Gimme That Old Time Religion

[Darknight]

I grew up in a christian home. My whole family was from the south. My grandmother was very old school and saw a lot of horrible things. When I was 10 she gave me money to put in the church basket. However I didn't do it, I wanted to buy something from the store. When she found out she told me I was stealing from God and that he was angry with me. I cried and asked God for forgiveness. When I was a teenager, I found out the money doesn't go to god it goes to the church. I've seen pastors take expensive vacations or but expensive cars trying to use god to get money. That's when I started questioning things. When I got to college I met so many people who weren't christian. My assistant manager at my job was an atheist. I didn't know how to deal with that. I grew up around a lot of people who are christian. Yes I was one of those christian idiots who tried to explain the word of God to an atheist and a Muslim. My ideas got shot down real quick. But I became more open minded and started traveling. Didn't realize that there's no right religion. Sometimes I wonder how come we all don't follow one religion. I mean christians believe anyone who isn't christian are going to hell, Muslims believe anyone who isn't Muslim is going to hell, so the idea of hell/heaven can't be forced upon others. I guess we're all going to different places when we die. If I was born in Saudi Arabia I would be Muslim. If I was born in Thailand I would be buddhist. I just hate how christians think they're superior to others.

The duggars look down on anyone who doesn't follow the same beliefs as them. They really think they're being modest and create all these bullshit rules to be better than everyone else. I would love to see them in a country like Egypt or Dubai. They're so closed minded and are around each other all the time. How would they feel covering up head to toe? Or following others people's beliefs. You can't bring the bible and force people in Dubai to become christians. Your ass might go to jail.

[RedPonyDriver]

Yet, they want to do the very same thing here in the USA. They want to force the Muslims, Buddhists, Catholics to all subscribe to their peculiar form of Christianity that is based on hate and bigotry. They fuss about how the Muslims don't allow religious freedom (much) in predominantly Muslim countries and can't see that they want to do the same darn thing here. 

 

I'm sick to death of these right wing nutjobs trying to force their beliefs on me. I'm a Christian but refuse to subscribe to that hateful, unloving brand of Christianity they espouse. So, to them, I'm nothing more than another heathen that needs to be "converted". 

[Darknight]

Yet, they want to do the very same thing here in the USA. They want to force the Muslims, Buddhists, Catholics to all subscribe to their peculiar form of Christianity that is based on hate and bigotry. They fuss about how the Muslims don't allow religious freedom (much) in predominantly Muslim countries and can't see that they want to do the same darn thing here.

I'm sick to death of these right wing nutjobs trying to force their beliefs on me. I'm a Christian but refuse to subscribe to that hateful, unloving brand of Christianity they espouse. So, to them, I'm nothing more than another heathen that needs to be "converted".

Ugh! In America we have FREEDOM of religion. In a Muslim country you do not. You won't see a bible in Saudi Arabia or Dubai. Because by law they're Muslim. It's a Muslim country. How the hell can you go to another country and tell others how to live. I remember my friend was complaining about the French. She didn't speak a lick of French and wanted them to accommodate her in English. She said they were very rude to her and wanted to sue for them for not speaking english. How the hell can you demand a country to speak your language when you know they speak another language. Maybe you should learn their language.

[NextIteration]

In a Muslim country you do not.

 

Not all predominantly Muslim countries are theocracies.

[Aja]

I remember my friend was complaining about the French. She didn't speak a lick of French and wanted them to accommodate her in English. She said they were very rude to her and wanted to sue for them for not speaking english. How the hell can you demand a country to speak your language when you know they speak another language. Maybe you should learn their language.

I ran into that a lot too growing up on military bases in other countries. The same people who complained loudly all the time about "why doesn't anybody speak ENGLISH?!" are the same people who crow constantly about immigrants from Central and South America who arrive in the US and don't automatically speak English, like, the next day. It isn't about respecting borders or cultures, it's just "Me me me, I speak English so everyone else should too, because me, me me me me me!" It seems to be a huge part of our culture in both religion and politics.

