Religion/ Spirituality

Pope Leo XIV looks ready to take on the Hell's Angels ... hopping on an all-white motorcycle outside the Vatican before signing it for charity.

The freshly appointed head of the Catholic Church hopped on the hog Wednesday after meeting with the "Jesus Bikers" -- an organization of religious riders who traveled all the way from Germany to Rome to meet the Pope.

Check out the clip ... Pope Leo puts pen to metal and signs his new name, before saddling up and sitting in the rider's seat.

Robin Westman -- the Minnesota catholic school mass shooter -- asked security guards at the dispensary where he worked about guns prior to his murderous attack -- and was also obsessed with playing super violent video games ... TMZ has learned.

A former coworker of Robin's at a Rise medical cannabis dispensary tells TMZ ... Robin started with the company in late March, and the two worked together up until a week before the shooting -- but Robin never really let on about the deadly plan, yet there were signs.

Our source says although they never heard Robin bring up guns at work ... one coworker told them in the aftermath of the shooting that Westman asked the security team about firearms, though it was not clear in what context.

Shakira's getting in touch with her impressive body on a beach in Mexico ... taking big breaths on the sand while soaking up the sun in a scandalous two-piece.

The singer-songwriter was spotted meditating on a beach in Los Cabos, Mexico Wednesday ... eyes closed, straight back, sun spilling onto her serene face.

She may be chilled out, but she's wearing an outfit that will certainly get hearts racing ... a tiny pink bikini top and cheeky bottoms that she flaunts in several photos where she's lying out on the warm sand.

Eric Adams says he can't support legalizing prostitution ... citing his past experience as a police officer and his faith as the main reasons for it.

The Mayor of New York City joined us for an interview airing Thursday ... and, he says he's absolutely against legalizing prostitution -- not like his opponent Zohran Mamdani has indicated in the past.

Adams says he remembers seeing young men -- just 18 or 19 years old -- selling their bodies on the street back in the day ... and, he claims prostitution contributed to the AIDS epidemic in the city back in the day as well.

Donald Trump hears he's not going to get through the Pearly Gates ... but, he's got a foolproof plan to fix that -- and, it involves brokering peace between Russia and Ukraine.

The President of the United States talked about the war and his recent summit with Russian Prez Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week ... rattling off facts about the conflict between the two countries.

Trump points out the devastating death toll -- especially on civilians when strikes are focused solely on enemy soldiers ... and, he wants to stop the carnage.

The home co-owned by the alleged "TikTok Dance Cult" pastor Robert Shinn was the target of a sex trafficking warrant today, TMZ has learned.

The El Monte Police Department tells TMZ ... their department's SWAT team assisted the U.S. Postal Service and the FBI Friday morning as a warrant was served at a residence in the Tujunga neighborhood of L.A. for sex trafficking, tax evasion, mail fraud and money laundering.

The Los Angeles FBI branch declined to comment. TMZ reached out to the U.S. Attorney's Office ... so far, no word back.

Josh Lucas and his longtime partner, Brianna Ruffalo, are officially married ... entering into holy matrimony in a very holy place -- the Vatican.

The actor announced the news on his Instagram this weekend ... sharing a few black and white photos from what he described as his "dream of wedding [sic]."

The photos look like an old school black and white movie of a couple Americans falling madly for one another in Italy ... Josh embodies cool confidence and Brianna looks stunning in her gorgeous white dress.

11:59 AM PT -- Elon Musk has responded to the outrage caused by the Adolf Hitler praising tweets sent out by his xAI Grok chatbot on Tuesday.

The Tesla founder says it was all a misunderstanding -- Grok is programmed to respond accurately to people's prompts and that's what he did for one user egging him on to make a controversial statement.

Elon notes ... "Grok was too compliant to user prompts. Too eager to please and be manipulated, essentially. That is being addressed."

Elon Musk's xAI Grok chatbot posted shocking antisemitic comments Tuesday, making positive references to Adolf Hitler in a number of stunning tweets ... even while addressing questions about the recent deadly Texas flooding.

Check out Grok's replies in the X posts -- some have since been deleted. One screenshot shows the chatbot suggesting Hitler would be the ideal candidate to "handle" folks who aren't upset Christian children were killed in the devastating Texas floods.

