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| Crucifixion scene from “The Robe.” |
Oftentimes, I am asked to describe or recount my conversion story; this is a difficult endeavor as my encounter with Jesus Christ was not as much of a process as it was a moment. As with many aspects of my life, my conversion was not an Augustinian process of wandering, experimentation, discovery, research and resolution, but a singular instance of revelation. For this reason, I find converts such as St. Paul, St. Francis, and Alessandro Serenelli so compelling and the rather laborious and overly-intellectual journeys to God, that are currently much aggrandized, somewhat off-putting. Although I realize that everyone’s walk to Christ is different - those who tout their personal conversions often do so around a rather word-centered (Protestant) exercises in extreme-Bible study. But, what I have always found incredibly distinctive about Catholicism is its inherent mysticism - that indefinable that defies explanation. And, that’s how I came to the Church - inexplicably.