Gwen Stefani faced backlash from some of her fans after she recently spoke out about her Catholic faith and her partnership with the prayer and meditation app Hallow.
The 55-year-old singer first announced her collaboration with Hallow in a video shared on Instagram in December. In the clip, Stefani invited fans to join her on the app for a 25-day prayer challenge to celebrate the season of Advent ahead of the Christmas holiday.
On Ash Wednesday, the “Hollaback Girl” hitmaker launched another prayer challenge on Hallow to mark the 40 days of Lent. Stefani appeared in an Instagram video wearing a sleeveless white wrap dress and a gold cross necklace as she addressed her followers.
“Are you looking to grow closer to God this Lent? I’d love to invite you to join me in praying every day leading up to Easter on the Hallow app,” Stefani said at the beginning of the clip.
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“I love this app and I use it every day,” she continued. “For Lent, they’re doing this incredible 40-day prayer challenge. You’ll join millions of Christians around the world, including the incredible Mark Wahlberg, Jonathan Roumie, Father Mike Schmitz, and so many more in meditating on Jesus’ way to the cross.”
“It’s going to be the most transformative Lent of our lives,” Stefani added. “Download Hallow and join me in prayer this Lent. God bless.”
In the caption of her post, Stefani celebrated the start of Lent and shared her excitement over using the app to observe the “40 days of prayer, fasting and reflection leading up to Easter every year.”
“I try to make this time more intentional, and I’m so excited to do @hallowapp’s Pray40 challenge – The Way,” she wrote. “This challenge is all about deepening our faith and remembering what Jesus did for us.”
Stefani explained that the Pray40 challenge was being led by “amazing” people, including Wahlberg, Chris Pratt and “The Chosen” star Roumie.
The three-time Grammy Award winner revealed that the app’s subscribers will “even get to hear my own faith story as part of it.”
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Stefani’s post drew a mixed reaction from fans, some of whom praised the singer for speaking out about her faith and others who voiced their surprise and anger.
Doug Eldridge of Achilles PR, told Fox News Digital that Stefani could increase her following by becoming more vocal about her faith, explaining that society was moving into a “new era” that is more welcoming of religious expression.
“The smartest move she made was getting on ‘The Voice’ — it’s the TV equivalent of People magazine; her Q-Score increased four-fold,” he said. “From that, her marriage to Blake Shelton – a conservative, well-spoken, country music megastar – only served to broaden her fanbase.”
“Now, stepping boldly into her faith, that will serve her well in the days and years ahead,” Eldridge continued. “We’ve arrived at a new era… nobody should be shamed for their faith or commitment to the Word. You’re seeing this across brands, bands and everywhere else. It’s a grand awakening.”
The ambivalent public response to Stefani’s expression of her faith and promotion of the Hallow app was apparent in the comments section of her post.
A number of fans and celebrity supporters commended her for speaking out about her faith and promoting prayer.
“I love seeing you join in prayer!” Candace Cameron Bure wrote.
“Started the app challenge today,” WWE star Brie Bella commented.
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Carson Daly responded to Stefani’s post by leaving a series of prayer hands and red heart emojis.
“She’s a believer!!!! I love her even more now,” one fan wrote.
“I love this! Gwen!!!!!” another chimed in.
“GOD Bless you. Amen,” one social media user added.
However, Stefani’s post also appeared to antagonize, dismay and confuse some of her fans, who left critical comments on her post.
“I miss the old Gwen,” one social media user wrote.
“Gwen is gone. What a massive disappointment,” wrote one commenter, with another fan chiming in, “This is truly not the Gwen we all grew up loving,”
“I fear we’ve lost her,” one social media user wrote with a teary face emoji. “She’s gone to the dark side.”
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Some of the negative comments on Stefani’s post were met with pushback from other fans, who pointed out that the singer has long been candid about her devout Catholic faith.
“This is absolutely wild,” an Instagram user wrote. “Anyone who grew up a fan of Gwen’s in the ’90s would know she was raised Catholic in Anaheim. Y’all need to get your mind and heart right.”
“I don’t know why you think we’ve lost her,” one fan wrote in a reply to a critical comment. “She’s always been this person. Obviously you don’t know much about her. Does it change your opinion of her because you found out she’s religious?”
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Eric Schiffer, chairman of the Los Angeles-based firm Reputation Management Consultants, weighed in on how Stefani’s proud display of her faith could impact her brand.
Schiffer pointed out that Stefani’s devotion to faith has never been a secret, but noted that her openness could be risky amid today’s divided cultural landscape.
“Critics are treating Gwen Stefani’s faith like a plot twist in her career arc, but it’s been part of her story all along,” Schiffer told Fox News Digital.
“Faith is a double-edged weapon in Hollywood – applauded by some, torpedoed by others,” he continued. “When celebrities embrace faith, they walk a tightrope between inspiration and alienation.”
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“The backlash against Gwen Stefani reveals discomfort with religion in pop culture and the imposition of cultural conformity over individual choice,” the PR expert added. “In Hollywood, faith is the new rebellion – wear it openly, and you risk being cast as a heretic in pop culture.”
“Freedom of expression doesn’t stop at religion – if you don’t want Gwen Stefani preaching to you, don’t listen, but in America we should allow her to speak. The backlash against religious celebrities shows that celebrity authenticity and cultural tolerance has limits – and hypocrisy.”
Longtime Hollywood publicist Steve Honig shared his view that Stefani’s brand could be affected, but any damage would likely be short-lived due to her long-established A-list status and loyal fanbase.
“Faith is something extremely personal and making your beliefs known publicly can sometimes lead to controversy, depending on your audience,” he said. “How fans react can have an enormous impact on one’s brand.”
Honig continued, “In this particular case, Stefani made the conscious choice to discuss her faith publicly, and she is a big enough celebrity and talent that she can likely weather any storm that results from her revelation. At the end of the day, a public figure has to be themselves and not compromise, or hide, their beliefs because fans may or may not agree with them.”
“That said, a celebrity does have to recognize there is a time and place for everything and under certain circumstances separate their public and private lives.”
In the past, Stefani has discussed her faith on several occasions, and she displayed her adherence to Catholic laws before marrying her second husband, Blake.
In March 2019, Us Weekly reported that Stefani and Shelton had postponed their wedding until Catholic Church officials annulled her marriage to her first husband, Gavin Rossdale.
A source told the outlet that Stefani had “begun the formal process” and wanted to have her previous marriage annulled “so she can marry Blake and have it be recognized by the church.”
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“Gwen’s religion has always been extremely important to her, and Blake is completely supportive of this,” the insider added.
In March 2021, a source confirmed to Us Weekly that the Catholic Church had “finally granted” the annulment.
“Gwen was told the decision was made by the Vatican tribunal,” the insider said at the time. “She will be receiving the notification in writing in the next few weeks, but it’s official.”
“It was a huge relief for Gwen because she wanted to get married by her priest and have the marriage recognized by the Catholic Church,” the source told the outlet.
Stefani and Rossdale, who share sons Kingston, 18, Zuma, 16, and Apollo, 11, were married from 2002 to 2016.
On July 3, 2021, Stefani and her former fellow “The Voice” coach tied the knot during a ceremony in a chapel on Shelton’s Oklahoma ranch.
During a January 2021 appearance on the “Today” show, Stefani reflected on how her commitment to religion has helped her overcome difficult times in her life.
“For me, I was turning to my faith right away,” she shared. “That was a seed that my mom planted in me when I was a little girl… it’s a journey.”
“It’s almost like you get lost, it’s like you get lost on your journey,” Stefani continued. “We all do, and we all will, and I will again at some point, I’m sure.”
