Upon leaving home for college, I was given a slew of advice – whether I wanted it or not. I was told to work hard in classes, stay away from dark alleys and watch after my twin sister. But of all the fears my relatives and well wishers had for me, one was paramount – preserving my faith in God. It may have been because they felt my spirituality was not as strong as it should have been. Whatever their motives, it seemed that everyone I talked to felt compelled to emphasize to me the importance of maintaining my faith. They told me of the apparently contagious disease plaguing college campuses across the nation causing even the most devout teenager to immerse themselves in immorality and sin. One afternoon this past summer, my sister and I were sitting in CC’s in the library. A woman, who later identified herself as a University math teacher, approached us and began to inquire about our religious well-being. If that wasn’t creepy enough, she later posed the question: “What if I am God and am warning you?” Because of all the forewarnings I received prior to entering the fall semester, I expected to have to dodge heretics upon entering campus. I thought there would be mobs of bearded, wild-eyed students forcing me to denounce God and claim the ways of the enlightened college student. That has not been the case. Instead of being bombarded with fliers to join the atheists club in Free Speech Alley, I am treated to the noisy yelling of an evangelist. I am given free literature on the Islamic faith and bags of treats are shoved in my hands by students trying to get me to Bible study. In fact, I have heard more about preserving faith on campus than the recent fall Student Government elections. In my brief stint on campus, I’ve found that religion, like everything else, is a choice. No one has attempted to make me recant my personal beliefs nor tried to make me stick to them. That decision has been left to me. My family can rest easy. When I come home, I will still believe in God. How else could I explain passing a test I didn’t even know I had?
—-Contact Allen Womble at [email protected]