‘Aladdin’ star Naomi Scott talks Christian faith: 'I don’t know how I would do life without my faith’
Naomi Scott, the star of Disney’s new live-action version of “Aladdin,” says she wouldn’t know how to do life without her strong Christian faith.
Scott stars as Princess Jasmine in the remake of the Disney film and in a blog she penned for the Christian child sponsorship program Compassion International after visiting Rwanda and Ethiopia with her church through the organization, said she's frequently asked how she manages her faith and career in entertainment.
“My husband and I were actually talking about this yesterday. Sometimes we get asked the question, ‘How do you juggle your faith and what you do?’ But for me, I don’t know how I would do life without my faith,’ she wrote after sharing of her remarkable experience in Rwanda meeting recipients of Compassion’s Child Survival Project.
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“That peace that you know you’re loved and valued is something that keeps me incredibly grounded, incredibly focused. Quite honestly, I don’t see it as this separate thing, this add on thing. My faith is just a part of who I am and what I do,” Scott testified.
The 26-year-old Scott is of half British, half-Indian descent and is on course to becoming a bonified superstar following the film's success. What many of her American fans are just now learning about the actress is that she grew up as a preacher's kid and her parents continue to be pastors at The Bridge Church in Northeast London.
"Both of her parents are pastors at the Bridge Church, Woodford in Redbridge, United Kingdom," E! News reported. "According to the church's website, 'The Bridge Church is a community of ordinary people who have found peace, joy and purpose in an extraordinary God.'"
The actress, who stars alongside Will Smith and Mena Massoud in “Aladdin,” said she is so moved by “God’s grace.”
“Life is incredibly exciting at the moment, there’s a lot going on. We just think wow. God’s grace,” she wrote in her blog for Compassion International. “But no matter what happens, no matter what somebody says about me on Twitter, whatever the future holds, to know that that doesn’t define me is incredible. To know that doesn’t inform my identity in any way shape or form (although it’s easier said than done sometimes). That’s going to be the thing keeping me going. Keeping the main thing, the main thing throughout.”
During her church's tour with Compassion, Scott visited Rwanda to see firsthand how the nonprofit organization's Child Survival Projects have changed women's lives.
“I have worked with this charity for years and love their approach, working with communities and families to empower the next generation to break the vicious cycle of poverty,” Scott shared.
Compassion's, Child Survival Projects work with local communities to help vulnerable mothers by meeting their “practical and medical needs” while establishing communities of women who support each other “emotionally and create an environment where they feel loved and valued.”
Scott also mentioned her Christian faith in 2017 when she posted a tweet about the fate of Christians who are being persecuted worldwide.
"So many Christians being targeted in Egypt and other areas," she tweeted. "Praying for all my brothers and sisters around the world who face persecution."
