Hillsong Conference

Hillsong Conference is a mid-year week long annual conference hosted in Sydney, Australia with a smaller three day conference held in London later each year. It is the largest annual conference in Australia of any kind.[2][3] The conference is hosted by Hillsong Church at the Qudos Bank Arena and surrounding Olympic Park precinct.

Hillsong Conference
Hillsong Conference 2021 Logo
Genre	Christian
Location(s)	Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney Olympic Park
Coordinates	33.8443°S 151.0621°E / -33.8443; 151.0621
Country	Australia
Years active	34
Inaugurated	1986 (1986)[1]
Previous event	9–12 July 2019
Next event	29 June - 2 July 2021
Attendance	30,000+
Website	hillsong.com/conference

Hillsong Conference grew from 150 people at the first conference in 1986[4] to now be attended by upwards of 30,000 people each year in Sydney. It brings in over $28 million to the New South Wales tourism sector annually [5]

In 2020, the Hillsong Conference was postponed for the first time in its history until 2021 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.[6]

History

1986 – 1994: Early Years

The first Hillsong Conference was held in 1986 in Baulkham Hills with only 150 attendees.[7] In the early 1990s, night rallies were held in the Hills Centre where Hillsong Church was holding meetings, with attendees growing to as large as 750[8] by 1992.

1995 – 2000: Growth

From 1995, night rallies were held at the State Sports Centre in Sydney Olympic Park. Two similar conferences were held in 1999 and 2000 across two weeks.[9]

2001 – 2017: Move to Sydney Olympic Park

Hillsong Conference was first held in the Qudos Bank Arena (formerly Sydney SuperDome and named Acer Arena at the time) and various venues throughout Sydney Olympic Park from 2001.

In 2011 Hillsong Conference was not held in Sydney Olympic Park but instead in the Sydney Entertainment Centre[10] for logistical reasons relating to the availability of Sydney Olympic Park.

2018 – present

In 2018, the Hillsong Conference completely sold out the Qudos Bank Arena venue.[11] Future growth is expected to continue to overflow into the wider Sydney Olympic Park precinct where currently the Kidsong and Hillsong Young & Free Conference is held simultaneously.[12]

In 2020, the Hillsong Conference was postponed for the first time in its history until 2021 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.[13]

Conferences

Hillsong Conference Sydney

Hillsong Conference was first held in the Qudos Bank Arena (formerly Sydney SuperDome and named Acer Arena and Allphones Arena at the time) and various venues throughout Sydney Olympic Park from 2001.[14]

Hillsong Conference London

In 2006, an offshoot of Hillsong Conference began in London with 3,000 people at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre known as Hillsong Conference Europe.[15] Since its inception in 2007 it has become an annual 3-day conference held in London attracting people from across Europe.[16]

Hillsong Conference London is now held at The O2 Arena,[17] which is the second largest indoor venue in the UK of 21,000 seats.[18]

Hillsong Conference New York

In July 2012, Brian Houston announced they will be bringing the Hillsong Conference for the first time ever to the United States. Hillsong Conference was held in New York in 2013 for the first time, and annually since.[19]

Hillsong Conference New York was held in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn,[20] with a seating capacity of 17,000.

Sessions

The sessions that make up Hillsong Conference are diverse and vary from a typical church service, from presentations from leaders in their space, traditional preaching and worship sessions, through to Design and Production masterclasses.[21]

• Opening Ceremony[22]
• Morning/Night Meetings - Hillsong Church Service with special guest preachers
• Masterclasses - One hour presentations in more intimate settings with experts across a wide breadth of topics.[23]
• Closing Ceremony

Kidsong

Kidsong is the Children's portion of the Hillsong Conference, and is hosted simultaneously to Hillsong Conference in the surrounding Olympic Park Precinct.[24] Kidsong also runs a special programme named Treasure Chest for children living with disabilities.[25]

Charitable Contributions

Various charities are present at Hillsong Conference, including Compassion and Open Doors.[26]

In 2019, over a 20 year partnership with Hillsong, Compassion announced that over 100,000 children had been sponsored through their programs.[27][28]

Accessibility

The conference, including worship, is translated live into 11 different languages, plus Auslan, for those attending.[29]

The venue and surrounding precinct is wheelchair accessible[30] and Hillsong Conference makes specific provisions for those who require additional assistance.[31]

Notable Appearances

Scott Morrison speaking at Hillsong Conference 2019

In 2005, Leader of the Australian Labor Party Kim Beazley sent a video message and NSW Premier Bob Carr spoke briefly at the Conference.[32]

