Alec Guinness described how, one day while walking through London, he felt an irresistible urge to enter a church. He said, ‘With joy in my heart, and in a state of almost sexual excitement, I knelt; caught my breath, and for ten minutes was lost to the world.’ He couldn’t understand why he felt that way, but later realised it was part of his personal journey from atheism to faith, which began when he was playing the lead role in the famous Father Brown movie.
His son, Matthew, was stricken with polio, and Guinness vowed that if he were healed he would never prevent him from becoming a believer. Matthew did recover, but it was Alec Guinness who found faith. Despite his lifelong protestations, deep within he knew God was there. And when he accepted that suddenly everything became clear.