Apart from Brian Houston giving Phil and Chris Pringle glowing endorsements, Brian Houston said he had an acting career:
“You may or may not know this but I’ve actually acted in a major Hollywood movie. [Laughter] It’s ah, my co-star was Heath Ledger. And he and the female lead – it was not a great movie, it’s pretty dark – he and the female lead, they were – haha! – on a drug bender for a weekend. But I had a major part in the movie and I can tell already the way you are looking at me, you don’t believe me. [Laughter]
So just check out the screens.”
WARNING: Viewers may be disturbed with the clip Brian Houston aired at Presence Conference 2014.
Brian says afterwards,
“And in that moment, Heath Ledger turned off my Hollywood career. No oscar nominations. No more invites to star. That was it.”
If that was Brian Houston “acting”, then Brian Houston does indeed deserve an Oscar nomination. Although Brokeback Mountain actor Heath Ledger turned Houston’s performance off with his foot, Houston has continued with his acting career, performing to this day at Hillsong Church in the role of a pastor. (How else could he get to speak at Presence Conference 2014?)
The Hillsong show must go on.
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites [actor; stage-player]. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.” – Jesus, Matthew 6:5
Hillsong Church Watch 
How on earth do you start ‘worship’ with a videoclip of yourself Brian? Stunningly bad taste.
Sadly self- promotion seems to be a natural by-product of “me-centred” sermons and “personal experience” -focused songs. Houston must believe what he preaches…..
Brian played that at Hillsong a few months ago. He gave C3 a repeat.
At 1:33 Brian Houston gives his approval to an incredibly bad session by Chris Pringle. That disturbs me as much as his need to be “seen” in a movie clip, as bringing a message of hope. With a very sad example of what fame eventually did to a young actor, dead from a drug overdose two years later.
Simply bizarre, but then “it’s all about me, first”, that’s the new message of the cross these days.
Berean, I agree – TNP emailed me a copy of the transcript of Chris Pringle’s “preaching” and all I could say at the end of it is that it seemed to be very confusing – it was all over the place – telling people that they had undergone a ‘Winter time experience’?
What on Earth does that mean? Where are the scriptures that define ‘Winter’ in termsof her presentation – absent? Perhaps it should have been called the “Absence Conference” instead?
Well, all of that nonsensical waffle presupposes that anyone in that rather large crowd had experienced some kind of ‘Winter’ event in their lives, at all. It’s a bit like telling people that they have long hair, and therefore need a hair cut – ridiculous!
As if she could snap them out of it by simply telling them that they were in it – sounds like “the Emperors new clothes” all over again!
On balance, from what I saw of the conference via online videos and transcripts, it appeared to me that the Pringles were at great pains to make themselves look to be “spiritual” through all of their antics, whereas the reality, is that they seem to be very needy people indeed. The whole thing was ‘overcooked’.
I’m sorry if any part of this post offends anybody, but:
They wouldn’t have a clue as to how to properly run a church of any size, and I’d have to add sadly, that they are in no way qualified before God or man to do so.
The sooner they resign, the better off the C3 movement will be. Seriously…
Totally agree with you, Austin. Even though I haven’t listened to, or watched the “absent” conference, as you so rightfully called it, that’s exactly my experience from my time at c3. Chris Pringle has always been all over the place and “a winter experience”?. Who are they to speak rubbish in the name of God and the Gospel. Misleading and starving the flock. As for calling the brothers and sisters in Christ, Gods family, customers, well that explains everything.
I seem to have gotten into a habit of repeating myself of the last couple of days, but go back to an older C3 Asheville article on C3W and I recall making a point about how Emily Dimitris got the position of “Senior Pastor” there. I think I was wondering if she got paid like a Sr Pastor, with the question really trying to get at – is it a good way to transfer more compensation to the Dimitris household, while not through ND directly.
Likewise Chris Pringle holds the title of “Senior Pastor” at C3. I’m to sure if the last talk she gave that I watched was the “Winter” one you guys are talking about, but she was just terrible. Incoherent, all over the place, contradictions etc. Again it makes me wonder how she got the “Sr Pastor” title with seemingly no qualifications or ability other than being PP’s wife? Is there really no one in C3 who is more qualified to be Sr Pastor than her?
