In August 2017, a 24 year old man identified here as Latif stood in the courtyard of his family compound in Riyadh preparing to ignite what was planned as the largest Bible burning ceremony his household had ever organized.

Born in 1994 into a branch of Saudi royalty, Latif had been raised in an environment of immense privilege and rigid religious ideology.

That night, an experience he describes as supernatural marked the beginning of a personal transformation that would ultimately cost him his family, inheritance, and position.

Latif grew up behind high walls topped with razor wire on a sprawling desert estate staffed by more than 200 employees.

The palace featured imported marble floors, crystal chandeliers, and garages filled with dozens of luxury vehicles.

Wealth, however, was intertwined with a strict worldview.

From early childhood he was taught that Christianity represented a direct threat to Islam and that defending the faith required active resistance.

According to his account, Bible burning ceremonies were a regular feature of family life.

Beginning when he was eight years old, Latif participated in weekly gatherings where Christian books, crosses, and other materials were set on fire in a large metal basin in the central courtyard.

Senior family members framed the events as acts of spiritual purification.

Religious teachers reinforced the message that Christians had distorted scripture and posed dangers to Muslim society.

As he entered adolescence, Latif’s involvement deepened.

By age 16 he was helping organize the collection of Christian literature from hotels, airports, and public spaces.

He developed a system of informants among workers in the city who would report the presence of Christian materials.

Within the household, staff members from countries such as the Philippines, India, and Pakistan were closely monitored for signs of non Muslim belief.

Those discovered practicing Christianity were dismissed and deported.

Latif later reflected that he believed his actions were righteous.

Surrounded by authority figures who celebrated hostility as holiness, he saw no contradiction between faith and cruelty.

Private tutors instructed him in advanced religious studies and emphasized passages that portrayed conflict with non Muslims as justified.

By his late teens, he described his hostility not as inherited prejudice but as intellectual conviction.

Despite material abundance, Latif says he began experiencing growing inner emptiness in his early twenties.

He had access to luxury cars, private aircraft, and international travel, yet reported insomnia, irritability, and a persistent sense of hollowness.

The ceremonies that once filled him with pride gradually failed to satisfy.

He intensified his efforts, organizing larger gatherings and expanding networks to confiscate Christian materials, but the internal void remained.

The pivotal event occurred on August 14, 2017, during a celebration of his father’s birthday.

More than 200 prominent guests gathered at the compound for an elaborate ceremony featuring hundreds of Bibles and thousands of Christian books stacked in a specially constructed steel basin.

Latif, as the senior male heir, was given the honor of lighting the fire.

As attendants added the final items to the pile, a small red leather Bible reportedly slipped from a worker’s hands and fell to the ground.

Latif picked it up and threw it into the basin before lowering a gasoline soaked torch onto the stack.

The surrounding materials ignited quickly.

The red Bible, he claims, did not.

In his testimony, Latif describes repeated attempts to push the book deeper into the flames.

According to him, the pages remained intact while other volumes burned to ash.

Frustrated and embarrassed before the crowd, he reached into the fire to grab the book.

At that moment, he says he experienced a burst of intense light visible only to him and saw a figure he identified as Jesus approaching through the flames.

Latif recounts hearing a question directed at him, asking why he was burning love letters written for him.

Overwhelmed, he collapsed and lost consciousness.

Witnesses later described convulsions resembling a medical episode.

He regained awareness three days later in his bedroom, partially blind and surrounded by family members and religious clerics who attributed the incident to spiritual disturbance.

Medical examinations reportedly found no clear explanation for his temporary vision impairment.

Clerics performed prayers and rituals seeking to remove perceived negative influences.

Latif, however, interpreted the event differently.

He believed he had encountered Jesus and that the experience signaled the beginning of a spiritual awakening.

After regaining limited mobility, he returned secretly to the courtyard and searched the ashes.

He states that the red Bible remained unburned.

Hiding it beneath his robe, he began reading it privately at night.

Starting with the Gospel of Matthew, he encountered teachings that challenged his assumptions.

The command to love enemies and pray for persecutors deeply unsettled him.

For weeks he lived a double life.

Publicly he maintained the role of a loyal Muslim prince recovering from a mysterious episode.

Privately he continued reading Christian scripture and researching testimonies of former Muslims who had converted.

He reports experiencing profound emotional peace during solitary prayers addressed to Jesus.

This internal shift created tension with his family’s ongoing anti Christian activities.

He began discreetly warning Christian staff members about inspections and helping some avoid punishment.

Yet he remained outwardly compliant, attending religious gatherings and discussions that criticized Christianity.

The turning point came in April 2018 during Ramadan, when another large burning ceremony was scheduled.

Standing before a stack of confiscated books, Latif found himself unable to ignite the torch.

He later described overwhelming conviction that he could no longer participate.

Days afterward, during a family strategy meeting, he publicly declared his belief that Jesus was the Son of God and that he would no longer engage in burning Bibles or persecuting Christians.

The reaction was immediate and severe.

Family members expressed shock and anger.

Religious advisers cited classical rulings regarding apostasy.

His father issued an ultimatum: publicly renounce Christianity and recommit to Islam, or forfeit his inheritance and familial ties.

Latif refused to retract his statement.

For approximately two months, he says he was confined to his room while scholars attempted to persuade him to reconsider.

Internet access was restricted and guards monitored his movements.

He describes the period as emotionally intense but spiritually peaceful, sustained by private prayer and reading.

In December 2018, according to his account, his father ordered him to leave the property with only what he could carry in a single suitcase.

He departed without financial support, relinquishing an inheritance estimated at tens of millions of dollars.

The red leather Bible accompanied him.

Latif reports spending his first night outside the compound on a public bench, uncertain of his future.

Over time he connected with Christian communities who provided assistance and mentorship.

Details about his current location are withheld for security reasons, but he states that he now shares his story publicly to encourage others facing similar dilemmas.

Independent verification of each element of Latif’s narrative is difficult, particularly the supernatural aspects.

However, religious conversion stories involving visions or dramatic experiences are not uncommon across cultures.

Scholars note that intense spiritual crises can coincide with psychological and emotional turning points, especially among individuals raised in highly structured belief systems.

Latif frames his journey not as a rejection of his heritage but as a response to what he perceives as divine love.

He emphasizes that his former hostility stemmed from upbringing rather than inherent malice.

Reflecting on his past, he expresses regret for the suffering inflicted on household employees and describes ongoing efforts to seek reconciliation where possible.

His story highlights the complex intersection of faith, identity, family loyalty, and personal conviction.

In societies where religion and social structure are closely linked, conversion can carry profound consequences extending beyond theology to legal status, economic security, and personal safety.

Today, Latif describes himself as materially poorer but spiritually fulfilled.

He states that relinquishing wealth and status brought clarity about values he believes transcend inheritance or rank.

Whether viewed as miraculous encounter, psychological awakening, or symbolic narrative, his account illustrates the transformative power that personal belief can hold.

For Latif, the decision ultimately centered on allegiance.

Faced with choosing between familial expectation and newfound faith, he chose the latter.

The cost, he acknowledges, was immense.

Yet he maintains that the peace he discovered outweighed the privileges he surrendered.

His journey continues, shaped by ongoing questions about reconciliation, identity, and purpose.

While debate may persist regarding the details of his experience, the broader themes resonate widely: the struggle between tradition and conscience, the tension between security and conviction, and the enduring human search for meaning beyond material success.