Religious Pressure

[XPlumpedXLipsXandXArsenicX]

I'm an atheist, always have been, though I was raised in a Christain household, with missonaries knowcking at the door every other week and catholic schoolgirl firends. Isn't there some hipocracy in pushing one's religon on others? Religion doens't bother me, I just don't beleive in a god, but I feel no need to push that on others. So why do other people feel the need to push their beliefs on me? It sort of goes along witht the whole "God says we shouldn't murder, but you don't love Jeasus so I'm going to cut your head off" mentality of the middle ages. We modern people are better than that. But still, every eligious group is convined they are right, and scorn all others, when most have the same basic fundaments of a higher power and the difference between right and wrong. So as long as someone can differentiate between good and bad choices and actions, are they rally any less of a person just because they don't go to your church?

[meriadoc]

No one ever answered this post so I thought I would take a stab at it. I don't think it is correct to pressure someone into thinking one way or the other. People should be free to make up their own minds. If you run into someone like that you should walk the other way. If you consider that person a friend, let them know that this subject bothers you and you rather talk about something else. At the same time, you might ask yourself, do they really mean harm by it, or do they just want to share their point of view. One of the things I like to do is always keep an open mind. What the heck, I might learn something new. At the same time, you have an obligation to yourself to hold onto your beliefs.

[phoexer]

I seriously hate that about religions.

I guess thats what drove me away from church, I never used to get how the same peole who come preching love and peice can be SO intorrelent. Its like all they want to say is

 

God loves you, as long as you come to our church!

 

I think they should serve alcohol in church, cuz after four or five drinks no one cares which church you go to.

[JcX]

I'm an atheist too, I only believe in something solid - SCIENCE.

Whatever science proves right, I believe. Whatever science failed to prove currently, I judge it with a rational and logical sense.

I feel that everyone deserves their own religion as long as it doesn't offense anyone. Religion doesn't cross that limit, it's those "religious" fellowship cross the border. They think that what they believe is true, and others are void. And they even force others to follow what they believe. This is ridiculous. Let me tell you some of my experience back in my country.

 

I live in Malaysia, a country where 3 major races live together, Chinese, Malays, Indian - with 3 different religion, Buddha, Islam and Gods of Indian(too many they prayed) and also Christian.

The Indians are passive, they rarely spread about their religion to others. But the any of the religion festive season comes, they grouped and will be having a procession in major towns.

The Buddhist.... well I can't find anything bad about it. My family was all Buddhists, but me neither.

While the Malays, are ironic. Let me tell you all something, the Islam in Arab, they allow pork, but here in Malaysia, we don't allow porks. The government are formed major by Malays, they've make laws that sounds "Everyone is free to choose their own religion". At the other side, Islam states that "Once you're in Islam, forever you will be Islam and we DON'T ALLOW you to quit. Your spouse will be an Islam too, so happens to your sons, your whole family and generations." Isn't that ironic??

 

Well... in my country, we still live well although we've 3 major races and religions. (Of course, some little quarrel still happens often.)

[Sungazer]

Wow i think this is the most sedate, calm and logical descusion of religion ive ever seen

 

I myself am fundamentaly christian (not to be mistaken with fundamentalist, which I cant

stand). I do beleive in God and the basic principles of christianity, but at the same time I

also agree with what every one of you has said... trying to convert/convince others to join

you is absurd. Haha, Im probly one of the very few christians you'll ever hear that from too.

Having grown up in a baptist church I can say that I have seen both the good and the bad

side of the christian religion.

 

But I'm rambling... To each his own I say

[AverageJoe]

I consider it wrong to push religion on another person, such as they do in Africa where the missionaries give the Africans food. They don't give all the Africans food, just the ones that live in the church community (ie the Christians). It is that type of persuasion which makes me frown upon religion. I think it is ok to speak of your religion though (it doesn't mean that I'm going to listen). If someone comes to me about a current issue and I think that their stance is correct, then I will further discuss the matter with them. However, if their point seems to be absurd (ie they are Hitler supporters), I still think they should be able to speak their mind, I will just frown upon them (and probably think less of them).

 

I think it is everyone's right to speak their mind no matter what they are thinking. I only think it is wrong when the physically (or psychologically) impose it on another person.

[JcX]

But sometimes, the more they speak on their mind, the more they pulling you towards their religion side and kinda like forcing you to join it.

Even friends, frankly speaking. When I'm hanging out with my Christian friends (I'm an atheist), I told them, "if you wanna get a talk on religion, please don't spit that out on me, or I'l leave straight away."

 

Because I can be a good listener, but I do have a limits though.

