Personal Narrative: A Christian Education: Integrating Religion Into Education

I grew up in the Christian faith, where at a young age I probably accepted Christ, but it wasn’t until my twelfth birthday when I decided to rededicate my life to Him after a friend wrote in a birthday card, “Remember what Jesus was doing when He was twelve?”

My Christian liberal arts education is a major factor in establishing my current vocation. As a junior at Wheaton College, my current vocation is to be a student. I feel called to give my best effort at everything I do, and every assignment I work on. In reading C.S. Lewis’s essay on “Learning During War Time”, I was encouraged by his explanation of how the pursuit of knowledge, and my vocation of being a student, are worthwhile and valuable, no matter the circumstances surrounding us (Lewis, p.43-45). Going to a Christian liberal arts school definitely influences my current vocation. By learning about many subjects by taking a well-rounded course schedule of classes, I can learn to appreciate a variety of subjects and understand more about

Walking through the forest, a lone owl hoots at my presence. There are thousands of creatures accompanying me in this dense wood, yet my eyes catch only this owl. The leaves crunch under my feet; the predators and the prey of the forest watch in curiosity as this strange intruder stamps across their land. I know they’re there, somewhere, yet they stay shrouded in their leafy homes. It was in that moment that I found what fascinates me the most: why am I here among these creatures? It wasn’t a feeling of alienation, rather, a lack of understanding for the purpose of our existence.

When it comes to my worldview, I feel pretty confident in what I know and what I stand for. I grew up in a Christian home, therefore I have been pretty consistent on what I believe in for my whole life. Some of the preceding questions really made me think though about what I really believe and how I am actually living. Although I know what my worldview is, it is not always easy to make sure that I am fully living it out.

An asset that stands out at Wesleyan is it's sense of a strong community. When I visited, I connected with many students who seemed sincerely polite, respectful, and intelligent. The atmosphere at Wesleyan is vibrant and amazing. There were people cheering at the lacrosse game, while I saw others in groups studying. I want to be part of a relevant and engaging environment in order to pursue my future goals. My current institution

While I believe it is important to be able to work with any clientele regardless of their, sex, race, or religion. I would like to approach my education with a Christian world-view. As I myself carry a Christian perspective, I would like to continue my education in the environment that enriches this perspective. I hope to gain further education that instills these values that I can continue to maintain in my future career as not only a professional counselor but as a child of God.

The assignment to create our own religion for me was difficult. I found myself wanting to try and model the religion off Christianity. I wanted to be creative and come up with something that touched on different religions. The religion I created was the Friends religion, based on the television show Friends. I am a big fan of the show and know a lot about the characters and story so I felt I could mold that into a religion. It was not as easy as I thought it would be. I found it challenging to try and keep with the story line and make significant religious connections to the characters. I chose to use the brother and sister as to rival factions in the Friends religion both vying for Friends. In the show Ross is constantly meeting searching

Ever since I was a young girl, I fell as a victim to cyberbullying and hate. It got to the point where someone made a Facebook page labeled as “I hate Sammi Zhao!!!”, which a majority of my friends and fellow peers marked as “Like”. This occurrence, let down and backstabbing of my friends, led me to suicidal thoughts and depression. I was accustomed to the mindset that every person I met would end up leaving me as time passed by. However, I was fortunate enough to find hope in Christianity, the religion that greatly benefited my journey of overcoming my struggle.

Growing up in a Christian home was nothing extraordinary. My father volunteered at my church and was very connected with the community, while I went to the kid service every Sunday. About four years ago the church we had gone to for my entire life shut down. Loosing that church was a tough experience because the church was like my second family.

Growing up in the Western Christian Church, I always thought that God was a He. A large, white, wrathful, powerful man dressed in white, scepter in hand, and ready to zap anyone who committed an evil deed. God was a man to be appeased. And then a shift came—my later adolescent years were ones where I began to view God as a Father. Kindhearted, open, loving. Ready to pick me up and carry me—His precious child—at any time. And then, this Father also became my King. I, His daughter, a princess whose daddy offered both a dwelling place of safety, but also the spectacular experience of the Divine. As my education continued, my horizons expanded, causing me to ask: God, what if you are a she? A mother—the picture of compassion, love, and nurturance—but

Growing up in a devout Christian family with a father who is an extreme right on the political scale was tough for me. I went to church 3 times a week and when I came home from my private Christian school I was to read the Bible for homework. I felt as if this life was being force upon me and I begged my mother for months if I could go to a public school. My wish was granted and in 8th grade I went to my local public middle school, and I was amazed, completely astounded at what school could be.

Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked (Psalms 84:10 NIV).

I don’t really have a religion. It’s crazy, I know. I’m surrounded by people who insist I should believe. But why? Why should I be forced into one singular religion where there are flaws? I’m not an atheist, though. I think there might possibly be a divine being (or beings)? I guess you can say i’m agnostic? My father was raised in a christian home but that didn’t stick. He’s been fascinated with different religions, so he’s not really “tied down” to just one. That’s why I’ve never been to a service until today. (Is it even called a service? See, I don’t know!) I’ve only ever been in churches for weddings and those events have happened to me a staggering three times. So, yeah. I’m not experienced with this at all. So obviously I thought, “Hey,

As long as I can remember I’ve been raised a Catholic with an ever growing faith and understanding of my religion. Mom and Dad, both raised Catholic, have always encouraged me to be a part of my community, therefore, by being a part of my community that also meant being a part of my Church. I’m a member of Saint Mary’s in Iowa City and am currently attending Regina Catholic Education Center.

When I was growing up, I attended a Christian school. Consequently, the curriculum was based off of Christian textbooks, and every Thursday we would attend chapel and be taught lessons from the Bible. As a result, I was heavily shaped by the lessons taught at that school.