23-time Major champion Serena Williams was baptized on Sunday as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Media Take Out has confirmed. The legendary American was baptized at the Jehovah’s Witness Assembly in West Palm Beach, Florida.
The 41-year-old tennis superstar was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness by her family, in a starkly religious home. For the uninitiated, Jehovah’s Witnesses are a branch of Christianity which has a membership of almost nine million people.
But being Jehovah’s Witness in today’s society is pretty difficult. Media Take Out confirmed that the denomination prohibits observing holidays like Easter, Christmas, birthdays, or any festival with pagan origins – including Halloween, July 4th or Thanksgiving. The only celebrations that they can participate in are wedding anniversaries.
And what about her husband Alexis? Well Media Take Out has learned that he’s a practicing Jehovah’s Witness also. In an exclusive interview with Vogue Magazine two years ago, Serena said, “Being a Jehovah’s Witness is important to me, but I’ve never really practiced it and have been wanting to get into it. Alexis didn’t grow up going to any church, but he’s been really receptive and even takes the lead. He puts my needs first.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses are also told to abstain from politics, voting, and the other aforementioned activities. So don’t expect Serena to participate in any Get Out The Vote stuff in the coming 2024 presidential election. They are also barred from attending weddings of people belonging to other religions.
Serena did make one notable exception to the weddings ban … she attended Meghan Markle’s royal wedding 3 years ago, Media Take Out reported.
“I have to thank Jehovah God for this. I was down and out and he helped me today and I just said prayers, not to win but to be strong and to be healthy and in the end I was able to come through so I have to give the glory to him first and foremost,” Williams said in 2015.
