Coming up on 60 minutes. >> If I leave, my life will end in scars. Satan has me in the palm of his hands. >> Control that’s out [music] of control. >> You were trapped? >> I was trapped. >> I can’t escape. >> Thanks, John. Yeah, I’m in. >> The suburban church where the flock is completely dominated. >> People outside are telling you lies and you’re going to go to the devil.
>> And damnation awaits anyone who tries to leave. >> I’m just going to run for it. When we get in the car >> Yeah, I’m just going to run. >> That’s next on 60 minutes. >> The Redeemer Baptist Church wants the world to believe it’s a loving Christian community devoted to doing God’s good work and that the elite school that operates in Sydney’s western suburbs is a perfect example of that.
So, why then tonight is the church being so vociferously challenged? In this joint investigation with the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, former insiders allege Redeemer is built on a foundation of control, exploitation, and questionable financial dealings. They also say church elders dominate the lives of members.
Who they marry, what careers they pursue, even their living arrangements are decided upon by the leaders. And anyone trying to leave the church needs to watch out. The consequences are as severe as they are heartbreaking. >> How does it feel to come [music] back here? >> It’s it’s definitely not um good feelings of nostalgia.
It’s very nerve-racking. Um I’m on edge. >> Yeah, I can see that. Are you okay? >> It’s a truly strange scenario. Driving through suburban Sydney with a young man who’s deeply uncomfortable being here. >> Oh. I I always shake when I get here. Yeah, because like I know everyone here, but I can’t talk to them. >> Michael Jones grew up in Redeemer Baptist Church, an authoritarian group where elders are accused of [music] having enormous control over members’ lives.
Most of them live in these streets. >> Every house [music] on your left is owned by the Redeemer. This house, this white house on the right is owned by the Redeemer. >> After a lifetime of living by the church’s restrictive rules, Michael left in 2021. He hasn’t been welcome here since. >> Uh my That’s where my parents live.
>> That’s your parents’ house. >> So, this is my parents’ house. I I Last time I went, he he said he was going to call the cops on me. You’ve got five or six elders who are basically leading the church, making all the decisions, um governing the people, um giving yes or no answers to what people can do. >> It’s not a democracy.
>> No, I don’t have any say. Our our lives were financially controlled, no independence, no social media to see the outside world, cuz in their mind the outside world is an evil place. >> It’s even worse for Alexandra Garth, who can’t face [music] returning to Redeemer territory. She was born into the church’s [music] most important family.
Her uncle, Jonathan Cannon, is the leader and the principal of the church-run Redeemer Baptist School. >> The disciples stumbled into life together just as we did and continue to do today. >> She says she felt like she had little freedom or privacy. >> This life together is a gift. >> Oh, you feel constantly monitored [music] and watched all the time, and you just live in this constant fear of getting in trouble.
It’s the reporting, the constant surveillance, everyone knows everyone’s business. >> It’s hard to believe that the group at the center of this alarming story is operating right here in the middle of Western Sydney. Tonight, you’ll hear serious allegations of psychological and financial control inside Redeemer Baptist Church.
Former members want the world to know what really goes on here. Not just for the sake of their families still inside, who they believe are indoctrinated, but for taxpayers, too. As we’ve uncovered, the school collects millions of dollars a year from the public purse and it doesn’t pay its staff.
So, where is all the money going? >> They um are really smart at working around the system. And yes, they don’t do anything illegal, but is it ethical? I don’t think so. >> It’s extremely concerning to Steven Hassan, a globally renowned expert in authoritarian groups. >> [music] >> He’s developed a scale to rate different organizations. So, from what you know of Redeemer, where would you place them on your spectrum? >> Is it a seven? Is it an eight? Is it a nine? That would be my guess of 10.
Where a zero, one, two, three is healthy and normal. >> we’re up the other end. >> We’re in the destructive end of the influence continuum. >> To fully understand [music] the destruction, it’s important to know what happens to members who decide to leave. By the time Alexandra was 22, she’d had enough and wanted out.
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>> [music] >> But she says John Canan found out and unleashed. >> He spoke to me for an hour saying, “I just need to submit myself to the leadership and there’s leadership in the church and we must obey them and that Satan has me in the palm of his hands. And if I leave, my life will end in scars.
