Denzel Washington got baptised and became a minister during a livestreamed ceremony over the weekend.
On Saturday, December 21 (Sunday in Australia), the Oscar-winning actor, 69, was baptised at the Kelly Temple Church of God in Christ in Harlem, New York City.
During the same service, he was also presented with a minister’s license which will allow him to be ordained in the future.
Watch the video above.
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The service was live streamed on Facebook by the First Jurisdiction Church of God in Christ Eastern New York. It included the moment he was baptised and the moment he received his certificate of baptism.
Speaking in a microphone, Washington acknowledged his decision to embrace his faith just days ahead of his milestone birthday.
“In one week I turn 70,” he said, according to Archbishop Christopher Bryant. “It took a while, but I’m finally here.”
“If [God] can do this for me, there’s nothing He can’t do for you. The sky literally is the limit.”
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The Gladiator II star’s wife Paula Washington was also in attendance and spoke with pride about her husband’s journey with religion and this new step in his faith.
“Forty-six years later, here I’m still standing next to him as only God will have it,” the actress said.
“So, I’m very proud of you. You are the head of our house and you have set a great example for our children, who are now adult children who know the difference because we have shown them the difference.”
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Washington appeared emotional as his wife, with whom he shares children John, 40, Katia, 37, and twins Olivia and Malcolm, 33, addressed him and the other guests in attendance.
The actor wore a simple grey tee shirt, having just received a water baptism, and appeared chuffed as he was officially presented his baptism and minister certificates.
“He is recognised as a member of the clergy of the churches of God and Christ worldwide. This time this minister’s license is presented to Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. Come on let’s give him a hand,” Bryant announced as the crowd applauded.
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He continued to share that Washington’s minister’s license was a topic of excitement among the church organisers.
“Now you know we wait all year for our blue cards (which is required by anyone who is a religious representative) but when they found out who was getting this minister’s license, they sent the blue card with it,” Bryant joked.
He then handed over Washington’s “official notification of [his] baptismal certificate”.
“We ask you to take all of this and go forth as the Lord leads you,” he added.
After the ceremony, Archbishop Byrant took to Facebook to share about the momentous occasion for Washington.
“We celebrate the addition of Minister Denzel Washington into the clergy, having received his minister’s license in the Church of God in Christ today, in a truly uplifting moment,” he wrote alongside a selection of photos from the ceremony.
“He is dressed that way because, in the same service, he received water baptism. Both the baptism and the licensing took place at the Historic Kelly Temple in NYC, a place close to his heart. Denzel Washington attended this church as a child and testified to being filled with the Holy Spirit after visiting another church with actor Robert Townsend in the 80s.”
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