“saw a Christian preacher, dressed in robes. He held a cross in his hand, and wore an eye patch. “”Who is this man?”” Jesse wondered. He opened the comments section. Mar Mari Emmanuel.
Opening Google, Jesse typed in the name. An Iraqi, Christian bishop living in Australia. Preaching about the love of Christ and forgiveness for one’s enemies. And the eye-patch? It turns out a man had stabbed him in the eye, seeking to silence and kill him, while he was preaching. But he held no hatred, and had forgiven the man who attacked him; “”Love never fails… whatever has happened to me personally I thank the Lord Jesus…I forgive whoever has done this act and I say to him, you are my son, I love you and I will always pray for you.””
Jesse went back to the video. He was enthralled. He watched it again, and then another, and then another. The bishop’s passion inspired him. There was more to life than his current dramas. There was a hope for love and happiness for all, a promise given by God himself. Tears started to fill his eyes. Jesse put down his phone and smiled. No matter how bad life was now, he was loved by God, and that was all that mattered.”
This story was submitted as part of the Oxford Pilot Phase of the Gen Z Role Models Project.
“saw a Christian preacher” (S111) © 2026 by The Gen Z Role Models Project is licensed under CC BY 4.0
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