[GEML]

On the flip side, being in DC, and being in a position that required interacting with a lot of people of many nationalities, I've seen plenty of rude people from all over the globe. I think if you do a google search you'll find that Americans are far from being seen as the most obnoxious by most of the world.

We can be dreadful - and the Duggars were. But as a country we don't have a lock on that.

[Aja]

Having spent a significant chunk of my adolescence in Italy and therefore identifying with the culture almost as much as England/America, I can totally confirm that Italians are not widely considered subtle tourists either. :) 

[JennyMominFL]

There are bibles in the UAE, where the city of Dubai is. There are also various Christian churches

Not all middle Eastern Countries are Muslim States

Conversely, many European countries have a an offical religion. For example the UK, Denmark and Norway

There are large Christian and even Jewish populations in many middle eastern countries

Edited July 18, 2015 by JennyMominFL

[Defrauder]

If God were to take human form today and live among humanity I believe God would do it as a woman and see how people related to and treated her.  The Creator and Giver of Life as a female.

[Darknight]

There are bibles in the UAE, where the city of Dubai is. There are also various Christian churches

Not all middle Eastern Countries are Muslim States

Conversely, many European countries have a an offical religion. For example the UK,Denmark and Nroway

There are large Christian and evem Jewish populations in many middle eastern countries

Norway & the uk have an official religion? Didn't know that.

[galax-arena]

Norway & the uk have an official religion? Didn't know that.

Norway and England have state churches. It's interesting to think about, because in countries that have marriage equality along with state churches, those state churches have been sued in order to compel them to perform same-sex marriages. The Duggars and their ilk should keep that in mind when complaining about how secular the US is, because our lack of an official church here means that no pastor or religious officiant can be forced to do the same thing. 

[GEML]

Bingo! And if anyone needs, I can go into my "decline of Canada's religious tradition after implementing a state church" endless speech again. Religious plurality (contrary to the Duggar types) is GOOD for the Duggar types. We in the states are far more religious and nuttier because of it! :).

[carrps]

A lot of these people would use the phrase "I will pray for you" as a code for "fuck you". Very judgmental, but they were raised that way and I hope that some grew out of it.

Man, I've run into this attitude. Not a lot, fortunately. But it's really soured me on just about every kind of overtly religious person.

 

I can't remember any kind of come-to-Jesus (ha!) moment when I realized I was an atheist, but my younger sister is always saying how shocked she was by me growing up and what a "heathen" I was. She said it took her a longer time to outgrow religion.

[GEML]

My opinion only, but I disagree about the "F you" attitude among religious people when using phrases like "I'll pray for you" in confrontation. I'm not saying that I don't hate that phrase, because I'll be honest, I really do. But I hate it because it's manipulate - it's trying to make you into something else than who you are.

I would have been grateful, sometimes, if it had simply been dismissive.

Edited July 18, 2015 by GEML

[mbutterfly]

Man, I've run into this attitude. Not a lot, fortunately. But it's really soured me on just about every kind of overtly religious person.

 

I can't remember any kind of come-to-Jesus (ha!) moment when I realized I was an atheist, but my younger sister is always saying how shocked she was by me growing up and what a "heathen" I was. She said it took her a longer time to outgrow religion.

my parents were agnostic and I ended up a Methodist minister. There's just not one pattern. 

[GEML]

My husband was raised by an agnostic mother and a father who told him "there's nothing out there so save yourself" and he's as religious as Fundy raised me.

We all find the way that works for us.

[GeeGolly]

What is with the insecurities with religions? No birth control to grow a flock. Going door to door to bring in new followers. Evangelizing. Fire & Brimstone. If people believe, they believe. Is it money? Do they really think they are saving souls?

 

Does anyone stop to think the God is shaking his head saying "No, no, I love you all, stop with all the fighting."?

[GEML]

(Wry tone) there are actually people out there who have had their entire lives turned around by having a real relationship with Jesus, and, when they see people suffering, think maybe they could help. Or some of us have children because we genuinely believe they are gifts from God are we are blessed to have them.

Not all of us are insecure.

[GeeGolly]

Please take no offense, I meant more as an organization, rather than individuals.