My life will end in destruction and I’m on a crash course.” >> [music] >> For about a week, Alexandra lost her nerve and decided to stay. Until one night, she couldn’t take it anymore and asked a friend she’d met at university with no connection to Redeemer to pick her up. >> I was intercepted in the corridor by one of the elders and three members of staff.
They stood in my way and I said, “Please move out of my way. I have a car waiting outside and I want to go. I want to leave.” >> You were trapped. >> trapped. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t leave and I was 22 at the time. I was of legal age. I had every right to leave, you know? >> Emotionally drained, Alex eventually gave up and agreed [music] to stay.
>> I messaged my uni friend and I said, “Just leave. I’m so sorry for causing you this trouble. Um just I’m so sorry. I’m going to stay.” And she said, “That’s okay. You can stay, but Mom is here with me and Mom wants you to come outside, wants to see that it’s you that we’re talking to and that you’re okay. And then we’ll drive off.
” And her mom was going to call the police if I didn’t come out in 2 hours. And I’m like, “Ah, do you know what? If I’m going to go down there and make the effort to go down there and them see that I’m okay, I’m just going to run for it. I’m going to get in that car. Yeah, I’m just going to run.
” And I sprinted out the door with a backpack, down the stairs and I ran to the door and we just just sped off around the cul-de-sac and I’ll never forget hopping in the car and looking back at the house and seeing my cousin’s husband follow us and turn the car light on cuz he was hopping in his car to follow us. >> Alexandra was finally out, but her family, including her younger brother Edward, who’s now left, remained in the church.
>> My parents came to us and told us that my sister left and they were very sad by it and I felt like I had to have the appearance that I was sad, but deep down I was really thankful that she was able to escape. >> From that moment on, was it as though she didn’t exist? >> Yeah, in a sense it was. I remember once she sent me an email to me and my sister and that email got discovered and we got in massive trouble for having contact with her even though we didn’t send anything.
We just received this email and we got in big trouble for that. >> Like Alexandra, Michael Jones [music] left Redeemer in the dead of night after a tense conversation with church leader [music] John Cannon. >> I said, “Look, I’m going to leave in the morning.” Um and he said, “Look, I don’t want you in the house.
You’re going to the devil, so get out now.” So, he followed me into my bedroom at the time. Um I gave him my house key. I gave him my school key, took my backpack and my laptop and walked out the front door. >> He used a shopping trolley he found on the street to push his few possessions to the safety of a friend’s house. >> I’d say the next 3 months were were hell on earth in the sense of I’m juggling my own emotions.
I’m trying to start a new job. I’ve never been in the world. I didn’t know what a SIM card was. Took me 6 months to even put a beer in my mouth. Like [laughter] like I honestly believed beer was from hell. Like alcohol was from hell. Smoking was from hell. Um because that’s what I was taught. It’s just a drink. >> So, you had to deprogram? >> I had to hugely deprogram.
>> I was so fearful my first [music] year of outside of Redeemer. I was waiting for the car to hit me. I was waiting to die. That sounds crazy, but I was waiting for something bad to happen because that’s what I had been told my whole life would happen. My life would end in destruction. It would end in scars.
Um and it didn’t. >> Redeemer’s financial structure also raises serious questions. After the break, how the church runs a school with a voluntary workforce while pocketing millions from taxpayers. >> Yeah, I’ve never seen anything like this before. >> [laughter] >> These young people have felt God tapping their shoulder to join in the ministry.
>> This is how Redeemer Baptist Church secures the lifelong commitment of members. The signing of what they call the ministry order in front of leader John Cannon and the rest of the community. >> It is a formal recognition of a work that God does within the heart of his people. Bringing them to a point of complete surrender.
>> The ministry order is the document which puts in writing that you are a volunteer of the church. You hand over all your personal possessions to the ownership of the church. And they are to um in a sense govern your life. >> Michael Jones was 20 when he willingly signed up. He knew that meant he’d live in a home owned by Redeemer >> [music] >> and they’d cover some of his expenses.
