Complaint against Bethel Sydney cites safety concerns over ties to embattled parent church in Redding

A formal complaint has been filed with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, raising concern about the ongoing ties between the new Bethel Sydney campus and Bill Johnson’s Bethel Church in Redding, California, where leaders have admitted to mishandling allegations of data harvesting to generate fake prophecies and sexual misconduct against Christian minister Shawn Bolz.

The complaint, which was reviewed by The Christian Post and appears to have been filed anonymously, raises concerns about public safeguarding and potential risks associated with the new Bethel Sydney Campus in light of the most recent admission by Bethel Church leaders last month that they mishandled the abuse allegations against Bolz.

Bethel Church previously stated in 2025 that they had confronted Bolz about the allegations more than five years earlier and had distanced themselves from him when he didn't provide a satisfactory response.

“There is no doubt that Bethel Sydney is an extension of the Bethel Church, Redding California ministry. In the statement dated January 25 2026, Bill Johnson and other Bethel leaders acknowledge receiving corroborated allegations of sexual misconduct against a minister, Shawn Bolz, who they platformed globally as early as 2019, and admit they failed to disclose this information to their church and wider community in a timely way (many years), contributing to further victims and harm caused,” the complaint against Bethel Sydney, led by Matthew and Elizabeth King, states.

Johnson and Kris Vallotton, a senior associate leader at the global megachurch, joined several leaders on stage during a service in 2024 to commission the Kings as the senior leaders of Bethel Sydney, which is scheduled to officially launch on Feb. 15. A recent statement from Bethel Sydney said Johnson is expected to be a part of their campus dedication service.

“Following a powerful weekend at the Bethel Sydney Conference, we’re gathering again — this time as family — to dedicate this house to the Lord and mark the beginning of a new season in our city,” the church noted Wednesday.

“We’re honored to welcome Bill Johnson to speak at our dedication service, carrying a heart for revival and a deep love for Jesus and His Church. This will be a moment of consecration, faith, and expectation as we make room for all that God wants to do in Sydney and our nation.”

Responding to questions about the relationship between Bethel Church in Redding and Bethel Sydney, Pastor Matthew King told The Christian Post in an emailed statement that while the churches are connected through “a shared statement of faith, values and spiritual leadership networks,” Bethel Sydney is an independently governed operation.

“Bethel Sydney is an independently governed Australian charity with its own board, constitution, and accountability structures. While Bethel Sydney maintains a relational connection with Bethel Church in Redding through a shared statement of faith, values and spiritual leadership networks, there is no constitutional, financial, or operational control exercised by Bethel Redding over Bethel Sydney,” King noted in his statement. “Governance, decision-making, and safeguarding responsibilities sit entirely with the Australian board and leadership.”

He further noted that even though Bethel Sydney hasn’t yet launched as a public church congregation, and won’t launch formally until later this month, the church has already “developed a comprehensive safeguarding and accountability framework.”

“As part of its establishment process, Bethel Sydney has developed a comprehensive safeguarding and accountability framework prior to launch. This includes policies covering safeguarding and child safety, sexual harassment prevention, whistleblower protections, complaints and grievance handling and pastoral code of conduct,” the Bethel Sydney leader noted. “These policies have been reviewed and approved at a board level and form part of Bethel Sydney’s commitment to ensuring a safe, transparent, and accountable church environment.”

King also explained that the leadership of Bethel Sydney have been in communication with the nearly 3,000 members of their community about the allegations against Bolz and offered pastoral care and other support. They have also directed people to Bethel Church’s statement on the matter.

“We would like to note Bethel Sydney has instructed its legal representative to notify the ACNC that we are willing to answer any questions they may have regarding our compliance requirements,” he added.

The ACNC complaint against Bethel Sydney made it clear that the pattern of Bethel Church leaders mishandling abuse in the church isn’t just confined to Bolz.

The complaint states that since Bethel Redding leaders admitted to mishandling the allegations against Bolz, additional allegations of clergy sexual misconduct have been made against Bethel leader Ben Armstrong involving young adults, some of whom were interns at the time the alleged misconduct occurred.

“Bethel Church fully knew about the incidents as they addressed it with the church at the time, asking for God’s forgiveness and then fully restoring Ben Armstrong back to ministry in a promoted authority position he holds today as ‘Prophetic Overseer,’” the complaint notes.

The complaint argues that considering Australia’s strong safeguarding controls in place for charities, Bethel Sydney needs to publicly address the latest admissions by Bethel Church leaders.

“To date, there has been NO public statement from Bethel Sydney, the senior leaders, or its board addressing these admissions of covering up knowledge of sexual abuse from leaders they platformed, or why there are still leaders in their ministry holding authority positions when there is known Clergy Sexual Abuse,” the complaint adds.

“There are no safeguarding implications in place to ensure the Australian entity has independently assessed the risks associated with this leadership culture. It is a major concern to the safety of the public who would attend this church,” it continues. “Given Australia’s strong safeguarding expectations for charities, particularly those working with families, youth, children, and vulnerable people, I am concerned about whether appropriate governance, risk management, and safeguarding oversight are in place.”