[GEML]

I will say, having been many years in DC, that money and power do pretty much corrupt 95% of everything and everyone. No matter how well meaning or thoughtful that person or organization started out.

[Aja]

(Wry tone) there are actually people out there who have had their entire lives turned around by having a real relationship with Jesus, and, when they see people suffering, think maybe they could help. Or some of us have children because we genuinely believe they are gifts from God are we are blessed to have them.

Not all of us are insecure.

I know people who have devout and unwavering belief in Jesus Christ and study the Bible and are the most amazing, compassionate, non-judgemental, riotously fun people to be around. Even though I, personally, cannot subscribe to any organized religion, I look at those people and I have nothing but admiration and, I'll admit it, total envy. But it has been my experience that this is not the norm. Most people I know who are deeply religious are constantly judging me. A good friend from the freewheeling early 20's went to seminary, became a youth minister and now only speaks to me when I post something political on FB (rare) and he can't resist coming out of the woodwork to tell me what an idiot I am. He apparently watched me go through my divorce via what I shared on FB, and the resulting two years of unmitigated disaster in my life, an not a peep from this man of God who I considered a good friend. It seems like insecurity is one of the main overall controlling factors in organized Christianity today, so I have to wonder, along with GeeGolly, how often God is actually thought of in all of this.

[GEML]

Well, I'm sorry that has been the experience. And I can certainly attest those people are out there. But I can say that the human brain remembers negative experiences far easier than it does positive ones. (It's an evolutionary advantage, after all, to know if this person or that plant might harm you.). So that might play a role in how we perceive people from ANY group. Not saying it's the case for any individual here, just making a general statement.

[galax-arena]

But it has been my experience that this is not the norm. Most people I know who are deeply religious are constantly judging me.

You're not alone in thinking like this. Per David Kinnaman with the Barna Group, nearly 9 out of 10 young "outsiders" (those not belonging to a church) - 87% - said that present-day Christianity could be described as judgmental. He also notes that, for whatever reason, born-agains are 1) more likely to be less open to other people's perspectives about life, 2) are very convinced that they are right about things in life, and 3) more likely than others to say they often try to persuade people to change their views.

 

ETA: I got this from the book UnChristian, which I've talked about on here a lot. It's also interesting to note the differences in perception between those within the church and those outside the church. For example, he presented the following statement in one survey -

 

Christian churches accept and love people unconditionally, regardless of how people look or what they do.

 

Percent who agreed strongly:

Pastors - 76%

Born-again Christians - 47%

Christian churchgoers - 41%

Outsiders (all ages) - 20%

Edited July 19, 2015 by galax-arena

[Aja]

ETA: I got this from the book UnChristian, which I've talked about on here a lot. It's also interesting to note the differences in perception between those within the church and those outside the church. For example, he presented the following statement in one survey -

 

Christian churches accept and love people unconditionally, regardless of how people look or what they do.

 

Percent who agreed strongly:

Pastors - 76%

Born-again Christians - 47%

Christian churchgoers - 41%

Outsiders (all ages) - 20%

Thank you, I'll have to check out that book! I find this subject endlessly fascinating because there are so many logical fallacies appear to be unexplainable. Those numbers sum it up pretty well in terms of self-perception (I'M RIGHT I'M RIGHT ME ME ME ME) vs. reality.

[GEML]

On the flip side, I'll say that secular liberals are the most likely to unfriend you on FB if you post things they don't agree with.

I'm a liberal Christisn, so I have to put up with both sides! :)

[galax-arena]

Thank you, I'll have to check out that book! I find this subject endlessly fascinating because there are so many logical fallacies appear to be unexplainable. Those numbers sum it up pretty well in terms of self-perception (I'M RIGHT I'M RIGHT ME ME ME ME) vs. reality.

Yes, it's a great book! It was a very cathartic/validating read for me, lol. Made me realize I wasn't alone in thinking what I did about the church. And Kinnaman himself is a conservative evangelical Christian, so people can't dismiss his work as that of a bitter outsider. The problem though is that I think the people who most need to read his book are probably the ones most likely to brush it off and go #notallchristians.