But says in exchange, he’d be expected to work [music] for Redeemer and never be paid a proper wage. >> To be fair, because the church owned everything, the church paid for your fuel, the church paid for your utilities. Um but we got to focus on the financial abuse here in the sense of I don’t have any super, I don’t have any assets, I don’t have any external way of making an income.
I have no way of getting ahead or making any decisions independently. The the the the rhetoric is we do this as a church, this is our ministry, this is God’s calling for us. But in the end, it’s a business. >> This is where a lot of money comes in, Redeemer Baptist School. It’s run by the church, but most of the nearly 600 students here aren’t part of the congregation.
It presents like many other private schools, beautiful grounds and strong academic results. But unlike other schools, here there are no employees. The staff, including teachers, are volunteers from the church’s ministry who don’t get paid a salary. >> This is a school we’re talking about. How can it be that they have no employees? >> I think it’s highly unusual and unorthodox.
You know, I’ve never seen anything like this before. >> Professor Clinton Free is an accounting expert at the University of Sydney. We asked him to analyze Redeemer Baptist School’s publicly available accounts over a 10-year period and he was stunned by how it operates. >> What I found over the period 2015 to 2024 was three major sources of cash into the school.
$52.7 million from the government, about the same amount from parents for fees for students, and then some other sources of cash in the amount of about $50 million. >> And is that all pretty normal for a school like this? >> Yeah, but perhaps what catches the eye is where that cash ended up going. What we found was there were payments to suppliers and a set of other payments, but what was conspicuous in its absence was there was zero wages cost.
>> No money spent on on labor, on teachers. >> Yeah, what we would expect most schools to have is probably 60 to 75% of their expenses being labor costs, so this is deeply unusual. >> So, are they operating outside the normal wage system? >> I would say it’s the accounting equivalent to opening the bonnet of a car and instead of seeing an engine, you see you see nothing.
>> I can’t get my head around why this is not illegal. >> So, we know that many charities, many churches, and community groups are powered by volunteers, and there’s nothing on the face of it illegal or wrong with volunteer work forces, but if the workers here are being directed and controlled by the school in terms of hours and expectations, if the relationship has the practical features of an employment relationship, I think the question has to be asked are these people volunteers or are they employees? >> The law doesn’t require schools to spend
government funding [music] on staff wages, but the money must contribute to the needs and outcomes of students, which Redeemer says it [music] does. They insist school staff are volunteers who have chosen a life of sacrifice [music] in response to a calling from Jesus Christ. And while they’re not paid a salary, some do receive a small stipend from the church.
[music] But Michael Jones says that’s not all. Because volunteers are technically [music] unemployed, some are able to claim welfare benefits. >> The stipend is at a level where it’s low enough to be below the tax threshold so that you can qualify for the Centrelink payments. >> So you’re getting a a below minimum wage stipend.
>> yeah. >> And claiming >> Mhm. >> Centrelink. >> Mhm. Yep. It’s a smart system, hey? >> We’ve been told volunteers at Redeemer are on unemployment benefits from Centrelink. >> I think that’s genuinely concerning. Most Australians might reasonably ask if a school’s receiving public funding, why is it that teachers aren’t being im- paid wages and instead of relying on Centrelink payments.
>> It’s a rule, isn’t it? >> Certainly seems like there’s a risk of double payment here. >> That’s not the only highly questionable arrangements underway here. When church kids finish year 12, forget about traveling or going to uni, getting a job, they’re encouraged to complete year 13.
It includes vocational training courses run by Redeemer and a busy schedule of volunteering. >> You just have to work. It’s non-stop work. And honestly, like this is my opinion, it’s so that you don’t have time to think. You don’t have time to realize what’s going on, why they’re controlling all this sort of psychological, social pressure to follow.
>> For Alexandra Garth, who was already struggling with the restricted life in Redeemer, year 13 was the last thing she wanted to do. >> For a girl, usually teachers aid, work in the office, work at drum club, work doing the school coaching. For boys, mainly it’s um working with the construction team. Um you don’t get paid a cent.
>> So, it’s effectively work. >> Yeah. >> But unpaid. >> Yeah. >> Labor. >> Yeah. I really wanted to go to university and I asked, “Is there a way I can not do a year 13? Can I please go to university?” And I was told no. I didn’t have a choice and I view it effectively as a year wasted. Like I will never get that year back.
