What on earth is Hillsong? Well, it’s a massive Australian church that is also based in London as well as all over the world now. It is part of the modern evangelical movement that has its roots in the Church of England – or Anglicanism as it is known around the world. There are many huge churches all over London and the UK that are part of this phenomenal movement that is responsible for keeping Christianity 100% alive and growing in what I think might otherwise be a dire and empty secular void that could leave a gap to be filled by goodness knows what.
Anyway, a few years ago they invited me to the night celebration part of their three-day Christian conference at the O2…. And I’ve been every year since! What I saw blew my mind, and I take delight each year in bringing a friend if only to watch their eyes pop with amazement at the sheer numbers of (especially young) people committing their lives to good old fashioned Christianity – that used to be consider the mainstay of our society and western culture.
The O2 holds up to 20,000 people and on the night I went – the Thursday – it looked pretty full to me. This movement has meant that Christianity in London is now bucking the trend elsewhere elsewhere in the UK – ie. in London it is growing not declining. Pretty impressive. I don’t think you need to be a Christian to appreciate that if we lose Christianity in our country we also lose a huge chunk of our culture and that which made the West such a desirable place to live.
The conference lasts for three days and nights – the night being more of a rock concert style of worship, praise and preaching. The founders – a married couple – look to be in their 50’s or 60’s but most of the preachers are probably late 30’s and early 40’s – but on the young and trendy side. I have always found it uplifting, moving and refreshing – and Thursday was no exception. We sang, we danced, we worshipped, we stood up and we sat down – and we prayed for ourselves and each other and the world. We were asked to volunteer and to sponsor children in third world countries.
Yes there was a collection – but certainly no pressure and no more so than in any church across the land on a Sunday. We all acted and moved as one huge congregation responding to those on the stage and the huge screens – a huge rock concert for Christianity. And the preachers certainly were charismatic, attractive and full of energy. Whether you believe or not Hillsong is huge entertainment. And those that weren’t already believers but raised their hands to Jesus were given Hillsong bibles. What more could you want?
What always strikes me the most about Hillsong is that in this age of self obsession, selfie taking, social media and ‘looks’ culture ’ that the majority of the audience are young 20 somethings – and certainly most of the volunteers and stewards too. They are all cheerful and go out of their way to make sure you enjoy your time there. Whatever you think of the movement, it has to be better than the soul baring and body shaming secular culture our young people have been dragged down into by social media and the general dumbing down of society. Hillsong over Love Island any day.
We also prayed for healing those that felt lost, and for the person next to us. We had to turn to each other and say ‘you’re awesome’, how sweet! Cringe-worthy you might say, but somehow when you are there it doesn’t feel that way. When you are surrounded by nearly 20,000 people baring their souls and declaring their faith and I would say LONGING to believe in something more and something better it is hard to be cynical or supercilious – the easiest thing to do is give in and JOIN IN. I fond this sort of openness refreshing in comparison the contrived and fake lives so many live on social media now. And with so may young people feeling depressed, lost, ‘not good enough. and killing themselves how wonderful to also see so many of them giving themselves to something bigger than all of that.
Our society is spiralling to a bottomless pit of self obsession and loathing. The pressure to achieve, to have money, to look perfect, to have everything new, to shop shop shop all the time and to believe in NOTHING is huge now. never have so many felt so empty. What are lovely young people with their whole lives ahead of them disfiguring their bodies with cosmetic surgery or killing themselves, or getting so drunk they end up in court or dead? In other words, what is wrong with us?
But there is hope. And in the words of Hillsong this year ‘There is more’. And you know what is also great? London is Hillsong’s capital of Europe – we’re the hub for all Western Christians. Who’d have thought that London, where the rich and greedy of the world come to indulge, would be the place to find hope and the growth of Christianity? But then of course, once you look outside the self-absorbed piety of the EU, London is of course the perfect choice if you take a world view!
I’m not asking you to believe. I’m just asking you to not despair. In all the increasing
crime, violence, greed, gangs, drugs, materialism, homelessness, debt and emptiness that London is suffering there is a chance for all of us, and especially the young, to have something more to believe in again. London is bucking the trend, and many are grabbing the chance for something more meaningful. I looked around and saw nothing but happy faces.
So, is there more? That’s for you to decide. But there IS hope…
Rather a sobering thought, around 90% of those that profess to be christian don’t actually know how someone becomes christian – they also tend to make it obvious with various statements that they do not even understand, defies what God says.
