Carl Lentz, celebrity Hillsong pastor, has been fired for (among other things) "moral failures". I don't like contemporary Christian music much, and Hillsong is the very apotheosis of treacly, forgettable modern Christian praise music. They've infested modern church music, and it really bothers me. I wish churches would stop using their stuff. Hillsong's music reflects their whole outlook on the Christian faith for me: shallow, emotion-driven, and expressing a greeting-card kind of Christianity that leaves almost nothing behind in the listener once the song is over. Hillsong's brand of theologically-suspect "progressive" Pentecostalism also rubs me the wrong way. Lentz himself has long been (in)famous for chumming around with celebrities like Justin Bieber, and complaints have been swirling for years about Lentz's increasingly heterodox (post-modernist "critical theory") preaching. He's been edging towards overt affirmation of homosexuality and abortion, which given the company he keeps, could hardly come as a surprise. It's always sad when a pastor falls, but in this case it's something I've seen coming for a long while. The only surprise to me is that Hillsong actually fired him for his views rather than embraced him.
I have often wondered just how well the Pentecostal "piety" can inculcate the Christian virtues in its adherents. And it is pretty obvious, the answer is, very little. Oh sure he has the "strength" and "courage" to speak out against homophobia, but his spine becomes utter jelly when it comes to denouncing homophilia and the sodomite/transgender tyranny taking over our culture. I bet you that he will never have used the word "sodomy" in his life, except perhaps than to scoff at those who have. This is your classic case of a soft-jelly-spine "radical" with his ripped jeans, and his softcover NIV preaching social justice marxism "with courage".
Well, back in the mid '80s when we were in an A/G congregation, the pastor did a pretty good job of preaching Christian virtues and values, and the congregants lived uprightly. That church very much encouraged holy, upright living. We sang out of a hymn book, too. Things really have gone downhill in the last 20-30 years for the Pentecostals, but it wasn't always that way.
Well said. I too once fellowshiped with Pentecostals, although I viewed myself as Charismatic rather than Pentecostal. Although, sadly, today I don't think that would be possible.