On Thursday night, dad-bod sitcom actor turned ripped Marvel superhero Chris Pratt stopped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Sadly, they did not discuss Pratt's engagement to Arnold Schwarzenegger's daughter, Katherine, which would have provided an excellent chance to shout, "GET TO THE CHAPEL!" (Real missed opportunity, Colbert). However, they did discuss Pratt's love of sheering sheep, his new movie The Lego Movie 2, and his recent Bible-based diet.
Inspired by Daniel's fast in the Old Testament, Pratt did not eat meat, sugar or alcohol for 21 days. The Guardians of the Galaxy star called the diet "amazing" and compared it to Lent, in that you temporary give up something dear. His pastor encouraged him to participate in the fast, and offered profound advice for how to handle fame. "If the spotlight that is shining on you is brighter than the light that’s within you, it will kill you," Pratt recalled to Colbert.
Pratt attends Zoe Church, a congregation of Hillsong Church, a name that probably sounds familiar. Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, the Jenner sisters and other A-list celebrities attend Hillsong, known for its attractive congregation, charismatic preachers and contemporary 'hipster' vibe. Originally founded in Australia in 1983, the megachurch spread to the United States in 2010, opening up locations in New York City and Los Angeles.
However, Hillsong Church has been criticized for holding regressive beliefs about the LGBTQ community. According to a 2016 expose by The Daily Beast, the church has a history of encouraging gay conversion therapy. Former members claim the pastors helped congregants "pray their gay away" and preached about overcoming "gay demons." And in 2015, Hillsong founder Brian Houston published a blog stating that "marriage is between a man and a woman."
"Hillsong Church welcomes ALL people but does not affirm all lifestyles," Houston wrote. "Put clearly, we do not affirm a gay lifestyle and because of this we do not knowingly have actively gay people in positions of leadership, either paid or unpaid."
Ellen Page tweeted a Hollywood Reporter article about Pratt's appearance on The Late Show, questioning why the church's history of homophobia wasn't brought up. "Oh. K. Um. But his church is infamously anti lgbtq so maybe address that too?" tweeted the actress.
Page came out publicly as gay in 2014, and has been a passionate activist for LGBTQ issues. On January 31st, she appeared on The Late Show and spoke out against Vice President Mike Pence's anti-LGBTQ policies, in the wake of the racist, homophobic attack on Empire star Jussie Smollett.
"If you are in a position of power and you hate people, and you want to cause suffering to them - you go through the trouble, you spend your career trying to cause suffering. What do you think is going to happen?" Page asked. "Kids are going to be abused, and they’re going to kill themselves. And people are going to be beaten on the street. I have traveled the world and I have met the most marginalized people you can meet. I am lucky to have this time and this privilege to say this. This needs to f---ing stop."