I strongly advise doing some research on hillsong – many articles around exposing their fakery
I think every denomination of every religion has some sort of scandal somewhere. The point of my article is that Christianity is having a resurgence amongst young people in London – that in itself is a miracle when you look around at what is happening here. To see so many younger people searching for meaning and wanting to do something good in the world surely can only be a good thing? Or we could just stay cynical I guess …..
Defining false teachers/false teachings as christianity is not something a real christian would do.
Your describing an increase in deception.
The teaching in hillsong is not false.
Whats this got to do with getting the baby fed?. What I mean are all these well meaning inspired people potential recruits for the good fight against the WRECKERS that are trying to subvert the express will of the people. If you look at it Brexit is a war against the irreligious undemocratic EU which for 40 odd years has held this country captive and is trying might and every dirty main to prevent our escaping. That to me is a form of war. If this lot are prepared to acknowledge and bring their view of Christianity to support our… Read more »
UKIP is not just about Brexit these days . Yes Brexit is the main issue. But Brexit .is also about preserving our way of life which is based on Christianity. And I’m afraid that if you allow Christianity to disappear it will be replaced by something much worse and i don’t mean secularism
Hillsong is a charismatic mega-church; however opinions are varied as regards whether they teach true Christianity or the modernised, sanitised version of it…there are.reports that some of the leaders don’t always speak truthfully on sensitive issues such as abortion, lgbt, etc for fear of treading on toes. However…one must be grateful for small mercies, I guess. I’ve attended some similar events in my time, including Billy Graham ones….they’re certainly full of life and hope, though a bit scary for those of a quieter, more introspective nature. As they say, catch the fish first, clean em up later. In view of… Read more »
Great piece Janice. Strange isn’t It? If you go to the other large evangelical churches in London – St Helen’s, All Souls, Kensington Temple, Holy Triniyy Brompton, etc, they too are thriving and full of younger people. Christianity is flourishing in China, Iran, Africa and elsewhere, yet it is declining and giving way to Islam in decaying Europe and the secular West. But maybe, just maybe, it isn’t dead yet in London. Europe and the UK will continue its suicidal anti-God decline unless there is a revival of true Christianity. Can London lead the field on this? It’s doubtful but… Read more »
kensington temple – does it still hold the title of the fakest church in london, embracing just about every false teacher going
Hi Martin – I dont know. But I do know that if the people in the congregation of these churches are genuine then that is all that matters.
Hi Alan – I think and hope Christianity will survive in the UK and Europe – and it is amazing that our capital London which is ethnically diverse has a resurgence of our traditional religion! If Christianity does not survive then our world as we know it is finished. So I will take any resurgence in any form – and if it has to be the new evangelical churches then so be t – whats wrong with having another reformation? We must be grateful.
The dear old CoE is a nationalised industry – ill-managed, fearful of changed, declining, wasteful of capital, and destroying enthusiasm -the British Leyland of religion. Who would join it to spread the Gospel? As always, we need a free market – and religion should be fun!
Many left the CofE because it had turned so far away from God
“Your Awesome” and “we danced” and “baring our souls” is NOT Christianity as I was taught it or recognise it or want it. Waving your arms about and jigging about in the aisles is NOT traditional British worship. Yes, you may be pleased that Christianity is thriving in parts of London, if the alternative is only to concede to Sharia law, but do not confuse what you witnessed with our centuries old indigenous British culture. They are chalk and cheese. What you experienced is NOT traditional British Christianity, it is a whole new alien type of Christian culture imported from… Read more »
Rabbit,
Maybe you don’t have kids here when you talk of leaving? Our forebears fought wars to preserve their country for us. Don’t you think that we have an obligation to preserve it for our descendants?
Hi Rabbit It may surprise you to know that my preferred choice is also the trdional C of E – I love it, and my church is an oldf ashioned traditional and beautiful old Church of England in West London. We have Evening Prayer every day and use the St James bible, and we sing all the old hymns. It is a place where i find a lot of peace, tolerance, humour and kindness. I have been to many evangelical churches and I like them and indeed I did the Alpha course- I learnt a lot. But in the end… Read more »
Thank you Janice, for a spark of light in these dark times.
Thankyou Howard. I think it shows that none of us wZbts to live like this. And young people are just as hopeful of a less materialistic greedy and shallow society as the rest of us.