I’ve moved to Substack! + My thoughts on the Bethel "Cover-Up" scandal

Why "cover-up culture" is a symptom of a deeper deception

I’ve moved! My articles are now on Substack.

Hello to my blog subscribers! You may notice this email looks a little different. I’m writing to let you know that I’ve moved my mailing list to Substack. I made this decision because it provides a better infrastructure for me to interact with you—and to launch my new community, which I’ll explain in a moment.

Because you’ve been a valued subscriber to my blog, I’ve imported your email so you won’t miss any of my articles. If this isn’t for you anymore, no problem. You can click the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of this email at any time. My previous blog articles will remain available at hollypivec.com.

This is my first edition of my Substack publication, Hold Fast with Holly Pivec. In it, I will share some of my thoughts on how people should process Mike Winger’s important revelations of a “cover-up culture” at Bethel Church. I believe many people are missing the deeper problem at Bethel.

But, first, I wanted to tell you a little about my new community and invite you to join us. I’m offering a special 30% lifetime discount for my blog readers and podcast listeners, which you can read about below. I announced this on my podcast on Thursday, so if you already heard the news, feel free to skip the next section and jump down to “Cover-Up Culture and the Deeper Problem at Bethel Church.”

In my latest podcast, I announced the launch of my Substack community, “Hold Fast with Holly Pivec.”

My New Community

For a long time, I’ve wanted a way to interact with my readers and podcast listeners more personally. I know from your messages that the path of discernment can be lonely. I created this community—Hold Fast with Holly Pivec—so we can discuss NAR issues, evaluate NAR books together, and connect during monthly Live Q&A sessions.

This is an ideal community for people who care about biblical discernment and care about people who are being influenced by NAR—as well as those recovering from NAR and seeking to rebuild their faith on a solid foundation.

Launch Special: The standard subscription is $35/month, but for my blog readers and podcast listeners I’m offering a 30% lifetime discount if you join during this first month. That brings it down to $24.50/month—about the price of a hardcover book. Here’s what your subscription includes access to:

• The Acts 17:11 Book Club, where we dissect primary NAR texts together through Scripture and careful reasoning, and have video meetups.

• Monthly Live Q&A sessions, when you can ask me your questions about NAR-related issues.

• Deep-dive discussion threads about NAR-related topics.

• A private community chat room, to fellowship and discuss NAR with other community members, free from the noise of social media.

• The Research Vault—a growing archive of investigative documents and equipping resources.

By becoming a paid subscriber, you will also be directly funding the mission—to hold fast to the gospel in an age of new “apostles”—along with my work researching, writing, and podcasting about NAR. And, as one of our early members, you’ll be helping build this community from the ground up.

How to Join

For my current email subscribers, you don’t need to do a thing! You are already a free subscriber here, and my articles will remain free.

But for those interested in going deeper in discussion and community, there are two paid subscription tiers: “Discussion & Book Club” and “Anchor.” The “Anchor” tier is for those who have the means to support this mission and my work at a higher level. Anchors will receive all the above benefits plus invitations to quarterly Anchor Roundtable Meetings. You can learn more about the tiers and the benefits of community membership here: https://hollypivec.substack.com/about.

To sign up for the community now and receive the special lifetime discount being offered during our launch month, click on the button below. (Note that you can toggle between the Monthly and Annual discount offers.)

Lock in the 30% Lifetime Discount

Whether you are a free or paid subscriber, I’m grateful you’re here. And now to my thoughts about what lies beneath Bethel’s cover-up culture.

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“Cover-Up Culture” and the Deeper Problem at Bethel Church

Bible teacher Mike Winger ignited a collective conversation about “cover-up culture” with his Jan. 17, 2026, YouTube exposé.

