The title of this testimony was taken from I Timothy 1:13, a verse which, together with the verses that precede it, constitutes the synthesis of the story of my conversion to the Lord.
Since I was eighteen to nineteen, my goal was to become a teacher. Indeed, I confess that I felt this inclination even before, when I was in Middle School. All the more reason, this desire motivated me when I was about to obtain the classical high school diploma and then enroll at the University of Naples, my hometown, and precisely at the Faculty of Arts. It was in 1950.
Without my knowing it, however, my life was at a very important turning point. In fact, I was a practicing Catholic, like all the members of my family, without however being fanatic. I regularly received the "Sacraments", I went to Mass "I confessed" .., all this however left me dissatisfied; and in particular both the religious ceremonies and the superstitions that arose from Roman Catholicism began to annoy me. Usually such superstitions, such as certain forms of devotion to "saints" and "saints", are classified as expressions of the "simple faith of the people", but in reality they are forms of outright idolatry. In any case, I felt the desire for a higher and more intense spiritual life and, at the same time, I often meditated on the purpose of human life, on the purpose of my own life. In particular, although I was so young, I was well aware of the reality of death. I thought what mattered most was to secure a place in Heaven - at all costs.
However, the fact remained that the only religion I knew was Roman Catholic. There was, it is true, a brief interlude in which I had various contacts with the Adventist Church of Naples, but even there I did not find what I thought I needed, besides the fact that those Adventists were sectarians, in the sense that they were more interested in proselytizing for their church that preach Christ.
After this more than disappointing experience which gave rise, in me, to a completely negative judgment on "Protestants" in general, I gave myself more than ever to follow Roman Catholicism. In particular, I resumed attending Catholic Action, which I had been a member of for some years.
In short, the idea of “becoming a priest”, or rather a friar, gradually matured in me, thinking that this was a shortcut to Heaven.
So it was that at the end of October 1952, after having obtained the classical high school diploma and attended a year at the University of Naples, I entered the order of the so-called "Society of Jesus" or the Jesuits.
I did two years of novitiate in Vico Equense, near Naples, on the Amalfi coast. I did everything to observe all the rules of the Order and be initiated into the religious life in the best possible way. I was so esteemed by the Novice Master that he advised me to make the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience privately, before making them officially at the end of the two canonical years. After about two years, I was sent to the Faculty of Philosophy run by the Jesuits in Gallarate, in the province of Milan. After three years dedicated above all to the study of Thomistic Philosophy, having obtained the Diploma in Philosophy, I was sent to Lecce, in a college, also run by the Jesuits, to be "prefect" of the younger internal students. In the meantime, however, I had asked my Superiors to be invited to the mission land. I must specify, at this point, that in the Jesuit curriculum, the three years of philosophy usually follow a period of time, variable at the discretion of the immediate Superiors, in which the "Masters" (as the graduates in philosophy are called) are mainly used in Colleges or Schools managed by the order. Some, however, study at the State University to obtain some degree, which may be useful in the future "ministry".
After a year spent in Lecce, therefore, my request was accepted and in October 1958 I was sent to Sri Lanka, on a mission entrusted to the Neapolitan Province of the Jesuits.
I stayed for a year in Galle, south of the capital Colombo, in another college run by the Order. In addition to looking after the younger internal students here too, I perfected the English I had already learned in Italy, and began to study Sinhala, the language of the majority of the population - the other language spoken on the island is Tamil.
Soon, however, the disappointments began, especially because I saw that many Jesuits were involved in schools and parishes, but very little was done to "evangelize" those pagans, who were mostly Buddhists, while the Tamilian minority was usually Hindu and others were Muslims. Of course, at that time for me to "evangelize" meant above all to spread Roman Catholicism. In any case, I too adapted to the situation.
Towards the end of 1959 I was invited to India, and precisely to Poona, to study theology at a philosophical and theological institute of the Order, and thus prepare myself for priestly ordination.
