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False Profits: Hillsong

False Profits: Hillsong

By: iHeartPodcasts
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A personal journey into the heart of a global megachurch.

Noemi Uribe was looking for a church where everyone is welcome and she thought she’d found it in Hillsong. But that was ‘the most expensive mistake I ever made’. Noemi’s story turned into one of rejection, despair, and a fight for justice. Hillsong used to be home, now for Noemi ‘it’s a dumpster fire’

False Profits dives into the Hillsong experience - from Christian rock music, to celebrity pastors and famous fans - tracing its journey from humble beginnings to incredible global status and wealth, and some shocking scandals.

Through personal testimony and evidence that Hillsong never made public, we peel back the layers of a culture of submission, exploitation and discrimination.

The church says it’s changed, but will it face its past and the people who say they’ve been harmed by Hillsong? Noemi Uribe is on a journey seeking justice, and accountability.

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Episodes
  • Introducing: False Profits: Hillsong

    Introducing: False Profits: Hillsong
    Jan 26 2023

    False Profits is the inside story of the church that made Christianity cool. And it’s one person’s search for answers. Hillsong created a sound, a look and a global empire. Its message is simple ”Welcome Home - You Belong”. Noemi Uribe was part of Hillsong and discovered a different and darker reality beneath the shiny, happy surface. Alongside journalist Elle Hardy, Noemi reveals stories Hillsong never wanted the public to see about money, sex and power. This series traces the rise and fall of Hillsong’s founder, hears from sources inside the church, and asks if Hillsong is part of a wider problem within evangelical churches.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    3 mins
  • Welcome Home

    Welcome Home
    Feb 2 2023

    “How could you fall for that?” Noemi Uribe explains why the Hillsong brand was so seductive. It’s church - but not typical church. Noemi takes us into the world of Hillsong in a Boston night club. Services have a concert vibe, the sermons are upbeat, it’s not boring or judgmental. Millions loved the Hillsong way of doing God and turned it into a mega church.

    Journalist and writer Elle Hardy has been studying the rise of Pentecostalism and the Hillsong phenomenon for several years. She breaks down the winning formula that is now replicated across the globe. And Elle and Noemi start to trace where things went wrong at Hillsong, as star preachers and mega egos create a toxic mess.

    False Profits: Hillsong is produced by Storyglass for iHeartRadio

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    33 mins
  • A Culture of Submission

    A Culture of Submission
    Feb 9 2023

    Warning: This episode contains references to rape, sexual and psychological abuse.

    Someone wants the truth to come out - to shine a spotlight on dark corners Hillsong never wanted the public to see. One day, two reports drop into Elle Hardy’s inbox - anonymously. These reports were commissioned by Hillsong into allegations of abuse at the New York church and they are devastating. The New York campus was Hillsong at its most starry. Celebrity preacher Carl Lentz was hanging out with Justin Bieber. But this was a church out of control.

    Behind the showbiz image, Elle and Noemi uncover “a culture of submission” and multiple allegations of abuse. How did Hillsong let this happen? Noemi and Elle hear from people who were there.

    False Profits: Hillsong is produced by Storyglass for iHeartRadio

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    40 mins
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