Three Words Unlocked Christianity For Me

Cocoyoc, Estado de Morelos

My wife and I were seated in the pews of a small chapel deep in the Mexican jungle when I first wondered if the English translations of the Bible were sponsored by soft drink corporation. The mass for my cousins wedding was unfolding when my wife leaned into my ear and said to me “I have no idea what’s going on”. “What do you mean?” I wondered aloud. “The priest just recited Psalm 23. You know Psalm 23.”

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing

He makes me lie down in green pastures

He leads me beside quiet waters

He refreshes my soul…

But that was the English translation. My wife, a German American, was encountering patiently again, the family and practices of her Latin American husband. As we exited the chapel in Mexico, I wondered what the English speakers meant by “He refreshes my soul”. Every English Speaking Christian knows this verse. Even close English speaking friends of ours have these words engraved on a white stone in their washroom. But what does it mean? God can’t be the equivalent of a Cola machine.

Somehow, Animam Meam Convertit from the early christian centuries became He refreshes my soul. Rather than trace the etymological evolutions that got us here, we should focus on that last word that has an important implication for the Christian religion.

Convertit (con-VER-teet) third-person singular present/perfect active indicative.

1. To Convert

In my recently released devotional, Restored in the Rhythm, I translated Animam Meam Convertit to My Soul is His, He Converts me. This declaration is in opposition with how English speakers discuss religion. It is not that we convert to Catholicism or some vague sense of Christianity. It is God that offers to convert the souls he gave every human being. He converts humans not to religion, but to Himself. The soul is not merely refreshed but restored (as older English translations have rendered this word in the Psalms). But to receive this restoration we must sit with the architect and review his designs for creation.

Imagine if every shelter from skyscraper to shack was constructed on a Sunday for two hours or less? No wonder we have cathedrals to capitalism casting shadows on the old temples! Our religion isn’t the pew we choose for a brief moment in our week. Our conversion must be with the frequency of critical constructing.

I could write how the West is both bankrupt in fiat and moral. The demand to Return to Office is in direct competition with the Restoration of Souls. I used to think the penance of a daily rosary was punishment before I could see it was a taste of liberty. Now the indulgences of salaries have become self flagellations complete with facades of piety. So we see sterile fluorescent lit temples becoming the places the world desires for our conversion.

In the West for a time, people were allowed to be Christian, so as long as this Christian was not converting to the God of Creation. That kind of daily conversion would allow for a soul to know its worth without work. That kind of religion would end up being a relationship with the King of Heaven. If humanity could befriend royalty, they would no longer slave over concrete and spreadsheets.

Every day the Lord offers conversion to all women, men, and children. When I submitted to the shepherd and allowed myself to truly say, I lack nothing, I was finally free to be dwelling in eternity on earth as it is in heaven.

My soul is his and He converts me.

Until next week,

-Steven

PS. My new book Restored in the Rhythm is a 28 day devotional focusing on these beautiful little moments we would otherwise miss in the sacred scriptures. Every day dive into the original canonized Latin used by the majority of Christians throughout history. Then explore a few questions to go deeper into your own conversion.