Being Conservative/Christian in Portland. (Wood Village, Union: renting, standard of living, restaurants)

[ThatUsernameIsTaken]

Originally Posted by Leisesturm

I'm not understanding something... your friends don't know you are actually Conservative... neither do any of your family... but you are worried that total strangers in a new city that you have just relocated to will somehow discern your Conservative status through... haircut? And possibly visit violence upon you as a result... what exactly is so shameful about being Conservative that it has to be hidden and treated like some dark character defect? I don't get it. I cannot speak to it personally, but from reading threads here, it is generally understood that finding a man (or woman) in Portland is an impossibility, period. Bring your man with you and make sure that you have jobs waiting for the both of you. Or else.

The reason why is because in my mind, I guess being Conservative and Christian goes hand-in-hand. I used to be a bleeding-heart Liberal and it completely changed when I became a Christian. I've had so much trouble from my father for being a Christian (who didn't even know about it until he saw my online history of my searches related to Christianity before I had a Bible of my own--- he literally reacted worse than when he saw my brother's porn searches when he was 13). He also would find things online and force me to say what I thought of them, political matters what he knew my response would be based on my spirituality, and then yell at me and tell me that I needed to know why I was wrong and he literally said he needs to re-educate me.

In my two years at a university with a huge international student population, mostly Muslims, I would often have people come up to me and talk to me, ask me all about my beliefs, and then become hostile when I wouldn't consider converting to Islam myself. Two Arabic people literally called me a racist just because I wouldn't say that it's "at least possible" that Jesus was just a prophet and not divine.

There are other things I've had happen, so I'm pretty much trying to be ready for anything, but I do feel better that those things are treated as private matters over there.

I have so much trouble from people just believing that the Bible is true; if my family knew that I'm also Conservative, including being pro-life, and things like that; it would be even worse, since there are some people who identify as Christians but are like, pro-gay and pro-choice and things like that. There are even family members on Facebook who post "I hate republicans" all the time. My family attacks people who differ from them, it's just how they are, and that's why I have to hide that I'm Conservative more than being a Christian. It's kind of hard to explain more than that. I guess all this stuff just kind of makes me paranoid about what else I could deal with.

[pdxMIKEpdx]

It seems that you are over-thinking things.

People in Portland tend to leave you alone if you leave them alone.

[ThatUsernameIsTaken]

Originally Posted by pdxMIKEpdx

It seems that you are over-thinking things.

People in Portland tend to leave you alone if you leave them alone.

Yeah, I know I'm over-thinking things. I live in a legitimately hostile environment, so I'm trying to be safe rather than sorry in other places.

[patches403]

There are actually a lot of Christians in and around Portland, it's just that they aren't as noticeable since they tend to keep a lower profile here than they do in other parts of the country. Religion is also not something people around here bring up as easily as they do elsewhere. I hear in some other parts of the country the question "where do you go to church" is one of the first questions people ask when they meet you - around here no one will ask you that. A lot of people don't even know what religion their friends and acquaintances are unless they actually attend the same church.

Living in Portland you do need to be pretty tolerant of other religions since we have a big population of non-Christians as well and you will see signs of it here and there. The nice thing about Portland with regards to religion is that no one really cares if you do or don't go to church or which church you go to, but there's a big enough population that you can find people who share your religious convictions if you go looking for them.

Portland, IMO, is more annoying if you're a Conservative than if you're religious. People won't give you much crap for being conservative unless you're really in their face about it, but a lot of things will irritate you, like elections. Multnomah Co and the City of Portland are the worst for this in that the liberals and liberal issues pretty much always win by a landslide. The lax treatment of the homeless issue, the anti-car policies and the constant attempts to add sneaky taxes are some other things that would annoy you as a conservative in Portland/Multnomah Co. Washington and Clackamas counties are still liberal, but much better for conservatives.

[ThatUsernameIsTaken]

Originally Posted by patches403

There are actually a lot of Christians in and around Portland, it's just that they aren't as noticeable since they tend to keep a lower profile here than they do in other parts of the country. Religion is also not something people around here bring up as easily as they do elsewhere. I hear in some other parts of the country the question "where do you go to church" is one of the first questions people ask when they meet you - around here no one will ask you that. A lot of people don't even know what religion their friends and acquaintances are unless they actually attend the same church.

