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Russell Brand candidly shares struggles one week in as a Christian

May 8, 2024 | | Print Article

Russell Brand’s public plunge into Christianity saw the comedian welcomed by the community amid his own admitted struggles: “Week one as a Christian and I still got a lot of questions.”

Faced with the added scrutiny of taking his spiritual journey as a celebrity, the recently baptized actor and commentator was met with an understandable degree of apprehension from some previously burned by cultural icons embracing Jesus Christ. Presented with the mystery of faith, Brand’s latest update on seeking the narrow gate featured the combined reasoning of a deep-thinker with the curiosity of a child.

“Which interpretation of The Bible do you use and why?” came the question from the entertainer who held up copies of the King James Version of The Bible and “The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language” by Eugene Peterson.

“Week one as a Christian and I still got a lot of questions,” he earnestly admitted as many people in the comments pointed out his use of the word “interpretation” of God’s word in place of “translation.”

Likewise, in a lighthearted moment expressing his gratitude for those aiming to steer him along his redemptive path, he brought attention to his pet and said, “By the way, this cat is not an endorsement of occultism or witchcraft. Just happens to be my cat.”

The point allowed him to segue to explain that a recently released video that included tarot cards had been recorded prior to his baptism in the River Thames. “Thank you. I really appreciate you giving me guidance and updates and insights on what’s permissible within the Christian faith and what might be seen as occultism.”

After releasing the video, Brand also posted a picture taken at the time of his baptism that included noted survivalist Bear Grylls and a friend identified as Joe in a separate video with the caption, “Me, Bear Grylls, The River Thames and of course, The Holy Spirit.”

Throughout his video that came less than two weeks after he revealed he would be getting baptized, the actor detailed his struggles with sin and how he now experienced a guiding principle in daily interactions, “I feel like I am guided by a golden thread.”

“I wonder if you, like me, feel like an incredible pull and tension sometimes between the material world and family life and primal inclinations and the tendency towards corruption and the requirements of work and the spiritual life,” he presented to his more than 11 million followers on X. “Since the ol’ baptism, as I call it, I feel so refreshed and redirected. What I don’t feel, I gotta tell you, is absolutely perfect. I feel now, that when you’re faced with a challenge, like all of us will be at some point…”

Grylls, himself a born-again Christian, had shared an image of himself on a pilgrimage to the Jordan River where he experienced baptism in the same waters as Jesus.

“Having a personal relationship with a personal God who you believe died for you and rose again for you that we may be atoned,” said Brand, “provides for me a kind of clarity and simplicity that transcends the limitations of the intellect.”

As he openly addressed his initial struggles, fellow Christians of all walks offered their own advice and a reminder to disregard criticism from those who believe the journey to be a grift.

Kevin Haggerty
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