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Old 01-01-2019, 10:19 PM
 
Location: Chapelboro
12,798 posts, read 16,215,355 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jude24 View Post
It looks like I stirred up more than I intended here. But I must comment. Evangelical is not a denomination and it does not have "tenants".
... but I am not aware of any Christian denomination that believes we are to convert or proselytize.
That is literally the definition of the word "evangelism" and one of the four points of the litmus test for evangelicalism as defined by the National Association of Evangelicals.
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Old 01-01-2019, 10:56 PM
 
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Well there is a little confusion as Evangelicalism is not a denomination as such, and therefore it’s probably a fair assessment to say there is no denomination that has it in its tenets. But evangelicalism is the largest element of Protestantism in this country (as opposed to mainline and fundamentalism), but those aspects cut across denominations. NC is awash with evangelicalism, but from where I sit, it usually only serves as an icebreaker for meeting new potential friends (“are you looking for a church?” is a common opening line for new neighbors). I’ve never seen it in business. Poppy, you mentioned people said “bless you” and that they will pray for you, but I don’t that is equatable to prosletyzing, as it’s more a knee-jerk catchall saying. But certainly to someone from LA, I could see how any discussion of religion might seem odd.
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Old 01-02-2019, 01:01 PM
 
Location: Chapelboro
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The National Association of Evangelicals that I referenced above is an umbrella organization for evangelical churches from many denominations:

https://www.nae.net/about-nae/
Quote:
Founded in 1942, the National Association of Evangelicals seeks to honor God by connecting and representing evangelical Christians in the United States. It represents more than 45,000 local churches from 40 different denominations and serves a constituency of millions.
The proselytizing/converting/witnessing/"sharing the Good News" is one of the litmus tests for determining evangelicalism as described by the National Association of Evangelicals. You can go to the link I provided up thread.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Heel82 View Post
Well there is a little confusion as Evangelicalism is not a denomination as such, and therefore it’s probably a fair assessment to say there is no denomination that has it in its tenets.
I am not sure what you are trying to say here. Can you clarify?
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Old 01-02-2019, 02:01 PM
 
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That Jude is right I believe that most major Christian denominations are agnostic on prosletyzing as far as their major tenets go. Evangelicalism is transdenominational, not an actual denomination. It’s akin to fundamentalism or mainline and used as a descriptor for denominations and not as an actual denomination.
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Old 01-02-2019, 11:12 PM
 
Location: CA
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Wow, I don't want to crank this up any more, it seems like there are some pretty hard feelings here. That was not my intent. Evangelism is a part of Christianity. I believe that converting and proselytizing are very different from evangelism. That is not what the word means. I won't say that no no Christians have ever got that wrong, but as I said before the Bible is pretty clear that only God can convert. It also says much more about the life and example of believers, and their good works to others, as a testimony. This has obviously hit a sore spot, and that's always my cue to stop.

I have many more atheists try to "convert" me to their religion then anyone else. I have read Freud, Kant, Russell, Darwin, Dawkins, Hawking and others, so I understand the basics of their beliefs. I do like to discuss it, but when it seems to uncover a hurt or turn into anger, there is not a point in continuing. There will always be people of different beliefs. If I finally get to live back there I expect to encounter many people with whom I disagree on some things, just like everywhere else that I have lived. If I get plugged into a church, it will be one that believes we are to love our neighbors, treat them right, help and do good where we can.

This post interested me because it was about the worst things in North Carolina. I haven't lived there yet, but I have seen quite a bit of it. Maybe you need to live in a place like I do to appreciate the idea that people inviting you to church could be one of the "worst" things about a place. I would swap for that even if there is some prejudice against Christians. I'd love to sit down with you sometime Poppydog and share a glass of wine, a cold beer, a glass of tea (not sweet tea for me, please), or whatever. We wouldn't have to discuss any of this, but maybe talk about what are the BEST things about N.C.