Already in Sri Lanka the impact with Buddhism had disturbed me not a little, and the disturbance continued when I found myself faced with Hinduism and Islam, two religions with a secular cultural and religious background, which challenged my Catholic "faith". On another hand, I noticed not a few similarities between Roman Catholicism and Hinduism, especially at the level of popular devotion, made up of various images, statues, statuettes, ceremonies, processions. Not to mention certain "ecumenical" trends, even on the part of some Jesuit colleagues, who tried to see what was "good" in Hinduism and other religions, to the point of admitting that one could save oneself for one's "Good faith", and therefore without an explicit faith in Jesus Lord and Savior.
However, although these ideas circulated a lot among my colleagues, I personally was not convinced. I then began, almost unconsciously, my personal research which aimed to ascertain what was the essence of Christianity, beyond what was already beginning to appear to me as superstructures or distortions of Roman Catholicism.
This research was mainly conducted by me through the Bible. In fact, I must admit that God used even those Adventists I met in 1951 to instill in me a deep love for His Word. Although therefore the Bible had never been an integral part of my studies in the Order, privately I had never stopped reading it. In particular, having done the classical high school, I had easy access to the Greek New Testament, and now I had also been introduced into the Hebrew language from a short course held in the theological institute I was attending.
So little by little I realized that the essence of Christianity was not constituted by a "body of doctrine", but by the Person and the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ, On the horizon of my life the Sun was finally rising, that would have illuminated it all, dispelling the darkness of "religion", understood as a system of anti-biblical dogmas, superstitions and idolatry.
But the change did not happen in a short time, as I was still culturally linked to Roman Catholicism and the Jesuit Order. In 1963 I was "ordained" a priest and a year later I returned to Sri Lanka, where I was to exercise my "ministry".
Among the various assignments that my Superiors gave me in that year, one day I was invited to Nuwara Elya, a town in the center of the island, to give a series of lectures on the Bible to some Catholic catechists, since the Superiors knew about my interest in the Bible and that I had made it a particular object of study. Indeed, to be honest, I must specify that in the Catholic Church, I believe especially for the interest of Pope John XXIII, a kind of "revival" of biblical studies was officially underway, without however substantially affecting the characteristic doctrines of Roman Catholicism.
So while I was giving these conferences, during an intermission, walking through one of the streets of the town, I noticed an evangelical church. My attention was particularly drawn to a notable activity around that modest room: a loudspeaker was broadcasting evangelistic messages; various people, including some children, distributed evangelization brochures. Indeed one of them came up to me and gave me one. At this point I felt compelled to enter that church.
I was received very cordially by some members of the Community, including the one who looked like the Pastor. He was obviously a European and he explained to me that that church, like others on the island, was run by a Swedish Evangelical Mission. They gave me various other brochures and also a newspaper called 'The Herald of His Coming', in English of course, since at that time English was still widely used on the island, although the two local languages, Sinhala and Tamil were emerging more and more - especially Sinhala, which is now the official language of the Republic.
I was also invited to attend their evangelization meetings which would be held in the following days. And in fact I participated in it, being struck by the zeal of those people for the Gospel and the Word of God, which was at the center of their Christian preaching and witness. In particular, a sermon I heard on the conclusion of Jesus' famous discourse "on the mountain" - the house built on the rock and the house built on the sand - made me meditate a lot. I still have the notes in English that I took on that occasion.
So it was that I began to wonder more than ever what the house of my life was built on - on the sand of religion and the traditions of men or on Christ and His Word ...
After a few months, I was sent for a few months of study and a "spiritual retreat" in a Jesuit house in South India. There I had the opportunity to meet some evangelical pastors in the context of various "ecumenical contacts", and especially with a Lutheran pastor, through whom I was able to read some fundamental works of Luther in a good English version.
