My Sister’s New Church Is Consuming Her — How Do I Help? (28F, 21F)

About two years ago, my older sister (28) joined a new church and pretty suddenly cut off almost all her old church friends, her licensed therapist, and even her financial advisor. She now leans almost entirely on her new pastor… a woman more than 10 years older, married with kids…  for emotional and life advice. The pastor referred her to an online Christian therapist who replaced her regular licensed therapist (who was covered by insurance). I later found out this new therapist is funded by the church and might have direct ties to the pastor.

Since then, my sister is either constantly at this pastor’s house (which is 45 minutes away) or in near-constant contact with her. They FaceTime, text nonstop, send photos of what they’re eating or doing, and even share their phone locations. It honestly feels like she’s reporting her entire life to this woman. She’s also started working every weekend with the pastor’s husband on a side business. Over time, she’s grown distant from our family, rushes to leave when we hang out, and honestly treats me like I’m beneath her now. Her whole personality has shifted in a pretty noticeable way.

Another weird thing is that despite how involved she is, she’s never shown up in the church’s social media posts or group photos… not even in the background. What really raised a red flag for me is how quickly she responds to this “friend”... even while driving. The urgency is intense, almost obsessive, and I’ve never seen her act like this with anyone else. I’m trying not to jump to conclusions, but something about this feels off. Has anyone experienced anything like this? Or does anyone have advice on how to approach this as a concerned younger sister?