Mike Guglielmucci
From Neoredemptive
Australian worship leader, associated with the Planetshakers conferences/movement.
His song "Healer" was performed on a Hillsong live worship CD/DVD.
It was revealed in late August 2008 that the song's back story -- Guglielmucci's fight with terminal cancer -- was a lie.
Commentary and Coverage:
- http://www.immersionworship.com/2008/08/21/the-healer-scandal/
- http://www.sojournmusic.com/2008/08/21/worship-leaders-and-the-cult-of-personality-in-the-wake-of-the-mike-guglielmucci-healer-scandal/
- http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24232365-5006787,00.html
Doc's Take
I feel rather dizzy, having learned about this scandal and the Todd Bentley collapse within a few minutes of each other.
At a systemic level, the church would be in a lot better place if more of our worship leaders came out and admitted, publicly, that we are lying porn addicts instead of maintaining our sick facades of moral perfection. Instead, we have a "christian" sub-culture of systemic hypocrisy in which musical gifts are exalted and character flaws must be concealed to protect "the ministry", when the whole point of "the ministry" is the healing grace of Jesus Christ through the gospel which sets the repentant free from slavery to sin. If that grace is not available -- and publicly applied -- to ministers, then there can be no great hope for any ministry.
At a personal level, events like this demand that we re-examine ourselves in the light of the gospel. As followers, are we looking to mere men with the expectation that they will be what only Jesus Christ can be? Are we placing burdens and expectations upon them which only the Son of God can rightly bear? Instead of contributing to a culture which is rightly intolerant of sin -- seeking its identification, repentance, and restoration from it -- or to a culture which is wrongly intolerant of sin, driving those in need of grace and redemption into deeper and deeper webs of deceit and sinful entanglement? As leaders, are we modeling moral integrity as we are able accompanied by a deep, honest, public humility and engagement of correction, support, and wise counsel when we are not?