 

In addition to the 87% who think that present-day Christianity is too judgmental, 91% believe present-day Christianity is anti-gay and 85% believe present-day Christianity is hypocritical. From the book: "These 'big three' are followed by the following negative perceptions, embraced by a majority of young adults: old-fashioned, too involved in politics, out of touch with reality, insensitive to others, boring, not accepting of other faiths, and confusing." Now, does that sound like anyone we know? LMAO. 

 

ETA: A part of me would actually really like to join a church again for the community (despite all of my previous complaints), but I waver between agnostic atheism and agnostic theism most of the time, and personal experience has told me that a lot of churches are not a safe space to work through my doubts. (I mean, unless we're talking about something like a Unitarian Universalist church!) I still remember the time I was talking to my Bible study leader and she mentioned something about praying to God. I said, "Well, yeah, but it's not like He really seems to answer my prayers..." She looked at me wide-eyed and said, "Yes, he does!" with the clear undercurrent of wtf, how can you even question this? I was also tapped to be a Bible study leader in college but after a few weeks I asked to step down because I just had too many questions and it felt wrong to act as though I had all the answers and march in lockstep with the denomination's beliefs.

Edited July 19, 2015 by galax-arena

[latetotheparty]

Yes, it's a great book! It was a very cathartic/validating read for me, lol. Made me realize I wasn't alone in thinking what I did about the church. And Kinnaman himself is a conservative evangelical Christian, so people can't dismiss his work as that of a bitter outsider. The problem though is that I think the people who most need to read his book are probably the ones most likely to brush it off and go #notallchristians.

 

In addition to the 87% who think that present-day Christianity is too judgmental, 91% believe present-day Christianity is anti-gay and 85% believe present-day Christianity is hypocritical. From the book: "These 'big three' are followed by the following negative perceptions, embraced by a majority of young adults: old-fashioned, too involved in politics, out of touch with reality, insensitive to others, boring, not accepting of other faiths, and confusing." Now, does that sound like anyone we know? LMAO. 

 

ETA: A part of me would actually really like to join a church again for the community (despite all of my previous complaints), but I waver between agnostic atheism and agnostic theism most of the time, and personal experience has told me that a lot of churches are not a safe space to work through my doubts. (I mean, unless we're talking about something like a Unitarian Universalist church!) I still remember the time I was talking to my Bible study leader and she mentioned something about praying to God. I said, "Well, yeah, but it's not like He really seems to answer my prayers..." She looked at me wide-eyed and said, "Yes, he does!" with the clear undercurrent of wtf, how can you even question this? I was also tapped to be a Bible study leader in college but after a few weeks I asked to step down because I just had too many questions and it felt wrong to act as though I had all the answers and march in lockstep with the denomination's beliefs.

 

I can't speak for all congregations because we are a covenantal denomination, not a doctrinal one, but you'd probably find supportive community in many congregations in the United Church of Christ.  It's the denomination I was raised in and I don't know that I considered in particular forward thinking growing up, although my parents were both very liberal and my maternal grandmother was quite the warrior for social justice.  I took a break from church in college but came back in my 30s and about 20 years ago managed to luck into a church that is a real spiritual home for me, exactly as I am, with all my questions and doubts.  And I appreciate what the UCC stands for with regards to social justice, economic justice, racism, sexism, etc.  NOT EVANGELIZING! :)  Just mentioning.

[GEML]

But even the book itself says around half of born agains agree that there's a problem. They AGREE. Which is kind of what most of us are doing here. And we weren't the ones who began the discussion by calling an entire group of people "insecure". ;)

Edited July 19, 2015 by GEML

[galax-arena]

I can't speak for all congregations because we are a covenantal denomination, not a doctrinal one, but you'd probably find supportive community in many congregations in the United Church of Christ.

