WOW. I just leaned over to a friend and said "I'm trying to disprove someone's faith in Jesus" and she was completely shocked and said "WHAT??? WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO DO THAT???" and I sit here in utter shock. You mean that religious people can proselytize all day around atheists and agnostics and try to convert them -- disproving someone's faith in doubt -- and it's okay (and even accepted/assumed), yet I cannot do the same (with, in my mind, a valid reason) without an emotionally vehement reaction? Interesting.
I am not offended by her, mad at her, or anything negative toward her. I love and respect her. I am simply astounded by the hypocrisy that is evidently so natural in religious people. I mean, she's not a loud-talker regarding religion...she's not someone who tries to convert people all the time, and she had that reaction...think of how those who do act that way might react!
I love the experience though, because it assists me in seeing the other side...the other point of view...when it comes to me wanting to enroll people into Great Life. My sister who hates herself (well, both fall into this category, but one hates herself more than the other-- and that's the one to whom I'm referring) does almost everything in her life to bring other people down because of her own self-hatred, and she especially goes campaigning extra hard when she finds something of value (especially emotional value) to someone. As such, she was always dogging on GLF, with literally no reason...she would simply tie it in to anything I said just to try and hurt me to temporarily feel better about herself. It just drove me crazy because I couldn't understand why someone who knew the immense value I place on GLF (or whether or not she had absorbed the info, had at least had heard it/been exposed to it) would purposely, irrationally try and hurt me with it.
And I still don't understand it, but three things learned from this conversation with myself:
1. I don't need to understand, whereas I always used to think I did, because understanding things does not make them better, or make me happier...it simply provides me with trivial means to rationalize away the hurt/pain.
2. I've seen the other side now, and can come from a more compassionate place when feeling like I'm being attacked.
3. That even if people attack me, I choose whether or not to feel hurt/offended and thusly retaliate.
Ryan:
ReplyDeleteJust a few comments: It seems silly to me for people to be upset for anyone trying to spread their beliefs. In fact, I think there is a great lack of true communication on many issues. Quick example: Several friends (law enforcement/lawyers) ask me my opinion about the "new" Arizona law re Immigration; my first question to them is: have you read it? if the answer is "NO" then I refuse to discuss the matter further until they do; otherwise we're all just bantering around soundbites we hear on the news.
Second, the info in "Religulous" is false and misleading. Part of one of my majors was studying many ancient cultures, including especially their religious traditions. In fact, from the time the Hare Krishna temple (Sp. Fork) was built and for the next several years (until my oldest child was 5 or so) I frequented that place a lot, often to discuss things I read IIN the Vedas) about Hinduism and the way the Krishna movement interprets it (as you may imagine, there are at least as many versions/interpretations of Hinduism as of Christianity).
Anyway, from an early age I studied ancient Egyptian stuff and when 14 I flew to San Fransisco (with a 15 yr old friend - yes, alone together) to see King Tut and I bought the Egyptian dictionary then. Later, while a teen at BYU I bought the Book of the Dead (primarily because there is a stupid anti-Mormon claim that part of the Pearl of Great Price if from there; only those who claim it can never point out exactly what Joseph Smith "lifted" from it - including the facsimilies in the Pearl of Great Price). I am WELL aware of the Horus story - and, again, there are MANY versions of it whic, if you take a piece from here and there you can force a "parallel" with the Jesus story.
There are no "Jesus parallels" unless you REALLLLLY twist things; notice that brother Bill cited NO sources (there aren't any). Here is one website where you can see some of the Horus, Krishna, etc. "parallels" debunked. http://www.blackapologetics.com/bamanswerantiquity.html There are many more such websites. ALWAYS check sources, rather than spread "soundbite info." That is my policy.