Bethel Church leaders have released a statement following a nearly six-hour video from Bible teacher and podcaster Mike Winger on 17th January, which has put the church under renewed scrutiny for its handling of prophetic minister Shawn Bolz.
In Winger’s video titled “The Skeletons in Bethel’s Closet Are Now Going To Speak”, he details what he characterises as fraudulent prophecies and sexual misconduct by Bolz. Winger also accused church leaders of knowing about at least one victim who accused Bolz of sexual misconduct. Winger alleged that church leaders failed to do something about it despite alleging knowing about his behaviours for years.
The bombshell exposé from Winger has prompted Bethel Church leadership to respond.
“We are clear that we are not responsible for Shawn’s sin; he is. But we are equally clear that we are responsible for our sins, actions, and inactions after the fact,” Bill Johnson, Kris Vallotton, and Dann Farrelly wrote in a joint statement. “James 4:17 states, ‘So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.’”
As Premier Christian News previously reported, Bethel Church announced it distanced itself from Bolz in 2025 after he failed to provide “satisfactory responses” over allegations of fabricating prophecies more than five years ago. Bolz, who was frequently invited to minister at Bethel, has long faced online accusations of using social media data mining to craft prophetic words.
Around the same time, an employee accused Bolz of behaviours that “seemed to fit the descriptions of sexual harassment and a hostile work environment,” church leaders wrote in 2025.
“We empathize with those who are confused and disappointed over this situation; we feel the same—this is a tender, confusing, and complex situation,” Bethel church leaders said in 2025. “As it stands, our trust in Shawn is still unrepaired. Having privately admonished him, this letter is only intended to clarify the journey we were on, and the steps we have taken given that it is now a wider conversation.”
In the most recent statement, Bethel leader Kris Vallotton confirmed that sexual harassment allegations against Bolz emerged in 2019, adding that Bolz denied the allegations when confronted.
"After further investigation, which included speaking to three of Shawn’s former team members, the accusations were corroborated and showed that this was a culture within Shawn’s team," Vallotton added.
Bethel church leaders acknowledged that they have “hurt” and “scared people” because they "did not want to tell the truth enough, early enough, long enough, or loud enough".
“Our hearts are grieved, and embarrassed," they added. "When we sin or mess up publicly as we have, it’s important to take responsibility publicly, to listen as people share their frustration, sadness, fears, and corrections.”
In response to the scandal, Bethel said it would be recommitting to "responsibility, truth, accountability, and transformation in Christ" and "enacting greater levels of oversight within our staff and leadership".
"We will also be implementing additional training and equipping in the prophetic to weigh prophetic words," the church said. "Should something happen that needs to be addressed, we are implementing a confrontation model that will include wider communication when substantiated allegations are brought forth and impact the Body, including those met with unrepentance. We have also created and will continue to make paths to provide help and support to those who experience something that takes place that is not healthy, appropriate, or biblical."
Bethel added that from February 2025, it had introduced a "Safe Church process for our alumni community that invited anyone experiencing abuse of any kind in our environment to report it via phone or form to a secure third-party team outside of the Bethel environment".
"This was done to ensure that Bethel itself would be held accountable for the information reported and the investigation process," they added. "Safe Church information can be found at bethel.com/safechurch, and is now open to our local and online church community as well."
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