In short, I realized that I was no longer a true Catholic - but not so much because I no longer prayed privately to Mary and the "saints" or because I began to no longer believe in Mass as a "real sacrifice", according to the definition of the Council of Trent and the official doctrine of the Catholic Church. No, but above all because Jesus Christ was more and more at the center of my life and my thoughts. The rest seemed to me erroneous in the light of His Word, and at least useless: if there is the Sun, what do you do with a flashlight?
Jesus Christ appeared to me more and more as the Savior and therefore as the only Mediator between God and men - and therefore what was the use of the Pope, the Catholic hierarchy - and myself because I never called myself a "priest" since, according to the Word of God, is there now only one High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, who performed the sacrifice that redeemed sinful humanity once and for all? In fact “Jesus, after having offered a single sacrifice for sins, and for ever, sat on the right hand of God. With a single offering, He made perfect forever those who sanctified themselves. Now, where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer a need for sin offerings ”(Letter to Hebrews 10: 12, 14,18).
We must not think that these were all conscious thoughts: I did not dare to reach certain "extreme" conclusions, but the Holy Spirit was certainly at work in me more than ever.
Meanwhile, the political situation in Sri Lanka had changed and the new nationalist government was expelling foreign missionaries who had arrived on the island in recent years. So I took advantage of that situation and asked my Superiors of Italy to be repatriated. In fact, I felt that I had to go back to Italy - after all, sooner or later I too would have to leave the island.
In May 1965, after seven years, I returned to Italy. After spending about two months in Naples, my hometown, where I had the opportunity to see my family again (my father, however, had died in 1963 without my being able to return home to help and comfort my mother, my sister and my brother directly), my Superiors sent me to Rome to specialize in Sacred Scripture. Thus I began to attend the Pontifical Biblical Institute run by the Jesuits.
Busy as I was with difficult studies in practice I had put aside my search for truth. The Lord, however, had not set aside anything and found a way to put me in front of my responsibilities.
I must first say that before leaving India, I had written a letter to the Italian Director of the Herald of His Coming, in which I told him that, in the ecumenical spirit of the moment, once in Italy I would have liked to collaborate with the newspaper, which was much liked.
Now, in addition to studying, I thought it best to give myself some active “ministry” and so I had the opportunity to give my services in a large Catholic church in the Tor di Quinto neighborhood. On Sundays I celebrated Mass and preached; sometimes I also preached during Mass celebrated by some foreign priest who did not speak Italian well; I listened to the confessions of the faithful, and on Friday evenings I held a Bible study for the youth of the parish.
I soon became aware of the ignorance of so many people who came to confess to me regarding the fundamental Christian doctrines. So I thought that in addition to giving advice and instructions verbally, it would be better to give them something to take home and read. I then remembered the pamphlets that had been given to me in Sri Lanka by those Evangelicals. Even here in Italy, I thought, there must be something like this ...
One day, while walking near the station in Rome, I saw that there was a "Book Fair" made up of various stalls of books at a good price. There was also an evangelical on the counter who sold copies of the Bible and Christian books. I then asked him if he had pamphlets in Italian like the one I had in English - in fact, I had kept one of those pamphlets given to me in Sri Lanka. He told me that he had some, but that if I wanted a good number and of different types, I would have to go to the evangelical bookshop located in Via Curtatone 17.
A couple of days later I was in the evangelical bookstore. I was received very kindly by the manager. There was also a lady who, as I later found out, was his wife. I asked for the brochures that interested me and as he showed them to me, he began to wonder who I was and where I came from. Briefly, I told him I was from India. Then I noticed something strange: the man and his wife looked at me as if they wanted to recognize someone; then they looked at each other with a questioning air ... Then they asked me: "What is your name?" "Edoardo Labanchi", I replied surprised by that unexpected question. “Ah, then he is… he”, or something like that - I don't remember well - said by that man (who, as I later learned, was Pastor Domenico Tono) unspeakably surprised me. "How do they know me?" I asked myself amazed.
