In an interview with Irish Central, Hollywood veteran Martin Sheen talked in a surprisingly open way about his deep Catholic faith and his strong opposition to abortion. It's rare but refreshing to hear this kind of honesty from a celebrity, especially when it may not win him many fans and may cost him quite a few.
From the story:
In a related story, Sheen said his Catholic faith had saved him after he'd been away from the Church for many years:
During the interview Sheen opened up on how he practices the Rosary, his belief in trans-substantiation and the communion of saints. The actor, who recently re-ignited his popularity with his role as President Bartlet in "The West Wing," spoke on his Catholic devotion and how his pro-life views stopped him from backing President Obama in the 2008 elections.
When Byrne questioned him on his anti-abortion stance Sheen explained "We had pregnancies with our grandsons, three specifically. And we welcomed these children and encouraged the mothers to have the children and gave them support. The lads were not happy at the time but they came to love these children. We have three grown grandchildren, two of them are married, they’re some of the greatest source of joy in our lives.”
Read the full story HERE. Read the related story on how Catholicism saved Sheen HERE.
“It’s always a crisis that brings you back. And we begin to ask those two fundamental questions, if your gonna reflect on your life and take serious responsibility for it: who am I, and why am I here? And you reflect on those. I damn near died; I had the last rites,” he says.
“I started going to Mass again but it was out of fear and apprehension that I would die . . . and so it was another four years that I actually committed to come back. I came back to the Church of Vatican II, which I didn’t have a clue had gone on in my absence.”
Perhaps Sheen was thinking of his son when he spoke about how Catholicism can provide a concrete and real way forward when other vices fail.
“We all yearn for the sacred, we are always looking for a transcendence; some people go about it with drugs or alcohol or sex or power or ego, whatever, and when they prove not satisfying and we come to our senses, we begin to realize that there’s another costly journey,” says Sheen.
“It has to cost you something; if something worthwhile doesn’t cost you something, you are left to question its worth. And so I decided to go on that journey and, you know, I’m still at it.”
And for more on Sheen's reversion to Catholicism, read the recent OSV book "Recovering Faith: Stories of Catholics Who Came Home."