For my part I am done with this topic...peace and love to you all, and I mean that!
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Old 01-03-2019, 10:46 AM
 
Location: Chapelboro
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OK, here we have two internet posters saying what evangelicals do or don't believe vs the National Association of Evangelicals. Hmmmm...which source should we give more credence to...

Y'all I am not really invested in what evangelicals believe. That is up to them. And yes there are many flavors of evangelicalism, but when the national organization of evangelicals is saying that to be called an evangelical you have to agree with this statement: "It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior," then that's just pretty cut and dried. That is what they believe. If you don't believe that you can't be an evangelical. You can be some other flavor of Christian, but not evangelical.

Having lived in Los Angeles a long time ago and having lived in North Carolina for a long time I can tell you that anecdotally I have heard more about Jesus in NC. Almost every time I drive down the road I see a "Thank You Jesus" sign. Not that my anecdotal experience counts for anything other than a story. I'm sure if anybody wants to they can look up research and statistics on religion in North Carolina.

Is this a "worst" thing about North Carolina? No, I don't think so and never said so. I don't have any problem with Christians (or Muslims or Jews or Buddhists or any other religion or atheists) as long as they are good people. Is it different from some other parts of the country? Yeah, I think it is. That was my only point. NC is still part of the Bible Belt. If you haven't been around people asking "have you accepted Jesus as your savior" before before it might be surprising.
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Old 01-03-2019, 12:37 PM
 
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For my part, I didn’t disagree with the National Association of Evangelicals. I merely noted that when Jude said there was no Christian denomination that held evangelicalism as a major tenet, he was right as far as I am aware. Evangelicalism isn’t a denomination as such, and that you seemed to be conflating the two (ie there are nonevangelical Baptists and evangelical Methodists etc). But this does seem to have run its course.
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Old 01-03-2019, 03:57 PM
 
Location: Raleigh, NC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jude24 View Post
It looks like I stirred up more than I intended here. But I must comment. Evangelical is not a denomination and it does not have "tenants". The word used to mean something as it differentiated between two different sub-theologies within Christianity. Anymore it seems to mean those who are actually believers, but it seems it is most often used in a derogatory way. I have been fascinated with beliefs since I was very young, and long before I became a Christian. I was always curious about what people believed and why. I know there are some Christians that get a little pushy, but I am not aware of any Christian denomination that believes we are to convert or proselytize. The bible is pretty clear that only God can convert, and although we are told to share the good news, it is not up to us or within our power to change anyone. I don't see inviting anyone to church any different than inviting them to a new restaurant. Of course, I hope they enjoy it.

Awhile ago I had some friends invite us to go to a Cher concert with them. My first thought was "Why would I voluntarily go somewhere to listen to the bellowing of a wounded buffalo?" But instead, I politely declined. Some time later I had an opportunity to invite them to go with us to an Alison Krauss concert. Now I don't care if they would prefer Cher, but it just wouldn't be right not to offer an opportunity for something better.

There is true proselytizing in Islam, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witness and Scientology. It is part of their mission and duty. The people I meet that seem to want to convince me the most of their religion are Atheists. with anyone, I enjoy discussing each others beliefs and I have read literature from all of them. If they want to argue, they can find someone else.

I still say if people inviting me to their church is considered one of the worst things about NC, it must be a pretty good place!
Ok here is my analysis of all of this:

1) About the only thing I remember from Sunday School at Louisburg Baptist Church (I later was confirmed as an Episcopalian), was the Story of Johnny Appleseed which was a metaphor for going out and spreading the seeds of Christianity. Every "religious" channel on TV never STOPS talking about spreading the word of God and "saving" people by turning them on to Jesus Christ. Spreading the gospel & enlightening people that that they can be forgiven, redeemed and be rewarded with everlasting life & entry into Heaven IS ABSOLUTELY a TOP MISSION of Protestant denominations.

2) I don't particularly care for organized religion, because all of the effort & money would be better spent mentoring disadvantaged children & kids in foster care. Alleviating suffering & making tangible improvements in other people's lives is far more beneficial than building $ multimillion churches on every corner. The hypocrisy is unending.

