Actor and comedian Rob Schneider recently turned 60 years old and a lot has changed since his days in Hollywood. For starters, he recently converted to Catholicism after "going through life slugging along and ignoring God." Rob joins Glenn to tell the story of his transformation and explain how seeing evil spread around the world helped bring him to Christianity. And he also explains the lessons he has learned while growing older, including why he's willing to speak out for Israel and against the woke gender movement.
Transcript
Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors
GLENN: So there is a broad coalition for American communities. It's gathering tomorrow.
March for Israel.
And it's happening at the national mall in Washington, D.C.
And it's to show the support for Israel and Jews.
I wish I could be there.
I could not rearrange my schedule.
But I recommend, that you go tomorrow.
I've checked this out, six ways to Sunday.
These organizations, I don't agree with on everything. But on this, I absolutely agree.
March for Israel tomorrow, at the National Mall in Washington, DC.
We have Rob on? Schneider is with us now.
You just turned 60.
Hey, old man, how you are?
GLENN: I don't know how that happened?
Do I have to join that AARP?
STU: Yeah. I know. I think you have until 65.
I think. I don't know. I'm only 59.
ROB: Oh, wow. Oh, wow.
GLENN: So I'm not old like you yet.
ROB: All right, Jr.
GLENN: So, Rob, you wrote a great article about your journey into 60. And your advice into 60.
But you also talk about you've -- you've become a practicing Catholic.
You've -- you've -- were you Christian your whole life. And just never practicing?
What's your story?
ROB: Yeah. I was kind of going through life, slugging along, ignoring God.
And pretending that there was -- you know, kind of like the atheists mistake of -- and, you know, they're my friends, atheists. But they make the mistake of thinking like this whole universe is just this gigantic thing, expanding and bumping into stuff, and meaningless.
And that we're some accidental freak of intelligence.
That just happens. And then it will all go away.
And I just think that if my buddy Norah O'Donnell said, we -- we are a small fraction of the universe.
So if there's such a thing as compassion and love and empathy, then it must be endemic to this whole thing that we exist in.
And I -- I think that that little voice of Jesus Christ, was never -- was always coming back to me, even though I was going away from him.
And then finally, I think during all of this.
And kind of more obvious. I don't know how else to say it. But kind of more obvious evil in the world.
GLENN: Yeah.
ROB: I think it kind of -- it gave me -- you know, a -- I kind of got back to it, that way. Because if there's really organized evil in the world. And I don't think it's at all more powerful.
But I do think it's here to challenge us, as individually. As a family. As a community.
And I think also, as you and I have come to really understand them.
As a nation.
GLENN: Yeah.
ROB: That I think coming to God. And realizing, his father Rick Burger said.
And some people are having a question about Christianity. Is -- in Jesus. Whatever form it is. Just for me, Catholicism works. Because it's the closest to the word. Closest to the actual word of Jesus. Through -- to the Greek and the Latin.
And that's why it works for me.
GLENN: So, but -- you know, I saw an article about this.
In -- let me look. I think it was Christianity Today.
No, ChristianPost.com. And it talked about how you're -- you know, how you're -- you have failed in the past, to show Christ's forgiveness to those who you disagree with.
And it's really beautiful stuff, that you've said about forgiving people, et cetera, et cetera.
But then it goes into, yeah.
Yeah. But he's repeatedly weighed in on LGBTQ-related issues, on his X account.
He was talking about the -- the female athlete getting spiked in the face, by a male competing with the women.
And he wrote, this has got to stop. And parents, coaches, and women athletes all refuse to play against these men. It all stops.
And then he was on the Glenn Beck Program. And he talked about gender mutilation.
And so they're trying to say, that see, you really haven't changed. Because you're not forgiving of those things.
ROB: Well, that's the difference between, Christ doesn't want us to just stand down and accept evil. And forgive evil. And looking to perpetuate.
Christ wants us to stand up against it.
You don't want to -- Christ knocked over the -- the merchants that were no longer practicing.
At the temple.
Because he -- and sewed righteous anger.
We have protect the most vulnerable members of our society. Our children.
Now, there's this weird justification that seems to be okay, for women. Now suddenly, for the, quote, progress.
That they even take a backseat to other men. And that's what these people are.
They're men. They're not women. In any way, shape, or form.
And there's this strange societal narcissism. That is somehow accepted. In some ways.
And it's an attack on women. Which is an attack on God. And I think we need to stand up and protect them.
And it's just a -- there is evil that can perpetuate. And you know it's wrong. And the people know it's wrong.
And I know that -- that the female athletes, like Riley Gaines. Are actually talking, stepping up.
And my wife actually corrected me. Because I said, why don't the student athletes and these women step up.
You know, who are on these swim teams or basketball teams. Or volleyball teams. Step up and say something.
And she said, they do. But people aren't listening to them. Because people don't listen to women.
And I said, wow. I think she's right.
GLENN: I will tell you, that there's a great misunderstanding on speaking the truth.
That's all that Christ spoke. Was the truth.
And sometimes, people don't like it. Oh, well.
It doesn't mean that I stopped loving you. Because you're my brother or sister.
And I hope that at some point truth corrects you, and you come on the side of truth.
But I don't hate you. And I don't -- that's why I don't take it out. I try not to take it out on you. It's really hard. It's really hard.
