Undergraduate / Muslim pray to Jesus. I have chosen to study in the United States - Essey [2]

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"...Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen." With these words, I always ended another of the thousands of Angelus prayers I said every noon at my high school. Being Muslim and raised in a religiously homogenous community, I would never have imagined that I would pray to Jesus' mother (without begrudging). Before my four years at my very Catholic high school, the only interaction I had with Christians was my asking the Jehovah's Witnesses who showed up at our door to leave, per my mother's request. Quality education however outweighed my family's religiosity when I was allowed to attend one of the best schools in my country, which happened to be a Catholic school. As expected, I was warned to "stay pure" and not imbibe any form of the Christian culture I was to spend the next four years of my life in. As expected of an obedient Muslim son, I did just that for as long as my insatiable thirst for diversity would allow. In the second term of my freshman year my curiosity, together with my being forced to attend daily Mass, I succumbed and disobeyed my parents - I started to have discussions about religion and theology with my Christian friends. Over the course of my education at Opoku Ware Catholic School my conversations with my friends ranged from well thought out arguments to eye-opening realizations about the similarities between the Christian faith and mine. Contrary to what my family believed, these interactions not only helped me understand others' perspective on different issues, but also deepened my own understanding of my faith, giving context to to my beliefs. As a result, I have changed in many ways, the most important of which is my way of thinking about different issues. If I had to choose again, I would definitely choose to attend my very Catholic high school, even though I am Muslim. Today, I have to choose again, with the slight difference that the next four years would probably be the most defining of my life. High school taught me well, and now I am hoping college will teach me even better. Thus, with the options I have, I have chosen to study in the United States. What better place for cultural exchange and personal growth, than the melting pot of the world?