With rumors flying that Justin Bieber’s church might be a cult, Pastor Judah Smith is taking it all in stride—with a healthy dose of humor.
Instead of getting defensive, Smith posted a sarcastic and cheeky video on Instagram where he poked fun at the bizarre accusation. He joked that if Churchome were a cult, it would be the “worst cult in history” because, well, they barely meet often enough to qualify. “We only meet once a month now,” he quipped. “And I don’t even preach on Wednesdays anymore!”
Smith shared that he was approached by a paparazzo—who he described as “a nice lady”—who bluntly asked him if he was running a cult. Surprised by the question, he decided to roll with it, jokingly asking for “snakes and ritual blood” from the stage crew. Obviously not serious, it was his way of highlighting how over-the-top the rumor really is.
Although he admitted maybe it’s not the kind of thing you should joke about, Smith still leaned into the absurdity. His message? If Churchome is trying to be a cult, it’s doing a pretty terrible job at it.
So where did all this speculation come from? It seems to trace back to Ryan Good, the co-founder of Drew House (Bieber’s fashion brand) and a longtime friend of the singer. Good reportedly has concerns about how much influence Churchome—and specifically Smith—has over Bieber. Their relationship allegedly soured after Smith was added to the Drew House board, despite Good’s objections. Now that Good and Bieber are on the outs, he’s said to be worried about Justin’s spiritual direction and some of his recent behavior.
But Judah Smith isn’t sweating it. He’s choosing satire over seriousness, brushing off the cult chatter with jokes instead of justifications. And for now, it seems he has no plans to pull out cloaks or ceremonial daggers—just microphones and a sense of humor.
