Anyone Else Feeling A Rash Of Christian Militant Fundamentalists?

[Antari]

For many, many years I’ve been absolutely fine with my life in the world. I’m quite ok with life’s finality in the end like all living organisms; it just comes to an end. Because of this I feel that I have a more vibrant outlook on life, “carpe diem”. I live my life to its fullest every day; working hard to achieve what I can in my short time on earth.

 

Over the past few months I’ve been accosted by “militant” Christian fundamentalists. One of which was when I was fishing with a few buddies on Lake Superior this last summer. Staying in the camp site were 2 girls and a guy. After they came over and raided our food and beverages; mostly without asking. Well, at least eating then stating “I hope you don’t mind”. So you just ate half of it, you might as well eat the rest.

 

They were from Ohio staying at a bible camp by Duluth Minnesota that were teaching them how to convert non-Christians; specifically those that are confirmed atheists. They started going around the camp fire asking how our faith in god was. I tried to change the subject because I felt one of the people with my may have been a devote Christian and I was right. I didn’t want to get into a discussion but they persisted. I was half a second away from blowing a fuse.

 

Their response was that they felt sorry for me that I was going to burn in hell. My response was that I felt sorry for them because they were wasting their one chance at life.

 

Anyway, this is only once example of many over the past year including a guy now that feels he has some god given task to convert me.

 

Anyone else experiencing this kind of out break recently?

[par4dcourse]

Welcome to the forum, Antari.

 

Unfortunately xians are taught early and often to spread the good news. Every tiny little freakin' sect thinks it's doing you a favor by annoying the crap outta you until you surrender. Election years are usually worse.

[MerryG]

Antari -- Yep. I perceive the same thing. In fact, it's why I'm here. I deconverted long ago but for the last 10 years or so I've felt so besieged by Christian proselytizers that I needed a place where I could freely be myself without having to tippy-toe around the fanatics, engage in mind-numbingly stupid arguments, or endure those, "You're going to hell and ha-ha you deserve it" looks.

 

Welcome to the forum. You'll find sanity here.

[Antari]

I grew up missouri senate lutheran then made a switch to evangelical "free" (baptist offshoot) for my highschool up to about 19 years old when I hardlined changed to being an athiest. I understand the teachings but I never experienced what I've experienced over the past few years. I remembered an old friend is on here (antlerman) and was hoping that I could learn more about the arguments so I can be a little more educated and tongue and cheek with my responses. Just enough to make others perhaps think a bit or self reflect.

[MultifariousBirdLady]

They were from Ohio staying at a bible camp by Duluth Minnesota that were teaching them how to convert non-Christians; specifically those that are confirmed atheists... [snip]

 

Their response was that they felt sorry for me that I was going to burn in hell.

 

Right. As if that kind of a response would have any merit at all with "confirmed atheists."

Did they pull out "Lord, Liar, or Lunatic," too? The "Four Spiritual Laws"? "God has a plan for your life"?

 

 

Welcome to the forum!

[buffettphan]

Election years are usually worse.

 

I think Par hit the nail on the head with that comment. The last time I was this aggravated with christians was four years ago. I hate it when they open their mouths. I can barely stand to look at most of them right now. It goes back to the origins of the (Im)Moral Majority and Pat Robertson's bid for the Republican nomination in the 1988 presidential election. They haven't let up since.

 

Welcome to Ex-C, Antari!

[Chikirin]

I was taught a kinder gentler form of evangelism, not like a mailman jamming unwanted mail into a slot but rather as a tugboat gently guiding a lost ship to port. I was taught to spread the word at every opportunity but to disengage if the other person said 'no' or wasn't interested. I was taught to say thanks and have a nice day and move on rather than to slip in some dickish comment like "you'll be sorry you didn't listen to me when your BURNING IN HELLFIRE!" maybe because I'm fro mthe northeast? I don't know. I was shocked when i went to a calvary chapel and went out evanglizing on the street with this evanglist guy and he was pretty much telling people they were going to burn if they didn't listen to him, I soon stoppoed going to that church.

[Akheia]

Like MerryG, I am also here because I perceive a marked increase in fundamentalist dickheads lately. When evil is rearing its head, good people must speak out against it. In my everyday life I'm largely away from fundies, but still all I must do to see fundies trying to take over our governments and legislate their bizarre version of Christianity is simply read the news.

