Chilltown: Was there a time when you challenged you own spirituality or belief in God? How did you get through that?ALFRE: I was thinking about this American boy they found fighting for the Taliban. I went to a Catholic high school and, unlike some parochial schools, the nuns and the brothers let us talk and explore. Jesus and God should be able to hold up in any discussion or argument so they never stopped us. My parents were very supportive. My mother said she didn't care where we went to church but to develop my own relationship with God, the rest is who you commune with. And I communed with many different faiths and even when I wanted to be rebellious I never did not believe in Him. I never believed the people who said God was destructive or punishing. Even when I was saying I was Agnostic and trying to figure out my thoughts, I felt God was allowing me to do that. I did have those periods as a young person and scholar but they made me stronger because I felt His protection and love at the time.
My godmother was Christian Scientist, my mother was Church of Christ and my father's family was the Church of the Living God, my brother was Bahai and my dear friend was Lutheran. So I had exposure to a lot of different beliefs. As an adult (after college) and as an artist I thought about what was real, what sustained me -- it was Christian Science. I was using that when I didn't know it. Saying yes to the Light and your better instinct. That is why I became a better student of this.