My next point is of course around compensation. I would imagine Sr Pastors are top of the earnings tree, so does CP get paid the same (or similar) amount as PP including perks and benefits? Because if so it just seems like a way of paying PP more without paying him directly…
“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.” 2 Timothy 4:2
If I were to host and run a conference, inferring that the ‘Presence’ of God was all important at the expense of the Word of God, taught to the masses assembled – I’d expect to get the sack!
There would be no better time, with all of those people assembled in one place, than to give them several days of ‘good grazing’ upon the word of God for the sheep who took the time and spent the money to come – and from a variety of different teachers, who were qualified to do so.
I feel for those people in that crowd who were genuinely hungry for something of substance to feed them spiritually, only to be fed with “fairy floss” and other rubbishing stuff that would feed no one’s soul or spirit at all.
If I wanted to see men clowning around on the platform, I would go to Luna Park or the annual show – but to actually pay double that for this nonsense, which was passed off to the crowd as a ‘Christian conference’?
Perhaps they’d be better off going through a ‘drive thru’ system. I can just imagine the following:
“Hello – can I take you order sir…” asks the attendant over the intercom…
“Yes – I’ll have a ‘Pulpit Pounder’ and a ‘Fillet of Fisher of Men’ and a large ‘Soft Shake with some compromising cream on top’
“Would you like any lies with that order sir?”
“No thanks – I got all the lies I needed in church last Sunday…”
Some of you may think me rather flippant for using satire, but it does come down to that sometimes.
Where is the teaching? Where are the qualified men and women of God who act as good examples to the sheep? Where is the relationship between sheep and shepherds – or is it just the “shorn sheep” (regular tithers) that they are interested in?
Christian conference? The annual “fleecing of the flock” more like it…
It is time for these false shephards and all who are like them to be exposed once and for all:
“1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?
3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.
4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.
5 And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.
6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.”
and if you think that indictment is bad read this:
“7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord;
8 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;
9 Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord;
10 Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.
11 For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.”
Ezekiel 34:1 – 11
Stay away from the false prophet’s “take away” heresy and eat of God’s pure word…
Vote with your feet, and walk away from all sham churches and trust the Lord to find good shepherds who will look after you…
Entries like “Franchised religion”, “opium den”, “is God for sale?” and “presto-change” very relevant to Christian meetings like what you describe.
“Parodies of Piety” – http://www.christinyou.net/pdfs/ParodiesEbook.pdf
Jesus said to the apostle Peter “feed my sheep” (John chapter 21). Are Christian speakers/pastors feeding their sheep when they give them nothing but the (spiritual equivalent of) fairy floss, junk food and red cordial? Are experiences are a substitute for God’s word as revealed in the bible? Of course plenty of church-attendees will turn up for a great party even if in this case they’re expected to pay for the privilege!
How many attendees would still turn up after a month if Hill$ong suddenly decided to use nothing but old-fashioned hymns sung by amateur singers, expected people to turn up with their bibles and read a whole passage, and perhaps even confront them with *individual sins* relevant to that same passage? e.g. faith in God – mentioning unbelief/ doubts and how to overcome those sins through God’s mercy and grace.
Hi Thinker – yes – you’re right – after a month of hymn singing and/or good solid preaching, I’d say that the congregation at Hill$ong would probably dwindle from 20,000 right down to maybe 200 – if that?
Still, if you can’t “feel the presence” of God, then why come at all? As if any one came to that church for anything remotely resembling Bible teaching anyway…
People are hungry, and needy, and as you can see from Ezekiel 34 above – the shepherds who should have been feeding and tending them have fleeced them and left them to wander in dark and lonely places.
What kind of ‘shepherds’ would do that to God’s flock? Only those who were more interested in the “fleece” (money) than the sheep who grew it… People are starving spiritually, and need to be edified with God’s word – many of them (judging by the detractors who call in to the blog regularly,) seem to lack any basic foundational understanding of Bible truth at all, but are quite happy to tithe regularly to false teachers…
It is time for a new generation of watchmen to take up positions on the wall and warn the church of the great danger that it is in. There have been many people, over many years, who have faithfully fulfilled this role, but some of them are retiring from active service,and others have already passed on.
I’m not saying that i’m one of them, but there are some solid watchman types both here and overseas, and it would be good if we could organise something that will unite us and teach us the task that lies ahead in terms of collectively warning people not to be deceived by these massive end times deceptions.