Sharing is one thing; being condescending or using that "you poor hellbound thing" look is something entirely else. It also helps if you back off when someone says they're not interested, and then *not* bring it back up later.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

i mean respectfully attempting to share Christ with someone

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Bringing it up later, not constantly but a while later, when it relates to something that's going on doesn't seem so bad. It's when someone knocks on your door constantly after the tenth time. It's just pushing people away from God if you go that far.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Sharing is one thing; being condescending or using that "you poor hellbound thing" look is something entirely else. It also helps if you back off when someone says they're not interested, and then *not* bring it back up later.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

This post would be true. If it only it happened most of the time. You probably wrote this post because people have complained about Christians "sharing their religion" They have complained because most of the time it's not "Jesus loves you and you should love him" or "Won't you accept Christ because God loves you?" Usually it's "You're going to hell and I'm saving you" which might seem true to the Christian but offends the other persons. >Especially if an Atheist tries to "save" you by saying "I'm only doing this because you believes in idiotic beliefs"

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I will concur that a lot of Christians do NOT go about sharing their faith correctly. I am talking about the people who do it respectfully and out of love, not the condescending ones. I'm not sure I understand what that bottom part meant. Will you clear that up? Sorry :p

by Anonymous 13 years ago

That's ok. I notice A LOT of times when Christians on this site share their faith..but it comes out the wrong way. Like one girl "innocently" said "Besides, we don't want you to go to hell. :)" after she gave a really good talk about why Christianity is about love and kindness, etc.. She ruined it at the end. When I said this, many said "It's what we really believe in" Which is true. But I'm sure any Christians would hate it if I(an Atheist) were to go "Well, I'm only doing it to save you from looking stupid by believing in fairytales." Basically, They have good intentions, but they way they say it wards off a lot of people.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Okay. I gotcha now. Yeah, I think a big part of it is that this site is naturally dominated by young people, and they don't tend to be careful with their words (I am not excluded from that.)

by Anonymous 13 years ago

? Not excluded from the "young" category or "careful with the words"?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Both. Not too say I say the stuff like, well you're goin to hell then, but I'm far from perfect.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

"I'm far from perfect." That's what I like the most about Christians.. They admit they have faults and have done wrong(sins). Everybody else acts like they are perfect or close to perfection. Pisses me off...

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Yeah, one of the things that sets Christianity apart from other religions is that we believe you can't earn your way to Heaven, as nobody is worthy. It is only possible through

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Jesus Christ

by Anonymous 13 years ago

"It is only possible through Jesus Christ" How does that work exactly.... and does it differ b/w Christian Denominations? I''m studying Religions, but not as much on Christianity as I would like to. Sorry if I'm asking too many questions. I think Religion is FASCINATING. Which might seem weird coming from an Atheist..My friends still poke fun of me for this. -_-

by Anonymous 13 years ago

No one answered you? Alright I'll take it on. How does it work. The Scriptures say that no unclean thing can enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. Since no one is perfect, no one should be accepted. But through Jesus Christ's sacrifice, he is able to right the scales of justice and allow anyone who repents to earn forgiveness. That's the basic idea. Of course it varies from religion to religion. Especially on what it means to repent. Some religions just believe if you have faith in Christ, he will do the rest.... I personally don't think so... I think it requires a change and remorse. And some teach it that way. But consistent in all christianity is that Christ made it possible for us to repent

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It's not weird that you like religion. I'm a Christian but I find other religions & ancient mythology fascinating. I agree with nevans on salvation. Some denominations believe faith in Jesus alone will save you, but most say you have to have admit you've done wrong, turn from your sins, ask for forgiveness and as long as you forgive others too, you'll be forgiven through Jesus. Some also believe that those who haven't heard Jesus's message will be forgiven as long as they listen to their consciences and do what's right. Btw does anyone else have any idea why Jesus had to die to cleanse us? I get we're sinners & him coming down and going up to heaven was important but did he have to die? I'm pretty sure being raised up to heaven would be proof enough of who he was. As far as I can tell, it was a sacrificial lamb thing. Someone has to be punished for our sin & God let us have the lamb takes our place. Jesus was the lamb. Can someone tell me if I'm wrong?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

