I began my spiritual journey in eastern religion – specifically Hinduism. Colleen was raised a traditional, pre-Vatican II Roman Catholic, and went to Catholic parochial schools from kindergarten to high school. Colleen’s spirituality was formed as a Roman Catholic and she barely knew the word “Hindu” until we met. Our backgrounds could not have been more different. I came from a non-religious home near New York City. When I was around 16, after dropping out of high school and being involved in drugs and street life, my Mother introduced me to Buddhism and then to Vedanta Hinduism. Shortly after, we both began attending a Hindu center in New York City. I became an initiate of the Center’s leader and guru and spent the next two and a half years as a devotee and ashram member. Ironically, it was in the Hindu Center’s ashram in upstate New York where – sitting in Hindu puju – the picture on the wall of Christ on the cross (Vedanta Hinduism teaches all paths lead to God) introduced me to Christ.

I guess you could say our journey to Orthodoxy, unknowingly began back around 1990. Until that period of time, my wife Trenna and I had no other reference than the Protestant church. I had spent the previous 14 years with the Vineyard and was very involved there; and previous to that about 10 years with the Friends (Quaker) church; as well as being connected to Calvary Chapel in one way or another. For nearly as long, so was Trenna.