 

Antari, I hope you find a peaceful solution to that twerp who's made you his mission. I reckon if you keep telling him to buzz off and that he's just showing you what a shitstain his god is, eventually he will.

[Carolorado]

Fear of death, I believe that is the number one reason people remain xians and try to convert others. It sure was for me.

 

One day you are gonna be dead. Nobody escapes. That was the hardest part of leaving Jeeebus, I wanted there to be MORE. I wanted everyone else to know there was much more, or so I once believed. That is why I tried to convert others; I hope I didn't convert anyone to that insanity.

 

Ironically, I started reading about parallel universes and how nature repeats itself, I found peace. There is something profound in knowing that billions of years from now, a atom from you may just be the last one needed to complete another being.

 

We all have to make our peace with the end, it is out there. I found my peace in science, and knowing that the universe recycles every atom. That is why I once was found but now I am free.

[florduh]

Election years are usually worse.

Par beat me to it. I was going to say it's the big election year, and the religious right Republicans are whipping their flock into a frenzy.

[Onyx]

Oh yes. It might well be true that there might be an afterlife or another go at life for us all in differing circumstances (or eternal recurrance - that would be the worst nightmare actually. If Nietszche is right, please tell him not to be a philosopher the next time around. There's a "delusion" we'd like to preserve. )

 

It would take the most outrageous amount of years (conservatively, one googol year or liberally, Graham's number year; which is just another way of saying, "We hope to understand infinity's particulars, integers and subsets. " Ha!) and the most crazy sets of circumstances (The universe get reborn or having the heat death of universe, only to have the smallest of particles appear out of seemingly nowhere to form another one in the longest manner of time; where's the sting O life?) to eventuate such a thing and what's more, the likelihood - if it exists - is that it might not be a religious version of a new life. Just plain ol' earth with - hopefully - different circumstances and plain ol' creatures with different thoughts.

 

Anyway, either way, it essentially means that our life in this universe (or its current form) is probably the only one; Carpe diem cum vinos, panes et pulchrae humanae! (Good old Horace though. ) Hopefully, hopefully. If not, there's alway remorse, change and forgiveness if you are willing. Not easy, mate. Worth it, life's worth it though.

[Guest wester]

I think that as the economic situation in the USA gets worse, you will see a lot more of this sort of reality-denying behavior.

 

My old mum used to be a fairly rational and interesting person. After economic things kept getting worse and worse, she now acts like a god-bot and I can't even have a 2 minute conversation about anything besides religion before she starts in with the prayers, angels, blessings and halle-fukin-lujahs.

[GardenerGal]

Honestly, my FB page has quieted down a great deal for some reason. I wonder if Christians are seeing they're not going to win their battle against equal rights for the gay population. They are being quiet like a lion in the grass, and then when gays receive full rights, they will pounce up and say, "Yes, we (and Jesus) supported this all along!"

[Vigile]

Given we are remembering 9/11 I think it's a good idea to assess just how much that event impacted extremism and polarization in the country as well.

 

Just as a personal anecdote. I personally witnessed the Pentagon disaster that day and it impacted all of us living in the DC metro area quite profoundly. My wife and I hung a large American flag in our living room window out of a sense of solidarity with the victims. After a few days, people were running around the country shooting Sikh convenience store clerks and raging about turning the middle east into a sea of glass while obnoxiously decorating their SUVs with flags on all 4 corners.

 

Out of sheer disgust, we took down the flag and to this day I feel a sick sense of shame when I see it because of the way it was taken to stand for ignorant support of violence instead of better values like freedom and unity.

[Tabula Rasa]

Welcome to the forums Antari! What may work for you, if you're strong enough in your unbelief, is to commit the so-called unpardonable sin in front of them. The one that would make it useless for them to continue to try to save you. Say very clearly" I deny the Holy Spirit." That should be enough to make most of them give up.

[★ Citsonga ★]

Staying in the camp site were 2 girls and a guy. After they came over and raided our food and beverages; mostly without asking....

 

They started going around the camp fire asking how our faith in god was.

 

"Evidently better than yours, since you don't take 'Thou shalt not steal' seriously."

