Devika Shah, a Cambridge University student, has traversed a remarkable path of spiritual exploration. Born into a Hindu family in London, she initially embraced atheism, drawing inspiration from renowned atheists Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. However, it was the enlightening Biblical lectures of clinical psychologist and author Jordan Peterson that sparked a profound transformation within Devika. This transformative experience led her down a new path, ultimately leading to her conversion to Catholicism. Devika describes her faith journey in an exclusive interview with SW News:
Can you share your experience growing up in a Hindu family in London?
London is home to a very large community of Hindus, which my family was part of. Although we went to the temple on various festivals and participated in cultural and semi-religious events, it was more for the sense of community and family tradition, rather than actual faith in Hinduism. My grandmother is quite spiritual, she prays daily and subscribes to the main beliefs of Jainism. I had a fairly secular upbringing and interacted with lots of different religious groups in school – mostly Jewish and Muslim, where I grew up. This meant I was literate in many different worldviews, but accepted secularism and liberalism as the most sensible mode of living. My parents were also born and raised in the UK which is why liberalism and secularism played such an important role in my childhood – because that is the Britain they had also grown up in.
Can you elaborate on the aspects of Jordan Peterson’s Biblical series that resonated with you the most? How did they influence your decision to start reading the Bible and eventually convert to Catholicism?
I initially watched parts of the Biblical series when I was about 16 or 17, and admittedly, I didn’t understand a lot of it due to its heavy emphasis on psychology and my unfamiliarity with Biblical stories. But what captured me the most is that Peterson did not simply reject the Bible as some outdated and irrelevant book, which is what I had done. Quite the opposite; he taught that Truth can be found at the deepest level in the Scriptures and that they reflect millennia of human interaction with the Divine. I had realized that whilst I was an atheist in my teenage years, I had disregarded an entire belief system and set of Scriptures without even knowing the contents of them. It wasn’t necessarily the Bible that led me to the Catholic Church. Rather, it was a moment of conversion in St Mary’s Basilica in Krakow in December 2019, that led me to think that if Christianity is real, it had to be in the Catholic Church. I remember walking in and experiencing a weight lift off my chest and feeling a deep sense of awe. Retrospectively, I know that is because I was in the presence of Christ in the Eucharist. But at the time, I didn’t know what it was – I just knew I had to seriously consider the truth claims of Christianity, which is why both after this experience and after following Jordan Peterson for so long, I decided to begin reading the Bible in January 2021, during the lockdown. Essentially, it boiled down to this: I knew that if the Bible and Christianity were true, Catholicism was true, because as an atheist, it was only the Catholic Church that had captured my attention and that had pushed me over the edge to explore Christianity. The passage that ultimately led me to accept Christ was Psalm 139:13-14, where I found out that my existence had a purpose, and that God created me because He loved me.
How did you navigate the process of joining RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) and preparing for baptism? Can you share any specific challenges or memorable experiences from that time?
My conversion took place over lockdown, so I was joining RCIA via Zoom for a few months. This was not a totally enjoyable or fruitful experience because the only interaction that I had with fellow Christians was once a week for one hour, over a screen. Additionally, the RCIA program at this parish was watching a video series, which meant that I couldn’t really delve into my personal challenges with the faith. However, when things started opening up again, and we could meet people in person, I switched to a parish that was closer to me and started having weekly one-to-one talks with my priest, who was able to answer my most burning questions on the faith and talk through any doubts I had. This really helped my faith grow because it turned out that my priest was also a convert and therefore knew what it was like to enter the faith as an adult. He suggested I be baptized sooner, rather than later because after talking to me, he knew my faith was strong and that I was serious about entering the Church. Rather than waiting for the Easter Vigil of 2022, I was baptized on 8th September 2021, the Feast of the Nativity of Mary.
Do you think your conversion to Catholicism has shaped your perspective on social and moral issues? If so, how?
My faith has definitely shaped my views on family, marriage, and social teaching. Before converting I was very absorbed in a more liberal worldview of marriage being more of a civil contract, which two people, regardless of gender can enter into. Of course, once realizing that marriage is actually a life-long covenant instituted by God, with the purpose of raising a family, I no longer accepted marriage as a mere civil contract. In addition, my views on family planning changed. However, interestingly, even whilst I was an atheist, I was pro-life. This is why I think the Lord used Psalm 139 to capture my attention because I already valued human life, I just did not know its purpose. I found out my purpose came from the fact that I was created by God and that because of this, I must act on my beliefs and acknowledge my duty to defend life. So, when I became a Catholic, I not only held pro-life views, but my faith encouraged me to speak about these views and take concrete measures to protect unborn babies, through volunteering and prayer.
Are there any specific ways in which your faith in Catholicism has influenced your personal values, decision-making, or relationships in your daily life?
My faith has impacted my relationships, especially with my family. I ask for the Lord’s forgiveness when I know I have done something wrong, which I found quite difficult to do before my conversion. And I now feel a greater sense of duty towards them, because I know the Lord placed us together for a specific plan, and that as a daughter, I am called to be faithful, obedient, and loving towards them. In daily life, I am far more conscious of trying to always speak the truth, which means I have noticed that I am more careful with the words I choose, and how I speak to others. Finally, my faith provides me with the reminder that my ultimate purpose is to glorify God, through my relationships with friends and family, my studies and work, and most importantly through imitating Christ in my daily life. I know I often fail and fall short of this calling, but I can trust in Christ’s unconditional love for me, and that it is through his Grace that I am continually made new. For this reason, I am no longer as much of a perfectionist academically as I once was, because I know my worth comes from the Lord’s love, rather than any momentary success I experience in this world.
