Mark Wahlberg is one of the better-known Christians in the mainstream acting scene, with his faith playing an increasingly prominent and publicized role in his life over the past few years. Staying on that positive trendline in an ad that aired during Super Bowl LVIII, Wahlberg encouraged people to pray to God daily and to use the app Hallow to do so.
As background, Hallow is a daily prayer app about which Wahlberg has spoken before. It provides users with a daily, customized prayer routine and enables connections with friends and family so that people can share their faith journey with those close to them. Though based on the Catholic faith, it can be used by Christians of any denomination.
Further, it has expanded beyond just being focused on prayer and meditation. It also provides sleep aids and even audio-guided Bible stories for users, and Wahlberg is a guest narrator for it in addition to being one of its most prominent spokesmen.
In the ad for the app, in which Wahlberg appeared alongside actor Jonathan Roumie, known for his portrayal of Jesus in “The Chosen,” Wahlberg led a prayer as the ad panned over shots of scenarios like a family praying at dinner and soldiers, presumably deployed overseas, prayed. In his prayer, Wahlberg said, “God, we take this moment, just to give you thanks.” He added, “Join us in prayer this Lent on Hallow. Stay prayed up.”
Watch the powerful commercial here:
Wahlberg has spoken much about his faith in recent years. In a February of 2023 interview on “Today,” for example, Wahlberg explained how he approaches religion and striking a balance of not denying his faith but also not jamming his religion down “anybody’s throat.”
He said, “It’s a balance. I don’t want to jam it down anybody’s throat, but I do not deny my faith. That’s an even bigger sin. You know, it’s not popular in my industry, but I cannot deny my faith. It’s important for me to share that with people. But, I have friends from all walks of life and all different types of faiths and religions, so it’s important to respect and honor them as well.”
Similarly, in a 2022 appearance on “Today,” Wahlberg explained how he tries to strike a balance with guiding his children on their faith journeys as well. He said that he does his best to avoid foisting his religion on them, leaving them to make decisions on their own, but does try to set a good example of what living a life grounded in the Catholic faith looks like.
Explaining that mindset and how he hopes his kids will develop in their faith, he said, “I don’t force it on them. But they know that Dad can’t start the day without being in prayer, can’t start the day without reading my Scripture or going to Mass. And hopefully, instead of forcing that on them, they’ll say, ‘Well, if it works for Dad, maybe it’ll work for us,’ and they’ll kind of gravitate towards it on their own.”
Featured image credit: By Toglenn – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5645848