Actor Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa who starred in the movie “Priest-San: Samurai’s Confession” accepted baptism in the Russian Orthodox Church. The sacrament was performed by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk. The newly-baptized man received the name of Panteleimon.
The actor also stated earlier that he was going to take Russian citizenship.
“Taking Russian citizenship has become a new trend, but my decision was made from the heart. It is a result of a long life and understanding that heart and soul are the most important in life. There are no easy decisions in the world and everything is hardly simple in America. This is a new test,” the actor said during his press conference about the opening of “Priest-San: Samurai’s Confession”.
“It is not easy to become Orthodox either, considering the number of religious conflicts around the world. As for me, the opportunity to become an Orthodox Christian and to find my people is a sign of God. It does not matter whatever the tests are. I accept them as a true Japanese warrior,” Mr. Tagawa pointed out.
Photo by Anna Galperina
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is an American actor of Japanese descent. He is mostly known for playing villains in action movies shot at the end of the 1980s and the middle of the 1990s. He also appeared in the series “Star Trek: The New Generation”, Thunder in Paradise, Baywatch, and also in the episode “Convictions” in “Babylon 5”. He starred in Mortal Kombat, Pearl Harbor, and Memoirs of a Geisha.
“Priest-San: Samurai’s Confession” is a Russian movie. It is to come out in theaters on November 26, 2015. Father Ivan Okhlobystin was a script writer and played the part of the villain. Boris Grebentshikov was the record producer. The movie is rated unsuitable for children under 16. The main character, Takuro Nakamura, Father Nikolai in baptism, (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), is a priest of the Japanese Orthodox Church, brother of the head of a powerful clan of Yakuza, and a former professional sportsman. Having come to Russia, Father Nikolai unites local residents of a village around a nearly destroyed church and acts as their protector in a conflict with local criminals.
Translated from the Russian.