>> Without salaries to pay, thanks to all the volunteers, Redeemer Baptist School is left with a huge amount of money for other things. >> So, the remainder of of the spending really falls into two buckets. The first is a service charge, which I presume is paid directly to the church and over the 10 years that amounted to 27.
8 million dollars. And the other category is major investments in property of almost 26 million dollars over that 10-year period. >> Is there anything wrong with sending money from the school to the church? >> I don’t think on its face it’s necessarily illegal, but it certainly isn’t conventional. >> We asked Redeemer if the service charge is paid to the church and they wouldn’t confirm or deny it.
They also wouldn’t explain why more than 20 homes here in Western Sydney where members live are owned by the school. It’s not only a highly valuable property portfolio, but a way to save on taxes. >> What are the tax benefits of having a house owned by the school as opposed to by a private individual? >> These include concessions with respect to land tax, stamp duty, uh council rates, fringe benefits tax, and even capital gains tax.
So, the school would have taken advantage of a number of different tax benefits in acquiring what is a significant investment portfolio. >> With the school at the center of Redeemer’s financial setup, former members say they faced enormous pressure to become teachers and keep the operation going. But Alexandra managed to convince the elders that another career, nursing, would still be useful to the church.
>> If I wanted to do something like psychology or policing, something that wasn’t relevant to the school, I wouldn’t have been allowed to do it. And the only reason why nursing was somewhat a allowed thing to do was they have an elderly population in Redeemer and they needed nurses to look after them. >> Michael was also determined to pursue his own passion, engineering, and persuaded the leaders it would benefit building projects at the church and school.
And at one stage, like Alex, in what they say was an extremely rare occurrence, he was allowed to get a job outside Redeemer. But he says resisting the push to study teaching was extremely difficult. >> Why does it only have to be teaching? Like I don’t understand. >> Cuz that’s the direction they want everyone to go.
>> Yeah, cuz if they’re not teachers, then the school doesn’t survive and they have to start paying external teachers. >> Like a normal school does. >> Exactly. >> [laughter] >> Yeah. >> After the break, >> [music] >> how former church members say they needed permission for everything from who they could date to what career they chose.
>> This is not normal. This is not healthy. >> [music] >> So that was one of the church baptisms. I always used to look at it and say like why couldn’t I just be born into a normal family? Why couldn’t just my life be like a normal person’s life? >> For as long as Alexandra [music] Garth can remember, she knew she didn’t belong in Redeemer Baptist Church.
Did you feel that you could marry whoever you wanted? >> [music] >> No. No, no, not at all. >> She felt like she’d never be able to make a decision about her life without the [music] elders’ permission. Even as a small child, it was a future she couldn’t bear to contemplate. [music] >> I was suicidal and wanted to end my life.
>> As a 10-year-old? >> Yeah. I didn’t know I’m crying. >> Wow, that’s a pretty heavy way to feel. >> Yeah, cuz I felt like I had no control over my life. I was looking at my life and I have to marry someone in the church. I have to stay here. >> Did you have a sense from a young age then that leaving the church really was not an option? >> Yes, definitely.
I knew that if I wanted to leave, I would have to choose my family or my freedom. And as a child, that is such a difficult weight to carry. >> Alex told her parents [music] how she felt, but instead of being met with care and compassion, she says she was isolated, [music] moved from her mom and dad’s house to temporarily stay with [music] another relative with the permission of church leader John Cannon.
>> The eldership decided that I should move to a different home for the time being um to get help, but it wasn’t proper help and I went to the psychologist once when I was in there. But John Cannon came to my appointment and you can imagine as a child, I’m 10 years old and I feel like I can’t open up to the psychologist because what if I tell them what my life is really like and then I get in trouble for telling them.
>> Her brother Edward was also moved out of their parents’ home when he was 19, sent to live with John Cannon after he started questioning his future in Redeemer. [music] >> If you considered to do something wrong or had expressions of wanting to leave, you would often be moved house to that of an elder or another family member as seen as it was good to get away from home and it was a chance to grow up as they would say.
>> At one stage, Edward says he was sharing this bedroom with a student at Redeemer [music] Baptist School and a staff member under the roof of the principal. >> Just unbelievable. >> Did it strike you as inappropriate? >> Oh, yeah, very much so. Very much so. Initially, I did raise raise concerns and I was told that something I don’t have to worry about.
>> So, how did you manage that time living in that home? How did you cope? >> Yeah, it was very hard for me. I felt like you’re under a watchful eye the entire time. Just there’s people everywhere. You can’t escape. >> Curiously, Redeemer says they’ve had no reports of students sharing bedrooms inappropriately or being routinely moved out of their parents’ home.
But, like Edward, Michael Jones says he was also moved into John Cannon’s house when he was a teenager. >> John’s household at the time was made up of 10, maybe 15 blokes and they’re not all his sons. So, that’s just um them moving kids around as they become men to try to make them be focused on the community, not their family.
>> It’s a bit weird, isn’t it? >> Yes, looking back now, there’s no way if I had a son or a daughter that I would let them just go live with, even if it was my uncle and auntie, go let them live if I’m fully unable to take care of them. John said to me once, um you know, “Your dad didn’t have the best dad.
You know, I’m a great example and you could start following my example. I could be your new um father figure.” >> When people are moved around like objects, um this causes great harm. >> Dr. Steven Hassan is a world-renowned mental health expert specializing in authoritarian groups. He’s looked at our interviews with former Redeemer members and is alarmed by their claims.
>> When you’re in an authoritarian pyramid and everything has to be told to you by the top, will tell you what to do for money, will tell you where you have to live, will tell you what clothing you have to wear. When it’s top-down authoritarian control, then it it’s the what I like to say is it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, has feathers like a duck, the DNA is a duck.
>> Redeemer members described being told who they should date and even married. >> Yes. >> And marrying an outsider we’re told is not an option. >> So controlling dating and marriage, this is not normal, this is not healthy. >> Um one thing I do feel like >> It’s one of many things about Redeemer that began to trouble Edward when he started university.
>> Uh came to realize that everyone out here isn’t the world isn’t out to get you in a sense that there’s lots of great people out here that you can have genuine connections with. >> Just a few months ago, he decided to leave Redeemer, but it hasn’t been easy. >> So I planned to leave the day I finished uni.
Um I had my last exam, so I went to uni and then didn’t come back from there. And sent my parents a message and rang them at night. I told them I’m I love them very much and I’m thankful for raising me and I’ve decided to leave the church and I hope to continue a relationship with them. >> And what was their response? >> Um it was very much to where my assets were that were provided by the church, such as my SIM cards, saying, “Where’s my SIM card? That provided for you, you need to return it.
Where are my school keys?” Um and you need to come back and set it right. I struggled for a bit and still struggle with the fact that I’m not able to have a relationship with them, which I deeply desired to have. >> Even 8 years after leaving Redeemer, Edward’s sister, Alexandra, is still coming to terms [music] with the brutal reality of being cut off from their parents.
>> Their love was always conditional. There’s not unconditional love in Redeemer, because if you go outside of their conditions, you’re cut off. >> I have to say, as a mother, I can’t fathom a situation where I would not choose my child. Yeah. >> Yeah. I don’t even get a birthday message.
Like, birthdays, I look around and I I’m surrounded by so many people, but then it always feels like there’s people missing. Like, when I look and see all the people I love that are in there and I don’t get to see them anymore. Um >> You miss them. >> Yeah. And then um just [snorts] knowing that like my mom will never be at my wedding or like meet my kids one day or my dad will never walk me down the aisle.
Um all that. If they passed away one day, I don’t even know if I’ll be told that they died. No one I don’t think they will tell me. Um or anyone will tell me. >> It’s not easy for these former members to [music] expose the inner workings of the community they called home for most of their lives. But as you’ll see, this isn’t the first time red flags have been raised [music] about Redeemer Baptist Church and School.
>> Sounds like they were unrelenting. >> They were unrelenting. So, what they [music] were afraid of and what they feared from me is that I didn’t have any fear. Well, you take an instance of one teacher that’s left. She’s now She’s >> There you are. >> Yes, I know. That’s me. >> Looking young and handsome. >> [laughter] >> It’s been about 20 years since Graham Glossop was last on television raising the alarm about Redeemer Baptist Church and school.
