After five years at a Roman Catholic high school, Madeleine Okalik finally got religion: Islam.
Her school, Immaculata on Main Street, "didn't feel Catholic," says the 19-year-old. "We sang O Canada, then there was a prayer, but, as you know, it's very multicultural."
Madeleine lived in Overbrook, but she was born in Nunavut, so her spiritual training at home looked to the ways of the Inuk elders. Like many teens in the area, she went to Immaculata believing the 80-year-old institution would have more discipline. She liked the school, but "I was wrong about the lack of fights. No matter what, races stick with each other. There were always fights."
As for the religious education, masses and prayer services, "it was nice to see what my peers believed in," but in the final analysis, Christianity was too close to the colonial experience of the Inuit. Islam was the better choice. (more...)
No comments:
Post a Comment