax evasion against Hillsong Church are being investigated by the charities watchdog.

Independent MP Andrew Wilkie used parliamentary privilege to claim tens of thousands of leaked financial records and documents showed funds were misused to bankroll lavish habits including ‘the kind of shopping that would embarrass a Kardashian’.

He alleged the information was provided to the Australian Taxation Office and Australian Securities and Investments Commission under whistleblower protections but they failed to act.

Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commissioner Sue Woodward confirmed they are investigating concerns.

Hillsong disputes the claims.

The Tasmanian MP claimed the documents showed former Hillsong leader Brian Houston, who stepped down from the role last year, was ‘treating private jets like Ubers’.

In a three-month period Houston used church money for trips costing $179,000 including $150,000 at a luxury retreat in Cancun, Mexico, Mr Willkie alleges. 

It is also alleged the new head of Hillsong, Phil Dooley, spent tens of thousands of dollars on business-class flights for him and his daughter.

In response to the allegations, a Hillsong statement said they were made under parliamentary privilege and were ‘in many respects wrong’ and it was disappointing Mr Wilkie made no effort to contact the church first.

‘If he did so we would have answered his questions and provided him with financial records to address his concerns,’ the statement said.

Houston is also fighting accusations he concealed his late father’s child sexual abuse and has pleaded not guilty to a charge of concealing the crime until his father’s death in 2004.

The case will resume in June.

Hillsong announced in April 2022 it had accepted Houston’s resignation after it was found he had breached the church’s moral code due to alleged inappropriate behaviour towards two women.

The megachurch was founded in Australia but has become hugely popular in the US due to its celebrity members including Justin Bieber, Chris Pratt and Kourtney Kardashian. 

It’s come under fierce criticism for controversial views on many topics, including ‘homosexuality is a sin’ and its links to anti-abortion groups.