Jeff Gardner – Former Mormon and Atheist
Jeff Gardner grew up in a pristine Mormon family, and then his parents’ marriage fell apart. His mother’s subsequent relationship with a black man led to his exclusion from the community, and embittered him against religion in general. As he pursued his academic interests, he hardened into a militant atheist, until his study of Franciscan work with plague victims in the late middle ages and a dream about St. Francis of Assisi himself led him down the path to the Catholic Church.
Jeff’s photography project that highlights the situation of persecuted Christians around the globe can be found at www.picturechristians.org.