11 Things You Didn't Know About Stephen Colbert
9. He's A Devout Catholic And A Sunday School Teacher
The Stephen Colbert character on The Colbert Report was extremely religious, frequently mentioning his faith and doing regular segments like Yahweh or No Way. That wasn't something made up for the fictional persona, though: the real Colbert is also a deeply religious person.
Colbert was raised as a Roman Catholic, although he has said his parents were very open to critical thinking and told him he could question the church. He frequently uses religion in his satire, but as Colbert put it, "What is worthy of satire is the misuse of religion for destructive or political gains. That's totally different from the Word, the blood, the body and the Christ. His kingdom is not of this Earth."
Colbert also taught Sunday school for three years, and he's an ordained minister as well. On a recent Howard Stern Show appearance, he again stressed the importance of having a sense of humor about one's beliefs. "I don't mind being mocked about it," he said. "I mean that's good. If you can come up with a good joke about the Catholic Church I might steal it."
In case you were wondering, his favorite Saint is Peter, his confirmation name is Simon, and his favorite scripture passage is Matthew 6:25-34, which he had read at his wedding.