Justin Bieber's former spiritual guide Carl Lentz has been fired from Hillsong Church for being 'unfaithful'
- Pastor Carl Lentz has been fired from Hillsong Church's East Coast branch.
- Lentz, who acted as a spiritual advisor to Justin Bieber, was reportedly let go after "ongoing discussions in relation to leadership issues and breaches of trust, plus a recent revelation of moral failures," reported People.
- Lentz later revealed on Instagram Thursday that he'd been "unfaithful" to his wife and fellow Hillsong pastor, Laura.
- "This failure is on me and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions," Lentz added.
- Lentz acted as a spiritual guide to Bieber for several years and even baptized the singer in 2014.
Pastor Carl Lentz, known for being Justin Bieber's spiritual guide at one point, has been fired from his position at Hillsong's popular East Coast branch.
"Today Hillsong Church East Coast advised our congregation that we have terminated the employment of Pastor Carl Lentz," Hillsong founder Brian Houston said in a statement, obtained by People on Wednesday.
"This action was not taken lightly and was done in the best interests of everyone, including Pastor Carl," he continued.
In the statement, Houston said it wouldn't "be appropriate" for him to further elaborate on the details of Lentz's termination, but revealed that the move came after "ongoing discussions in relation to leadership issues and breaches of trust, plus a recent revelation of moral failures" on Lentz's part.
Still, Lentz revealed why he had been let go in an Instagram post on Thursday.
"Our time at HillsongNYC has come to an end. This is a hard ending to what has been the most amazing, impacting and special chapter of our lives," he began in a lengthy statement.
Lentz, who's married to fellow Hillsong pastor, Laura, then went on to reveal that he'd stepped out on his marriage.
"I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that," Lentz wrote. "This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions."
"I now begin a journey of rebuilding trust with my wife, Laura and my children and taking real time to work on and heal my own life and seek out the help that I need," he added.
Lentz was the pastor at Hillsong's New York location, which first opened in 2010. Along with his Laura and fellow pastor Joel Houston (son of Hillsong founder Brian Houston), Lentz helped grow the East Coast branch of the megachurch significantly.
"We thank Pastors Carl and Laura for the way they have served faithfully and sacrificially since the start of Hillsong NYC and for contributing so significantly to the countless lives that have been transformed for Jesus Christ through this ministry," Houston said in his statement.
In the past, Lentz also made headlines for his involvement in the spiritual growth of Bieber, whom he befriended in 2010. Bieber was baptized by the pastor in 2014, in the bathtub of New York Knicks player Tyson Chandler, and even lived with Lentz and his family for several months in 2015.
Based in Christianity, Hillsong Church has locations all over the world, and counts celebrities such as Bieber, his wife, Hailey Baldwin, Kendall Jenner, and Selena Gomez among its congregants.
Representatives for Lentz and Hillsong NYC didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.
- Read more:
- Justin Bieber jokes that he's in an arranged marriage with Hailey Baldwin and thinks they were set up because they're both Christian
- What it's like to attend Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez's megachurch, which hosts rock concerts and hands out comic book bibles
- Ellen Page calls out Chris Pratt's 'infamously anti-LGBTQ' church — where Jenners, Biebers, and other celebrities have also worshipped