ROB: It is hard. It is hard. And it's supposed to be hard. And it's supposed to be difficult. But we have to -- we have to try to -- we have to trust that -- that righteous instinct.
And it's there to challenge us.
But we cannot be silent.
And we cannot -- we cannot stand down. When -- you know, especially the most vulnerable members of our society. Are now under attack.
And I think it's -- you know, the LGBT community, that were -- it wasn't -- if not the whole community. But the community that is pushing us. Knowingly knows it's wrong.
Because they went to a group of attorneys, and they got advice, about how to do this. And they said, don't deal with any publicity. As far as, you know, the gender issues.
And the gender, what they call protections.
And it's interesting, because they just rename protections for something that is the opposite of it. Which is mutilation.
Because you have -- and I tell people, who -- because they use our good will against us.
Which is inherently evil.
But if these children, can't vote, or we don't allow them to drive.
We don't allow them to own a gun. We don't allow them to join the army.
We -- or even get tattoos.
Because they are not capable of making these permanent decisions.
About these things. But yet, we're able to do these horrible -- and they are for horrible things.
GLENN: Right. Right.
ROB: And that have lifelong repercussions. And you see, Prager University, there's a wonderful -- wonderful film. I say wonderful, but there was a very knowledgeable.
And informing film about the detransitioners.
And it's just -- it's criminal. And what it is, it's sad.
And let the child -- when you turn 18, before they decide to do something.
I think 18. My child, my oldest one. She wasn't an adult at 18 either.
She became an adult at 25. But I do think, at least, at a minimum, if you have any conscience at all.
Then they should be -- any faith at all, that you have -- wait until they're 18, until they make a decision.
And just don't jump on any new fads.
Especially a fad that has the -- the real evil of it, is this idea, that they can be infertile.
And destroy themselves for life.
I think there is a -- there is a really attack on babies.
There's an attack on girls. There's an attack on women.
GLENN: This whole thing is a culture of death.
I mean, you look at what's happening with the Palestinian rallies.
Where they're openly chanting, you know, death to Jews. And send them to Germany.
And all of these horrible, horrible things.
This -- every bit of this evil.
ROB: Coming at us. It is a culture of death. It's a culture -- I think there's different ways to look at this.
And, you know, my coming to Christ, was also an illogical sense of, I do think that you have the atheists now who have -- it's like the opposite of the Snopes trial.
The Snopes trial, which cornered in subtrials in the 1920s, which was about Christianity and evolution. And the idea that Christianity was -- was trying to close and limit the idea of God's plan. Of -- which could have been evolutionary in part, for sure.
Was -- was basically putting a splenetic spin on Christianity and faith.
What you have now, is the opposite of the Snopes trial.
You have the fanaticism, coming from the atheists, coming from godless people. And that are not wanting to see the potentiality of God, and the potentiality of what they're doing could be wrong.
And just a real, real -- exposing this. Seeing the LGBTQ community.
Who are supporting Hamas and the Palestinians.
And somebody whispering.
They would kill you. In a minute.
They will stone you to death.
These are not people. These are murderers.
You have to call them what they are.
And really, the sad thing about the pro-Palestinian things you see on campus.
And you see it's -- you know, when they say, do not forget. Never forget the Holocaust.
It's because, it is something that can be forgotten. And it is being forgotten. Because it's -- the -- the very few remaining Holocaust survivors, who are children now.
Very young children.
Now, you mentioned, a terrible thing, Glenn.
Which is that the -- the idea that the Holocaust could have been, you know, adding to this horrible anti-Semitism. You realize that it isn't.
It was an apex of anti-Semitism. That there is going to be a continuation of pogroms, and an attack on these people. And our -- on these people. Because it is -- it is a continuation of anti-Semitism.
And it is certainly not anywhere near the end of it.
And for people who -- war is hell.
And war is hell. And the idea that somehow there's a clean war, or there's a way to do it.
I mean, the death of children, in any situation is abhorrent and horrible.
And they -- and they try to prevent it as best you can. But I remember thinking of Robert McElmurry, who was working with the Air Force, during World War II.
They were talking about the firebombing Japanese cities, and -- which was, you know, something that --
GLENN: Horrific.
ROB: Horrific. Absolutely horrific. Dresden was absolutely horrific. Maybe more people died of Dresden than Nagasaki and Hiroshima combined, probably in World War II. Towards the end of -- but to bring Germany to its knees, to end that war. Was -- was a greater good.
And it's all horrible.
But the idea that Hamas is going to be allowed to survive in any form.
For our questioning of it, is what is going to replace it?
You know, that's the question.
But you have to -- you can't sit back and allow your people to be slaughtered.
Your babies. You can't. And we have to stand with Israel.
And we have to know that this is something, that it's -- it's not going to be easy.
And it's going to be -- it's going to require prayer. It will require God's help.
It will require our help.
But we have to be there for that. And not give in to this Hamas, publicity campaign.
Which is very good.
GLENN: We're talking to Rob Schneider.
He's actor, comedian, writer.
And he's just written a piece for TheBlaze.com: The Gift of Turning 60, where he talks about this, and so much more.
And you can find that on the front page of TheBlaze.
Rob, great talking you to. Thank you so much.
ROB: Always. Thank you for your time. And your faith.
GLENN: You bet. Godspeed.
