Earlier this month, pastor and author Sam Collier addressed rumors regarding his sexuality during a restoration service held at the Christian Cultural Center (CCC) Atlanta campus, where Collier serves as lead pastor.
Collier previously pastored Hillsong Atlanta until 2022 when the Hillsong campus dissolved and his church plant, Story Church, replaced it. This occurred amid ongoing controversies surrounding Hillsong founder Brian Houston. In 2024, Story Church merged with CCC to become the megachurch’s Atlanta campus.
CCC was founded by A.R. Bernard in 1978. Today, the nondenominational church has grown to more than 32,000 members and is led by Bernard’s son, Jamaal Bernard, who was installed as senior pastor.
In addition to Atlanta, CCC has campuses in Brooklyn and Long Island in New York and in Orlando, Florida, all of which are overseen by the senior pastor.
In 2023, Collier announced that he and his wife, Toni, were divorcing after eight years of marriage. Toni cited “repeated acts of infidelity” as the reason for the divorce.
In a now-deleted social media post, Collier disputed Toni’s claims and called her a “liar” and an “abuser.”
Collier continued, “It is documented that she has abused me our entire marriage and wants to continue to. I asked Toni not to do this. As well as our team and ‘our’ lawyers. She is not divorcing me, we are divorcing each other.” Collier also claimed that he “tried to divorce her 7 times” but “she begged [him] to stay” and kept “abusing him.”
As 2025 neared a close, Toni sat down with Christian hip-hop artist Lecrae for an interview titled: “The Divorce Story A Pastor’s Wife Never Planned to Tell.”
During the interview, Toni alleged that Collier had not only been unfaithful in their marriage but also was being “extorted by someone he hired for sexual favors—tens of thousands of dollars.” She previously identified the person on the “Girls Gone Bible” podcast as a “transgender prostitute.”
Earlier this month, pastor and author Sam Collier addressed rumors regarding his sexuality during a restoration service held at the Christian Cultural Center (CCC) Atlanta campus, where Collier serves as lead pastor.Click to Post
