Testimony of Conversion
Capt. Victor Suresh Sohmen
Here is the story of my conversion experience from a traditional Hindu background of worshipping idols and of ancient rituals, to the dramatic experience of salvation through the Gospel of the crucified, risen, ascended, and soon-returning
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Voyage Into Spiritual Freedom
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 My widowed mother's gently-worded letter from the other side of the world could not shield me from the staggering blow. My idealistic, energetic father, only 49 years old, was dead! My father was my idol. Hindu astrologers had predicted at his birth that he would live to be at least 76. But he was gone! On board the Ajanta sailing toward Japan through the Panama Canal, I read the tear-stained letter again. I was struck and deeply moved by my mother's selflessness in spite of her own grief. She urged me not to give up my new sea career, but to make a success of it as my father would have wished. Taking her advice, my goal now was to become the youngest ship captain in the Indian merchant marine. Eager to learn and ambitious to rise, I decided to discipline myself, avoiding the evil habits that had trapped many of my shipmates. I had to get ahead of the pack. My Father had expected it of me! By the age of 21 I was enjoying my job as the Second Officer on a new Indian cargo ship Vishva Asha (Sanskrit for: "The Hope of the Universe"). We were on a voyage from India to Japan. Shortly after dropping anchor in the approaches of Nagoya harbour in southern Japan, the shipping agents brought our mail that had been flown in from India just before our arrival. There was just one letter for me. It was from my beloved mother. Nothing could have prepared me for this second shock.
My older brother had not only become a Christian himself, but had "led" all the other members of the family in Madras (Chennai) to become Christians too! My brother and I had studied together in a military high school in South India (Sainik School, Coimbatore District), where we were taught to respect all religions. Even as Hindus, we not only worshipped at the temple, but also visited the mosque and chapel on the large campus.
Soon after high school we both joined the Indian merchant marine. While undergoing pre-sea training on the former British troop-ship Dufferin anchored off Bombay, I noted that out of the 73 trainees (cadets) on board from all over India, several called themselves "Christians." The rest of us--mostly Hindus--lived what we considered to be clean lives. On the other hand, many "Christian" trainees revelled in illegal consumption of liquor, smoked tobacco and marijuana, and visited prostitutes in the red-light districts of Bombay (Mumbai) while on shore leave. One day two of the "Christian" cadets--obviously drunk--got into a fight while on the motor-boat bringing several of us trainees from shore leave. As Cadet Captain, I had to take action and so I stepped in to stop the fight. While attempting to grab the knife from one of them, I got my left hand slashed. And from that day onwards I was filled with an intense hatred for Christians. Now, as I read of my family's conversion to this despised "foreign" religion imported by the British during their long rule in India (until 1947), I remembered finding my brother, a few weeks earlier, carrying a Bible. We were both in the port of Calcutta. Infuriated, I had let him know that I considered Christians to be the worst people in the world. I then made an eloquent request for him to return to Hinduism. I finished with an emotional appeal to the memory of our dead father, who had been a strong devotee of several Hindu gods and goddesses. He listened patiently to my speech. When I was done, he assured me that he was a "born-again" Christian, not the kind of Christians (nominal) I hated. Thrusting a New Testament into my pocket, he begged me to deliver it to our mother when my ship sailed into the port of Madras (Chennai). He could not be a secret Christian, he said, and must share his faith at least with his family. Determined, however, that they should never become Christians I tossed the book into a trash can at the first street corner of Espalanade, Calcutta. Now at port in Japan I was almost sick with fury and despair. My brother had taken the train from Calcutta to Madras and had achieved his purpose....Our whole family--Christians! What a great tragedy! Through generations we had visited Hindu temples regularly, offering gifts of sweets, coconuts and flowers to satisfy silent, solemn deities cast in gold, silver and polished granite. I even had my head shaved ritually to please the unforgiving gods. There was no question about it. I would remain a devout Hindu. Surely my family would see their folly and return to our morally rigorous, ancestral religion.
