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The Untold Truth Of Hillsong Church

According to Hillsong, the church was founded in 1983 by Brian and Bobbie Houston in Sydney, Australia. Originally called Hills Christian Life Center (Hills CLC), Christian Today tells of how the Houstons started the church in a public school hall. Brian Houston was no stranger to pastoral life. His father, the late William "Frank" Houston, was the founder of the Sydney Christian Life Center in 1977, as per the Daily Telegraph

After branching out on their own six years later, Brian and Bobbie began a church that, like Frank's, was affiliated with Australian Christian Churches (ACC). The ACC itself is part of a larger group of Pentecostal churches that are affiliated with the World Assemblies of God, which Religion News Service states are the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world.

As AllMusic details, with 45 initial members, the husband-and-wife ministry team was just getting started. Within four years the membership grew to 900. Brian Houston launched the first annual Hillsong Conference in 1986 as a way to grow his music ministry and attract other like-minded Christian musicians to an environment that would teach as much as it would nurture.

With a steady stream of followers at church every Sunday and a musical conference that showed growth potential, the Houstons were getting ready to take the praise and worship world by storm. 

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Sebrina Pilcher

Update: 2024-05-02