Hillsong Church Scandal: What Carl Lentz Is Reportedly Up to These Days

The fascination with the Hillsong church scandal and the fall of its most famous pastor, Carl Lentz, is only intensifying. 

Given how much Lentz seemed to relish the limelight that came with some of his most famous parishioners, like Justin Bieber, it's not really surprising the world is curious about what he's going to do next. Will he try to start his own megachurch? Will he join another evangelical organization? Will he lie low? 

According to a People source, it's the latter…for now. “He is not working and plans to take time away from the church to work on his marriage,” a friend of Lentz told the magazine. “He has no plans to open a church or seek fame at this time.” But you shouldn't expect him to write some sort of tell-all either, according to the source. 

“He never planned to leave his marriage nor said he would do so,” the person said. “He has led the church and his parishioners for more than 20 years and takes his duties extremely seriously and has never shared confidential information about parishioners.”

Lentz was fired from his role as a pastor at Hillsong's East Coast operation by the megachurch's founder, Brian Houston, in early November. “Ongoing discussions in relation to leadership issues and breaches of trust, plus a recent revelation of moral failures” were the reasons listed in a statement. Lentz himself then went on to admit in a lengthy Instagram post that he had been unfaithful to his wife, Laura, who was also reportedly fired by Hillsong. 

“I am deeply sorry for breaking the trust of many people who we have loved serving and understand that this news can be very hard and confusing for people to hear and process,” he wrote. 

Ranin Karim, a woman who alleges she had a relationship with Lentz earlier this year, recently spoke out to Vanity Fair in an interview. She claims he was “very conflicted with his own work” and that she wishes she “never met him.” She also had some harsh words for Hillsong Church. 

“I think it’s [Hillsong] a joke, I’m sorry,” Karim said. “It’s not genuine. That’s the truth. It’s a money machine…and I think it’s wrong. I think he is a victim of his own church. He gave his life to this church, and that’s how they played him.”

Originally Appeared on Glamour