News by email Donate

Suggestions

Top Stories

Most Read

Popular Videos

World News

Hillsong founder Brian Houston calls disgraced pastor Carl Lentz 'narcissistic'

by Chantalle Edmunds

Hillsong founder Brian Houston has addressed the behaviour of former pastor Carl Lentz in his first interview since a wave of scandals hit the megachurch.

Houston spoke to Savannah Guthrie for NBC's Today show in the U.S. on Wednesday and commented on Lentz's behaviour: "Carl was Carl. He's a unique character. There's a lot of things I miss about Carl. But having said that, there were leadership issues that I believe included lying, including what I would call narcissistic behaviour."

Carl Lentz was fired from his position as head over Hillsong Church East Coast in November. Following his dismissal, Lentz admitted that he'd cheated on his wife of 17 years.

In a statement on Hillsong Church's website at the time, Brian Houston said Lentz's employment was terminated following discussions about leadership issues, breaches of trust and a recent revelation of moral failures.

During the Today interview, Houston was asked if he should have intervened with Hillsong's leadership prior to November: "I think there's a lot of things I should've known earlier, and hopefully, moving forward, we'll make sure we have far better systems in place and better accountability," he responded.

Houston, who set up Hillsong in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia, in 1983 maintained he wasn't grooming Lentz to take on a senior position in the church and he added he didn't agree with claims that the two are alike: "On one level, if people say Carl was like me, I'd see it as a compliment because (he’s an) incredibly gifted guy, but on another level, I don't think Carl really is anything like me, Houston said. "I am ultimately responsible. I am ultimately accountable."

Houston added that while Lentz's behavior was bad, it wasn't beyond redemption.

The interview also honed in on the church's celebrity following, which has included the likes of Chris Pratt and Vanessa Hudgens. Houston was asked about creating a culture in the church where is there is 'one rule for celebrities' and one for everyone else. 

"I do think that we did allow a culture to develop where it was one rule for celebrities and a different rule for other people," Houston admitted.

"There's another side to it," he continued. "One person who's obviously been well reported is Justin Bieber. If you think back several years now, when he was wrecking hotel rooms and basically on the edge of getting deported to Canada and look at Justin Bieber today - anyone who's being fair could see a radical change, and so not everything about it is bad."

Asked by Guthrie what he thinks Jesus would have thought of Hillsong, Houston said: "Do you want the honest answer? I think he would like it. We're focused on glorifying him."

A Monthly Gift Of $11 Makes A World Of Difference

In a world of fake news there’s never been a greater need for quality Christian journalism. Premier’s mission is to provide the Church with the most up to date and relevant news, told from a Christian perspective. But we can’t do it without you.

Unlike many websites we haven't put up a paywall — we want to keep our journalism free at the point of need and as open as we can. Premier’s news output takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. No one in the USA is sharing news like we are across radio, magazines and online so please help us to continue that today.

For a monthly gift of $11 or more we’d also be able to send you a free copy of the brand new Premier Bible, a wonderful Anglicised version of the NLT packed with exclusive bonus content, reading plan and resources to help you get the most out of scripture.

Your monthly support will make a world of difference. Thank you.

Support Us
Continue the conversation on our Facebook page

Related Articles

Sign up to our newsletter to stay informed with news from a Christian perspective.

News by email

Connect

Donate

Donate