3) But I'm not against organized religion as it is a useful social construct that has brought people together for thousands of year.

4) Who can argue that it's not a good thing when it gets people through rough times & offers hope? Whether perceived or real is moot, it helped people j .

5) Invitations to someone's church could be simply a neighborly gesture or an offer "in" to meet members of the community.

6) I think some ofthe cool reception to those who run around all day using the terms, Christian" & "Jesus" in regular conversation... is that all too often, these are the people that treat or offend others so badly, that they don't have anywhere left to turn.

These people often don't realize how they come across to other people or why socializing & retention of friends has been a lifetime struggle. they have exhausted all other social prospects & now are hoping reciting bible verses will solve all their problems. IN SHORT: if the term "Christian" is used by someone in daily conversation, it's very likely that they are horrible & inconsiderate people that have been run off by everyone else.

That's been my experience anyway...
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Old 01-03-2019, 04:33 PM
 
Location: Raleigh, NC
3,655 posts, read 3,900,696 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kyle19125 View Post
Riley...Are you trolling or what? There are four seasons in NC, especially the Piedmont to Mountains area which covers 2/3 the state. Humid? Yes, some parts of summer...more like July and August, and in line with most of the US for that time of year. Having apparently visited all corners of the state (insert eyeroll) can you elaborate where you felt the "backwoods" feel? The same goes for the smell of turkey manure, which I don't seem to recall anywhere I've been in NC (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Burlington, Elon, Greensboro, Winston Salem, Stateville, Charlotte, Asheville, Boone and Highlands to name just some.) Hurricanes/flooding happen as frequently if not more so in a dozen other states so please explain how NC stands out?
Well as a native I can attest that many of the rural counties emit plenty of manure smells are true from all of the poultry and hogs that are raised for the nation's appetite for bacon snd chicken.

And I also say that "rural" in New England does not include Walmart and Dollar General or 14 fast food restaurants lined up side by side that collectively form the biggest visual of each town as you drive through it.

Rural up there looks like the PBS Saturday cooking show, "Cooks Country" & "America's Test Kitchen".

If produced in rural NC it would be called, "Jeffrey's 401 Grille".

And reciting the list of towns above, would say to me that person doesn't know the real NC very well, because the intent seems to be mentioning towns from large to small, but their smallest examples are considered to be bustling big towns compared to 40% of the state scattered with much smaller towns.
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Old 01-03-2019, 04:51 PM
 
Location: North Carolina
6,081 posts, read 4,555,266 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by architect77 View Post
And I also say that "rural" in New England does not include Walmart and Dollar General or 14 fast food restaurants lined up side by side that collectively form the biggest visual of each town as you drive through it.
Hmmm. My perception is that the truly rural parts of NC don't usually have the same issues on their radar. When someone talks about shopping locally for sustainably harvested cotton, it's usually someone from a town that has a large influx of people who have moved in from outside of the area, expensive real estate prices, and a larger proportion of the population with higher levels of education. For example, just because places like Pinehurst, Blowing Rock, and Davidson seem quaint and "rural" in their small town appeal, they are of a totally different culture than the rural places that don't show up very often on this forum.

It's not that no one in the truly rural parts of the state don't care about some of these issues. Some may, but a higher priority among most people in the working class, heavily native settled rural areas of the state seems to be putting food on the table and clothes on their backs for a better price. And if it comes from a big chain like Dollar General, Wal Mart, or McDonalds, then so be it. It's one explanation for the paradox of why you see generic, low priced chains in the rural working class communities, not the Mayberryish local places, which are actually less common in some of these communities. The people often are working hard to make a decent living and don't put as much of a priority on deeming whether something is sustainable for the carbon footprint as someone from an area where extra time and money are more in abundance. Whether these lower priced chains actually offer a good value is a different discussion.

Last edited by Jowel; 01-03-2019 at 05:01 PM..
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