Laura Lentz, wife of megachurch pastor fired over infidelity scandal, returns to social media

Megachurch’s celebrity pastor was fired in November for ‘moral failures,’ before admitting to cheating on wife

(Getty)

Laura Lentz, the wife of disgraced former Hillsong pastor Carl Lentz, has returned to social media for the first time since her husband was fired from the megachurch due to “moral failures”.

On Wednesday, Laura posted to Instagram for the first time in six months to mark her and her husband’s 18-year anniversary.

Sharing a photo of palm trees against a blue sky, the wife of the ex-pastor reflected on what she has learned over the past few months.

While she did not acknowledge her husband’s infidelity directly, nor their dismissals from the celebrity church, the mother-of-three spoke of forgiveness, strength and the importance of friendships.

“I have looked at these palm trees everyday for the past few months & there are many symbolic meanings to these amazing trees,” Laura wrote, before sharing a few that have “resonated” with her during her social media hiatus. “They are strong, can weather the biggest storms, they always grow upwards. freedom, righteousness, reward, resurrection just to name a few.”

Laura then went on to reference her six-month absence from social media, explaining that she took the break “because it was not good for my soul” and that she also blocked and deleted “more people & comments than I can count”.

In the lengthy caption, Laura also called out trolls who, continuing: “Trolls are cowards, SOME ‘Christians’ are anything but kind, gracious, or loving…but that won’t stop me from growing upwards & getting stronger.

“I have learnt a lot about myself over the past few months. Now more than ever I know the kindness of God, His grace, forgiveness & strength.”

Acknowledging that she has found “true friendships” during this time, Laura also said that she will not forget those who “abandoned us”.

However, according to the former Hillsong member, she plans to instead focus on those who supported the couple, explaining that she wants to keep her heart free of bitterness.

Laura concluded the post by sharing guidance from a friend, who had told her: “I would rather be accused of being too gracious toward someone, over being accused of judging someone too harshly.”

“I want to be known as a woman who sees the good in people & truly loves people unconditionally…” she added.

Carl was fired from the celebrity church in November, with the religious institution citing the former pastor’s “moral failures”.

A day after he was fired, the father-of-three confirmed that he had been unfaithful in his marriage in an Instagram post, where he wrote: “I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that. This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions.”

At the time, Carl said that he would be beginning 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”.

Prior to his firing, Carl, who was previously reported to have baptised Justin Bieber, had been the lead pastor of the megachurch’s New York location.

Speaking to GQ recently, Bieber, who has since become a member of megachurch Churchome, criticised pastors who themselves become idols of worship, with the singer telling the outlet: “I think so many pastors put themselves on this pedestal.

“Basically, church can be surrounded around the man, the pastor, the guy, and it’s like: ‘This guy has this ultimate relationship with God that we all want but we can’t get because we’re not this guy.’

“That’s not the reality, though. The reality is, every human being has the same access to God.”