Inspire, Winter 2004

26 Winter 2004 H ow does a son honor a father who rarely visited him through the years and is hostile toward his faith? And what if that father is Muslim and is as passionate about having his son embrace Islam as the son is to see his father accept Jesus Christ? Those are questions that Yosef Hassan ’05 has long faced and recently started to answer. A senior preseminary Bible major, Yosef is facing a great challenge in his father — a man whom he only recently has gotten to know. Yosef has had to work through the hurt of rarely seeing his father and the shame (admittedly self-inflicted) of having a Muslim father. Yosef was only two when his parents divorced. He and his infant brother were left in the care of their mother. Their father had little contact with them. But, Yosef said, “My grandparents provided a strong, positive Christian role model. Since my mom was a single parent, my grandparents did so much for my brother and me. I am thankful that I grew up with such loving, supportive grandparents.” He added that his mother is amazing as well. “She works hard to provide for our family,” he explained. “My mom prayed that my brother and I would grow up to be Christians.” Yosef came to know the Lord around the age of 10. He recalled, “I was at a special service at my grandparents’ church. After the service was over, I remember praying the sinner’s prayer and asking Jesus to come into my life and save me.” As Yosef matured, he began to desire that his dad know Jesus. But to put that desire into practice, Yosef had to get past both his father’s absence in his life and his shame over his ethnicity. “My dad is from Pakistan,” Yosef explained, “which means that he looks like many of the terrorists. … Growing up, I did not want the image of being someone from Pakistan.” Yosef added that his mother is part African-American, Native American, and Caucasian, “So I am mixed.” Even so, he was embarrassed of his dad’s ethnicity and did not want to be seen with him. “I didn’t really see him much anyway because he lives in New Jersey, but thinking about this problem made me realize that the struggle is something that I need to get over. God made me the way I am and gave me the parents that I have for a purpose. I should in no way be ashamed,” Yosef concluded. When Yosef first came to Cedarville, he was hesitant to tell people where his dad was from. Over time, he began to share his feelings and his situation with friends. He was amazed at how understanding people were and how they were even willing to join him in praying for his dad. With prayer support, Yosef ’s desire to share his faith with his dad intensified. He remarked, “This has proved to be challenging because he is set in his faith. We are open to listening to each other, but I feel like sometimes I will talk to him until I am blue in the face and then come out of the conversation feeling like I didn’t accomplish much.” So prayer has become a vital force in this effort. “I have asked many people to pray for my father, and I ask God to work in Him and bring him to a saving faith in Christ. Many times I feel like my words do not do much, but I know that God is the One who chooses to work in people,” he explained. During the school year, Yosef and his father e-mail almost weekly. Yosef is determined to have a good relationship with his father. “My dad cares about my brother and me a lot,” Yosef noted. “The fact that he made a lot of mistakes in the past does not mean that I should not show him respect. I feel really badly about how I treated him and did not have patience with him. I should be forgiving to my dad. Jesus Christ paid the price to renew us from our sins and downfalls. I should at least do what I can and forgive my dad and show him honor.” Acting on that conviction, last summer Yosef took the initiative to visit his father at his home in New Jersey. “That was really neat, because it was one of the first times in my life that I got to spend one-on-one time with my dad,” he said. “We had some in- depth conversations about religion and about life in general.” While they had some good talks, nothing changed in regard to their religious differences. In fact Yosef ’s father is very disappointed with his son’s career goals. “My dad does not really like me going to Cedarville and studying Bible,” Yosef shared. “He said he would not support me financially if I pursued that major.” Thankfully, Yosef ’s mother is supportive and willing to assist him. With or without his father’s blessing and support, Yosef plans to go to seminary after graduation. And regardless of where the Lord leads him, Yosef is committed to honoring his dad and sharing his faith. He believes that despite their religious differences, they will remain close. Yosef concluded, “He is a Muslim and I am a Christian, and we both stand strong in our beliefs. Despite the fact that I cannot look to my dad as someone to follow as a spiritual leader, he is my dad and I am to honor him.” Honoring When Beliefs Collide Y o s e f H a s s a n ’ 0 5