Why Justin Bieber ‘excommunicated' pals for scandal-hit ‘cult' leader he showers with gifts… as Hailey's fears revealed

The Sun

09-05-2025

DURING the past year, Justin Bieber has cut himself off from those in his trusted inner circle.
Even this week his wife Hailey stood alone as she posed for pictures at the Met Gala while Justin stayed at home.
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Yet one person is closer than ever to the millionaire singer: His pastor Judah Smith.
The 44-year-old spiritual guru heads Churchome — a trendy non- denominational church beloved by Beverly Hills celebrities, which counts Kourtney Kardashian and Lana Del Rey among its congregation.
Justin's recent erratic behaviour, gaunt appearance and rumoured rift with the mother of his baby son have insiders concerned about the pastor's influence over the star.
Smith's controversial megachurch — which draws in 10,000 people weekly — is trailed by a string of rape and sexual abuse scandals and even had to face down accusations of being a cult.
And it is not the first time ­Justin has become attached to a controversial preacher.
'Cause of rumoured marriage troubles'
He broke ties with his previous spiritual confidant, tattooed Carl Lentz, after the married pastor was fired from New York -based Christian church Hillsong in 2020 over an affair he had with Ex On The Beach star Ranin Karim, who later described their relationship as 'toxic'.
Lentz was originally introduced to Justin by Smith, who has known the Love Yourself hitmaker and his mum Pattie since Justin was 15.
A source close to the singer previously revealed: 'Justin started to add Judah to the boards of his businesses — he is ­buying him $300,000 Rolexes and all this kind of stuff. Everyone around Justin is part of this church.'
Some say Judah could not only be behind the rift between the pop star and his former inner ­circle, but the very cause of his rumoured marriage troubles.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, a source close to Canadian Justin, 31, and 28-year-old model Hailey slammed Judah's influence over the star as 'total insanity'. 'Judah is a manipulator,' they said.
Troubled Justin Bieber gives fans a peek inside his night as he skips Met Gala & leaves Hailey to attend big event alone
'He is taking advantage of Justin's situation, telling him that things are alright and that he is on top of his game — how Justin isn't making mistakes and is just enjoying life.
'He is a toxic person, and Hailey and Justin have had a lot of arguments as she wants him out of their life.
'It's complete madness — he trusts a guy who is known for being a manipulative person, and Hailey hates it.'
Instead of attending the New York Met Gala on Monday, Justin spent the evening on the sofa cheering on his ice hockey team.
And he made little effort to hide the bong on the floor next to him in an Instagram post only the day before, despite denials of drug use being issued by his team.
Just a few weeks before, at the Coachella festival, the singer was spotted smoking what looked like marijuana next to his 15-year-old half-brother, Jaxon.
'Justin keeps sinking and acting like a child,' our insider added.
'He is doing too much s**t, he is going lower and lower, and Judah is there alongside him. Despite all this, he puts him in every business meeting and includes him on projects.
'This has led to Justin cutting ties with a lot of people, as well as not being a responsible person and focused dad.
'The whole world is seeing Justin going down a hole, but Judah is telling him otherwise. It's total insanity.'
Fans and friends alike have tried their hardest to raise the alarm.
Almost every part of Justin's life is becoming swallowed up by the church and its charismatic leader.
And Justin is rejecting those who cut ties with the church, giving his inner circle a complete overhaul.
Nowhere can this be seen more clearly than in the rift between the chart star and his former friend and business partner Ryan Good.
The pals jointly created clothing brand Drew House in 2019, and in the same year Ryan was best man at Justin's ­wedding, at which Judah ­officiated.
But things turned sour after Bieber added Smith to the board.
Ryan and Smith are also understood to have a frosty relationship, which culminated in Ryan quitting the church altogether last year.
Insiders repeatedly said he felt Churchome was a cult.
It is now understood that Ryan and Justin have not spoken to each other in more than a year.
'When Ryan chose to leave the church, he basically got excommunicated', a source previously revealed.
And Justin is far from keen to welcome him back.
On April 3, the pop star launched his new fashion brand, Skylrk, with an animated video showing Bieber burning down a house full of relics from the past, including the Drew House logo. He also lashed out in a now-deleted post on Instagram.
He wrote: 'Drew House doesn't represent me or my family or life.
'If you're rocking with the human Justin Bieber, don't waste your money on Drew House.'
'If we're a cult, we're worst cult in history'
Also in the video was a scooter that runs out of charge — a perhaps not-so-subtle reference to his old manager Scott 'Scooter' Braun, who he has severed ties with.
Now Justin's life increasingly revolves around Smith and his megachurch.
The pair are so close that in 2017, they got matching tattoos which read: 'Better at 70'.
The pastor, with his casual denim jackets, baggy trousers and necklaces, looks more like a pop star than a priest and has also featured on some of the star's songs.
Before Justin's involvement, Churchome was just an average-sized church based in Seattle.
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The singer began to become close to Smith in 2010 after Justin's mum Pattie made an offer to the pastor to attend a gig over her concerns about fame's effect on her son.
'He needs some good influences in his life. Would you come?' she reportedly asked.
Now Smith's church draws in thousands of worshippers across its five locations, and has launched an app that reportedly attracts more than 300,000 users every week.
The pastor boasts more than 720,000 followers on Instagram, where he posts clips of sermons.
And not only does Smith have the ear of some of Hollywood's most famous faces, but it seems to be earning him a pretty penny too.
In 2018, Marie Claire mag reported that Churchome brought in total revenue of at least $20million, while Judah is thought to be living alongside his wife Chelsea and their three kids in a $2.5million ­California mansion which he described as 'an investment in Churchome's future'.
But its slick image and massive earnings have prompted comparisons with the Church of Scientology, also beloved by celebrities.
Their charismatic leader David Miscavige even officiated at Tom Cruise 's wedding — as Smith did with Justin.
And Smith's church has also dealt with its fair share of controversy.
In February 2023, the church came under fire for rehiring ­Braylon Oliver, a pastor who had been previously let go after a woman accused him of rape.
Churchome claimed that Oliver had demonstrated 'spiritual and personal growth' since the time of the alleged incident and claimed that reports surrounding his ­rehiring were 'misleading'.
Another woman, Payton Jones, accused Churchome of protecting one of its employees when she claimed church intern Zachary Jaquith sexually assaulted her in 2019, alleging she was discouraged from filing a report with police by the church's general legal counsel Troy Anderson.
Zachary and Troy both deny the accusations.
Churchome also faced a lawsuit in 2023 over its policy of forcing all staff members to donate ten per cent of their wages back to the church, the outcome of which is unclear.
But are they a cult? Smith laughed off the allegations in a sermon posted to Instagram last week.
He said: 'If we're a cult, we are the worst cult in the history of all cults. We meet once a month, guys! We've got to get better at this.'
The Sun has approached Churchome for comment.
What's Justin up to?
THE Sun revealed on Wednesday that despite his recent troubles, Justin Bieber has been spending time at a remote recording studio in Iceland where he's been working on his "comeback
The singer hasn't released an album since 2021's Justice, and has been open about his struggles in recent months after fans raised concerns over his erratic behaviour and seemingly-escalating drug use.
Sources close to the star also insisted he's been throwing himself into work, despite reports.
"Bieber is doing what he does best right now, turning his pain into art," they told The Sun US.
"He does have good people around him, including friends he's had for years."
The famous Floki Studios in Iceland has previously welcomed artists scuh as Calvin Harris and Pharrell Williams over the years, and is situated in the far north of the country.
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