In 2016, Singer Dami Im performed her Eurovision hit Sound of Silence at the Conference.[33][34]

In 2019, Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison opened the Hillsong Conference[35] with a prayer for veterans, young people and more rain to tackle the then current drought facing Australia.[36]

See also

• Hillsong Church
• Hillsong Channel
• Charismatic movement
• Pentecostalism

References

1. Wagner, Tom; Riches, Tanya. The Hillsong movement examined : you call me out upon the waters. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 29. ISBN 9783319596563.
2. "Australia's largest annual conference draws 30,000" (Press release). Hillsong Church. 1 July 2005. Retrieved 28 July 2006.
3. "Hillsong Conference cheat sheet". christiantoday.com.au.
4. "Annual Report 2016" (PDF). Hillsong Church Australia. 2017. pp. 8, 36. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
5. "Inside the $4 million conference #OverheardatHillsong". NewsComAu. 8 July 2016.
6. "Ruby Princess: the untrue Hillsong slur that Twitter can't let go of". eternitynews.com.au. 29 April 2020.
7. "Hillsong's true believers - National - www.smh.com.au". smh.com.au.
8. Stephen Ollis (13 April 1992). "Hillsong '92". Newsgroup: aus.religion. Usenet: [e-mail]. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
9. Richies, Tanya. Worship and social engagement in urban Aboriginal-led Australian Pentecostal congregations : (re)imagining identity in the spirit. p. 109. ISBN 978-90-04-40025-2. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
10. Church, Hillsong (21 October 2010). "Hillsong conference 2011 - celebrating 25 years".
11. July 13th, Ben McEachen; Comments, Ben McEachen. "Carl Lentz wants you to crush the world - Eternity News". eternitynews.com.au.
12. "Hillsong Conference - Kidsong".
13. "Ruby Princess: the untrue Hillsong slur that Twitter can't let go of". eternitynews.com.au. 29 April 2020.
14. "Hillsong Conference was held between the 9th and 13th July at the Superdome @". oocities.org.
15. Zinchini, Cassandra. "Hillsong's World Revival". ChristianityToday.com.
16. Mararike, Allie Jones and Shingi. "Hillsong: the gen Z church with a celebrity congregation".
17. Hardy, Elle (18 March 2020). "The House That Brian Built: Inside The Global Empire That Is Hillsong". GQ.
18. Unit B, Distillery Wharf. "DTB Sports Hospitality and Event Management". dtbsportsandevents.com.
19. Petrucci, Anthony. "Hillsong Conference Makes History at NYC's Radio City Music Hall". Charisma Magazine.
20. Klett, Leah Marieann (8 August 2016). "Megachurch Pastor Steven Furtick Inspires Thousands at Hillsong Conference 2016". Breaking Christian News: World, Business, and More | The Gospel Herald.
21. "Masterclasses at Hillsong Conference". hillsong.com. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
22. International, Ben Kruzins-Press Service. "Day 1: Hillsong Conference get's underway with a bang!". christiantoday.com.au.
23. July 17th, Anne Lim; Comments, Anne Lim. "Christians told to get rid of taboos - Eternity News". eternitynews.com.au.
24. "Hillsong Conference 2016 - The Stage is Set". christiantoday.com.au.
25. July 10th, Rebecca Abbott; Comments, Rebecca Abbott. "Hillsong's best kept secret - Eternity News". eternitynews.com.au.
26. Australia, Open Doors. "A Worship Journey Into Broken Places". Open Doors Australia.
27. "Hillsong Social Justice UK on Facebook Watch".
28. "Celebrating 100,000 Children 🎉".
29. "20,000 DELEGATES SERVED BY RELIABLE, SAFE COMMS". webcache.googleusercontent.com. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
30. https://www.qudosbankarena.com.au/Venue-Information/Ticketing/Accessibility. Missing or empty |title= (help)
31. https://hillsong.com/travel/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
32. "Politicians flock to Hillsong conference". The Age. 5 July 2005.
33. "https://twitter.com/damiandmusic/status/750567546043109377". Twitter. External link in |title= (help)
34. "Inside the $4 million conference #OverheardatHillsong". NewsComAu. 8 July 2016.
35. International, Ben Kruzins-Press Service. "A call for rain: PM Scott Morrison leads Prayers on the first day of Hillsong Conference". christiantoday.com.au.
36. "PM asks for more prayers, more love at Hillsong conference". SBS News.

External links

• Hillsong Conference webpage