Hillsong Dallas lead pastors Reed Bogard and wife Jess announced their official resignation via a pre-recorded message aired at the megachurch on Jan. 3.
In the short message stating their resignation, the Bogards said they are vacating their post because they believed that it is time for them to transition off of their staff and take some time, Religion News reported.
"The last 10 years of being in church planting mode has really taken a bit of a toll on Jess and I and our family," they said in the prerecorded message streamed Sunday. "We just really feel like it's time to transition off of our staff and take some time. Remain healthy, get healthy, and really see what this next season holds for us," the message ended without further explanations.
After the worship music that preceded the message from the Bogards, Brian Houston, Hillsong co-founder and Global Senior Pastor clarified to the congregation that he had been talking with the resigned pastor over a period of time and agreed on the couple's decision. Houston added that this perfect time for a new season in the Bogards' lives will also mean a new season for Hillsong Dallas.
Houston admitted that it would take them some time to find replacements for the couple whom he praised for giving "their heart and soul to the pioneering of Hillsong Dallas."
On the other hand, Reed called Hillsong co-founders Brian and Bobbie Houston, as well as his wife Jess, as his "greatest cheerleaders." Expressing his gratitude to the leadership, the resigned pastor said he'd never meet such people who believed in people so much.
Reed and Jess founded the New York City Hillsong church in 2010 together with ousted pastor Carl Lentz. They were part of the teams on the ground who planted churches.
The Bogards and the Lentzs were products of the Hillsong International Leadership College in Australia. They served as that ministry's headquarters staff in Australia for some time before flying back to the U.S. to start their pioneering work.
The two lead pastors' resignation came months after the Hillsong New York city started facing scrutiny after news broke out about the lead pastor Carl Lentz's extramarital affair. Lentz admitted the allegations on his Twitter post apologizing not only to his wife but to everyone whom he believed he betrayed trust, Christianity Daily reports.
Weeks after admitting his affair, his alleged mistress, a jewelry designer came out in an interview to confirm the affair that ended the moment Lentz's wife Laura found out. Carl Lentz was terminated from the ministry and Hillsong East Coast started conducting an independent investigation on the inner workings of the church.
After the celebrity pastor's firing, volunteers came out and spoke about the hierarchy that took advantage of volunteers and treated pastors as "royalty."
Celebrities attending the megachurch reportedly cut ties with Lentz and Hillsong after the reports about the ousted pastor broke out. Justin Bieber whom Lentz baptized said in his Instagram post that he belongs to Churchome, under pastor Judah Smith.
