Comedian and actor Chris Rock has spoken about his understanding of Christianity, saying forgiveness is at the heart of what it means to follow Christ.

Speaking on the most recent episode of The Interview, a podcast from The New York Times, Rock reflected on forgiveness and friendship.

The conversation came after the interviewer asked him about a line from his new film Misty Green which his character tells another character: “True love starts at forgiveness.”

Rock said the experience had made him think differently about what love really means. “You don’t really realise if you love somebody until you have to forgive them,” he said.

“It’s when somebody tests you, when somebody betrays you, when somebody lets you down and you still want to be around them, that’s love."

Rock made clear that forgiveness doesn't mean accepting harmful behaviour.. “You can reprimand your friends," he added. "That’s also part of friendship.”

The conversation then turned explicitly to faith.

“I’m not religious, but I’m a Christian, and God forgives,” Rock said. “That’s what it’s all about.”

"The problem with quote, unquote, wokeness, and don’t get me wrong, it is great that marginalised people have a voice; it is great to advocate for anybody that feels marginalised, but the problem is we’re in the Old Testament right now, and the Old Testament has no forgiveness. The Old Testament didn’t work, so they had to write a remix called the New Testament."

His comments were part of a wider discussion about the cultural changes that followed the murder of George Floyd in 2020 and the debates over race and social justice that followed.