The only people I've met who actually say you're going to hell are a hard core preacher I met when I was twelve (and that guy was scary), maybe one in school and one person on amirite. I think most Christians know that it bothers people too much to force it, in fact most I know are usually too afraid of beign judged or losing a friend to mention it more than a litte.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Kinda off topic, kinda not. Some religious door to door people came to my moms house the other day. I answered in a sports bra, drag queen/hooker makeup, and porn star hair (I was getting ready for an event) so they were already giving me crazy looks.. My sister comes up and one of the guys says 'oh, is this your little one? She's so cute!' I smiled and said, 'yeah, she just turned 6 a week after my 21st bday!' They were literally speechless. And then one finally told me I should read the bible and blah blah blah. I thought it was funny. And better than how my bf answers the door to them. Lol

by Anonymous 13 years ago

(:)): haha. those were probably Jehovah's Witness people. They arent really Christians, I dont believe.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

actually, the definition of a Christian is a follower of Christ. And since Jehovah's Witnesses annually commemorate Christ's death and do a door to door preaching work, as he commanded his followers to do; they are in fact Christians.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I'm friends with a Jehova's Witness, and he's pretty cool. He respects God and other denominations, although he and his mormon friend always pick on each other. They do believe in Jesus, but they're a lot different from most denominations. The major things I know of are no holidays and they can't give blood. (P.S. Fun fact! Two days ago the Jehova's Witness and the Mormon were making fun of each other, something they do for fun, and the Jehova's Witness made a comment asking the Mormon how his wives were doing. All the good insults had already been used so the Mormon simply looked at the Jehova's Witness and said: "Happy Valentines Day.")

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Eternal life? Get real, go home.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Religion should be kept off the internet. No one's going to be moved by atheist or christian arguments. No one's going to lean back on their chair and go "Wow, they're right." Unless you like to pointlessly debate on something that can't be based on facts (Science not having enough [according to christians] and christians not needing any) you should just avoid the topic.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Do you mean the entire internet or just this site? Because if it's kept off the entire internet then it's losing a great resource. And amirite is meant to post your opinion and religion is a big part of a lot of people's opinions.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Off the internet, because people are too close minded to accept other people's beliefs. It's one thing to post your opinion and another to try and force it down someone's throat. If i don't believe, if I'm an atheist, I won't burn in hell because I don't believe that and religious people don't understand that.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

But if it's taken off the internet because some people are prejudiced why don't we just stop sharing religion through any sort of media? It's a short step from limiting what you can put on the internet as a private group to book burning. I don't think you should limit people's beliefs. If you can't accept what someone believes then you have the issue, not the believer. And if one doesn't accept a belief, why are they on their website, or for amirite reading about the posts? You don't have to read all of them. I'm religious and I don't think you're going to burn in hell. I actually don't believe in that kind of hell. I just think you're being extreme in limitations.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I understand, i just don't think it's something that people should discuss because it won't change anything. It's like people's statuses "Is eating bread" no one cares about what you believe in. If someone wants to be converted or something they should go to you, one shouldn't be pulling them forcefully

by Anonymous 13 years ago

People should be allowed to talk about whatever they want. When people talk about religion they're not neccessarily trying to convert someone, sometimes they're trying to learn for themselves ro make friends with similair beliefs, other times they just love debating.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I almost agree with this post. I only think it's not right for people to do a tiny bit of 'preaching' when the person they are preaching too has made their religion clear and participates frequently in religious debate. It's also not okay when they do it more than once, having already recieved a firm answer. This applies to all religions, excepting none; I find that us atheists are just as bad at doing this than Christians and other religions.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

As long as they only tell me about their religion, not convert me.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I think that you missed the point ...

by Anonymous 13 years ago

The thing is that most of those people are not ever willing to listen to your argument/answer.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Now I am against sharing religion, I personally am Christian but never try to share my opinion with anyone else. I believe that someone who doesn't believe in Christianity won't "burn in Hell" just because of a different belief. It's all about what YOU want to believe whether any of it is based on fact, who cares? I think we should keep it to ourselves and if one wishes to learn about a certain religion, that's their choice and they shouldn't be forced to believe one thing or another.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Then by definition, you are not a Christian.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I believe I am, even if I have somewhat different beliefs than the average Christian. No one else should be able to define my religion.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." A Christian is someone who follows the teachings of Jesus. You can't say you're a Christian but not follow the most basic of Jesus' teachings. It doesn't make sense.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Exactly why I don't like sharing religion. I rest my case.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