Back then, he was an accountant shocked to discover the highly unusual financial setup of the organization and determined to expose it. >> And I was just doing all all this sort of >> So, you really devoted everything to this. >> Yes. >> Yes. To this fight. >> Yes. >> Even though Graham was not a member of the church, he decided to enroll his daughter in the Western Sydney school, which had a strong reputation for academics and Christian [music] values.
He got to know the teachers and couldn’t believe they were not paid employees but volunteers who didn’t earn a salary. >> I was absolutely flabbergasted [music] that a Christian school and a Christian church could do anything like this. >> [music] >> At the time, a group of teachers agreed. There was a mass exodus of staff from Redeemer Baptist [music] School who wanted to recover unpaid wages they felt they were owed.
With years of experience as an accountant, [music] Graham stepped up to help. He believed the teachers had been ripped off and accused the school of dodging taxes. Redeemer denied doing anything wrong and went after Graham. He was slapped with an AVO and two assault charges, which didn’t stick. >> Sounds like they were unrelenting.
>> They were unrelenting. >> Yeah, I mean you were public enemy number one. >> What they were afraid of and what they feared from me is that I didn’t have any fear. I stood up to them. So, that’s why they come after me the way in >> [music] >> the way in which they did. >> The school also launched a defamation claim against Graham and others, which was dismissed in 2006.
But, the court did make an important ruling in Redeemer’s favor. It found the relationship between the school and its staff was one of religious devotion, not an employment contract, meaning the volunteer workforce was entirely legal and standard workplace entitlements didn’t apply. Graham was outraged and it got even worse when he was hit with a separate court order allowing his offices to be searched and computers seized.
>> What was the financial toll? >> For I think the financial toll on us was about 300,000. >> It was an intense time for Graham and he finally decided he’d done enough after some of the teachers reached confidential settlements with Redeemer. He wrote to every government official he could think of and was shocked and dismayed his complaints weren’t substantiated.
20 years later, he’s retired but still fighting fit and desperately hoping something will be done. >> You’ve been through a lot with Redeemer. Why speak publicly? >> Why speak publicly? >> Now. >> Because I think what I what I understand in life, right? You stand up for something you believe in.
If they think they’re winners because what they did to me, I’m just showing that they’re losers because I didn’t go away and hide under a rock, did I? I’m still here. >> And you’ve never doubted >> No. >> the truth will come out here. >> No, I I did doubt it. I thought I’d be dead and buried in my grave that they’d dig me up and and tell me what happened thereafter.
It might take a long time to get out there, but the truth prevails [music] because it’s it’s solid. >> Like Graham, Alexandra Garth wants the public to know how Redeemer treats those who dare to criticize [music] it. She was born and raised in the church, but walked away in 2021. [music] >> Redeemer have a lot of money, so people don’t want to speak out because they’re too scared that they’re going to get sued or that Redeemer will go after them.
>> Shortly after Alexandra escaped from Redeemer, she felt strongly enough to report something terrible, she claims, happened to her as a child. She says she was indecently assaulted by a man who was a member of the church when she was 13. >> What did he do to you? >> He just inappropriately touched me in places where a person would not touch a child or touch someone they weren’t romantically interested in.
>> [music] >> Alexandra told her parents and says the only thing worse than the assault itself was the way it was handled by church leader and school principal John Cannon, who is also her uncle. >> I remember so clearly, I’m sitting across, like we are today, John Cannon’s sitting there at his desk in his school office, and I’m sitting on the other end with my parents.
And he said he has confessed to everything you have said has happened, and I had to demonstrate on my mom in front of these in front of him what happened um to me, and that was so humiliating for myself cuz I’m having to relive it in front of John Cannon, who isn’t a particularly um protective or safe person for me. Um and then he said, “Look at what you’re wearing.
That didn’t help.” >> What did your parents say? Did they comfort you? Did they say, “Well, you know, we’ll sort this out”? >> The pressure from that moment was to forgive. >> And did you feel you were protected? Was he kept away from you? >> No. No. I had to serve him like through over the years. I had to put sugars in his coffee and stir it with a spoon and serve him meals and I had to dance with him on a New Year’s Eve night and and I remember I had a full panic attack cuz I I’m like, “I can do it. I can do it.”
