Personal Narrative (genre)

Genre 2 / Personal Narrative / 1 of 2 It is the early morning, not much past eight o’clock, and the Costa Rican sun is beautiful against a sky of flavorful clouds and the fresh, wet grass. I am sitting quietly at a small, rickety table in front of a small red house in the Roblealto Ministries encampment, where children from abusive family situations come for help and for a hopefully permanent solution to their family problems. The organization is Christian. I came with the youth group from the Lutheran Church of the Ascension. Our devotion time is almost up, I think. I look aimlessly at an open bible, my thoughts already scribbled into my small notebook dedicated solely to these early morning devotional sessions. “Do you mind if I sit?” My youth leader asks from behind me. “Hey Jonathon, not at all.” He slumps into the seat next to me and grins boyishly, and I think that he is still in many ways a teenager in his late twenties. “John, didn’t you say that you wanted to be a scientist when you grow up?” “Yea, at sometime or another.” Still maintaining his boyish attitude, he asks “Do you think you’ll still go to church?” “Yea, Jonathon I think so.” I say, but he looks surprisingly unconvinced. “Well that’s good then.” He says. He leans back and looks off to his side. “Why wouldn’t I?” I ask. “I don’t know, man. I don’t know science that well, but it doesn’t always agree with this.” He says, touching my small paper-back bible. I nod with understanding. I’m so glad that he said that.

Genre 2 / Personal Narrative / 2 of 2 Throughout my early childhood, I believed that science and religion were antonyms—that the two belief systems contradicted each other even in their most fundamental ideas. I thought that people either believed the big bang, believed in God, or were atheists. “I see what you’re saying. But you’re wrong.” “Alright, but there’s inconsistencies everywhere.” “Sure, but aren’t there always? I’m not saying that I believe science over religion, but I believe what I see. I agree with the theory of evolution and I agree with the big-bang theory. And you’re right, it’s hard to balance faith with science sometimes Jonathon, but what is more important than the details is the big picture.” “And what big picture is that?” “The ultimate truth. And for us, Christians, we start out with an ultimate truth and work out the details. For us scientists, we start with the details and build an ultimate truth.” “But still, John, if you call yourself a Christian, the bible should be more authority than a data table.” “Yes, but what does that data table tell you about the bible? If they contradict each other, does someone have to be wrong? Not to me. I don’t think we have to take the bible literally. It has metaphorical value to it, too.” He frowns. “Well I don’t know about that.” “Neither do I.” And in silence, we both looked into the beautiful morning sky.