Secretary of State Marco Rubio may be the second-busiest man in Washington, D.C., but that didn't stop him from taking some time to sit down with Raymond Arroyo on Thursday for an interview for EWTN's "The World Over" program. While they talked about the usual foreign policy topics, Arroyo took some time to ask Rubio more about faith and culture than most other interviewers do, and I really enjoyed what he had to say, so I thought I'd share in case you missed it.
Rubio admitted that he doesn't necessarily have time to keep up with a lot of cultural issues these days — which should come as a shock to no one — but he did comment on entertainers like Howard Stern and Stephen Colbert losing their platforms. He felt that it had more to do with the business side of things than the culture, implying that traditional media is simply changing, and these guys aren't keeping up.
I think ultimately these are businesses, and the landscape, the media landscape, the way people are getting news, information, and entertainment is rapidly changing across the board. It’s rapidly changing. And so, I think we are living in an era in which sort of what we describe or consider traditional media is going to erode in favor of some – I think everyone’s trying to reinvent themselves. We saw newspapers go through this, we saw other media formats go through this; and I think it’s now finally reaching broadcasters. And I think that both on radio and television, it’s just a rapidly changing landscape. The overwhelming – increasingly – majority of people are not getting their news sitting live in front of a program. They’re getting a clip on social media or they’re getting it from an alternative site that’s providing news and information.
Arroyo then asked the secretary about his thoughts on actress Cynthia Erivo playing Jesus in the musical "Jesus Christ Superstar" at the Hollywood Bowl this past weekend. "You are an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center. My question is: Would you ever put that show with Cynthia Erivo at the Kennedy Center?" he asked.
In case you missed it, this is a sample of what he's talking about:
🔥🚨BREAKING: Footage has released of Hollywood actress Cynthia Erivo playing as Jesus in Hollywood Bowl’s Jesus Christ Superstar and Adam Lambert as Judas. pic.twitter.com/rfFs8qhjsP
— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) August 2, 2025
Rubio admitted that he really wasn't familiar with this situation, though based on Arroyo's description alone, the answer was definitely "no." But then he said something that I felt was particularly meaningful: "...that stuff's done to be provocative, but I think for people of faith, none of this should be new."
He continued:
It’s been true from the beginning of Christianity. It’s been – Christianity has been mocked. Christianity has been attacked from its very inception. In fact, the church has traditionally been at its strongest when it’s the persecuted church.
It’s been at its weakest when it sort of gets consumed by the culture and – so by definition, Christianity has always been countercultural. It was from its earliest days, and it’s been at its strongest and most vibrant. Now, that doesn’t mean we seek persecution or that we don’t take it on, but I think we should understand that in Christ’s own command He – in Christ’s own words He tells us: They’re going to hate you because of me. They hated me before they hate you.
If anyone knows about persecuted Christians, Rubio is the guy. Right now, Christians around the world face horrific consequences for simply practicing their faith, and the secretary has a front row seat. Recently, Islamic Jihadists killed 49 Christians in a church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In June, they killed over 200 Christians in Nigeria, a country where more Christians are killed than in any other place in the world.
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Rubio said he and President Donald Trump are committed to world peace, and they want to work with authorities in countries like Nigeria to prevent these types of massacres from happening again. He added, "They have to make it a priority to prevent it."
The secretary also thinks the Vatican could eventually play a role in the Trump administration's plans to spread peace and prosperity around the world.
I think the Vatican could play a very key role in many parts of the world. They’re actually very skilled diplomatically. In the end, their number one goal has to be that – I wouldn’t want to call it the national interest of the Vatican, but the church and its presence in different places. I know they’re deeply concerned, for example, that the church is being heavily persecuted in Nicaragua, as an example. So, they’re always concerned about the church in China, which has been a point of friction with the U.S. Government in the past. But I mean, they’re important, and they’ve offered to get involved in any way they can on bringing about peace as a forum or as a facilitator. So, these are things maybe we’ll be able to work on.
Pope Leo XIV has spoken out against these recent massacres and has been outspoken on this topic for many years.
I renew my deep sorrow for the brutal terrorist attack that occurred during the night between 26 and 27 July in Komanda, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where over 40 Christians were killed in a church during a prayer vigil, and in their own homes. As…
— Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex) July 30, 2025
Rubio, who is Catholic, spoke to Lara Trump on Fox News about his own faith last month. He said it's what keeps him grounded at such a chaotic time and reminds him that there is so much more to life than politics and government.
The mainstream media doesn't care about the persecution of Christians or the Trump administration's desire to stop it, but we do. We'll always report on these stories and bring you the truth behind what's happening to people of faith around the world.
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