Hillsong Church, the still relatively new Pentecostal megachurch that swept up celebrities faster than Kabbalah, is based in Australia and claims over 150,000 weekly worshipers across locations in 28 countries. Hillsong made headlines with its roster of A-list attendees, including the Biebers, the Kardashian-Jenners, and various NBA superstars. However, it is not without its controversy.
In the wake of the scandal involving the firing of Carl Lentz, the celebrity pastor who personally baptized stars like Justin Bieber, the church is witnessing its own downfall. Even celebrity supporters like Selena Gomez are backing away from the mess, which also comes in the wake of controversy over the church's homophobia.
Chris Pratt caught a lot of heat over the past few years for his alleged involvement with the anti-LGBTQ church, but after virtually every media outlet had linked him with Hillsong, the actor has just recently decided to clear things up. In his Men’s Health interview he revealed, "I never went to Hillsong. I’ve never actually been to Hillsong. I don’t know anyone from that church."
When asked why he never denied that he belonged to Hillsong amid the public's condemnation of him, he replied, “I’m gonna, like, throw a church under the bus? If it’s like the Westboro Baptist Church, that’s different.” He also explained that he's not as religious as people think, chalking the misconception up to his acceptance speech for the Generation Award at the 2018 MTV Movie & TV Awards when he said, “God is real. God loves you. God wants the best for you.”
“I didn’t know that I would kind of become the face of religion when really I’m not a religious person,” Pratt told Men’s Health, explaining that he believes in "a very real God" but not the evils that have attached themselves to religion like "using it to control people, to take money from people, to abuse children, to steal land, to justify hatred."
Check out this gallery to read more about the drama and see more celebrities who’ve chosen to pray at the quite unconventional Hillsong altar.