Justin Bieber's Pastor on How the Famous Deal With Faith
Justin Bieber, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving all turn to Hillsong’s Carl Lentz for spiritual guidance. The pastor, who has more than 500,000 followers across all of his social media accounts, joined Cheddar to discuss his new book “Own The Moment," attracting millennials to the faith, and his star-studded church.
“Celebrities are really not that much different than the regular among us,” the pastor said Monday.
Hillsong’s churchgoers are not what you might think of as typical Sunday parishioners -- Lentz caters to hip and fashion-forward millennials. The service itself is more like a party than a sermon: lines outside are more reminiscent of what you’d see during a new product release at Supreme or the Apple Store. And all four of the Sunday services usually pack their portion of the 12,000-square-foot space in New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom. There are lights everywhere and the music is booming.
But how is Hillsong’s fandom possible during a time that millennials are, overall, less faith-oriented?
Pew Research has reported that, compared with their elders, young people are much less likely to affiliate with any religious tradition or to identify themselves as part of a Christian denomination. Fully one in four adults under the age of 30 describe themselves as “atheist,” “agnostic,” or “nothing in particular.” Pew says Americans aged 18 to 29 are considerably less religious than older Americans.
Lentz says that millennials who gravitate towards him are seeking relatability in a world that’s becoming more and more cynical. He says that he wrote his book to give clarity to those who don’t know whether they should believe in God.
“People want genuine, authentic people,” he said, calling surveys like Pew’s “weird.” “I’ve never been interviewed by one,” he points out.
Hillsong is a Pentecostal “megachurch” affiliated with the Australian Christian Churches group. There are almost 1,100 institutions within the organization and more than 250,000 members.
Lentz, who’s the lead pastor at the NYC location, credits the city with drawing in celebrities to his church.
“If I was in Montana, we would have cattle ranchers in our church,” he said. “We live right here in the
Mecca of the entertainment industry.”
Lentz says that the concept of faith to those like Bieber and Durant is no different than it is for the average American.
While many are excited to watch the final two NFL teams square-off and see which one ultimately takes home the trophy, some, on the other hand, are there for another mian attraction -- the commercials. Companies during this year's game are looking towards the future From electric vehicles, to robots, and crypto-currency, several first-time advertisers are expected to join long-time advertisers like Pepsi, Budweiser and Doritos during the NFL's biggest game. Tom Morton, Global Chief Strategy Officer at R/GA, joined Cheddar News' Big Game Special to discuss.
Americans are expected to spend nearly $24 billion in 2022 for Valentine's Day, and many of those gifts will be in the form of chocolate. John Galloway, interim president of the Americas and CMO of Godiva, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss what chocolate trends the brand is seeing this year, plus the impact of inflation and supply chain issues on the industry.
New York City's famous subway system is currently facing scrutiny after several recent attacks on platforms. Now, local leaders in the Big Apple are calling on the MTA. To step in and take action.
New York City ride-hailing app drivers are about to get a pay raise. According to the city's Mayor Eric Adams, New York will increase its minimum driver pay rate for both Uber and Lyft drivers. This means both platforms would now be required to pay their drivers a minimum of $1.61 cents per mile and about 0.50 cents per minute. Ultimately, the move would give riders at least a 5.3% race. New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Tensions in Ukraine continue to rise. According to NATO and U.S. officials, Russian troops are still being built up despite Moscow's claims of de-escalation. However, Ukraine does not believe the troops are enough to mount an invasion. The government in Kyiv has also reported several cyber attacks against its defense agencies and banks which is the largest attack in the country's history. Foreign Affairs Reporter based in Ukrain, Terrell Starr, joined Cheddar to discuss more
