Offended?

[Kryten]

To me it's not a matter of offense. It's a matter of logic.

 

First of all, they generally DON'T know a thing about any of us, so they can't judge whether any of us were Real Christians or not.

 

Second, it IS offensive to tell someone who devoted their entire life to God/Jesus/The Church/The Bible-- with their time, money, emotions, resources, and mind, heart and spirit that they didn't really do it, or they did it wrong.

 

But it is most important to me that if they are forced to ACCEPT that there are/were actual Christians out there who really believed the same as they did, but then REJECTED it, then they themselves are vulnerable to the same outcome. That is a very frightening concept to believers.

They need to be made aware that there are many who were indeed just like them that are now calling them and their beliefs WRONG! The key is that we WERE just like them.

 

It's okay to be offended by such assertions, but it's good to refute it in order to scare the hell out of them, shake their foundation, and perhaps deconvert them into freedom.

[Lanakila]

It bothers me because they are calling me a liar. I know what I was, and believed. I am not a liar, and I don't appreciate being accused of it.

[white_raven23]

What kind of passion are you looking for, Cerise??  The kind of passion that causes people to incite holy wars...or the romantic passion?  I didn't say be unemotional robots...being able to control ones emotions does not mean that.

 

There is a balance to life.

 

Regardless of how much control we have (or think we have) over things. There are certain rules about life that cannot be broken. It's impossible to upset balance.

 

For every loss somewhere there is a gain. Things even out. You can't have the fuzzy warm passion without the angry passions. In trying to control one, you end up robbing and leaching out the other. "Equilibrium" is a movie that goes exactly here. It's true to our natures. Too much attempted control ultimately leads to anarchy and all that you wanted to supress in the first place.

[Asimov]

There is a balance to life.

 

Regardless of how much control we have (or think we have) over things. There are certain rules about life that cannot be broken. It's impossible to upset balance.

 

For every loss somewhere there is a gain. Things even out. You can't have the fuzzy warm passion without the angry passions. In trying to control one, you end up robbing and leaching out the other. "Equilibrium" is a movie that goes exactly here. It's true to our natures. Too much attempted control ultimately leads to anarchy and all that you wanted to supress in the first place.

 

 

You're right, it is about balance, and you'll notice that the leader of the resistence in Equilibrium stated that he could control them, but he wanted to experience them!

 

The whole point of the movie was that too much emotion led to bad things, and no emotion led to a vapid existence that denied a part of ourselves.

[I Broke Free]

It bothers me because they are calling me a liar. I know what I was, and believed. I am not a liar, and I don't appreciate being accused of it.

 

It doesn’t bother me anymore when Christians accuse me of lying, but then I have had 27 years to get used to it. I can remember being in their shoes and doing the same thing. I had to! Otherwise my whole belief structure fell apart. Non-believers were expendable when it came to my own personal salvation. I was under no obligation believe or trust them if my belief structure was threatened.

 

Christianity forces believers to hold that all non-believers are liars, not just the ones who are no longer Christian.

 

“You know that Jesus is you savior, you just refuse to accept it.”

 

“You chose be gay; God does not make mistakes.”

 

“You feel it in your heart that the Bible is the word of God. Why do you deny it?”

 

Perhaps this might be a good approach: Look them in the eye and say in a somber voice, “How sad, I know for certain that you don’t really mean that.” When they reject your statement, just keep reiterating how sad you feel for them.

 

I don’t want Christians angry with me. I want them to feel my pity! It’s much more annoying.

[white_raven23]

The whole point of the movie was that too much emotion led to bad things, and no emotion led to a vapid existence that denied a part of ourselves.

 

And then your second sentence of this paragraph leads to the first sentence....which leads to the first.....on and on. Any extreme will eventually lead to it's opposite extreme. And back and forth creating a shifting balance les and less until very slowly true equilibrium is reached (if left the fuck alone).

[Asimov]

And then your second sentence of this paragraph leads to the first sentence....which leads to the first.....on and on. Any extreme will eventually lead to it's opposite extreme. And back and forth creating a shifting balance les and less until very slowly true equilibrium is reached (if left the fuck alone).

 

Yes....I don't see your point, white_raven. I'm not suggesting that we artificially control our own emotions.

[white_raven23]

Yes....I don't see your point, white_raven.  I'm not suggesting that we artificially control our own emotions.

 

Gah! No wonder! I'm mistaking phrases for sentences!

 

Let me re-post that.Get me coffee!

 

QUOTE(Asimov @ Aug 29 2005, 12:32 PM)

The whole point of the movie was that too much emotion led to bad things, and no emotion led to a vapid existence that denied a part of ourselves.

 

 

 

 

And then your second phrase of this sentence leads to the first phrase....which leads to the second.....on and on. Any extreme will eventually lead to it's opposite extreme. And back and forth creating a shifting balance les and less until very slowly true equilibrium is reached (if left the fuck alone).

[Eponymic]

Every time I see this thread all I can think is, "Guess everyone's still offended. They must be, they keep posting in this thread."

 

[Checkmate]

Every time I see this thread all I can think is, "Guess everyone's still offended. They must be, they keep posting in this thread."

Not me! (Damn it, I fell for it!)

[spamandham]

Every time I see this thread all I can think is, "Guess everyone's still offended. They must be, they keep posting in this thread."

 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

I'm offended that you would accuse me of being offended.

[Eponymic]

Not me!  (Damn it, I fell for it!) 

 

You mean the super Grinch isn't offended?

 

MIRACLES HAPPEN!!!

 

 

[Eponymic]

I'm offended that you would accuse me of being offended.