And I remember just when I got to him, I just started shaking. I couldn’t. >> After Alexandra left Redeemer in 2021, she felt compelled to report it because her alleged attacker was still working with children. >> So, I went to the police and did my statement. I put down all the witnesses, including John, um the eldership, my parents, friends I had told in there.
And I was told they were uncooperative. >> How did it feel for you that your parents didn’t support you? >> I try not to think about it. It’s too hard to I can’t fathom I can’t put into words how that makes me feel. It’s very hard to put into words cuz it’s so um outside of what’s normal for a parent. >> In 2022, Alexandra’s alleged abuser was charged with three counts of indecent assault.
He denied it >> [music] >> and during the court case, Redeemer held meetings to pray for him. Alexandra’s younger brother Edward was appalled. >> I remember attending this prayer meeting and I was like, “What is going on here?” And so I just walked out. >> It must have been difficult to see your parents supporting him and not their daughter.
>> Yeah, something I struggled I still think about and wonder how they managed to do that and the pressure they would have felt from the church to do that. >> While the man on trial had the support of the church, Alexandra had to face court without her family. In 2024, he was cleared of two charges, but crucially for Alex, he was convicted of one count of indecent assaults.
>> I cried in relief of just feeling so validated in that I received some justice and I was made to feel like the shame that I carried was put back on the abuser where it belonged. It didn’t belong on me and I feel very validated in that um verdict. >> But those feelings didn’t last. The man maintained his innocence and denied ever confessing or discussing forgiveness with church elders.
He appealed and in 2025, the guilty verdict was overturned because the judge found Alexandra’s evidence wasn’t credible. >> At the end of the day, it was incredibly hard because I just felt like it could have been a different outcome if the people that were supposed to protect me protected me and reported him.
And at the end of the day, the institution’s reputation mattered more than my well-being as a child. >> And forgive us >> [music] >> our sins. >> A year on, Redeemer insists it handled the matter in a legally appropriate and sensitive way. Coming up, will state and federal authorities finally investigate Redeemer Baptist School. >> Look, I think there’s a concern that some regulators are asleep at the wheel here.
>> [laughter] >> I feel so depressed because I have no control of [music] my life and really I can’t do anything normal people do. >> Growing up in Redeemer Baptist Church, Alexandra Garth’s [music] diaries were her only outlet. A place to express her feelings without being pressured or punished. >> I just wish I could have independence and not be judged for having it.
>> [music] >> She says living by the church’s strict rules was suffocating and in [music] 2021 she left. But she paid a heavy price [music] being cut off from her parents and one younger sister who are still members. >> If they’re watching this, what would you say to them? >> Oh my god, I haven’t thought about that.
That I’m still their daughter and that I love them very much and I’m I’m sorry that me leaving hurt them and I’m still me. I’m still Alexandra. I’m not a bad person just because I left. And that it doesn’t have to be this way. Yeah. >> I find it very hard to imagine a life without them, so definitely want to keep in contact with them.
>> Alexandra’s [music] brother Edward feels the same way. Is something you’re still struggling with? >> Yeah, yeah. Something I still am struggling [music] to get to terms with that. You know, there’s a chance that they may not want to have a relationship with me or my future [music] family. >> For Michael Jones, leaving the church means he can live the life he always dreamed [music] of.
>> I never think I’d be able to get out on a Friday afternoon and play a twilight round of golf with with the boys and drinking some beers and losing some golf balls. >> That wouldn’t have been allowed? >> No. >> He started his own successful business and is getting married later this year. >> My purpose in life is to start my own family, create my own world, and not be pulled back by what I went through, not let the leaders have that psychological control over me anymore.
>> And you’re engaged now to a woman of your choosing? >> Yeah. >> [laughter] >> Wasn’t arranged. I didn’t have to get permission from the elders. Um yeah, it was it’s really good. For me, it was very important to invite my parents and my sisters to my wedding. Um and so me and my fiance actually went back about 4 weeks ago with the wedding invitations.