"Didn't you write to the director of the Herald of His Coming, here in Rome?" "Yes," I replied, even more amazed. "Well, your letter was sent here by the editor, because this is the headquarters of the newspaper's editorial office, and I am, in fact, the editor". “On the contrary”, he added, showing me the letter, “you say here that you would like to collaborate with us…”.
I believe that there are moments in our life when we particularly feel like we are being cornered by God. Sure, that seemed like just a chain of human events, but there, in that moment, I felt that something unusual was happening in my life. I felt that God wanted me to keep in touch with those people, and in fact from that day on I continued to meet my friends in the library and also in private homes, where I met other Evangelicals.
Through them, I had the opportunity to attend some evangelical churches in Rome and I soon realized that I preferred to be more with my evangelical friends than with my Jesuit colleagues - and this solely for spiritual reasons. In fact, in reality I was already an evangelical, in my heart and in my mind, or rather, better, Christ was becoming more and more the center and the foundation of my life.
So I began to discard from my spiritual baggage all those Catholic doctrines and practices that had nothing to do with the Gospel. On the other hand, there was so much talk at that time about the "novelties" brought to the Catholic Church by the Second Vatican Council, that I got involved, hoping for a reform of the Church internally. The ecumenical movement was also in vogue and so I wondered if it was really worth leaving the Catholic Church, since I could "work" from within, preaching the Gospel and bringing so many Catholics to the Lord.
So I thought, but it was an illusion. I soon realized that despite the Council nothing substantial had changed in Roman Catholicism and the ecumenical movement seemed to me a farce, knowing full well that for the Catholic Church "reconciliation" with "separated brothers" could mean nothing but acceptance by these of the papal authority, with all its logical consequences.
On the other hand, my position was very difficult. I was not just any "lay person", but a "priest" belonging, at the time, to the most important religious Order in the Catholic Church. Furthermore, I had been sent to Rome for postgraduate studies and of course my superiors expected me to put what I had learned to good use. But I realized that it would be impossible for me not to reveal my thoughts sooner or later without resorting to subterfuge and compromise.
However, the Lord intervened once again by placing me in front of the episode narrated in chap. 18 of the First Book of Kings where the prophet Elijah addresses the idolatrous Israelites with this stern warning: “How long go ye limping between the two sides? if Jehovah be God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” (I Kings 18:21). My "Baal" was, in fact, the Catholic Church, and particularly the Pope who was its maximum representative.
I preferred God to Baal! Shortly thereafter I officially left the Catholic Church and all there was to leave to follow Christ - the true Christ of the Bible, not the idol that Roman Catholicism has made.
My evangelical friends in Rome, starting with Pastor Domenico Tono, helped me not a little in taking the first steps in ordinary life as a "layman".
My life from June 7, 1967 onwards was not easy, but God has constantly guided me, even remedying some mistakes made due to my inexperience with the inevitable choices and difficulties that life entails.
I have now been happily married for more than 25 years to Carmen, who is my close collaborator in all my ministerial activities. In fact, I am a full-time Pastor in the Apostolic Church and I mainly deal with Biblical Studies. I reside in Grosseto and run the Theological Studies Center, which provides Bible Courses by correspondence. I also publish the quarterly of Biblical Theology "Reflections". I collaborate with other churches and evangelical organizations in Italy and abroad, holding biblical studies, conferences and seminars. I also have a daughter, Liliana, married to a good believer: they both collaborate with our theological magazine. For a few months I have also had a beautiful nephew who is called Marco. In short, I can say that truly “mercy was shown to me, because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief; and the grace of our Lord is superabounded with the faith and love that is in Christ Jesus.” “This affirmation is certain and worthy of being fully accepted, 'that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the first. But for this I was given mercy, so that Jesus Christ showed in me, first, all His patience, and I served as an example to those who later believed in Him to have eternal life. To the eternal, immutable, invisible King, to the one God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen!" (I Timothy 1: 13-17).
Edoardo Labanchi
Extra details of his testimony are found here.
[Source: https://bereanbeacon.org/it/mi-e-stata-usata-misericordia/]
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