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he has become very belligerent, i deny no one their faith but. it is to the point of him trying to save my soul and how he is like well you must belive for you help people and do good deeds. he has just got pushy so i started to push back.
Well if he is truly obnoxious and chronically impertinent that's another thing. Life is too short for that sort of thing.
In any confrontation (physical or verbal), the goal is to cause your opponent more pain than they cause you.
If your pushing back causes him enough discomfort, he will stop being belligerent.
Unless he pushes back harder and "eye for eye, everyone ends up blind." Different people are different and respond differently to various things. Usually, someone who believes in the bible either hasn't read it or hasn't been educated very well on the opposition and criticisms. These types would read Karl Marx's book and believe it without question or second thought, as long as they hadn't invested too heavily in the opposition to Marx's ideas.
I never encounter folks like that unless I venture into a Christian forum. Why do you have a friendship with this person? Friends usually have things in common. The two of you are at the opposite ends of the spectrum. He cannot tolerate your views and you cannot deal with his views. What is the point?
I've actually been preached to in the following places. Minding my business each time:
-A Dr.'s appt. I had an old religious nurse try and tell me that the cure to my sky high BP was to "give my generational curse" (the hypertension, presumably) to god. The problem actually was, someone miscalculated the adrenaline that I had been administered prior to her diagnosis, and my body was simply reacting.
-The supermarket. Some kind church ladies singled me out from numerous other patrons to tell me that "I was hell bound" for dressing like a harlot "with that precious baby in my arms". True story. Duke shorts and a tank top may be faux pas for Saudi, but unless there was a transporter malfunction, I swear this took place in Virginia.
-Recent doctor's appt... A nurse got his knickers in a twist because I told him I was not interested in his invitation to a church social function. I was polite. However, he pressed on "So...what, you don't believe in god?" I casually said no, I do not. He all but stormed out of the room. It was kind of funny. I really liked that dude too. He was cool to talk to. Now, he just looks at me strange when I come for appointments.
You kind of have to ask..."Who does this ish?" And, the simple answer is people. To be fair, I have also had random bums come up to me and tell me things (that I usually listen to if I have time, I'm not rude) and I know any person can be obnoxious, it's not just a religious thing. However, being religious seems to give some people the notion that they have carte blanche to say 'whatever' to others.
A Dr.'s appt. I had an old religious nurse try and tell me that the cure to my sky high BP was to "give my generational curse" (the hypertension, presumably) to god. The problem actually was, someone miscalculated the adrenaline that I had been administered prior to her diagnosis, and my body was simply reacting.
It's a little frightening when a medical "professional" defaults to baroque supernatural explanations before looking at the medical facts in front of them. If a nurse can do this, you have to wonder how many doctors might be doing it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doomed_Shroom12
The supermarket. Some kind church ladies singled me out from numerous other patrons to tell me that "I was hell bound" for dressing like a harlot "with that precious baby in my arms". True story. Duke shorts and a tank top may be faux pas for Saudi, but unless there was a transporter malfunction, I swear this took place in Virginia.
They were just jealous of your good looks ;-) I have to wonder why anyone would think this might actually be an effective technique that would work, even if, for the sake of argument, they were offering sound advice. But they are so used to shaming and blaming each other into conformity, they must at some level think it would rock you back on your heels and make you change your ways so that would never happen again.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doomed_Shroom12
Recent doctor's appt... A nurse got his knickers in a twist because I told him I was not interested in his invitation to a church social function. I was polite. However, he pressed on "So...what, you don't believe in god?" I casually said no, I do not. He all but stormed out of the room. It was kind of funny. I really liked that dude too. He was cool to talk to. Now, he just looks at me strange when I come for appointments.
You just grew a third eye and couple of tentacles, apparently. Just wink that third eye and wave with one of the tentacles and he'll get used to it eventually.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doomed_Shroom12
... being religious seems to give some people the notion that they have carte blanche to say 'whatever' to others.
They have carte blanche to say "whatever" to each other and they live in such an insular world, such an echo chamber, that on any remotely religious topic they relate to random strangers the same way. It's all they know, and if you're in or near the Bible Belt, they also kind of assume that random strangers are also fundies anyway.
In fundamentalism, everyone is supposed to be "accountable to each other" and they get into each other's personal business and people are used to being violated. It's like family members ratting each other out to their totalitarian masters in Stalinist Russia or something.
Disclaimer: the above comparison is entirely fair, but only for the more rabid fundamentalists. The more moderate groups like the one I was once a part of, are much lower key and generally have some awareness that you can't apply these mind control techniques to people who have not already drank the Kool-Aid. But I guarantee that they are silently judging you even if they do manage to keep their mouths shut.
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