In an unprecedented Christian Today exclusive, sources unrelated to Justin Bieber have suggested that the pop star may or may not be attending Hillsong's annual conference in Sydney this week.
After flying to Australia last year for the conference, Bieber garnered so much unexpected attention as he climbed trees in public spaces and illegally skated down Sydney sidewalks that he was forced to post a heartfelt video on high-brow media platform "the Snapchat".
In the video, he entreated fans to stop making him feel like an animal by looking at him when he was in public and also asking him to sign autographs.
Despite attracting a slew of high-profile guests, conference organisers insist that the guest who garners the most attention during the week is actually Jesus, whom they claim is even more well-known than the Biebs.
"The conference exists to champion the cause of the local church," said Hillsong's pastor Brian Houston, wife Bobbie Houston, associate Joel A'Bell, and various other senior church leaders.
"I don't know why so many news outlets seem to focus on Justin Bieber all the time," said one conference attendee. "Pretty sure he's not even on the conference's brochures. I mean if he were to come it would be a blessing, but for a little guy, he seems to get a lot of attention."
Another delegate concurs. "Last year I read 17 different news articles about Justin Bieber attending Hillsong Conference. One of them was entirely focused on his hats." (You can read the article here.)
After recently being caught in the crossfire for attempting to punch a guy significantly taller than himself, Bieber may see the conference as an opportunity to find peace amidst the chaos. If he chooses not to, conference organisers will likely find more opportunities for peace.
Grace Mathew is a Sydney-based writer, graduate of International and Global Studies at the University of Sydney and recipient of Goldman Sachs Global Leadership Award who now spends her time making important social commentary mainly about Justin Bieber, though she rarely spells his name correctly first try (the "i" and the "e" are so confusing). For contact, email grace.mathew@live.com .
Grace Mathew's previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/grace-mathew.html