Carl Lentz Speaks Out for the The First Time in Two Years. Is he Making a Comeback?
Carl Lentz Speaks Out for the The First Time in Two Years. Is he Making a Comeback?
Here we go...
After nearly two years of silence, Carl Lentz has remerged on social media, updating his Instagram profile with a photoshoot of his family, captioned:
Its been a challenging road but we are alive, we are at peace and thanks to the grace of God we are TOGETHER. Not sure what the future holds for us, but we do know that we face it as a family and for that I am so thankful. My deepest thanks to our friends and family that have shown us such unconditional love and grace when we have desperately needed it. Forever grateful.. we are hopeful about what is ahead!
His wife Laura has echoed this sentiment, explaining that she’s proud of Carl for humbling himself and not defending himself, but instead kept quiet publicly:
Yep, it has been challenging and hell yeah it’s taken a LOT of work the past 22 months (but who’s counting ) to make our marriage what it has become, & we will never stop working on ourselves, for this marriage and for our kids! I know there are many that don’t or would never do what I chose to do, and that’s ok, it’s not for everyone!!
I look forward to sharing our story, how I came to that conclusion and I think it’s going to help a lot of people.. But I am so proud of my husband & for the responsibility he’s taken! Mostly I’m grateful for a man who humbled himself & didn’t try to defend himself, he has kept quiet publicly and he has remained focused on the one thing that matters most-our family!
18 months-2 years is the time when most Christian pastors emerge to announce that they are starting new churches as part of the Evangelical Ministry Restoration and Reintegration Process, which we’ve discussed here. It is the system whereby disgraced pastors who get kicked out of their churches, usually for sexual sins and committing adultery, become reintegrated into Christendom and restored to their former glory, through a 10 step process. Currently, Lentz is one phase two.
These posts from Laura are more conciliatory than they have been in the past. Days after the Hillsong-commissioned, 51-page barn-burner of a booklet titled “Internal Investigation Report Regarding Carl Lentz and Other Matters” was leaked where her husband outlined to investigators several different instances of sexual misconduct he engaged in, along with stories of dysfunction and the culture of sin that permeated the leadership at Hillsong NY, she broke her silence.
In an Instagram post, Laura, who is now an interior decorator and previously revealed that the last year gave her PTSD-like experiences, went on the offensive, saying that they soon will share their truth in the face of “RELENTLESS lies, accusations and hypocritical scapegoating that has sadly been so prevalent” as it pertains to their time at Hillsong, writing:
My family has remained silent throughout this ordeal because our priority has been the healing of our family.”
“This does not mean we do not have a lot to say! When the time is right we have a lot to say about what has happened as well as speaking directly to the RELENTLESS lies, accusations and hypocritical scapegoating that has sadly been so prevalent. Until then, we are so grateful for the constant support of so many. Your kindness has meant the world to us. We are looking forward to a brighter day!”
While Laura was wronged by her husband’s infidelity, she is far from innocent in the rest of it. As one of the primary leaders of Hillsong NYC during its heyday, she oversaw the years of spoils, excesses, and scandals, benefitting from all the bad behavior that was going on at the church and being fully complicit in it.
The Lentz family is already allegedly threatening legal action against the Christian Post for sharing leaked details of the confidential investigation into Hillsong.