Let There Be Light

Official Documentary for 'Let There Be Light.'

‘Let There Be Light’ explores the pattern of abuse experienced over a period of four decades under the leadership of Mike Pilavachi in the UK church. A Church of England safeguarding report substantiated claims of emotional, physical and spiritual harm. This documentary explores the story of what happened - and lessons the Church must learn for the future.

©️ Phos Media LLC
Music by Nathan Nockels, used by permission.

[MattRedmanOfficial]

This is a story that Beth and I needed to tell. We want this documentary to speak up for the many victims of Mike Pilavachi at Soul Survivor and at the same time ask how we might become a safer and healthier Church in the future. Let there be light.

[debbhackett]

"That's just Mike" is one of the saddest things I've heard. Thank you all for being brave.

[katefagan]

Amazing bravery. I’m a survivor myself of spiritual abuse by a youth pastor. I was 17 years old when I came forward. He was fired that day and I’ll never be more grateful. Ten other girls came forward after me. I was later hired as a youth minister. This was decades ago and I am forever grateful for how I have been treated.

[andrewfadoju]

Thank you, Matt and Beth. This is not just about soul survivor and Mike. This is about God’s church being above board and transparent in all it conducts. It's about the church being different. Leaders are servants, and we need to stop and discourage Super Stars' mentality. Jesus came to serve, not to Lord it over people even though he was the Lord. The body of Christ needs to do better. Massive wake-up call. Praying for God’s redeeming grace over his body.

[lynnehuet]

Thank you Matt and Beth for sharing your story. The emotional abuse is so subtle. Yes, LET THERE BE LIGHT .

[ogoyimika]

There is nothing hidden that will not eventually be revealed. I pray that God would continue to heal all those that have been affected by this sad state of affairs in Jesus precious name.

[EricHansenSpringfield]

As a pastor for 35 years, THANK YOU! Bravo Matt. May we all have the courage to speak.

[lizcoleman]

A quote from Bonhoeffer
When a madman is tearing through the streets in a car, I can, as a pastor who happens to be on the scene, do more than merely console or bury those who have been run over. I must jump in front of the car and stop it.
This is what you guys are doing 🙌🏼

[stuc.]

I worked at several of the Soul Survivor festivals in various roles but never had contact with Mike Pilavachi. All I saw was a great number of people working very hard to produce a fantastic experience for thousands of young people and the worship in the tent was something I will never forget, it certainly changed and strengthened my faith. I know from the young people we had with us in our youth group that they all had a great time and it is important to know that Pilavachi's behaviour and abuse doesn't detract from that. The teaching delivered by him, Andy Croft and others reached out to everyone and I truly believe that he had a passion for spreading the gospel to young people. It's just so terribly sad that there was another, awful side to him where he failed utterly in his relationships with other people, he hurt so many and failed to recognise his own failings, causing so much suffering. There's no excuse for it, he knew better, it's not just "being Greek". It's amazing to hear Matt say he forgives Mike and a lesson for us all - but to also say, very rightly, that Mike needs to be held accountable for his actions. I also pray that Pilavachi will come to realise the harm and hurt he has caused and come to repentance for it. I also pray that the Soul Survivor Church learns from this and comes back all the stronger.

[nicolaknight]

As a therapist specialising in trauma and spiritual abuse, thank you so much for your candour and bravery 🙏 so many Christian clients feel affirmed by your story! Thank you.

[michaelosborne]

As someone who attended Soul Survivor I was always uncomfortable with how Mike's ego, personality and repeated stetched out anecdotes were such a dominant part of the event. I loved the Worship but never really got much from Mike's talks other than his ego. Soul Survivor was the place where so many British teenagers first encountered God and received Spiritual Gifts, but to me Mike's ministry always felt 'off'and I didn't understand why his personality was allowed to rule the whole culture of Soul Survivor. Thank you Matt and Beth for your honesty, for perservering in raising the alarm bells on Mike's abuse and for still journeying in faith and with God despite how Church governance abused and failed you. Bless you guys

[jerrysinclair]

Just because thousands of lives have been "changed" does not mean that God is not aware of the abusive behavior of a leader. God is never surprised. Never let an abusive leader muzzle Christian people into silence. God is bigger than any fear that we who are abused would ''tear down'' a successful ministry. We sing all of these praise and worship songs about how great God is. Yet, we have no faith that our pain is not as important as a successful ministry. Do not be fooled. God will eventually prevail against a bully. That will happen after Christians stand up and say, "You [Christian leader] will not do this to me again.

[jbean]

Thank you Matt! I am a trained counselor and your honesty and transparency are so helpful and empowering for others who have been abused.

[andybelinka]

There is so much I want to say about spiritual abuse, but I will just say thank you for making this and pray for healing for all of the survivors.

[peterjermey]

Even after all this has been ainfully brought forward, the church of England has barely reacted. MP has been quietly retired, nobody else has faced any accountability for allowing him to abuse these boys (and others) and there's been no attempt even to learn lessons from this.

How can the church claim to be relevant or even moral when it cares so little for the lives of vulnerable teenagers and young adults?

[hannahviolinbusker]

I’ve been in a church of one type or another for over 45 years. I have experienced two periods of abuse, indecent assault by a vicar in the CofE in my teens and spiritual abuse by a minister more recently. It has come about, that as I walk my family through speaking out over being wrongfully excommunicated, my prior abuse has also come to a point of being dealt with. The Lord does not forget and He sees that justice is done, if not on Earth, then in heaven.
Probably the most hurtful thing is not being believed, by people I counted close friends, and as a child, even family who didn’t want to rock the status quo in church. In my more recent experience, charges of sin against our minister were dismissed on minutiae. It’s one thing to have a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but a wolf in Shepherd’s clothing is a much more dangerous beast. It took us a while to realise that our church had been leaking like a sieve for a significant time. But when I noticed an absence, I’d ask the minister and would believe his story about why a family were no longer attending.

In the Kingdom of God, there is no “lower status” we are all part of the body of Christ. Each member must be equally valued. It might be that we keep a bicep, because we view it as important, but we loose several hundred blood cells and now the whole body is severely anaemic, because we saw them as expendable.

[helenshepherd]

As a survivor of spiritual abuse I thank you Matt and Beth for making this moving documentary and for bringing your painful experiences into the light

[lindahoman]

Five key takeaways for me from this... (quotes from the video)...
1. “People act to protect the system rather than the sheep…”
2. “That’s just Mike…” Never excuse unacceptable behaviour - regardless of who does it.
3. “I would absolutely encourage anyone who has experiences spiritual abuse to get help…”
4. “This is not about forgiveness, this is about accountability”
5. “There is abuse of power across the board.. There needs to be a a leadership structure that is accountable…”

[catherinesinclair]

"Never once did I ever walk alone. Never once did you leave me on my own. You are faithful" ...thank you Father you are faithful

[annabailey]

"Jesus is cleaning up his Church" <3 Let there be light. Let there be light. Let there be light!!!