 

The only way you could be offended at my un offensive post is because it was too passive and deep down inside you really wanted to be offended. So you took my offense lacking quip to mean that I was laying a general accusation towards the aforementioned offenses. Thereby becoming unequivocably offended by my unoffensiveness.

 

That just makes me offended.

[white_raven23]

The only way you could be offended at my un offensive post is because it was too passive and deep down inside you really wanted to be offended. So you took my offense lacking quip to mean that I was laying a general accusation towards the aforementioned offenses. Thereby becoming unequivocably offended by my unoffensiveness.

 

That just makes me offended.

 

By being offended by spamandham's desire to be offended by your falsely humble offense lacking quip you justify the general offense regarding the aforementioned offenses. Thereby becoming offensive through pretended unoffensiveness.

 

We are all deeply offended.

[Cerise]

What kind of passion are you looking for, Cerise??  The kind of passion that causes people to incite holy wars...or the romantic passion?  I didn't say be unemotional robots...being able to control ones emotions does not mean that.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Yes, because so many of us here on Ex-C.net are raring to go start the next Crusades...

 

You ever watch a kettle boil? (Supposedly it makes it take longer if you watch it). This age we live in, the age of "self-control at all costs" or "let's all repress so others don't feel uncomfortable" is looking like a kettle to me. It's a controlled heat, and it takes a while to build, but it's dangerous when it finally gets to the bioling point. It used to be I could talk to people are understand that they had opinions they felt strongly about, and things they wouldn't back down on, interests that couldn't be concealed, personalities. I could actually hold a conversation with a person and know what the name of the hobbey horse they rode in on was. Now I talk to people and it's mostly meaningless pap. You cannot discuss anything besides the same old subjects, you can't even argue with someone anymore. Not really.

 

At least passion forces you to interact with people, even if it's an argument. Our new trick of categorizing everything into "that's your opinion and here's mine, put them in different boxes please" just distances people from their arguments.

[Eponymic]

By being offended by spamandham's desire to be offended by your falsely humble offense lacking quip you justify the general offense regarding the aforementioned offenses. Thereby becoming offensive through pretended unoffensiveness.

 

We are all deeply offended.

 

Falsely humble!

 

Oh, now I'm not just offended I'm outraged!

[Asimov]

Yes, because so many of us here on Ex-C.net are raring to go start the next Crusades...

 

You ever watch a kettle boil?  (Supposedly it makes it take longer if you watch it).  This age we live in, the age of "self-control at all costs" or "let's all repress so others don't feel uncomfortable" is looking like a kettle to me.  It's a controlled heat, and it takes a while to build, but it's dangerous when it finally gets to the bioling point.  It used to be I could talk to people are understand that they had opinions they felt strongly about, and things they wouldn't back down on, interests that couldn't be concealed, personalities.  I could actually hold a conversation with a person and know what the name of the hobbey horse they rode in on was.  Now I talk to people and it's mostly meaningless pap.  You cannot discuss anything besides the same old subjects, you can't even argue with someone anymore.  Not really.

 

At least passion forces you to interact with people, even if it's an argument.  Our new trick of categorizing everything into "that's your opinion and here's mine, put them in different boxes please" just distances people from their arguments.

 

You are mistaking control with suppression, cerise.

[Panther]

I was thinking for a second, after reading the "Ex-Christian is an Oxymoron" thread.

 

Why do you guys care that they make these claims that you were never Christians?

 

Does it matter really what they think?  Not only do they believe that, but they think that God exists, that snakes talk, that donkeys talk, that demons can possess people and a myriad of other ridiculous things that clearly have no bearing in reality.

 

If they are that stupid then really, why bother trying to correct them?  As we've seen before it doesn't matter what YOU tell them, they still think it's true.  The only way they will change their mind is if they either experience it themselves or if they spend time with you guys.

 

Ex-Christian is just a label, and a negative one at that.  When Christians say that it is an oxymoron, it is meant as a rationalisation that no real Christian could possibly backslide because they don't want to think that's possible.

 

Anyways, just a thought.  Don't worry about what those morons are saying.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

 

Hiya!!

 

Well...it just pisses me off. How dare they claim to have known intimately what was going through my head?

How dare they claim to "know me" well enough to assume that I was not doing it right or not giving it my all?

 

That offends me. It's just WAAAAY to easy for them to blow me off and chalk it up to "well...she didn't do it right....she was never saved to begin with, blah, blah, blah.

 

 

It totally negates everything that I am trying to say NOW. It makes me feel non-validated in the sense that I have something important to say and experiences to share that DO count for something. They matter to me.....it is my life.

 

Know what I mean?

And how are ya doin, sexy?

[Panther]

Besides that, you need to realise that it's not because they don't think you were ever a Christian.  It's because they don't want to believe that they might be wrong, that somebody could realise it.

 

 

Exactly. Even though I know this intellectually, I guess because I'm a new "de-convert"...it'll take some time.

 

Till then.....I'll keep saying and

 

[Cerise]

You are mistaking control with suppression, cerise.

 

Can you give me a list of the differences between those two actions besides the connotations?

[a midnight star]

Christianity is simply a bunch of catch phrases. When they don't have an answer then it is time to turn to the "pat answers".

 

Do they believe the garbage? Who knows. BUt what I do know that by us being exers they are stumped and don't have anything else to say. They are left speechless by logic and do the one thing they can do or say.

 

I hope that this makes sense. I find it hard sometimes to put my thoughts down and have them still sound logical. This is where my thinking has led me the last few days since I first posted in this thread.

 

They say that only because they do not have an answer.