Bieber's Jewish manager spills the origin of Justin's Hebrew Prayer

There are kids who are picked on and deal with anti-Semitism,” Braun said. “For them to watch this film and recognize someone in their culture — that’s why I feel so good about it.” “Never Say Never,” which documents the teen’s rise to fame and his concerts, opened on February 11; Bieber is slated to play in Israel in April.

Braun admits that Justin’s mother, Pattie Mallette, said: “I prayed, ‘God, you don’t want this Jewish kid to be Justin’s man, do you?" but said her words were "completely taken out of context. If Pattie was anti-Semitic, she wouldn’t be like a sister to me, and she wouldn’t let me be a father-figure type in her son’s life. She’s a devout Christian, but she’s respectful of other people and other cultures.

He also admits that he and the crew recite the Sh’ma before performances. Justin has been known to recite it during concerts. It started, he said, in response to Bieber's saying a prayer — “in Jesus’ name, Amen.” I wanted my own people to have protection, so I would say the Sh’ma with our musical director, Dan Kanter, who’s also Jewish. Justin heard us; he’s like a sponge, so he memorized it and chimed in. It became a tradition.

Braun's grandparents were Holocaust survivors, and he's picked up the Hebrew name “Shmuel Ben Eliezer.”  Though he doesn't use it much, he hopes that “Never Say Never," in which he's a protagonist, will make Jews comfortable with themselves in a non-Jewish world. "I assimilated very well. But there are kids who don’t…. The same way Justin can serve as role model for Christians, I hope Dan and I make people proud to be who they are.