In other tweets, Grok called itself "MechaHitler" -- the name for the robotic version of Adolf Hitler that originated in the 1992 video game Wolfenstein 3D.

Infamous televangelist Jimmy Swaggart has died, his family has announced ... the reverend was 90 years old.

Swaggart's family posted a tribute on Facebook Tuesday morning ... "Today, our hearts are heavy as we share that Brother Swaggart has finished his earthly race and entered into the presence of His Savior, Jesus Christ."

The cause of the reverend's death was not immediately released.

The Vatican City is slowly turning into the Windy City ... 'cause Pope Leo XIV was back showing major love for his Chicago White Sox this week!!

The Pontiff put his fandom on display as White Sox chants erupted during the General Audience address on Wednesday ... acknowledging the message of support for the ball club as he cruised around on the Popemobile.

Since being elected, Leo has embraced his South Side ties with open arms ... and he is no stranger to wearing his fandom on his sleeve.

Cuba Gooding Jr. says he's turning to the Lord during this trying time for Diddy ... revealing he's praying for the fallen mogul as his federal trial creeps on.

We caught up with the actor at LAX Wednesday ... and, we asked him if he's been keeping up on the developments in Diddy's sex trafficking trial -- which he tells us are darn near impossible to avoid these days.

Cuba says he's keeping Diddy and his alleged victims -- pointing to Cassie Ventura and her family specifically -- in his prayers.

Infamous televangelist Jimmy Swaggart has been hospitalized in critical condition after suffering a cardiac arrest over the weekend ... TMZ has learned.

The 90-year-old pastor was at home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when he had a heart attack Sunday morning -- Father's Day -- according to his family.

"Without a miracle, his time is short," his son Donnie Swaggart said in a sermon later Sunday.

GloRilla's "Rain On Me" track is the best gospel song of the year, according to the BET Awards ... darn near blasphemy if you ask Christian music vet, Deitrick Haddon.

The gospel singer tells TMZ Hip Hop Glo is a go for his household  ... let the Bible verse Psalm 150:6 be his guide.

But he's adamant he had to draw the line -- even if the commentary came off as hating when it comes to receiving a "Dr. Bobby Jones Best Gospel/Inspirational Award."

You can take the guy out of the South Side, but you can't take the South Side out of the guy ... 'cause Pope Leo XIV was spotted repping his White Sox at The Vatican!!

The pontiff ditched his zucchetto for a black ball cap during the general assembly in Rome this week ... giving a wide grin as he showed support for his local baseball team.

Maybe word hasn't made its way to Leo -- the Sox stink right now with a 23-44 record ... either that, or he's still keeping the faith.

David Thibodeau -- a survivor of the infamous 1993 Branch Davidians siege in Waco, Texas -- is giving Justin Bieber some sage advice on religion, as some of his former friends question his association with Churchome.

Justin's inner circle's been getting smaller, and we're told part of the reason is former friends believe Churchome, the Christian church he attends, is a cult, and Thibodeau has a lot of experience in that area, having been a member of the Branch Davidians -- the David Koresh-led cult that had a weeks-long standoff with the feds before their Waco compound burned to the ground, killing more than 80 members.

Thibodeau told us he sees a lot of good and some bad in the case of Justin and Churchome. He says one major positive is the org is nowhere near as hardcore as the Branch Davidians were.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman appeared in Colorado court Monday following an attack on pro-Israel protesters gathering in Boulder, Colorado on Sunday ... Soliman is accused of using Molotov cocktails and what the FBI describes as a "makeshift flamethrower."

Soliman will be charged with 16 counts of attempted murder -- two for each of the eight victims, according to the New York Times. Soliman has been charged with at least one federal hate crime ... “hate crime involving actual or perceived race, religion, or national origin.” He was held on $10 million bond, and formal charges are expected Thursday.

Boulder Police said a crowd was attacked at a pro-Israel event called the "Run for Their Lives" walk at the city's Pearl Street Mall Sunday afternoon ... Molotov cocktails were hurled at people, injuring 8. Soliman was arrested shortly afterward.