Living in Portland you do need to be pretty tolerant of other religions since we have a big population of non-Christians as well and you will see signs of it here and there. The nice thing about Portland with regards to religion is that no one really cares if you do or don't go to church or which church you go to, but there's a big enough population that you can find people who share your religious convictions if you go looking for them.

Portland, IMO, is more annoying if you're a Conservative than if you're religious. People won't give you much crap for being conservative unless you're really in their face about it, but a lot of things will irritate you, like elections. Multnomah Co and the City of Portland are the worst for this in that the liberals and liberal issues pretty much always win by a landslide. The lax treatment of the homeless, the anti-car policies and the constant attempts to add taxes are some other things that would annoy you as a conservative in Portland/Multnomah Co. Washington and Clackamas counties are still liberal, but much better for conservatives.

Thank you.

The presence of non-Christians doesn't bother me, I've been used to it here for a long time.

[SETabor]

Some of the most Christian people I know are also the most liberal. I guess it depends on which part of the bible you emphasize.

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by patches403

There are actually a lot of Christians in and around Portland, it's just that they aren't as noticeable since they tend to keep a lower profile here than they do in other parts of the country. Religion is also not something people around here bring up as easily as they do elsewhere. I hear in some other parts of the country the question "where do you go to church" is one of the first questions people ask when they meet you - around here no one will ask you that. A lot of people don't even know what religion their friends and acquaintances are unless they actually attend the same church.

Living in Portland you do need to be pretty tolerant of other religions since we have a big population of non-Christians as well and you will see signs of it here and there. The nice thing about Portland with regards to religion is that no one really cares if you do or don't go to church or which church you go to, but there's a big enough population that you can find people who share your religious convictions if you go looking for them.

Portland, IMO, is more annoying if you're a Conservative than if you're religious. People won't give you much crap for being conservative unless you're really in their face about it, but a lot of things will irritate you, like elections. Multnomah Co and the City of Portland are the worst for this in that the liberals and liberal issues pretty much always win by a landslide. The lax treatment of the homeless, the anti-car policies and the constant attempts to add taxes are some other things that would annoy you as a conservative in Portland/Multnomah Co. Washington and Clackamas counties are still liberal, but much better for conservatives.

I moved to Beaverton after being in Portland for over five years and there is a much more noticeable Christian presence here and I have met a few Mormons... Muslims... Catholics. I am not sure if the Christians are Evangelical but they have not preached to me so no worries there. I don't mind hearing about other peoples' religions as my hometown, S.F., has always been very Catholic and living in NYC for most of my adult life I am used to my neighbors being openly religious. Portland is very un-churched IMO but get out into the burbs and there are churches of all denominations everywhere. That is a good sign to me... and I am not super religious at all. Churches do so much important work in our communities so I am thankful for the services they provide. To the OP- don't believe all of the hype about Portland and come out for yourself and get a feel for neighborhoods and areas. Good luck!

[NWGirl74]

Originally Posted by ThatUsernameIsTaken

I was told that there were over 25 reported incidents of people slamming into cars with McCain bumper stickers and one family's house was set on fire, and they had a McCain sign on their lawn.

That sounds a bit extreme to me. Do you have a credible, legitimate source for this - like a news article from a reputable station or paper?

Originally Posted by ThatUsernameIsTaken

And like I said, I'm hoping it won't be hard for me to find a partner who shares my beliefs there.

And like I said, be prepared to be single for a long time. Not because of your beliefs but because it's Portland and that's how it is here.

[ThatUsernameIsTaken]

Originally Posted by SETabor

Some of the most Christian people I know are also the most liberal. I guess it depends on which part of the bible you emphasize.

Yeah... that's the thing with me thinking in a way that being conservative and being Christian goes hand-in-hand. I don't emphasize parts of the Bible, I believe ALL of it, so my political views have to line up with the Bible.

[ThatUsernameIsTaken]

Originally Posted by NWGirl74

That sounds a bit extreme to me. Do you have a credible, legitimate source for this - like a news article from a reputable station or paper?.

Actually, a city-data user messaged me about it, the person said it was from the Oregonian. It made me a little uneasy after hearing about that.