Hillsong was founded by Brian Houston and his wife, Bobbie Houston, in 1983. In past years, it has faced a number of scandals, including the termination of pastor Carl Lentz for what the church deemed as “moral failures” and Brian Houston’s controversial blog post stating that Hillsong ”welcomes ALL people but does not affirm all lifestyles.”
In the wake of his 2020 firing from the church, Lentz said in a statement, “I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that. This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions.”
Though Pratt considers himself a churchgoer, he told Men’s Health that he’s “not a religious person.”
He explained, “I think there’s a distinction between being religious—adhering to the customs created by man, oftentimes appropriating the awe reserved for who I believe is a very real God—and using it to control people, to take money from people, to abuse children, to steal land, to justify hatred.”
Saying that religion “has been oppressive as f–k for a long time,” Pratt added, “The evil that’s in the heart of every single man has glommed on to the back of religion and come along for the ride.”