Thanks, I'd heard about the UCC and knew that they were progressive compared to a lot of other denominations, but hadn't really considered them before. But I just googled to see what UCC churches were in my area and there's one that has a 5 pm worship service on Sundays. I'd been looking at some other more liberal churches - like the aforementioned UU, but while the UU seems like a great community, it wasn't what I was looking for - but so many of them have morning services and I am just not a morning person. (Sorry, God.) Clearly this 5 pm worship service is a sign from God that I should give the UCC a try. ;)

 

 

But even the book itself says over half of born agains agree with you.

Uh, okay? Not sure what that has to do with what I said. I was responding to Aja, who didn't say the part about insecurities. And GeeGolly clarified that they were talking more about organizations not individuals, and if you look at the statistic I quoted, it mentions that a staggering 76% of pastors - who are more the "faces" of their organization, as opposed to rank-and-file born-agains - actually agree that the church is an unconditionally loving and accepting place. 

 

And even though 53% of born-against might disagree that the church is an unconditionally loving place, it's still a huge and statistically significant difference from the 80% of outsiders who disagree. 

 

Frankly, I'm not an anti-theist - which is probably obvious by my comment about wanting to join a church - but I don't blame people who are.

Edited July 19, 2015 by galax-arena

[latetotheparty]

Thanks, I'd heard about the UCC and knew that they were progressive compared to a lot of other denominations, but hadn't really considered them before. But I just googled to see what UCC churches were in my area and there's one that has a 5 pm worship service on Sundays. I'd been looking at some other more liberal churches - like the aforementioned UU, but while the UU seems like a great community, it wasn't what I was looking for - but so many of them have morning services and I am just not a morning person. (Sorry, God.) Clearly this 5 pm worship service is a sign from God that I should give the UCC a try. ;)

 

I get that.  SOOOOO not a morning person myself.  :)  Good luck!

 

ETA:  I should tell you that the reason I lucked into my church is because I am not a morning person.  There were two different UCCs that I wanted to check out and planned to do that on successive Sundays. I was on my way to the one but was running late and I didn't want to walk in late as a stranger so I headed for the other church whose service was a half hour later.  It was fate.  And I never left. 

Edited July 19, 2015 by latetotheparty

[GeeGolly]

Nope that was me questioning insecurities in religion. However I don't recall naming any one of the 1000s of religions in particular. And since I have only disclosed that I am religiously naive, how would one know if I am not a part of the collective "we"?

[Muffyn]

For atheists or agnostics who miss the sense of community that church provides, the is https://sundayassembly.com/assemblies/.

Edited July 19, 2015 by Muffyn

[GEML]

The thing about the UnChristian book is that it's very popular now to be critique-y without actually saying where we go from here. The data in it actually makes perfect sense to me. I think most Christians are really unhappy with their churches, but the model for which we educate and use for ministers is woefully inadequate for meeting today's needs. So on paper, we have these successful churches. In life, they are dying. (We are hemorrhaging young people.)

But I think the answers are as diverse and as radical as we are as people. We've spent 30 years pretty much making churches homogenous. Now we need to make them distinct from each other again. Some will live and some will die trying, but it's in our differences that we are at our best. But it's easy to see why that terrifies people - especially ministers who have benefitted most from standardization.

[riverblue22]

Another non-morning person here.  I remember many years ago I joined a United Presbyterian Church.  They had a dinner for new members and the ministers wanted to hear ideas about improving their community.  I suggested they have Saturday evening services like all of the Catholic churches did.  Well, you would have thought I suggested shooting people, the ministers were so taken aback by this suggestion.  No, that would not work at all.  I later realized that it would inconvenience them and that is why it was such a horrible idea.  I have yet to come across a mainstream Protestant church that does that.

[GEML]

I actually know dozens of churches that offer Saturday night services and/or Sunday night services. Off the top of my head I can name Episcopal, Baptist, Methodist and and many evangelical churches that would be mainstream theologically (Nazarene, CMA, E free, etc.) but not the traditional denominations. I don't know of a Presbyterian or Lutheran denomination that does this, but I know a few who offer "home groups" during these times.

