EXCLUSIVE – Revealed: Charismatic pastor at Justin Bieber’s weird Hillsong church who claims he has the power to heal polio, blindness and deafness lives in luxury £2.5m London pad with private pool by the Thames

• Famous faces seen at the London church include Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Chris Pratt, Sinitta and Chelsea footballer David Luiz
• Gary Clarke, 59, senior pastor of Hillsong Church UK, lives in a luxury flat with floor-to-ceiling views of the Thames
• He claims to have healed lepers, the blind, the deaf and people with polio whose limbs straightened up in seconds after he prayed for them
• There was no evidence for this, he said, because ‘these are people’s own stories’

• e-mail

2

View
comments

Gary Clarke (pictured) is a colourful leader at Hillsong Church, living in a £2.5m apartment by the Thames, paid for by the church

The charismatic pastor of a London church frequented by celebs like Justin Bieber claims to have powers to heal polio, blindness and deafness, is living in a £2.5m apartment overlooking the Thames, MailOnline can reveal.

Gary Clarke is a colourful leader at Hillsong Church and lives at the luxury home with use of a swimming pool and gym all paid for by the church.

The 59-year-old preaches about being able to heal the sick at his raucous London sermons where Christian rock and R&B music is played which have been attended by Bieber, Selena Gomez, actor Chris Pratt, singer Sinitta and Chelsea star David Luiz.

The father-of-two, who confirmed Bieber attended one of his sermons last year, lives in three-bedroom flat in Wandsworth, south London, bought by the church for £1.6million in 2008, land registry records show.

The churchman defended living in such luxury saying the flat is the property of the church, which is an asset that is going up in value and remains the property of Hillsong. 

Hillsong was brought to public attention when Justin Bieber was baptised in an NBA player’s bath by pastor Carl Lentz in 2014 (both pictured) 

Clarke lives at the luxury home with use of a swimming pool, gym and floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Thames. The church bought the apartment in 2008 for £1.6million

The preacher defended living in a luxury flat with a private swimming pool (pictured) saying the it is the property of the church, which is an asset belonging to the church 

The 59-year-old preaches about being able to heal the sick at his raucous London sermons (pictured)where Christian rock and R&B music is played which have been attended by Bieber, Selena Gomez, actor Chris Pratt, singer Sinitta and Chelsea star David Luiz 

• EXCLUSIVE: Praise the taxpayer! How a federal minister… Bondi Rescue lifeguard helps save EIGHT Hillsong church…

Share this article

Boasting of his abilities to perform miracles, Clarke, a father-of-two, says he had healed ‘many people’ through the power of his prayers on visits to India. ‘It’s really true,’ he said. ‘It’s all very real. It’s etched in my mind.

‘I can remember this little girl, both deformed arms just hanging beside her. I prayed for her and I said do you want God to heal you, and she said yeah.

‘God healed her and suddenly she lifted both arms and took off around the village looking for her parents to show them her arms work.’

He also claimed that ‘little kids whose limbs had been twisted with polio’ had their limbs straighten up before his very eyes in response to his prayers.

‘I’ve seen people with leprosy completely set free and healed of leprosy,’ he said.

But Clarke said he couldn’t provide evidence for the healings because ‘then you’re putting people on display. These are people’s own stories to tell, not my stories to tell of people.’  

The Australian born former dressage horse trainer, who once considered joining the circus, became a Christian in 1987 and was appointed a senior pastor by Hillsong in 2000 when only a handful of people attended his services.

Since then his sermons have grown massively in popularity as the church’s vibrant services fill the 2,000-seat Dominion Theatre in Leicester Square four times every Sunday.

Church leaders there take to the stage to claim that members had ‘baffled doctors’ by becoming ‘completely cancer-free’ through the power of prayer and faith alone.

The London church has a dedicated worship and party arena which can host 5,000 worshippers in South East London close to Millwall football stadium.

Clarke, 59, a father-of-two, is a senior pastor at the London branch of the church, in Bermondsey and boasts of his powers to heal polio, blindness and deafness

Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin, left, and Selena Gomez, right, attend Hillsong services

Actor Chris Pratt, pictured, is another famous Hillsong devotee who has attended services

Set up in Australia in 1983 by former window cleaner Brian Houston (pictured) with his wife Bobbie, the church has been dogged by controversy

Young Christian devotees relax in the chillout zone at the Hillsong Warehouse in Bermondsey

The Hillsong Warehouse in Bermondsey, where church services and parties are staged

Hillsong UK, which attracts young, trendy worshippers, has hosted speakers like the get-rich-quick guru Pat Mesiti, who aims to ‘create millionaires’ through motivational speeches.

Run on a not-for-profit basis, the church received £15m in donations in 2017 including £2.5m from Gift Aid.

With offices in Putney where rows of young people with fashionable haircuts work on iMacs, the organisation spent £3.5m on wages in 2017, with its highest earner receiving a salary of £170,000.

There is an app for worshippers to donate. And at a recent packed service, a preacher stood in front of a display showing icons representing different payment methods, while suggesting that congregants ‘make your money blessed’ by giving it to the church.

Hillsong was brought to public attention when Justin Bieber was baptised in an NBA player’s bath by pastor Carl Lentz in 2014.

It played a central role in transforming his image from a drug-taking ladies’ man to a clean-cut Christian devotee.

His wife, Hailey Baldwin, is also a believer, and are frequently spotted in church together.

Other famous faces have followed their lead, including Chris Pratt, Selena Gomez, Kylie and Kendall Jenner and Kourtney Kardashian.

Set up in Australia in 1983 by former window cleaner Brian Houston with his wife Bobbie, the church has been dogged by controversy.

Houston’s father, Frank, sexually abused a seven-year-old boy and the church leader was accused of covering it up. According to Australian media, he is currently under criminal investigation.

Bieber and pastor Carl Lentz at a celebrity basketball game at in New York. In 2015 Lentz and Houston, caused a backlash after calling homosexuality a sin and criticising gay marriage

The church has also been criticised for its attitude towards homosexuality, in which a gay lifestyle is not encouraged. Last month, the actress Ellen Page slammed the organisation as ‘infamously anti-LGBTQ’.

In 2015, personal trainer Lentz and Houston, caused a backlash after calling homosexuality a sin and criticising gay marriage.

Yet this did not hamper the church’s rapid worldwide expansion, which was accelerated by the endorsement of Bieber and other celebrities.

According to the church, 100,000 people worship at its 80 branches worldwide each week. 

Source: Read Full Article