>> What was that conversation like? >> Uh it was robotic. It was very much just the rhetoric of you’ve got to make things right. You’ve got to ask for forgiveness from the elders. Um you’ve got to cut off everyone who’s left Redeemer. And if you do all those things, then we’ll relate to you and then we’ll come to your wedding.
>> Do you think they’ll come? >> No. No way. I’ve had nightmares of >> [snorts] >> um turning up to my wedding and my side of the hall is empty and my missus’ side is full. Yeah, those those nightmares definitely hang around when you’re in a bad mood. >> Even though Michael’s parents have rejected him, he says he’ll never stop hoping for a reunion.
>> I’d literally just say I’m here. You know, I don’t go anywhere. As in, I don’t move houses. I don’t live somewhere without a spare bedroom. Because in my head, I’ve got to be ready for for the day when I get a knock on the door, I get a phone call, when my family unblocks me from their phone and say, “Yeah, I need I need help.
I’ve I’ve realized what’s going on.” >> We are all thankful for what God has given to us. >> We were hoping the leader of Redeemer, John Cannon, would have a chat about the serious allegations in this story. But, he said no. Instead, [music] Redeemer sent a statement insisting >> On the rare occasion when someone decides they do not wish to continue to leave our Christian vocation, we are naturally disappointed.
But, we wish them the best for their future. We have not had [music] any reports of elders restraining or following anyone. >> I mean, I’ve spoken to dozens of ex-members, people who have left the community, and almost every single one of them have said that they’ve been completely cut off from their families from leaving. And leaving isn’t easy.
>> The Sydney Morning Herald’s education reporter, Emily Call, has been investigating Redeemer with us for more than 6 months. >> There’s so much here, isn’t there? And it’s really just the tip of the iceberg. >> She’s been astounded by what she’s uncovered. >> Most schools spend their government funding, 60 to 70% of their government funding on teacher salaries.
To see a school have zero, that’s certainly worth investigating. >> There’s no doubt Redeemer Baptist School’s financial structure is highly unusual. And while we’re not suggesting it’s illegal, accounting expert Professor Clinton Free is adamant it warrants further scrutiny. >> Look, I think there’s a concern that [music] some regulators are asleep at the wheel here.
>> In response to our story, the Federal Department of Education has launched an investigation into Redeemer Baptist School. So has the New South Wales Education Standards Authority. In a statement, Redeemer said, >> “We are fully accountable to regulators in terms of annual [music] independent audits of the accounts and to governments for the spending of student funding only on school operations.
Elders of the church, including Jonathan Cannon, do not monitor or exercise control or power over the lives or financial accounts of members. Just because our practices are unfamiliar, it does not mean they are unlawful, coercive, or abusive. And we reject the attempt to portray us as anything other than a law-abiding community with strong Christian faith and practices.
” [music] >> Living a less confined life has been liberating for Alexandra and her brother [music] Edward. Growing up, the McDonald’s drive-thru was somewhat of a sanctuary. [music] >> It was so much fun. It was like the only time we could listen to whatever music >> we wanted to listen to. >> Exactly, exactly.
[music] >> They say it was a rare chance to speak privately and freely away from church elders. >> Yeah, it was like our only chance to sort of get the eyes off us and just, you know, be ourselves. We didn’t have to feel like anyone’s watching us. We could just relax. >> These days, they’re still relishing the fact they don’t have [music] to ask permission to come here or anywhere else.
And after everything [music] they’ve been through, it’s the simplest things that mean the most. >> I think the best thing about leaving Redeemer is I don’t have to live in hiding anymore and I don’t have to live with the fear of getting in trouble, being watched, going against the grain, and I can just be authentically who I am and life is so enjoyable when you have the freedom and the choice to choose what you want to do.
>> As everyone should. >> Yeah, 100%. >> [laughter] >> As we mentioned, we’ve received a statement from Redeemer Baptist Church and school. The federal and New South Wales ministers for education have also provided responses. They can all be found on our webpage. You can also read more about Redeemer in the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
Of course, if this story has raised issues and you need to speak to someone, help is available. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14. >> Hello, I’m Adam Hegarty. Thanks for watching 60 Minutes Australia. Subscribe to our channel now for brand new stories and exclusive clips every week. And don’t miss out on our extra minute segments and full episodes of 60 Minutes on 9now.com.
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