Denzel Washington's religious life

Jan 13, 2010, 10:04 GMT

Denzel Washington lives his life by the Bible.

The Oscar-winning actor has always had a strong religious belief and follows a lot of advice from the Christian holy book, especially when it comes to showing love.

He said: "My father was a Pentecostal minister for 50 years. We would say prayers for everything and end with, 'Amen, God is love.' I thought 'God is love' was like one word, 'Godislove.' I didn't really realise what it meant. I'm still learning. But the fundamental message is in the Bible, which I've read three times from front to back, along with some of the Koran and the Torah. If you don't practice love, you're missing the point. I believe in love thy neighbour."

The 'Training Day' star - who has four children with wife Pauletta - says being spiritual has helped him realise what he wants to do with his life.

He told Parade.com: "I'm sitting around in my big house with all this stuff asking myself, 'What do you want? You got everything. What do you want, Denzel?' And it hit me like a brick. I thought, 'I want wisdom and understanding.' I was talking to a buddy of mine who runs the Boys and Girls Clubs in the town where I grew up - he's also a pastor - and he said, 'Denzel, go back to Proverbs, Chapter 4.' I told my wife and she said, 'Yeah, my father lived by that.' Basically, it's saying that wisdom is supreme. Get wisdom and understanding even though it costs all your possessions. I thought, 'That's a life's work right there.' "