This is the Moth Radio Hour from PRX.

I'm Catherine Burns, and today we're hearing about confrontations.

It's a theme that runs through a lot of stories, which makes sense.

We tend to tell stories about things we're willing to fight for.

Many of us are hardwired to avoid conflict.

Turn the other cheek, keep the peace, mind our own business.

But for almost everyone, there comes a time when enough is enough.

A quick note, because of the nature of our theme, the stories in this hour are a bit intense,

like this first story, which is about choosing when and how to engage with someone who does not share your views.

It covers sexual identity and how that can sometimes lead to conflict.

Here's Padraig Otuma, live at the Moth.

I didn't get into the university course that I wanted when I finished secondary school,

secondary school, high school, and I didn't know what to do. I wasn't entirely sure what to do with my life.

And I looked at my options and I decided that I would join a missionary organization

because I thought, why not? There's the possibility of travel and maybe even the possibility of learning a new language.

And so I got the application to join this missionary organization. And it was the kind of application

you'd expect from a Christian missions agency. Is religion important to you? What does your priest

or your minister say? Tell us a little bit about your faith, etc.

Are you used to intercultural experiences?

All of those things were really fine for me to fill out in the application form.

And then it had this question that said,

Have you ever been involved with the following?

...