Michael Pilavachi, (; born 7 March 1958) is a British charismatic Christian evangelist and author of Greek Cypriot descent. He is the co-founder and former leader of the Soul Survivor charity based in Watford, England. In May 2023, he was suspended from ministry while under investigation for safeguarding concerns, having stepped back from ministry the previous month. Pilavachi resigned as Associate Pastor of Soul Survivor Church, Watford, on 11 July 2023. In September 2023, the internal investigation being undertaken by the Church of England was completed: they substantiated the accusations against him and concluded that "he used his spiritual authority to control people and that his coercive and controlling behaviour led to inappropriate relationships".
Ministry
Soul Survivor
Pilavachi was one of three senior pastors of the Soul Survivor Church, Watford, which he founded in 1993 alongside worship leader Matt Redman. A former accountant, he then became a youth worker at St Andrew's, Chorleywood, a Church of England church in Hertfordshire influential in the charismatic evangelical tradition. Two ministers of St Andrew's, David Pytches and Barry Kissell, launched the New Wine Christian family conferences.
In response to the large number of young people attending the New Wine conferences, Pilavachi launched Soul Survivor in the summer of 1993. The event became a 5-day-long charismatic Christian festival aimed at young people, the first of which attracted 1,896 delegates. Under Pilavachi's leadership, the event grew to accommodate around 30,000 people over four weeks, alongside a fifth week, Momentum, aimed at those in their twenties and thirties. Matt Redman, who had attended Pilavachi's youth club at St Andrew's Church, Chorleywood, was a worship leader at early Soul Survivor camps. Redman returned as a worship leader in 2011. In summer 2014, a fifth week of the festival was held in Scotland.
In May 2018, Pilavachi announced that the Soul Survivor conference would be ending after the summer of 2019.
Writing
Pilavachi has written several books on Christianity including Soul Survivor (with Nicky Gumbel, 2004), Live the Life (with Craig Borlaise, 2001), Storylines: Tracing the Threads of the Bible (with Andy Croft, 2008), and Everyday Supernatural: Living A Spirit-Led Life Without Being Weird (with Andy Croft, 2016).
Ordained ministry
He trained for ordination at St Mellitus College, an Anglican theological college. He was made a deacon in the Church of England at St Albans Abbey on 1 July 2012, and ordained a priest the following year. He served a curacy at St Peter's Church, Watford in the Diocese of St Albans from 2012, and was made an honorary canon of St Albans Cathedral in 2016.
Following ordination, Pilavachi continued to lead Soul Survivor Church, Watford, latterly swapping positions with former associate leader Andy Croft.
Other
Pilavachi helped run the international evangelistic event "Soul in the City" in London in 2004 and in Durban in 2009. He was also one of the founders of the Hope 08 project, an initiative of the churches of Britain and Ireland.
Safeguarding investigation and substantiated allegations
On 2 April 2023, Soul Survivor Watford announced that Pilavachi had stepped back from all ministry while safeguarding concerns were investigated. The original statement described the concerns as "non-recent" and noted that "the police are not involved; this is not a criminal investigation and Mike has not been suspended". A subsequent statement from the charity on 28 April removed the phrase "non-recent" after more recent safeguarding concerns had come to light. According to reporting by The Daily Telegraph, "the allegations are understood to span at least three decades and are as recent as 2020", with over 100 people having made allegations of abuse. Concerns about Pilavachi's relationships behaviour were first raised with Soul Survivor leadership in 2004 but were not followed up, according to reporting by The Times.
Pilavachi resigned as a director of the charity on 4 April and was suspended as an employee on 20 May. On 11 July, Pilavachi resigned as Associate Pastor of Soul Survivor Watford. In a Facebook post announcing his resignation, Pilavachi stated, "I have taken this step because the Church needs to heal and I have realised that my continued presence will hinder that process" and "I seek forgiveness from any whom I have hurt during the course of my ministry."