Book Review: The Hillsong Movement Examined, Edited by Tanya Riches and Tom Wagner

Often, when one talks about Christian Contemporary Music, there are several names that inevitably come to mind. Chris Tomlin. Matt Redman. Casting Crowns. Third Day. MercyMe. But one of the most polarizing and controversial of all these is Hillsong. This book is dedicated to looking at the different aspects of Hillsong’s ministry, from their early beginnings to their current status, and examining that ministry.

Section 1 contains three chapters on the history of the beginning of Hillsong, from their origins in Australia to the beginning of their global impact. It also contains an analysis of how they created their music, through the people and the sound. Section 2 contains three chapters analyzing the diversity of Hillsong. Women in their worship, Hillsong College, and their Brazilian expansion all receive chapters dedicated to looking at them. Section 3 looks even deeper at the global reach of Hillsong, with their impact on America, the United Kingdom, and even Hungary examined. It also looks at the social transformation of Hillsong online and in other similar aspects of life. Section 4 titled, “What Lies Ahead?” deals with just that. It looks at the vision of the future that Hillsong has to expand their ministry.

Ultimately, I feel that this book falls short due to its view of the Charismatic movement. The whole point of worship is not a feeling brought about by some experience. Rather it is the deepening of our relationship with Jesus Christ. This book does put into perspective, however, the history of what has become one of the most influential movements of our time. For these reasons, I give this book 2.5 stars out of 5. 

WHERE TO PURCHASE:
http://www.springer.com/us/book/9783319596556

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THIS BOOK:
Riches, Tanya and Tom Wagner, Eds. The Hillsong Movement Examined: You Call Me Out Upon the Waters. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International, 2017.

FTC DISCLOSURE:
I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Springer book review program, which requires an honest, though not necessarily positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.