A journey from atheism in China to Catholicism in the United States – CatholicVote org

CV NEWS FEED // In a recent op-ed published in The Catholic Spirit, Juekun Wen, a recent Catholic convert, shared his journey from the atheism he grew up surrounded by in China to Catholicism in the US.

I became Catholic because I am a seeker of truth, Wen wrote in his June 17 article. God planted wonderful people along my journey in my darkest hour to show me the path of light, leading me toward him.

Describing his upbringing in China, Wen recalled that his family did not practice religion. He did not encounter Christianity until he was 25. I have always been taught that nothing is valid until proven to be true, he wrote. Skepticism was my religion.

However, after finishing his studies at the University of Richmond, and working for a few years as a lab technician, Wen decided he would visit his parents before returning back to the US to attend graduate school at the University of Minnesota.

Then covid happened.

Wen was faced with either having to return to China and potentially be unable to return for graduate school, or remain in the US without a job or place to live.

I was very depressed and anxious and felt that my life had hit rock bottom. Little did I know that the Almighty had his plan for me, even though I was not one of his followers yet, he wrote.

Ultimately, Wen recalled that it was one of his undergraduate professors who came to his aid, and subsequently led him to the Catholic faith.

Upon hearing of Wens circumstance, the professor and his family, who are all Christian, offered to host Wen for as long as he needed. It was during this time that Wen began to learn about Christianity.

Wen later attended the University of Minnesota, where his professor connected him with the family that would later become his sponsors to the Catholic Church, and the future godparents to his child.

Alongside his studies, Wen discovered that the more he learned about God, the more he realized that religion and science are not in conflict.

I came to realize that the analytical method and inquisitive mindset (as my younger self would call it, being skeptical) fostered by science are powerful tools to aid one in understanding and searching for truth, he wrote, adding:

One can say that those are wonderful gifts that our Lord has bestowed upon us, to be able to search for him.

Wen now attends St Mark parish in St Paul, where he lives with his wife Lauren. They are currently expecting their first child.

Looking back now, I feel so blessed and grateful for God to put those people in my life to guide me to him, he concluded: Even when I was skeptical of his existence, God had his way of leading me to the truth and happiness.

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