Disgraced Pastor Carl Lentz In 'Intense Therapy' With Wife Laura After Affair Admission, Report Says

Justin Bieber's pastor Carl Lentz and his wife, Laura, are not giving up on their marriage and are now working to fix their relationship weeks after he admitted to having an affair, a friend says.

Lentz made headlines over the past weeks after he was fired by Hillsong Church due to "moral failures" and confessed to being unfaithful to his wife of 17 years. A "friend" of Lentz told Page Six that the couple is now in "intense" therapy, adding that the disgraced celebrity pastor "would never leave" Laura.

"Carl’s taking time to work on his marriage, go through intense counseling with his wife, and spend time with his kids. He is committed to rebuilding trust and fixing his marriage," the pal told the outlet. "Carl never had any plans to leave his marriage."

Lentz revealed his infidelity in an Instagram post a day after Hillsong Church fired him. In the lengthy note posted Nov. 5, he took responsibility for the affair and apologized for his actions.

"I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that," he wrote.

"This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions," he continued. "I now begin 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."

Lentz and his family sold their home in Montclair, New Jersey, and moved to California before his scandal broke. At present, he is reportedly focusing on his marriage and his family and has no plans to start his own church.

"He’s got no plans to open his own church," the friend added. "Carl knows he put Hillsong in a bad spot, but he’s appreciative of all they did for him. He’s reaffirming his relationship with God."

Lentz and his wife stepped out for a family dinner over the weekend. It was the first time the celebrity pastor had been spotted in public since his firing. Reports said earlier that he appeared to have gone into hiding as he was not answering any calls.

Meanwhile, a woman named Ranin Karim, 34, recently came forward, claiming to be Lentz's mistress.

Karim, a jewelry designer from Palestine, said in an interview with Vanity Fair that she met Lentz during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and had a months-long affair with him before his wife discovered his infidelity in late October. She said she tried to break up with him multiple times after he told her he was married, but Lentz continued to pursue her.

"I know what I got myself into, but at the same time I wanted to do the right thing and walk, walk away," she told the outlet. "I am not a monster."