Britney sings Kabbalah's praises

Britney Spears found fame as a God-fearing Baptist who did not believe in sex before marriage.

A string of lovers, two husbands and a tarnished reputation later, she is still declaring her belief in religion - but this time it is Kabbalah.

The singer has discussed her belief in the controversial faith - a mystical offshoot of Judaism - declaring it 'can even perform miracles'.

Britney, 23, says on her website that after her friend Madonna introduced her to Kabbalah it 'has helped me get rid of a lot of negative influences that were guiding me down the wrong path.

'There came a point where not even my family had the answers I needed. Through Kabbalah, I was able to look within myself, clear all the negative energy and turn my life around.

'Now that the chaos has subsided, I finally feel as though I have the control I've wanted over my own destiny. I'm in a place where I can take Kabbalah seriously. Whatever your religion may be, it's amazing what the power of prayer can do, it can even perform miracles!'

Madonna, who has become Kabbalah's most high-profile advocate, introduced Britney to the religion a year ago after the young singer had cancelled a tour through illness and annulled her first marriage to a childhood friend.

Although she started wearing the distinctive red string - which is believed to ward off the evil eye - and even had a 'Kabbalah' tattoo of Hebrew letters, she continued to attend church with her parents.

But when she wed second husband Kevin Federline in September, she had a Kabbalah ceremony. And for a wedding present Madonna gave her a 12th-century copy of the Zohar, the holy book which incorporates many of its teachings.