{"id":2426280,"date":"2026-05-21T12:16:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:16:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2426280"},"modified":"2026-05-21T12:16:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T12:16:13","slug":"how-elizabeth-smarts-faith-changed-after-she-was-kidnapped","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/how-elizabeth-smarts-faith-changed-after-she-was-kidnapped\/","title":{"rendered":"How Elizabeth Smart\u2019s Faith Changed After She Was Kidnapped"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

After Elizabeth Smart<\/span><\/a><\/strong> survived nine months of being kidnapped, so many aspects of her life changed forever \u2014 including her definition of faith.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the spiritual sense, I would say before, it was just very rigid, very, \u2018This is what was said, so this is what I\u2019m going to believe,\u2019\u201d Smart, 38, exclusively reveals in her Us Weekly<\/i> cover story<\/span><\/a>, on newsstands now. \u201cAnd now it\u2019s evolved more, like, this makes sense to me, my heart. This resounds in my heart. For me, this is truth, and I believe in this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Smart was kidnapped<\/span><\/a> from her Salt Lake City home at the age of 14 by religious fanatic Brian David Mitchell<\/strong> and his wife, Wanda Barzee<\/strong>, and was held captive for nine months before being safely rescued in 2003.<\/p>\n

When she was taken against her will, she remembers her captors \u201cconstantly being like, \u2018God commanded us to do this. God commanded us to do that.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t
\n Related: <\/span>Where Is Elizabeth Smart 2 Decades After Her Abduction? Inside Her Life Now<\/span><\/a>
\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\tElizabeth Smart has offered glimpses into her life more than two decades after her abduction and rescue. Smart was abducted from her bedroom in 2002 by Brian David Mitchell when she was only 14 years old. With help from Mitchell\u2019s wife, Wanda Barzee, Smart was held captive for nearly a year while experiencing physical, sexual [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThat was kind of the beginning of me being like, \u2018No, He didn\u2019t. No, He didn\u2019t. God wouldn\u2019t tell you to hurt someone else. That\u2019s not the God I know,\u2019\u201d Smart continues. \u201cThat was kind of the beginning of me recognizing that just because somebody says something does not mean it\u2019s necessarily true.\u201d<\/p>\n

What continues to be true for Smart is the importance of family and living life to the fullest. The activist, who shares children Chloe, 11, James, 9, and Olivia, 7, with husband Matthew Gilmour<\/strong>, recently made headlines for competing in a bodybuilding competition.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\n
\"Feature<\/div>
Megan Turley<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While Smart spent her childhood dressed modestly, she recently owned the stage in a bikini when she proudly shared photos via Instagram<\/span><\/a> from an April competition, where she placed first in her division<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the wonderful thing about this, in regards to my post, is that the overwhelming majority of people were so positive about it, where I had the fear that it was going to be the opposite,\u201d she tells Us<\/i>. \u201cI feel like that was very hopeful to me and encouraging that society is changing. I think if I had done this 100 years ago,I would not have gotten that reaction. I think it is inspiring and hopeful that society is changing, that women can step on stage and feel supported instead of judged.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Smart continues to make health and fitness a priority, she also won\u2019t stop advocating for crime victims.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\t\"\"
\n\t\"\"<\/p>\n