The Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg appeared on the ABC talk show The View on Wednesday morning. There, he found himself being defended by Whoopi Goldberg after her co-host Joy Behar asked him an uncomfortable question.
Goldberg Defends Wahlberg
Wahlberg, 54, went on The View alongside The Chosen star Jonathan Roumie. The two of them were in the process of observing Ash Wednesday. This is the beginning of Lent in Christian religions.
Wahlberg took the opportunity to open up to Goldberg, Behar, and their fellow co-hosts about his own strong Christian faith.
“I’ve been very fortunate. I grew up in the real world,” Wahlberg said. “I got into a lot of trouble when I was younger. There were pivotal times in my life where people came to me and expressed the importance of faith to keep me on the right track. And that kind of discipline has afforded me now so many wonderful things that I want to share that with people. I certainly want to help kids avoid making the same mistakes that I made when I was younger, and, you know….”
That’s when Behar, 83, chimed in to ask, “What was the worst thing you did?”
Goldberg, 70, was not having any of this. Indeed, she immediately stepped in to defend Wahlberg from this question, which she clearly found to be inappropriate.
“Joy. You know what? I’m not going to let you ask that question,” Goldberg said.
Refusing to back down, Behar argued, “What? He doesn’t have to answer it!”
Despite Goldberg’s interjection, Wahlberg still decided to respond to Behar.
“Well, that’s a long list,” he admitted. “The worst thing that I did was probably follow others when I should have been more of a leader, but that’s very difficult to do at a young age when you’re easily influenced and in a bad area.”
“See. Good answer,” Behar replied.
Wahlberg’s Christian Faith
Wahlberg and Roumie had gone on The View to promote their Catholic meditation and prayer app Hallow.
“My job is to definitely continue to encourage other people to stand up for themselves and stand up for the right thing, and to make sure that people are trying to be the best versions of themselves,” Wahlberg explained.
“What’s most encouraging about what’s happening with Hallow is a lot of young men now are gravitating toward the app,” he added. “I think having something positive in your life that allows you to be more kind, to be more thoughtful, to be more generous, more understanding and accepting, those are things that are very important.”
Wahlberg has long been known as one of the only openly devout Christian stars in Hollywood. By partnering with Hallow, Wahlberg is trying to encourage people to “stay prayed up.”
“I’m constantly pursuing a relationship with God,” Wahlberg told Fox News later in the day on Wednesday. “Every day I feel like, if I get on my hands and my knees first thing when I wake up, that the rest of the day is going to be easier — at least I can deal with all the things that are being thrown at me.”
“As you get older, things come from every direction, and life can become overwhelming at times,” he concluded. “But expressing my gratitude and making sure that I’m wearing that armor to make sure that I’m doing what God has chosen for me to do, that’s something that I take very seriously.”
We applaud Wahlberg for continuing to use his platform to spread the word of the Lord.
God bless you, Mark Wahlberg!