![\"Fernando](\"http:\/\/quantumnew.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Fernando.jpg\")
Growing up on the dusty streets of Mexico, religion came into Fernando Alc\u00e1ntar\u2019s life at a very young age.<\/p>\nGrowing up on the dusty streets of Mexico, religion came into Fernando Alc\u00e1ntar\u2019s life at a very young age.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Mexico, you\u2019re either a Catholic or you\u2019re nothing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
When he immigrated to the United States at 18 years old, he converted to Protestant Christianity and looked to his faith for comfort. While attending a Christian University in Los Angeles for his undergraduate and graduate studies, Alc\u00e1ntar worked to oversee hundreds of ministries, churches, and missionaries, and eventually became a director of ministries to young people for the California-Hawaii region of the United Methodist Church.<\/p>\n
Alc\u00e1ntar\u2019s experience questioning his sexuality in the Christian faith was not a positive one. Spending years of his life true to his faith, he struggled to find himself. When he began to explore his sexual orientation, he also questioned his allegiance to his religion.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey would tell me to \u2018hide those feelings\u2019 and called it \u2018struggling with thoughts of homosexuality\u2019 or \u2018being tempted,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cThey called it a \u2018sin,\u2019 \u2018an illness,\u2019 \u2018an abomination.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Urged by young people he had ministered in the past to share his stories inspired Alc\u00e1ntar to publish his first book: \u201cTo the Cross and Back: An Immigrant’s Journey from Faith to Reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWriting this book allowed me to process four things imperative to my identity: immigration, religion, sexuality, and surviving tragedy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Shortly after leaving Christianity behind, Alc\u00e1ntar returned to his passion in higher education. He landed a job as director of student life at Utah State University Eastern. Though he enjoyed working with students, he was uncomfortable with the prevalence of religious ideologies in the state. Because of his sexuality, he endured emotional and physical confrontation on multiple occasions. For Alc\u00e1ntar, it was a traumatizing experience.<\/p>\n
Alc\u00e1ntar left Utah behind and returned to California for and began teaching for San Diego State University. This summer he accepted a position with the Student Activity Association (SAA) at East Stroudsburg University.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have never been truly accepted for who I am as I have at ESU\u2014this community embraces diversity, instead of fearing it,\u201d said Alc\u00e1ntar.<\/p>\n
At ESU, Alc\u00e1ntar found a place where he can train a new generation of leaders who are accepting of one another. He plans on working to create new solutions on dealing with diversity, service, and leadership in an inclusive community.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want people who are hiding in the shadows to have a voice,\u201d Alc\u00e1ntar said. \u201cYou should not be afraid to question your cultural, religious, or sexual identity for fear of isolation and retaliation.\u201d<\/p>\n
On November 30 faculty, students and members of the community are invited to hear more about his journey at a book signing in the university bookstore. This event will be held from 12:30-2 p.m. Light refreshments will be served.<\/p>\n
For more information about the book signing, please contact the university store at 570-422-2665.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When Fernando Alc\u00e1ntar\u2019s immigrated to the United States at 18 years old, he converted to Protestant Christianity and looked to his faith for comfort. While attending a Christian University in Los Angeles for his undergraduate and graduate studies, Alc\u00e1ntar worked to oversee hundreds of ministries, churches, and missionaries, and eventually became a director of ministries to young people for the California-Hawaii region of the United Methodist Church.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13221,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[143,22,42,58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","category-facebook","category-news-release","category-slider"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13218"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13218"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13218\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13262,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13218\/revisions\/13262"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quantum.esu.edu\/insider\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}