I grew up in a public school system. Coming from this sort of setting I am used to my peers being from different faith backgrounds. Many of my friends from back home have views separate from mine. I have friends who are atheists, family members who are Buddhist, and a very good friend who is Jewish. Their religion, beliefs, and their customs do not change how I think of them in any way. Excluding the few kids in my youth group, all of my friends are Catholic.
Roberts Wesleyan likes to say that they accept people of all faith backgrounds here. However, I have not met many non-Christians that go to this school. During one of the first weeks of school one of my new friends said that they have never met a Jewish person. I was in shock, complete shock. I could not comprehend how she could live in this country, go to a public school, and never meet a Jewish person. I have noticed that many people here are quite open with their faith, others tend to shy away from it.
I am not used to being around people who are so intense about their faith. In my group of friends I was always considered the "church girl". Although I am strong in my faith, being around the people here makes me feel a little out of place. It isn’t in anyway steering me away from being a Christian. I like to think that this school is strengthening it. However, even though it is towards the end of the first semester it still seems a little strange.
It's funny how you are a Christian that feels out of place among other Christians. Being here has definitely strengthened my faith, but it also feels like a bubble, like there's this film around the campus that filters out the evils of the world. I'm not sure how prepared I will be when I'm out on my own.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know until I got here that there are so many different "levels" of Christianity here. There are people who don't talk about it at all, those who do only when asked, and those who shove it in your face. It's so weird for me because I grew up in a completely non-christian home and in the church I just switched to, everybody seems to be on the same page. That is, everbody but me.
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