Lana Del Rey and Jeremy Dufrene recently tied the knot, and their ceremony was led by a prominent, albeit contentious, spiritual figure … as confirmed by TMZ.
As per the pair’s marriage documentation, which was sourced by TMZ … Pastor Judah Smith was the officiant for their romantic union held in Louisiana last month, and he duly signed the official record.
It’s not entirely unexpected that Judah officiated the musician’s union with her alligator tour guide partner … Lana demonstrated her admiration by featuring one of his sermons, dubbed “Judah Smith Interlude,” on her ninth studio record, “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd,” released last year.
Pastor Judah is widely recognized for associating with high-profile worshippers … including Justin Bieber and his spouse, Hailey. Justin famously sought the megachurch pastor’s counsel after separating himself from disgraced Hillsong founder Carl Lentz.
However, Pastor Judah has faced some backlash — last year, the Seattle branch of Churchome and its leadership were accused of compelling employees to contribute 10% of their earnings back to the church.
An attorney representing the church later defended Churchome, asserting that the church “holds the belief that the Bible instructs all Christians to tithe.”
He further elaborated … “Churchome is committed to ardently safeguarding the rights of all religious establishments to practice, teach, and embody their beliefs via their staff.”
Evidently, that controversy wasn’t sufficient to deter Lana from being part of Pastor Judah’s congregation … as he played a significant role in her special occasion.