Celebrities and Religion

These days, fans know everything about their favourite stars – nothing is sacred, it seems, not even something as personal as their religion. And celebrities wield such influence that they can give their individual beliefs – whatever that belief system might be – almost as much publicity as they receive themselves, especially if they are open about them.

Actor John Travolta has always been outspoken about his association with Scientology, the religion some people compare to a cult. Travolta says he became involved with Scientology in 1975 while working in Mexico on a film. In fact, he credits his success in acting – and in his marriage, to actress Kelly Preston – to Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard’s techniques. He’s quoted on the Scientology website as saying, "I have been a successful actor for more than twenty years and Scientology has played a major role in that success. I have a wonderful child and a great marriage because I apply L. Ron Hubbard’s technology to this area of my life. I would say that Scientology put me into the big time."

Tom Cruise attributed Scientology with helping him to overcome his dyslexia and learn to read at age 22. Now the actor is a board member of the Hollywood Education and Literacy Project, a nonprofit group that uses Hubbard’s "Study Technology" technique in a secular setting. Actresses Anne Archer, Kirstie Alley, Mimi Rogers and actor Jason Lee are also reported Scientologists.

Richard Gere is another actor who credits his religious beliefs, in Buddhism, to living a fulfilling life. Gere told USA Today in an interview that Buddhism is "about becoming happier...it’s about promoting a state. It’s not an action, it’s a process...We’re all moving away from suffering and toward happiness."

Gere is a close friend of Tibet’s Dalai Lama and is considered one of the most high-profile disciples in the world. A core belief of Buddhism is a moving away from egocentrism and towards altruism, and Gere puts his beliefs into practice by lobbying against the war in Iraq and working for socially responsible and charitable causes. Harrison Ford, Sharon Stone and Tina Turner are also reported to be Buddhism supporters.

Six years ago, Madonna became a serious student of Kabbalah, a form of Judaism emphasizing mysticism. It was popular among Jews of Eastern Europe hundreds of years ago, and survives mainly among the Hassidim today. Some trace it to an even earlier time, and the theory has been advanced that it was kabbalistic knowledge that enabled Jesus to perform miracles, a wisdom he learned from the ancient Essenes. For her part, Madonna claims that Kabbalah has resulted in ego-shrinking, good vibes, and greater contentment. She wears a red string bracelet said to deflect "envious stares and looks of ill will" and has even adopted the ancient Hebrew name of Esther, telling ABC News: "My mother died when she was very young, of cancer, and I wanted to attach myself to another name. This is in no way a negation of who my mother was. I wanted to attach myself to the energy of a different name."

In an article before the start of Madonna’s 2004 "Reinvention" tour, USA Today remarked on the current popularity of Kabbalah and said it "is weaving a path through Hollywood in a way not seen since Scientology attracted converts and controversy a decade ago."

Madonna not only brought public awareness to Kabbalah, but gained other famous followers including Madonna’s husband, the director Guy Ritchie, celebrity couple Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, comedienne Sandra Bernhardt and actress Roseanne Barr. Madonna also reportedly introduced soccer player David Beckham and his wife Victoria – the former Posh Spice of the Spice Girls – to Kabbalah, as well as singer Britney Spears.

Mel Gibson has always been known as a devout Roman Catholic, but made his faith more prominent through his phenomenally successful The Passion of the Christ. His epic The Passion of the Christ – a highly personal and graphic re-telling of the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus – is his testament to his belief in the Bible. But Gibson is a traditionalist Catholic who shuns the faith’s concessions to modernity, like celebrating Mass in English instead of the traditional Latin. In fact, dialogue from The Passion of the Christ is spoken only in Latin and Aramaic – the languages of the day – with English subtitles. "I wanted it to be shocking," Gibson told ABC-TV’s Primetime show. "And I also wanted it to be extreme. 

I wanted it to push the viewer over the edge … so that they see the enormity – the enormity of that sacrifice – to see that someone could endure that and still come back with love and forgiveness, even through extreme pain and suffering and ridicule." Gibson says he based his film on the four Gospels of the Bible, as well as texts from a controversial 19th-century mystic and saint, Anne Catherine Emmerich, for his story in which Jewish high priests lead a riotous mob to Pontius Pilate’s door to demand Christ’s crucifixion. The film caused an outcry from Jewish leaders about a possible anti-Semitic backlash over the film, but Gibson told Primetime he is no anti-Semite, and that anti-Semitism is "un-Christian" and a sin that "goes against the tenets of my faith."

Recalling the strict rules of his school years, Dannelly said, "In my high school, we weren’t allowed to dance. Everybody had to be at least six inches away from the opposite sex at all times. We had record burnings, and the entertainment at my senior prom was a puppet show – it wasn’t very exiting." Co-writer Michael Urban had similar experiences with his fundamentalist upbringing. "I grew up in a traditional Baptist home in the South. Where I went to college in Tallahassee, Florida, I regularly saw people who lived in this metaphysical world with punishments and demons and things I had a hard time understanding. Sometimes things are twisted and exploited in the name of religion or God. I wanted to explore that."