Ranin Karim says she feels 'terrible' and wishes she'd never met pastor Carl Lentz. Photo / via Instagram
Ranin Karim says she feels 'terrible' and wishes she'd never met pastor Carl Lentz. Photo / via Instagram
The mistress of Hillsong's disgraced celebrity pastor Carl Lentz has spoken out again saying he bragged of having the best sex "in his life" during their affair.
Ranin Karim told The Daily Telegraph the pair spent their relationship drinking top shelf tequila and she believed he was trying to escapehis "boring" life.
"He said the sex we had was the best he's ever had in his life and he couldn't stop being with me," Karim, a New York City fashion designer, said.
Carl Lentz appears during an interview in 2017, in New York. Photo / AP
Lentz, 42, and Karim, 34, began a five month affair after meeting in Domino Park in NYC this year. The affair ended abruptly last week when Lentz's wife of 17 years, Laura Lentz, found text messages on his computer, linked from his phone through his iCloud.
Karim, an Egyptian and Palestinian woman, and a Muslim, has previously said she didn't know "anything about the Christian world" Lentz was part of.
"I never wanted a married man. I went on other dates to try to forget him and he said he had counselling to break the spell of me and be cured but it didn't work."
She said she believes "it's right" that he was sacked from the megachurch, but said she doesn't think it's fair his wife, Laura Lentz, has also lost her role in the church.
Karim said she feels "terrible" and wishes she'd never met Lentz.
"When I found out he was married, I told him repeatedly 'go back to your wife, go back to your family,' but he kept turning up in the lobby of my apartment block with bottles of Clase Azul tequila for us to drink," she said.
Lentz was a high profile leader in the Hillsong Church.
Lentz was a high profile leader in the charismatic church, and was previously close with Justin Bieber. He's also delivered services to Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Selena Gomez and Chris Pratt.
Since being removed from the church, Lentz has reportedly "gone into hiding".
"He's not returning anyone's phone calls. Friends have been trying to encourage him to hire someone to navigate this situation, but he's not responding," a source told Page Six.
The report also claimed Bieber began distancing himself from the celebrity preacher more than a year ago.
"He was always living the pop star life, popping bottles on private planes," the source told Page Six. "The infidelity was not a surprise.
"At one point, he was in Australia with Bieber at a bar with his shirt off and doing shots … He's new age and modern, but shots and taking off your clothes in public places? Come on."
Hillsong announced on Friday an independent investigation into its NYC and east coast branches would be conducted, after a number of people voiced their concerns.
Justin Bieber and Carl Lentz attend 2017 Aces Charity Celebrity Basketball Game at Madison Square Garden. Photo / Getty Images
"Since last week's announcement of a leadership change at Hillsong East Coast, we have heard from a number of people about their experiences and concerns," Hillsong told The Christian Post in a statement.
"It is important that we establish the truth and then do everything we can to ensure our church is both a safe place and one that seeks to glorify God in all that we say and do."
The investigation will be conducted by a New York-based legal firm that is "not associated or affiliated with Hillsong to conduct an in-depth review and investigation into all concerns and any wider cultural issues," the church said.
"We are taking this extremely seriously and on the basis of this report, we will be better positioned to take whatever actions are deemed necessary to right the wrongs and see Hillsong East Coast move forward in a way that enables many more people to find hope in Jesus."