But I know EXACTLY the face that was made! :)

[Churchhoney]

Thanks, I'd heard about the UCC and knew that they were progressive compared to a lot of other denominations, but hadn't really considered them before. But I just googled to see what UCC churches were in my area and there's one that has a 5 pm worship service on Sundays. I'd been looking at some other more liberal churches - like the aforementioned UU, but while the UU seems like a great community, it wasn't what I was looking for - but so many of them have morning services and I am just not a morning person. (Sorry, God.) Clearly this 5 pm worship service is a sign from God that I should give the UCC a try. ;)

 

There is a bit of a long-simmering potential schism in the UCC, however. While the denomination leaders are very very progressive and even attempting to commit the church to progressive action there's no small number of individual members and also individual churches that vehemently disagree with those ideas. So some UCC churches are still fighting for a more conservative way (as they have been since the 60s, when the denomination leaders were already on the progressive side), and in some pastors are trying to thread the needle by publicly promoting some of what comes down from the denomination level but not all of it. So you don't necessarily know what you're going to get when you go into a UCC church. .... If there are signs outside that say "God Is Still Speaking," though, you've almost certainly got a progressive one.

Edited July 19, 2015 by Churchhoney

[galax-arena]

If there are signs outside that say "God Is Still Speaking," though, you've almost certainly got a progressive one.

Well, the church I looked into had an "open and affirming statement" on their website, so I took that as a good sign. :D 

[Julia]

Christian churches accept and love people unconditionally, regardless of how people look or what they do.

 

Percent who agreed strongly:

Pastors - 76%

Born-again Christians - 47%

Christian churchgoers - 41%

Outsiders (all ages) - 20%

 

I have to wonder, if that survey didn't identify the pastors as pastors, if some of them might have had a different answer.

[NextIteration]

This agnostic/atheist lite puts in a good word for United Church of Christ.  Ha, they took me as a member with all my cockamamie beliefs when my Catholic guilt drove me to have my first born baptized!

[becca3891]

Jesus abolished Levitical law. Love one another, love your wife as yourself, etc. --the New Testament law is about love, not punishment. But yeah, people like to pick and choose which part of the Bible to follow and which one to use to "prove" they're right and other people are wrong. The Bible can't be broken up like that, it's one continuous document and story. There's also a lot of mystery there, and that's where faith comes in. 

Jesus abolished Levitical law? Yes, I know that's the party line. I grew up fundy. But it's kind of bizarre when you break it down. Because of the trinity, Jesus is god. The same god who created all the horrible laws against women. The bible says god is the same yesterday, today and forever. So if you believe in god/Jesus, he is the exact same god who said "You know what sounds fair? Women should marry their rapists. That way their fathers won't have to deal with the shame of a non-virgin daughter, and since I've already decreed that women are property to be bought and sold, this all makes perfect sense." In my opinion, if there were such a thing as a god who viewed women as equal to men, that god would have never inspired the bible, either old or new testament.

 

On the flip side, I'll say that secular liberals are the most likely to unfriend you on FB if you post things they don't agree with.

I'm a liberal Christisn, so I have to put up with both sides! :)

Ha, that's interesting. Everyone is different -- I am a secular liberal these days, and I try to steer clear of too much controversy on FB, but the rare times I have dared to venture that perhaps gay people aren't evil monsters trying to tear apart "traditional marriage," or some similar addition to a debate, I am the one who gets unfriended by my conservative Christian friends. So it goes both ways.

[GEML]

The statistics say secular liberals unfriend most frequently.

I've had my trials on both sides, but I have to say I'm "blessed" to have people from all walks of my life who have hung in there with me.

[NextIteration]

I don't unfriend, I have gagged a couple of my friends that are just too much.  I have a lot of friends on FB though so I don't really pay too close attention to the posts that bother me.  I'm sure I bother them more than they bother me. lol  I've been called a pinko communist before, which I take as a compliment.

[galax-arena]

The statistics say secular liberals unfriend most frequently.

Yes, but in the articles I've read about those stats - and IIRC, it was just between liberals and conservatives, not secular/religious - one reason for that is that conservatives are more likely to be in an ideological echochamber in the first place, so there's less opportunity to unfriend someone. 

