
Rick Riordan’s tales of the Greek Gods were the start of my foray into religion, unlike those of most Korean children who are either taken to the nearest church or Buddhist temple since before they can remember. My upbringing was not religious and I stayed well away from attempts to recruit me to any organized religious commitments. I didn’t know much but one thing was clear in my heart - that every step of my journey into religion, if I ever embarked on it, would be taken on my own terms, when it felt right.
For a long while, my somewhat defensive position on religion did not change. But in 2022, I was inspired to learn more about Christianity through my mom. She herself had held a skepticism similar to mine, and had largely stayed away from religion other than her occasional visits to Buddhist temples. That continuum broke when Mr. Eo-ryong Lee passed away on Feb 18th of that year. Mr. Lee, one of Korea's most highly regarded thinkers, published his last lecture online, and the contents of his video shocked my mom. He shared the story of how he was convinced by his daughter to believe in the Christian God, and my mom found truth in his tale. I could see a visible, positive change in my mom as she read the Bible and listened to many sermons on YouTube - she started to verbalize her thankfulness for being able to wake up each day, and marveled at everyday things such as the existence of air or of sunlight.
At first, I thought mom’s changed behavior was really cheesy, and at times, secretly wished she would stop. But as I compared my own attitude to hers with each day that passed, I realized that I was waking up grumpy, with more complaints than gratefulness about what was given to me. I wanted to live every day more like my mom did: happy and grateful. So over the summer of 2022, I tried to read the Bible, and went on morning walks with my mom to a nearby church. My efforts weren’t very effective, like those of a meat-lover unsuccessfully transitioning to the vegetarian lifestyle. This past winter break, however, I started to gain traction as I started reading the Bible again. Preparing for REL 251, which I’m taking this semester, was definitely a part of it, but I was mainly motivated to approach reading the Bible as a work of literature, from an English major’s point of view. That way, I wasn’t necessarily beholden to believe with absolute certainty everything that I read - I could just absorb the content like I would the story of a novel. With that mindset, it was smooth sailing for me once I got through the first page; I got through some of the Old Testament, then the New Testament up until the Gospel of Luke. And now in REL 251, I’ve read all of the Pauline epistles, as well as other epistles and supporting documents, which is introducing me to the historiographical approach to learning about Christianity and faith.

To experience God’s presence in larger crowds, I started church-hopping with my good friend, Hyun Shin ‘27. She was raised Christian but hadn’t yet settled on a church here in the Princeton area where she felt comfortable in, and was happy to let me join her on Sundays. Now we share the mission of finding a church that we both like. We visited Hope Presbyterian during the first half of Spring semester and are planning to visit Ecclesia soon. I’ve also been invited to an off-campus Bible study by my friend Ify Obianwu ‘27, which I am excited to attend soon. On March 25th, I attended a Daily Mass hosted by the Aquinas Institute and held in the Princeton Chapel and thoroughly enjoyed being lost in a sea of people who knew exactly what prayers to say during the chaplain’s service, and accidentally ate the cracker that was meant for Catholic attendees only. On April 12th, my RCA Chioma Ugwonali ‘24 delivered her testimony, which I listened to with friends of mine who also were friends of hers, and it was reaffirming to share in the knowledge of her triumphs and struggles, and the beauty she brings to others, empowered by her faith. Other than making beginners’ mistakes that I can now laugh on as I reflect back, I was glad to seek out God’s presence in the company of others during tough times and find some comfort. Letting my explorations of Christianity challenge and expand my budding faith in God and my spirituality overall is my comprehensive and ultimate goal.