‘As much as people want to paint Hollywood as a sort of anti-religious place, I have found that going into work, we’re all there to do a job.’
From Vatican News:
American actress Patricia Heaton is grateful to Pope Francis for encouraging their work and feels empowered to continue living out her day-to-day Hollywood endeavors with authentic Catholic values.
These were some takeaways expressed to Vatican News by the actress, who had participated in the two-day Vitae Summit in the Vatican’s Casina Pio IV on Thursday.
“My sister is a Dominican nun. My grandparents met Pope John Paul I. My mom was one of 15 children. I have some 100 first cousins on my mom’s side. So, we’re a very Catholic family. Meeting the Pope is such an incredible honor that I never thought I would have.”
She described her time with the Holy Father as incredibly special.
Asked whether she finds it challenging to be a Catholic actor in Hollywood, Ms. Heaton said, “God has been very gracious to me”, noting she never had to to be “morally compromised” in her shows.
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“As much as people want to paint Hollywood as a sort of anti-religious place, I have found that going into work, we’re all there to do a job. We’re all there to be professional. We all respect each other. We share opinions, different opinions. And because we love each other and we have a common goal of creating something wonderful for people to enjoy, the differences in our religion or politics or whatever, in my experience on a set, have not been a problem.”
Reflecting on her time in the Vatican, she recalled the privilege of having a private tour of the Sistine Chapel, and being constantly surrounded by beauty within the Vatican walls.
She was particularly moved by her and the other actors’ time with the Pope on Thursday afternoon.
And watch a video about the meeting below.