 

I am the one who gets unfriended by my conservative Christian friends.

I think the only time I was unfriended by someone - that I've noticed - was by a more conservative person, but it wasn't even over politics. I have a LOT of conservative Christian friends, considering I went through a Southern Baptist phase in college, but for the most part we're all pretty cool about not going completely OTT in our facebook posts. Actually, I pretty much just avoid talking politics and religion with them, LOL. I think a lot of them probably think I still believe as they do, although, I mean, I posted a lot of stuff in favor of marriage equality, so IDK. Either way, we manage to coexist. Sometimes I'm a bit nonplussed about all the assholes that other people seem to run into on facebook! 

 

I do notice that some of the people who are calm on facebook unleash their crazy on twitter, though. And then you have people like the Duggars, who are crazy on both facebook AND twitter. And instagram. And youtube. And if they ever figured out Vine, they'd probably be crazy there, too.

 

ETA: I'm looking at the Family Conference link that someone posted in Josh's thread. Man, the Benham brothers are really milking this for all they're worth. I noticed that the Duggars are listed as a "participating organization" at the bottom, even though they're not one of the speakers. Are all of these people Independent Baptists? 

Edited July 21, 2015 by galax-arena

[GEML]

Let's face it - talking seriously about religious and politics is hard. As someone who grew up on the extremes and sort of thought that was "normal" (ha!) it sometimes feels as though the rest of the world has just caught up with how much of a minefield it is. But I also learned early that you either learn to take the hit, or you don't take the swing.

[riverblue22]

It's a coincidence y'all are talking about FB.  I just came from there and finally blocked someone's posts.  My sister-in-law seems to only post rants against the government and whatever right-wing obsessions are currently in vogue.  FInally, this morning, I'd had enough and blocked her posts.  Now I have to figure out what to do about my husband's brother.  His rant cycles match hers (gee, I wonder if that has to do with Fox-TV) but he also posts family stuff and fun stuff.  I have blocked and unblocked him in the past.

 

I enjoy FB for the family and friend news and the cat videos LOL.  I don't bring up politics and religion even though I have plenty of views on those topics.  When I am in my SIL's home she doesn't bring them up but it's fair game when it is not face to face. I find it a real turn-off.  Maybe I'm not meant for FB.

[Defrauder]

+The bible to me is like life, there is good and there is bad, there is truth and there are lies. The book of life as it goes.  Inspired by good and inspired by evil.

 

Anyway there was a story reported recently where a Catholic priest, about 70 years of age, had a heart attack and 'died' for approximately 45 minutes before they could bring him back.  When he came back he sad that he indeed met God when he died and that She was a Woman and everything he had hoped for and more.  He wants to keep preaching but the Church doesn't want him to and said that he must have just been hallucinating. 

[Jynnan tonnix]

I was unfriended, and told never to think about darkening the door of a cousin on facebook after I made the mistake of thinking that her post, which basically said  "no one arguing against veganism ever makes any reasonable points",  might be open to actually hearing some well-thought-out (I thought) ideas on why people who chose to remain omnivorous needn't absolutely be demonized.

 

But, rather, I found that she had been convinced that maintaining any sort of cordial relationship with anyone (even a family member) who continues to eat or use any animal-derived product is akin to chatting with a mass-murderer/rapist/pedophile and pretending that everything is just peachy.

 

 

[Micks Picks]

Gee your cousin sounds like most of the strident liberals I know.  And I know plenty of them, being here in California and all.  You offend people just opening your door in the morning.  

[GeeGolly]

My son was unfriended by his Grandmother when he was about 23 years old. He is liberal she is not. Then she had my FIL call my husband and 'tell on him' for disagreeing with one of her posts. We all just laughed & laughed.

[GEML]

My parents routinely call one of us (that's me or me sisters) and want us to contact our younger generations (cousins, my son, etc) about the "immodest" photo on FB. They are always concerned it will affect their chances at a job.

Now, this is our fanatical family. There are no drunk family. The immodest photos are people in shorts or dancing at a wedding. Or someone kissing a spouse....

Sigh.