I've been with the Brahma Kumaris for 43 years now, a path that has been both profound and transformative.

My spiritual quest began long before I encountered the Brahma Kumaris. In fact, I spent 12 years as a Catholic nun, dedicating years of my life to spiritual pursuits within the convent. While I was committed to my faith, I often felt a deep dissatisfaction, a sense that I wasn't truly close to God. I yearned for a deeper connection, a more profound understanding, and I continuously prayed for guidance. 

My prayers were answered in a most unexpected way. In 1981, I heard about a conference in Kenya organized by the Brahma Kumaris on the "Origin of Peace." Before attending, I had a vivid vision: I saw sisters in long white robes, approaching a stage. When I arrived at the conference, I was stunned to see my vision come to life. There they were, the Brahma Kumaris sisters, just as I had seen them.

Initially, I admit, there was a struggle within me. As a Christian, the idea of engaging with a group that seemed to have a Hindu background was challenging. "How can I, a Christian, be shown Hindus?" I wondered. But the vision was undeniable, and after the conference, driven by an unshakeable inner knowing, another sister and I decided to seek out their center and take their course.

Learning about God and truly connecting with the Divine brought an incredible sense of relief. The constant anxiety of searching finally subsided; my heart settled. The truth resonated so deeply within me that I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, "This is where I need to be." 

As I delved deeper into the teachings, I began to align my life with them. One significant change was adopting a vegetarian diet. This, of course, led to clashes with the norms of the convent. The culture and rules there made it difficult to fully embrace these new practices. However, I was so determined because I knew I had found the truth. I even went to the Bible, researching to see if what they were teaching was in line with my Christian scriptures, and to my amazement, I found it was all there. It felt as though God had personally answered my prayers, showing me the right path.

One question that had always lingered in my mind as a Christian was, "How can I be like Christ?" I wanted that profound closeness to God that Christ exemplified, the ability to converse with the Divine as he spoke to his Father. This was a question no one could answer for me until I found the Brahma Kumaris. Here, the scriptures truly came alive, and what was written in them was explained and experienced as a reality.

When I started the course, the most profound experience was the feeling of being close to God. I could instantly take my mind to the soul world and experience an incredible sense of relief. The searching had ended, and I felt so comfortable. There's a beautiful sentence in our readings: "Long lost and now found." This phrase brought tears to my eyes; it truly encapsulated my feeling of being found after so long. 

Stepping out of the convent wasn't easy. For almost a year, I balanced both worlds. The main issue was food, as I had become vegetarian. While my prayers deepened and I felt more stable emotionally—even the other sisters commented on how much good the meditation had done me, saying I was no longer sad but stronger inside—the food issue was a constant challenge. I simply told them, "God asked me not to eat meat, and I cannot go back to what I was." My simplicity and humility, born from pure faith, allowed me to just follow God's order without needing to reason it out.

Even though I was already a nun and serving in the hospital as a lab technologist, the teachings of the Brahma Kumaris enhanced my ability to serve. I found myself less affected by criticism, able to maintain high spirits, and serve with greater ease. I even experimented with the power of silence. When people around me were talking excessively, I would simply sit in silence, connecting with the Divine. Slowly, everyone around me would experience that silence and become quiet. It was a powerful realization of the impact of inner peace.

When I left the convent after 12 years, my family, who lived nearby, assumed I had "become a Hindu." This was a common perception. I only stayed at home for three days; I couldn't bear the thought of being pressured into marriage. I was determined to remain a spiritual student, like a nun, but on this new path. So, I ran to the Brahma Kumaris, and I was happy to be there, one of the first to fully embrace this spiritual university.

My journey has shown me that the Brahma Kumaris is not a religion but a World Spiritual University. It's a place for anyone who seeks a direct connection with the Almighty, to understand their soul purpose beyond the confines of their body and all worldly boundaries. It’s about connecting as a spirit, not as a physical being, and finding the freedom that comes from this profound realization.

BK Elizabeth
National Coordinator, Brahma Kumaris, Ethiopia