Mark Hausam grew up generally Christian, and Desiree grew up with very little religious influence. They both sought Christ more deeply in their teenage years, and ended up together at Wheaton College, where Mark was interested in the academic side of theology, and Desiree had aspirations of being a Methodist minister. They ended up gravitating toward Calvinism, and worshipped with their family in an Orthodox Presbyterian context until questions about authority, Christian unity, and the nature of Bible interpretation caused them to seek a home in the most unlikely of places: the Catholic Church.