How John C. Wright Came to Faith in Christ: Richard Lawrence Cohen Makes Me Think, Part 2

Richard Lawrence Cohen has linked to this incredibly interesting piece about how science fiction writer, philosopher, and one-time atheist John C. Wright came to believe in the God proclaimed by Christians.

It's an incredibly magnanimous piece for Richard to point to, because while he's not an atheist, he's also not a Christian. The piece is worth reading in its entirety and appears on Speculative Catholic here.

I wrote more comments for poor Richard to read:

While I can't claim the intellectual prowess or rigor of Wright, his coming to faith is similar to my own.

I too, was an atheist, and I too thought that whole Christian business was absurd.

But at both the intellectual and as [Wright] would call it, the supernatural levels, Christ as God-enfleshed and Savior was the hypothesis that wouldn't let me go. (I guess I would call the latter category, the practical level, in a way, since there is nothing more practical than a God Who can help us when we suffer from a heart attack.)

It won't surprise you either, to learn that as was apparently true for Wright, the writings of C.S. Lewis were important in my conversion. I read none of Lewis' novels until twelve years ago, when our children were twelve and nine years old. I read 'The Chronicles of Narnia' to them and my wife as we drove to Florida and back. The first of his books was a work of fiction, although it was fiction that seemed teeming with reality, 'The Screwtape Letters,' ostensibly the letters of a senior devil to a junior tempter. Next, I read 'Mere Christianity,' still my favorite Lewis book.

Where I really identified with Wright though, was when he described his conversion to faith in Christ as being like falling in love. This is exactly how I have always described my own conversion. Jesus, the One Who loves us unconditionally, swept me off my feet.

I hadn't fully realized what happened to me [until] I had a dream one night. I don't usually remember my dreams. But this one I haven't been able to forget, although it came to me nearly thirty years ago. In it, I was walking and saw Jesus walking toward me. He approached me and wrapped His arms around me. I could even feel the fabric of His cloak. He said nothing. He simply welcomed me, like the Prodigal I was...and still sometimes can be. I woke up, smiling.