At one of the most unlikely places, I met one of the most unlikely T4G attendees. While waiting for the seminary shuttles on the morning of the conference’s second day, I met Damien, a native of Krakow, Poland, making his first visit to the United States. According to official numbers, Damien was the only Polish attendee at T4G, and may well have been the only practicing Roman Catholic.
“In the Catholic Church right now, Protestants are so cool,” Damien said, adding he had never been around so many Protestants in his life. “I feel like a guest in a hive, there are so many people.”
Damien agreed with many things said during the conference about Reformers Martin Luther and John Calvin’s roles in church history, even saying he personally believes the Church benefited from their ministries.
“From a Catholic perspective, they were wrong because they left the Church. But from my point of view, they were right because they wanted to change something,” he said. “The only problem was the Catholic Church was too stubborn to say [Luther and Calvin] were right in some places. Then they admitted that officially in the 20th century — not completely but they confirmed that [the Reformation] was okay.”
For Damien, the Reformation was necessary, but its purpose has been completed. “It was a positive for the Church,” he said. He particularly enjoyed Ligon Duncan’s address, which opened the conference.
“The first one [Duncan], if he goes to Poland, he will convert the whole nation,” he joked. “They all will be Protestant, he was so good.”
When asked whether he would pick up some books while he was at the conference, Damien beamed. “I already have 14!”
