A lot of people at school are atheists, or they say that they’re atheists because they don’t want to be grouped with Christians. I can understand because Christians have a bad rep. A lot of people say that Christians are hypocrites, and we probably to a certain extent are. Being a Christian comes with a lot of baggage…you have to be against abortion and gay marriages. At least that’s how I feel now that I am a Christian. I feel a little forced to take a specific position on these issues.
I’ve been talking more to Mr. Roh though at school. He’s this history teacher who – get this – used to dorm with my pastor at U of I. He’s Korean too and he’s just pretty approachable. I’ve been asking why he chose to be a teacher, what Pastor Jason was like in college, stuff like that. I know Mr. Roh’s a Christian too so I kind of want to ask about his thoughts on some of these things…I’m not sure if I will though.
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This entry significantly points to John struggling through who he is based on his stances on particular issues like abortion and gay marriage. In the interview, he stated that he felt forced to take specific (and often unpopular) stances on these issues because he was a Christian. In addition, he finds comfort in talking with Mr. Roh, someone who is also Korean, Christian, and in his school’s context. This shows the interaction between John's school and home culture, which is part of the mesosystem in Bronfenbrenner's ecological model.