[VacuumFlux]

I was taught a kinder gentler form of evangelism, not like a mailman jamming unwanted mail into a slot but rather as a tugboat gently guiding a lost ship to port. I was taught to spread the word at every opportunity but to disengage if the other person said 'no' or wasn't interested. I was taught to say thanks and have a nice day and move on rather than to slip in some dickish comment like "you'll be sorry you didn't listen to me when your BURNING IN HELLFIRE!" maybe because I'm fro mthe northeast? I don't know. I was shocked when i went to a calvary chapel and went out evanglizing on the street with this evanglist guy and he was pretty much telling people they were going to burn if they didn't listen to him, I soon stoppoed going to that church.

 

I grew up with a more pushy idea of evangelism. I think it used to work, when lots of people grew up with church then stopped going but never stopped believing. Those are easy to guilt into coming to church. (I even heard a missionary say that work in the South is easier because of that.) At some point someone noticed the traditional methods weren't working and they tried to retrain everyone to pretend to be friendly first so that your prey would feel guilty about telling you to shut up. A few have noticed that doesn't work either and are trying to teach the church people to actually act like a friend and "build relationships" and "pour love into their lives" for a while before going into the hell thing, so that it'll sound more like you're trying to rescue them instead of threatening 'em. It cracks me up to watch how hard they have to work to figure out how to treat non-believers like real human beings.

 

Edit: Region I am referring to is the Midwest US. A lot of this was with Southern Baptists.

[Akheia]

Friendship Evangelism... The stealth method of winning converts. If you don't have facts or reason to back up your claims, then you have to be really sneaky. At least they're not overtly threatening people, but I'd almost rather they be abusive like normal than be sneaky like that.

[MerryG]

"Friendship evangelism"? Really? Well, that would explain why the last time those downy-cheeked Mormon "elders" came to my door they mentioned not a word about religion, but claimed they'd stopped by simply to "see if you need any help."

 

I was so dumbstruck I just said, "No, don't need a thing" rather than seeing what would happen if I asked them to paint my living room.

[Vigile]

I was so dumbstruck I just said, "No, don't need a thing" rather than seeing what would happen if I asked them to paint my living room.

 

It actually works. I got some Russian lessons out of some missionary kids I met here in Russia. Eventually they got around to showing me a 20 minute video, but it was so laughably cheesy it was quite entertaining and worth the price of the 'free' lessons.

[Akheia]

Yeah, and they'd have done it, Merry, and then you'd have felt culturally roped into listening to their conjob.

 

As much as I rag on them, though, it's hard for me to really be too pissed off at them. One day I went out walking and looking back at one point, noticed two Mormon missionaries were standing outside my apartment door; they were still there the next time I got within eyeshot of my door, and it was getting a bit weird. Then after having been there damn near 15-20 minutes, they left. I came home then and discovered that what they'd been doing was guarding my home; the door had been just a wee bit ajar the whole time. I never got to thank them for keeping an eye on my place. (It was fine, and my geriatric housecat hadn't even tried to escape.) I'm inclined to be generous with the kids themselves

[Vigile]

The kids are usually very nice and well-intentioned. I always talk to them when I see them abroad as chances are pretty good they are from Idaho.

[★ Citsonga ★]

As much as I rag on them, though, it's hard for me to really be too pissed off at them. One day I went out walking and looking back at one point, noticed two Mormon missionaries were standing outside my apartment door; they were still there the next time I got within eyeshot of my door, and it was getting a bit weird. Then after having been there damn near 15-20 minutes, they left. I came home then and discovered that what they'd been doing was guarding my home; the door had been just a wee bit ajar the whole time. I never got to thank them for keeping an eye on my place. (It was fine, and my geriatric housecat hadn't even tried to escape.) I'm inclined to be generous with the kids themselves

 

Or perhaps they thought that someone must be home since the door wasn't completely shut, and they were waiting and waiting for someone to answer the door.

[MerryG]

It's true. The Mormon missionaries are often really good kids. Sincere down to the "souls" of their shoes. And I've loved the times I've lived in Mormon communities. Good people. Always ready to take care of their own -- and often their neighbors.

 

But I still would have liked to have seen the expression on their faces if I said, "Sure, come in and help me install this new flooring." Might have even been worth getting another lesson about those golden plates and the magical glasses.

[I Broke Free]

I wonder if I give off a hostile vibe or something. I gave up religion / faith / god / and all things supernatural in 1978 and not once has anyone every tried to talk chirstian to me.