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@coopsmama: Exactly. And absolutely applies to everyone!
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@Mrs. Oatmeal: for what it's worth, you do not come across as the slightest bit pushy!
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@Mrs. Oatmeal: You don't strike me as remotely pushy, either!
@Espion: That was truly a beautiful show of respect. I actually have tons of affection for the figure of Christ and (at least my understanding of) his teachings...
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@simplyfelicity: Your wording is so much more eloquent than anything I can say.
I am a Christian who is married to an atheist. I have friends who do not believe in God, and I don't believe that God wants Christians to only socialize with each other. Evangelism makes me uncomfortable, especially televangelism. I try not to push my faith on others.
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Simply felicity took every word out of my mouth. I 100% feel the same way
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@simplyfelicity:
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@coopsmama: It occurs to me (too late) that I could/should have addressed this as "If you identify as religious...". Oh well, maybe next time.
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Honestly, I don't see anything wrong with this thread. I think everyone here has clearly shown that this type of discussion can be had without anyone losing their heads over it.
Also wanted to chime in and say that @simplyfelicity's response was beautifully put. I don't identify as Christian, but I do consider myself spiritual and love that people here seem to be welcoming and tolerant.
As far as 'trying not to push' beliefs on other people, I think it can be incredibly difficult to not say at least something to the people in your life about what you believe. Just like any opinion, we all have a tendency to share what we think when it comes up! To not bring it up at all means that we are trying to treat it like a dirty secret, and I don't feel like anyone's personal beliefs should be treated that way. I love talking with others about their beliefs, and find it can be really enlightening conversation.
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I feel similarly to simplyfelicity.
I'm religious and people know it. But they don't know it because I tell them, but because of how I live my life.
I work at a religious institution, so that's one main clue! lol
But for the most part, I think I tend to believe in things that I can witness and see working. If someone SAYS something, fine. Whatever.
If they DO something, it holds more value.
One of my best friends and I disagree on many issues, but we know we can respectfully disagree and not attack each other's beliefs.
Plus, working in a somewhat religious setting, it's really helpful to be able to spend time with people from a variety of backgrounds in my free time.
If a person surrounds themselves with people just like them, I think they're missing out on a lot in the world.
And I think some of my most closely held beliefs ARE closely held because I've had to defend them at some point.
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@MaryM: I have so much respect for people who share their values through their actions. And you're right, the world is so much more interesting if you surround yourself with people who can offer a wide variety of knowledge, opinions, and beliefs.
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I'm Christian, but in a very casual way. Holidays are secular celebrations and Sundays is just an end of the weekend.. But, the god I pray to in the Christian god.
I don't care if someone shares the same religion as me. Evangelists are annoying, pushy, and come off crazy. I'm thankful my Christian friends that were raised in a religious home shared their walks with Christ *after* I asked to know more.
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I think a major thing that helped me in my own particular religious formation was that my sister became Mormon when I was a teenager. I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and went to one of the meetings she had with the elders.
The way that they questioned (some might even say attacked) my own faith made me really not respect what they were trying to share.
When people do ask me about what my beliefs are, I try to focus a lot more on things that are in common first...then I'll move into the differences and why we believe what we believe.
In the end, I think we all (as humans, not even as religious humans) have so much in common that it's such a shame to focus on the differences first.
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This is a rather tough question for me to answer because I do not want to offend anyone, but I am a Christian and the whole faith that I believe in- the gospel- naturally offends people. If I truly believed in Jesus Christ then I would have to admit that yes, I do believe that he is the only way for salvation. So yes, I admit that I believe that. My Christianity wouldn't be authentic if I didn't truly believe in the Word of God. With that being said, I think it is very possible to have friendships with non believers. As long as you respect my beliefs, I will respect yours. I will not try to convert you or push you to believe the way I do, but I'm probably praying for you when I'm alone having my prayer time. Not in a "Lord save her soul because she's going to hell without you" kind of way but in a "Lord, shower her with your love and grace and help me to be the kind of friend that she needs" kind of way.
As far as evangelism goes, I definitely believe it's important to share my faith with others. I think that a lot of ministers/pastors have kind of given evangelism a bad name because of their love for money. Not all who claim to be Christian, are truly Christian. So I think you just gotta be careful who you listen to.
I tried to carefully write out my thoughts and I truly hope I didn't offend anyone!
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I view religions like I do race. I don't care what the eff you are, just be my friend.
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@whenoceansrise: Totally agree!
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Have I mentioned how much I love all of you?
ETA: ...for lots of reasons, actually, but at least in part for having this fairly open and enlightening discussion!
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@FliegepilzHut: Awwwww! The love is totally and completely returned.
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@simplyfelicity: @whenoceansrise: Right. Exactly.
I am very proud to call myself a Christian, but have plenty of friends with different beliefs. No judgement here. You are free to believe what you want, and I absolutely won't love (or like!) you any less. That said, I do feel like it's my responsibility to share my faith. When you have good news, you want to share it. When you find a great deal, or an awesome recipe, or some great new face wash that changed your skin forever, you want to share it with your people. You call your mom and your best friend. You post it on Facebook. I feel like the joy found in my relationship with God is the best news I'll ever get to share. I'll talk about it openly. I'll live out the life I've been called to. But, I'm never, EVER going to shove it down anyone's throat. I will always do my best to make everyone feel loved and respected. Everyone deserves love and respect.
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@simplyfelicity: Thank you! Sending all kinds of love to you and your LO, especially!
@photojane: That's what we all need more of..love and respect!
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