Late in the evening I put on my uniform to go on my 12-hour night duty. At midnight the Japanese watchman at the ship's entrance greeted me: "Konban wa (Good evening). Are you a Christian?" I was startled. Regaining my composure, I replied, "I am not. Is that any of your business?" After an hour I passed by the ship's entrance again. This time the watchman flashed his gold-capped teeth and asked,"Sumi masen (Excuse me), are your family members Christians?" It was like being hit with a pole-axe! I coldly warned him, "If you talk to me again, unless I talk to you, I'll dismiss you!" The next time I passed by the ship's entrance, I saw a peculiar sight. The watchman, on his knees with arms raised, was praying aloud. I distinctly heard him say in English,"Lord Jesus Christ, make him a Christian!"
When at length he opened his eyes and saw me, he hastily bowed in apology. "This is your last warning," I told him. "The next time you say or do anything that has nothing to do with your duty on the ship, you will be sent away from the ship."
For the rest of my night duty I had no trouble from him. However, as I prepared to go ashore, I felt I should apologise. By Japanese standards, my conduct had been rude. The watchman also apologised profusely, then scribbled directions in Japanese and handed them to me. Assuming he wanted me to visit some place of tourist interest, I was soon on my way. On shore I discovered that my camera's shutter-lever was stuck...and while wondering how to occupy myself I remembered the note in my pocket. With the aid of local people who interpreted the Japanese characters for me, I managed to reach the destination indicated.
It was an evangelical Christian church! Disappointed but curious, I entered and found a minister. "I've been expecting a foreigner," he said warmly. He then presented me with a Japanese-English Bible. Sensing my reluctance, he assured me that the bilingual Bible was proof that he had indeed been expecting a foreigner [gaijin]--me! He even told me that this was a vision God had given him early that morning. When I finally agreed to receive the Bible, he prayed in Japanese, concluding in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Back on the ship I placed the Bible on my bookshelf, along with my growing collection of books (I was a voracious reader). I vowed to never open the Book of the Christians. But from that day onwards, my soul was greatly agitated. I threw myself into my work, trying to get rid of this strange lack of peace.
Finally my ship was headed back to India, toward my home port of Madras (Chennai)! I was excited when we docked in the harbour, but too proud to share with my family the mysterious events of the past few weeks. Instead, I told them it was a mistake for them to forsake the religion of our forefathers. My mother calmly replied that since her conversion, she had been praying for me night and day with tears. I assured her respectfully that I wanted no part of her Christianity, and left.
Back on the ship, I went to bed but tossed uneasily. Finally, I locked my cabin door and took down the Bible from the bookshelf. I then placed a chair in the middle of the room and put the Bible on it. It seemed that some supernatural power was at work. If it was Jesus Christ, I wanted to know for sure. Trembling, I knelt by the chair and prayed: "If You, Jesus Christ, are the God, and powerful enough to be causing this agitation in my soul, speak to me through Your Book!"
Then, for the first time in my life, I opened the Bible to read. My eyes fell on these words: "Where shall I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence?....If I rise on the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there...Your right Hand will lead me." These words stunned me. They reminded me of an strange line from my mother's letter: "You need to become a Christian only if the Holy Spirit leads you." And here I was--a seafarer, trying to run from the presence of the Spirit of God!
In a cold sweat I looked to see how Psalm 139 ended: "Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." The powerful words seared my soul. With a broken heart, I asked the Lord to forgive me for running away from His great Love, to take away my sins, and to dissolve the great agitation in my soul.
Suddenly, a great peace came over me and flooded my weary soul. When I got up from my knees I knew I was a new creature in Christ (II Cor. 5:17). My beloved mother's persistent prayers had been answered!
What a joy it is to be part of a family which has rejected man-made idols and turned in faith to the Living God! What a marvellous gift of Grace is the sinner's salvation through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ! Now, my family and I have the great hope of living with Him through all eternity in Heaven!
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 Brother's Testimony |
 Capt. Victor S. Sohmen 27975 Quinton Ave Aldergrove, BC Canada V4X 1J7. |
The Titanic Lesson |
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