Many are rightly rejoicing at the exposure of sexually abusive and fake, data-mining “prophets” connected to Bethel Church in Redding, California. The exposure is due, in large part, to an explosive six-hour video released last week by Bible teacher Mike Winger, which has already had over 800,000 views. The most shocking revelation isn’t just the allegations of misconduct by the influential “prophet” Shawn Bolz. It’s the fact that Bethel leaders—and other charismatic leaders with ties to Bethel—apparently knew of his behavior but chose to cover it up. That is, they chose to protect the so-called prophet and their own reputations rather than their people—those who attend their churches and trust them.

We have yet to know the full fallout of these revelations at Bethel Church—and in the thousands of churches worldwide with connections to Bethel. No doubt it will be extensive. Christian social media is in an uproar. Thankfully, many people’s eyes are being opened to a serious “cover-up culture” in these churches. But, in the aftermath of the exposure, there is something many are overlooking.

There is a deeper problem at Bethel that is not being recognized. And, unless it is, the same people who are celebrating the exposure of this cover-up culture in the charismatic movement will remain at risk.

The Underlying Issue

What is the deeper problem? It is Bethel’s theology—specifically, its teachings about “prophets” and “apostles,” which are not standard charismatic teachings and which Doug Geivett and I document in our book about Bethel, Reckless Christianity.

Bethel’s teachings about apostles and prophets derive from the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR)—a fast-growing global movement of which Bethel is a part. In fact, it is no coincidence that every leader Winger identified by name in a Facebook post about his video exposing cover-up culture is a NAR leader. NAR teachings furnish the foundation and framework for the cover-up culture at Bethel.

How do NAR teachings furnish this foundation and framework?

According to NAR, present-day “apostles” and “prophets” have extraordinary, God-given authority. They govern the church and deliver critical revelation believers require to develop miraculous powers, take dominion of society, and bring God’s kingdom to earth. All believers are expected to submit to them and to honor them, even when they have serious moral failures. This also means that sexual misconduct and false prophecies—which categorically disqualify them from being genuine prophets according to the Bible—don’t disqualify them from being genuine prophets in NAR. So, it’s their perceived divine authority that fosters a cover-up culture and endangers their followers.

And it’s that same extraordinary authority that makes the potential for abuse by present-day apostles and prophets much greater than the potential for abuse by other church leaders—though abusive behavior is certainly not limited to NAR leaders.

A Grave Deception

Bethel leaders also promote a grave deception. While indoctrinating their followers in their great authority—sometimes overtly, other times through code words that conceal their most controversial teachings to outsiders—they downplay those same teachings when confronted by outside critics. Many NAR leaders flat-out deny they are part of NAR or that the movement even exists! Talk about a cover-up.

That is why the current calls for greater accountability and reform at Bethel Church and in the larger charismatic movement are not the solution. Apostles in NAR—by definition—are not accountable to anyone but God, and prophets retain their special “anointing” no matter how badly they misbehave.

And NAR leaders are not forthright. Any semblance of accountability—whether by the elders in their churches or other NAR leaders—is exactly that: a mere semblance. Again, the receipts for this can be found in Reckless Christianity. You can’t simply reform the New Apostolic Reformation.

A Warning

So, in the aftermath of the recent exposure, people must be careful. They must not allow the scandals of sexual abuse and data-mined “prophecies”—and a cover-up campaign—to distract them from the deeper theological danger of which those things are symptoms. That danger won’t go away if Bethel shuts down or if people leave Bethel and merely find another NAR church.

I’ve seen NAR leaders—along with those who’ve defended them over the years—online publicly praising the exposure of Shawn Bolz and other discredited “apostles” and “prophets,” like Mike Bickle and Bob Hartley. They’re cheering on the exposure as a cleansing of the charismatic house. All the while those same leaders—from what I can tell—remain fully committed to NAR doctrine. They will continue to promote the same abusive NAR theology and draw followers after themselves. And while their followers may or may not become victims of sexually abusive or data-mining prophets, they will still be victims nonetheless.

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Coming Up Next

Thanks for being a part of this publication! There is much more about NAR to uncover. I’ll be sharing further research and analysis with you very soon.