Hillsong: the megachurch that can’t keep out of controversy

Devi is also concerned about the church’s commitment to equality. It describes itself as a “globally diverse church” that is “committed to racial equity and has established a Global Racial Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee to provide strategic direction on issues of racial diversity and equity.” But, after George Floyd was murdered on May 25, 2020, Hillsong’s then-UK leader Gary Clarke made a comment during an online service on May 31, which has since been removed from YouTube: “It’s a race issue, yes. You’ve got exaggerated features, making culturally inappropriate and stereotypical jokes.” In comments posted under a Hillsong London Instagram post – which were eventually deleted by the church “so we can be productive in conversation rather than on social media” – but seen by The Telegraph, Devi wrote: “Let’s talk about Butter Chicken… literally reducing Indian people to meat. Eventually me texts telling me it isn’t racism, it’s just a joke… You cannot claim to be leaning into conversations about racism and want to take action without accountability.” The conversation was moved to direct messaging by Hillsong Youth London on June 21, where it offered Devi a phone call with the current youth pastor about “how we are trying to take responsibility for actions”. “I lived in France for a couple of years and attended Hillsong Paris, and the… warm culture was so similar to the London experience, it didn’t feel like a celebrity church.” Dr Katie Gaddini, a UCL sociology lecturer and author of The Struggle to Stay: Why Single Evangelical Women are Leaving the Church, believes that the books, music, self-help courses and merchandise Hillsong promotes help young people “feel like they can be part of something bigger”, but warns that megachurches such as Hillsong often struggle with the burden of their own popularity.