Orlando, Fla.
Baha’i since May 2009

There were a lot of things, a lot of different ideas, that propelled me to the Baha’i Faith.


Justin Cecil I was born into a Protestant Christian family. My father's side was traditionally Methodist, while my mother's was Baptist. My family didn’t go to church often, but sporadically we went to different churches from different denominations.

I think that in my heart, ever since I was aware of the concept of God, I always believed in Him.

I remember in elementary school, being a loving Christian and lover of God, and hearing about the theory of evolution in science class. Our teacher asked for anyone who believed in evolution to raise their hand; I was the only one who did. (It occurred to me that maybe God used evolution to create His creatures.) All of the other students chided me for it.

Throughout elementary school I debated whether or not I really believed in God; on the one hand when I would read the Bible I knew that I definitely did believe, but when I read about science I would doubt it momentarily.

Now I know that I don’t have to choose between religion and science. Baha’u’llah teaches that religion and science are in harmony – both are seeking truth.

Another thing that attracted me to the Baha'i Faith was the teaching about the oneness of religion.

I couldn’t stand the idea of eternal Hell. The very idea that friends and even relatives of mine that practiced a religion or belief other than Christianity would go to Hell really bothered me, and after awhile I refused to believe it.  I knew that no matter what a religious text said; God couldn’t be that cruel.

Years later --the summer before my freshman year of high school-- we had to read a book called "Life of Pi."  In the novel the protagonist Pi Patel is a young boy in India who was raised as a Hindu.

However, he discovers Christianity and gets baptized. The first thing he does when leaving the church is thank Krishna for bringing about Jesus Christ.

Later on he also becomes a Muslim, and practices all three religions simultaneously (and in secret).

One day while in a park with his parents they happen to bump into the Hindu cleric, the minister, and the imam at the same time. The three of them get into an argument over which religion Pi should belong to, until the boy cries, "I just want to love God!"
 
The idea that at the very least every major world religion could have something in common struck a chord with me.

This also resonated in me when watching the movie "Gandhi," during the scene when he says, "I am a Muslim! And a Christian! And a Hindu! And a Jew!"

I started to really investigate the world’s religions in high school and during my senior year, I took an elective on world religions.  It was around this time that I first heard about the Baha’i Faith. In the textbook the Baha’i Faith was but briefly mentioned in the back with “New Age/New Religious Movements” or something like that. But it struck a chord with me.

Every now and then, for the next couple of years, my thoughts would turn back to the Baha’i Faith.  When I was in college I thought about it so much that I decided to really start investigating the Faith.

So I checked out every book about the religion that I could, went online to Baha’i websites, and eventually even met Baha’is; both online and in real life. Eventually I declared myself a Baha’i.

I remember shortly after becoming a Bahai, going to the Orlando Baha’i Center with a friend to celebrate the Martyrdom of the Bab. It was an amazing experience for me, and felt more spiritual than any experience that I had ever had at a church.

I’m currently a student at the University of Central Florida, studying radio-tv with a minor in history. After graduating I’m debating about doing a few things. But no matter what I do, I plan on being an active member of the Baha’i Faith.