Leftists pride themselves on being tolerant.
But that tolerance only applies to things that dovetail with their worldview.
And one actor made liberals squirm when he revealed the thing that saved his life.
Hollywood always gets squeamish when people start talking about religion.
Actor Matthew McConaughey once said, “I have had moments where I was on stage receiving an award in front of my peers in Hollywood, and there were people in the crowd that I have prayed with before dinners many times, and when I thanked God, I saw some of those people go to clap, but then notice that, ‘bad thing on my resume’ and then sit back on their hands.”
That sums up Hollywood in a nutshell.
But actor Shia LaBeouf recently opened up about his conversion to Catholicism while preparing for a movie role at a low point in his life.
From The Daily Wire:
“During the 36-year-old actor’s appearance on Bishop Barron Presents ‘Conversations at the Crossroads,’ LaBeouf talked about studying for his role as the late mystic St. Padre Pio in the upcoming film, Padre Pio. He said he was ‘never an atheist,’ but instead agnostic and credited ‘Pio’ with saving his ‘life’ at a time he described as ‘nuclear’ because roles had dried up. In 2021, LeBeouf was facing a variety of allegations, including abuse. In preparation for the role he believed would finally restart his career, the director told Shia he would need to do some research and go to a seminary. LaBeouf ended up going to a seminary near his home and met Brother Jude, who told him if he’s going to play Pio, he needs to read the Gospel. LeBeouf started doing just that at a time when he felt hopeless.”
LaBeouf had a breakout role in Transformers back in 2007, but his career had petered out in recent years.
He explained, “I had a gun on the table. I was outta here…I didn’t want to be alive anymore when all of this happened. Shame like I had never experienced before — the kind of shame that you forget how to breathe. You don’t know where to go. You can’t go outside to get like, a taco. But I was also in this deep desire to hold on.”
The motivation to jumpstart his career turned into a deeper exploration of faith.
LaBeouf continued, “I know now that God was using my ego to draw me to Him…Drawing me away from worldly desires. It was all happening simultaneously. But there would have been no impetus for me to get in my car, drive up [to the seminary] if I didn’t think, ‘Oh, I’m gonna save my career’…It was seeing other people who have sinned beyond anything I could ever conceptualize also being found in Christ that made me feel like, ‘Ok well, that gives me hope’…I started hearing experiences of other depraved people who had found their way in this, and it made me feel like I had permission.”
Unfortunately, these types of stories do not hold any particular interest among Hollywood elites who sneer at religious people.