Once, my friend pissed me off when he keeps on talking on Jesus and kinda like forcing me to join Christian as well. =.=||

[phoexer]

i can relate

I think i look evil or something. On average i get preached to like once a week, for real! like some one comes out of no where, i have never seen them before and they hand me a pamplet and start:

 

God Loves you, even though you are a sinner, Come to our church, read this. Dont go in there! Why are you doing that, leave her alone. Give me all your money!

 

the easiest way i have found to get them off me is to say:

"Yes i am also a christian! Why dont YOU come to MY church,"

Ramble on for like a minute on how so much better your church is, the bright one will leave you alone. But the dull ones, ah, they are a problem.

 

Second method say you practise Islam, dont know why but they leave you alone around here if you say that.

 

[JcX]

*Open my eyes big and staring at the word "Islam"

 

Are you sure?? but as I know, Islam really gained many haters since Saddam and Osama. Well, I'm living in an Islam country as well, but I'm a Chinese and also an atheist, sometimes I worry about terrorist attack though. But back in my country, nobody looks down on Islam since they're the major religion here.

 

Honestly, I hate Islam, there're too many f*cking rules inside. But I respect their founder, Prophet Muhammad. From the history book I've read about him, he is truely a great warrior and also a kind leader that set Mecca free. I respect him, and Islam that he formed, but not the Islam that evolved into today.

[phoexer]

Islam is misunderstood, i have quite a number of friends who are Islamic, they are plain normal like me, we laugh at the same jokes, like the same things. i think Islam got the raw end of the stick with the terrorist thing.

 

Still i would want to be one, i love my freedom TOO MUCH, to loose it to a set of SELF IMPOSSED RULES!

[JcX]

Well... I've browse those things in Islam, they're all teaching good things and guiding you to the right way.

but those terrorists misguided by some phrases in the Al-Quran. Saying they must end the world, Bush is devil, blah blah blah etc.

 

LOLZ... undeniably, religion did ties part of your life, every religion does that. But my friend once told me, Einstein once commented something about Buddha. It sounds kinda like this.

Buddha is the most practical religion on Earth as it allows all practical living activities, and apply those rules that doesn't get in your way in real life. It only makes life easier, not harder.

[phoexer]

No wonder the man was a genious!

 

I once tried to sample as many religions as i could, didn't get that far,

My friends and family are cool with me as a not-going-to-church person but the moment they think you are leaving christianity, whoa! they were on me like white on rice.

[1337]

I've also chosen science over religion, and I seriously agree that pushing religion onto someone isn't right. What's the point of religion anyways, I could understand religion if it was thousands of years ago when there was little scientific knowledge, but in 2008? It just doesn't make sense.

[zippo]

I just want to tell I'm satisfied about this forum that gives an opportunity to express freely all kinds of opinions. Now about religious pressure. I live in a country (France) where the citizens are free to practise any religion. That's written in the constitution. And the State and the Church are independent. So, theoretically there should be no reason for tension between religions. But lately there have emerged some problems concerning sectarian movements. Some of them seem to exploit their members, forcing them to pay huge amounts of money, to the benefit of the "church". In most cases the victims are mentally and socially weak persons. The French authorities are warning against these sectarian movements. It seems the Scientology movement is also being accused of this kind of practise. I don't really know what the Scientology church stands for, but I'm not really interested. I just don't care about religion. I'm not an atheist however. I think atheists are people who are against religion and reject the existence of a god. I just don't care. For me it doesn't matter. If people find some comfort in religion, and in the belief of god, well that's OK to me. But for me it just doesn't work, and I don't appreciate if religious people want to convince me that their religion will save me, or make me better. Come on!! I don't need a god or a religion to guide me. I'm not a christian or a muslim or a hindu or whatever, but that doesn't mean I'm without moral principles. Some religious people with whom I discussed seem to think that if you're non confessional, you don't have any guiding lines and in that case you will be tempted to do all kinds of bad things (including rape, murder, etc.). I just tell them that it doesn't work that way. I'm not tempted to do evil things, and I don't need a god to tell me what I'm allowed to do. In fact, when you're a member of a church, often it's not even god who tells you what to do, but it's the preacher, or your social environment (teachers, parents, etc.). You can call that religious pressure, or whatever you like. Most people need a social environment to function. Therefore they're organised in communities (churches, clubs, quarters). I think there's nothing wrong with that, as long as it doesn't lead to exclusion and misunderstanding towards people who think different. Because that can lead to hatred, culminating into violent conflicts. Unfortunately, in the past religion has often been practised in a narrow, communitarian way. In many cases this attitude led to conflicts, some of which are counting amongst the most tragic pages in the history of mankind (the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Holocaust, etc.). If religion wasn't perhaps directly responsible for these tragedies, it didn't prevent it neither. So that's one of the reasons I'm not really attracted by religion.

 

Regards,

 

zippo

[phoexer]

Now thats a view!