Fifteen-year-old Muhammad Saad Iqbal, a Muslim from Islamabad, Pakistan, is studying Christianity at Mount Ellis Academy in Bozeman.
Before he came to Montana, he had no idea there were so many similarities between the Bible and the Koran.
Moses is Musa. Joseph is Yoesuf. Noah is Nuh.
"I never knew there were so many similar stories," Saad said. "It's pretty cool."
But Saad isn't converting. Nor is anyone asking him to.
He is among some 600 teenagers from 23 predominantly Muslim countries who come to live, study and volunteer in the United States each year through the Youth Exchange and Study Program, a high school exchange program authorized by Congress in the aftermath of Sept. 11.
"This is really person-to-person diplomacy at the grassroots level," said Barbara Bancel, a consultant for the Center for Cultural Interchange, which is facilitating the YES program in Bozeman. "These are kids that are required to return to their home country and use their training and their experience there for the advantage of their country."
In Bozeman, Saad is staying with Greg and Cathy Allen. Greg works in real estate development, and Cathy is a librarian and work-program coordinator at Mount Ellis. They have three kids, Josh, 16, Emily, 15 and Meghan, 11; two large shepherd dogs, Tony and Scout; and a black cat, Butterfly.
"I learned that (Pakistanis) don't necessarily fit the stereotype that most Americans think," said Emily, who is closest in age to Saad. "They're really the same as us. There's not that many extremists there, and the normal Muslims don't like the extremists."
Like Emily, Saad is the second-oldest child in his family. He has three brothers and a sister. Saad's father works for an insurance company, and his mother is a stay-at-home mom. His grandfather is an imam, a leader at a mosque.
Saad can speak four languages - English and Urdu, the two official languages of Pakistan; and the regional languages Punjabi and Sindhi.
But although he comes from a relatively well-to-do home, Saad's parents were initially afraid to send him to the U.S., Saad said. And Saad wasn't sure what to expect, either.
"People think Americans are selfish and want to take over the world," Saad said. "I learned that most of the Americans are really helpful. I would like to be an ambassador for American people and tell people what this experience was like.
"Even if I can change the mind of a couple of people, that's worth it," he said.
Saad and the Allens recently gathered in the family's living room and laughed, telling stories about the things they'd learned from one another.
Saad said living with the Tony and Scout, the Allens' two big canines, posed one of the first cultural challenges for him. At first, Saad said, on a hike just after he arrived in August, he almost turned and ran when he met some dogs on the trail. People in Pakistan don't keep them as pets.
"Most people who have dogs only have them for security," he said. "(Tony) is like an 80-pound dog that cuddles."
"Now Saad is trying to figure out how he can get Tony in his suitcase," Cathy joked.
Saad got his first taste of peanut butter and root beer in Bozeman. He skied and went sledding for the first time, played on local soccer and basketball teams and celebrated Thanksgiving, Christmas and other American holidays.
"I had seen Christmas in the movies," Saad said. "I didn't know anything about Thanksgiving."
In school at Mount Ellis, Saad doesn't really fit into one grade. He's taking classes meant for sophomores, juniors and seniors. He's taking world history, English, algebra II, physics, chemistry and Bible studies.
"In Pakistan, you either become a doctor or an engineer," Saad said. "That's what every parent wants because it pays well."
Of course, that's if they're fortunate to be able to go to school at all.
In presentations Saad has given at Bozeman schools, he shows pictures of schools that the Taliban bombed because girls were allowed to attend.
When he showed the photographs to students at Mount Ellis, principal Darren Wilkins said Saad got choked up.
"He could hardly even talk about it," Wilkins said. "He said, ‘I'm here to tell you this is not Islam and these people don't have any religion at all. Those are people who are ruining our country right now.'"
YES exchange students are chosen for their ability to become the future leaders of their country, Bancel said.
Students aren't usually placed in religious schools, she said, but Mount Ellis Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist church, waived Saad's tuition and Saad welcomed the opportunity to learn about American faith.
YES also sends American teenagers to Muslim countries, though the number of places deemed safe enough is far fewer.
The Allens want to try to visit Saad in Pakistan. And they know they'll at least keep in touch.
"I feel like we've permanently expanded our family," Cathy said.
Bancel is looking for families in the Bozeman community who might be willing to host an exchange student next year. Anyone who's interested may contact her at 1-(877)-521-3554.
"In hosting these students, you are helping to shape the world," she said.
Amanda Ricker can be reached at aricker@dailychronicle.com or 582-2628.
Rules of Conduct
Welcome to the discussion.
Or, use your linked account: