Jon Gosselin is moving from the dog house to a house of God, thanks to Rabbi Shmuley Boteach.
The embattled reality star of “Jon and Kate Plus 8” is seeking spiritual guidance from “Rabbi Schmuley” as he is known in Hollywood circles, and who counseled Michael Jackson before Jackson admitted to sharing his bed with young boys. (Boteach cut off ties after that, though he plans to release the book, “The Michael Jackson Tapes” based on recorded conversations he had with the deceased King of Pop.)
Boteach, host of TLC’s “Shalom in the Home” and who likes to think of himself as “one of the world’s leading relationship experts and spiritual authorities” isn’t one to let an floundering star founder.
Lately, Gosselin, who is self-proclaimed “half Jewish, half Korean” has come under fire for alleged infidelity, looting $200,000 from his and Kate’s joint account and for neglecting his duties as a father.
“I have allowed myself to become somewhat severed from my own moral anchor and be carried away by the challenges of fame,” Gosselin told CNN.
“It is for this reason that I have endeavored of late to reconnect with my deeper, more spiritual, more altruistic self with regular study sessions and counseling with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach.”
As the good book says, all human beings are created in the image of God, which is evidently why there’s hope for Gosselin’s newfound spiritual self.
“I have always endeavored to be a loving father and a devoted parent who serves as a moral exemplar to his eight children,” he said. As such, Gosselin has agreed to appear at Rabbi Schmuley’s upcoming lecture, “Fame: Blessing or Curse?” at New York’s West Side Synagogue, where he plans to apologize to those he’s hurt.
“More than anything else, Rabbi Shmuley, as someone who has counseled others in similar circumstances, has impressed upon me the moral obligations inherent in celebrity and I understand that if a spotlight is shined on me, especially as a father of a large family, that I have to inspire others to do the right thing always.”
But is Gosselin waking up to his parental obligations too late? And where has Boteach been all along, while Gosselin has been serving up his children’s childhoods for the viewing pleasure of millions?
