Shia LaBeouf considers becoming Catholic deacon after finding God
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Shia LaBeouf, the Hollywood star, is considering becoming a Catholic deacon after finding God while working on a film.
The actor converted to Catholicism after working on a film about the 20th century saint Padre Pio, an Italian friar who suffered stigmata.
The religious awakening of the Transformers actor comes after years of eccentric behaviour, and more recently allegations he had physically abused his former partner.
By his own admission the episode left his life a “complete mess”, but he has since embarked on a “spiritual journey” and converted to Catholicism, friars close to the star have said.
Friars in the US who prepared the star for the role of Pio announced his conversion, and claimed that the actor also wished to become a deacon, a role intended to assist parish priests.
A statement released by the Capuchin Friars of the Western America Province said: “We are thrilled to share that our dear friend Shia LaBeouf has fully entered the Church this past weekend through the sacrament of confirmation.”
The statement added that the actor “has embarked on a profound spiritual journey that has led him to embrace the teachings of the Catholic Church”.
LaBeouf was confirmed into the Catholic faith by Robert Barron, the Bishop of Winona–Rochester in the US state of Minnesota, who had helped guide the actor on his religious path.
In an interview with the Catholic News Agency, LaBeouf’s confirmation sponsor, Brother Alexander Rodriguez, said that the actor had expressed his wish to become a deacone.
This role involves performing many of the duties of a priest – but LaBeouf would not be required to embrace celibacy, and can remain married to his wife, the British actress Mia Goth.
LaBeouf first became known as a child actor, appearing in the Disney series Even Stevens, and became an international star at the age of 20 following his starring role in the 2007 film Transformers.
The actor worked on a number of high-profile films, and became known for stunts including walking the Berlin Film Festival red carpet with a paper bag on his head, spending 24 hours in a lift as part of a performance art piece, and copying the words of other celebrities during interviews.
He has been arrested several times, including at a New York theatre Studio 54 in 2014, and in 2017 after subjecting police to a drunken rant at police, which he called “a new low”.
In 2020 he was sued by his former partner, the singer known as FKA Twigs, who alleged that she had been physically and emotionally abused. It was alleged that the actor knowingly gave her a sexually transmitted infection.
The actor said he was “ashamed” and “sorry” for those he had hurt as a result of his alcoholism. He later denied the allegations against him, and a trial is set to take place this year.
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In 2022 he told Bishop Barron that his “life was a mess, complete mess”, and that he had “hurt a lot of people”.
The star said that his career was in a slump when he was approached to make Padre Pio, and his research for the film, which included immersing himself in the life of the Capuchin Franciscan friars, pushed him towards Catholicism.
Pio was himself a Capuchin friar and in 1918 was said to have been marked by stigmata, wounds corresponding to the wounds of Christ endured during his crucifixion, including bleeding cuts in his palms.
Born Francesco Forgione, Pio (Italian for Pius) spent most of his life in San Giovanni Rotondo in southern Italy, where miraculous abilities were attributed to him, and was said to have experienced visions and religious ecstasies.
He died shortly after giving a final mass in 1968, and was canonised as a saint by Pope John Paul II in 2002.
While researching the role of the holy man, LaBeouf said that he had started to “feel the effect of mass” adding that he started feeling a “deep reprieve” and a “physical effect”. The film directed by Abel Ferrara was released in 2022 to indifferent reviews.