How do you rest your case? Because I just proved you wrong? You cannot be a Christian while believing that Muslims go to Heaven. You have a very warped view on Christianity.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It's really not your place to say I have a "warped view" on Christianity. Our opinions differ and I said I rest my case because my original point was I hate discussing religion. I'll believe what I want to and I don't want to change your mind.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Youre right. Its not my place. But you say you are a CHRISTian, so it is Jesus' place

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Just because you don't believe something automatically makes it not true? That's crap. It's like those stupid tv shows where they act like the Christians go to heaven and Hindus get reincarnated. If Hinduism was real, everyone would get reincarnated and no one would go to heaven, nto even people who believed they would. If Heaven is real, then no one is getting reincarnated just because they believe they are. Whatever religion is true doesn't change according to what someone believes, we don't have magical reality warping powers that bend to our beliefs.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

And you know this how? If you believe in higher powers enough to be a Christian, it isn't any more far-fetched to believe that what happens to us depends on our beliefs. And I'm not saying YOU specifically are Christian or believe in higher power, I'm saying in general, as I have no idea what you specifically believe, I'm just assuming based on your vote and your comment.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Yes, I'm a Christian. Do you honestly think that mere humans have that kind of power? Yes, we're so important that the universe does whatever we tell it.And for all religions to be true, the Hindu gods would have to be real as well as God, and Jesus would have to be both the messiah and not the messiah at the same time.The ideas clearly contradict one another.How can you be a Christian yet say that there is more than one god?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

????????? I DID NOT SAY THERE IS MORE THAN ONE GOD. Actually, I said what happens to us AFTER DEATH can be based on what we believe. I said if you believe in heaven, maybe you'll go to heaven but if you believe you'll be re-incarnated, maybe you will. I never said ALL RELIGIONS could be true, because that's impossible. But since what happens after death is COMPLETELY unproven, it could all be based on what we believe.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Well, the only reason people believe in reincarnation is because that's what their gods said right? Well, our God said that people will go to heaven or hell.Please know that I'm not trying to sound conieted or all knowing when I say this, because I know how annoying it is when hardocre Christians do say stuff like this but: It's one of the most important facts in the bible. If you don't believe that basic thing, how can you honestly say you believe in the Bible?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Well then apparently I'm not Christian, since I don't think that others will go to hell for not believing what I believe. That, to me, is a cruel thing to do to people who A) Simply don't believe in Christianity or B) People who were raised another way or were never introduced to the concept of Christianity. I don't care whether you or every Christian doesn't think I'm a "real" Christian as since I think I am, I think God will accept me for my slightly different views on certain subjects. *using new post to finish, since this one was about to run out of characters*

by Anonymous 13 years ago

My main views on Christianity and religion in general: 1) Keep it to yourself unless someone asks you for information on the subject. It's not right for information to be FORCED down someone's throat. If they want to learn it, they can, but if not, they don't have to. 2) Believe what YOU want to believe. You should be able to have your own views on life and religion without having to worry about people trying to convert you (in a forceful way), burning in Hell for all eternity or being persecuted for your beliefs. Those are the BASIC beliefs I have that most Christians do not.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Most Christians don't have those views because Jesus taught in ways contrary to those thoughts. If you read the bible, you'll see a lot of passages contradicting what you said. I hate saying eople are not "real Christians", I'm just saying what you believe contadicts the most important person in our religon.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Does it say in the Bible that we have to force others to learn about Christianity? I've never read the Bible in its entirety, actually, so correct me if I'm wrong. I would find it quite preposterous for that to be so. I DO understand that we are to spread the word of Christianity, but I DO NOT think it should be in a forceful way. I think we should be able to believe what WE want, as stated in my first point. And yes, I know that most Christians don't agree with the second point, but is it fair for people who don't believe in Christianity due to not being ever introduced to it or raised a different way to go to Hell? In my opinion, no, it is not fair.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I never said we had to force others to learn Christianity. I just said Jesus said the only way to the Father was through him & worshiping false idols was a sin. That means that worshiping anything/one but God is a sin. If someone has never heard of God, they will be forgiven as long as they follow their consciences and do what's right. The way I understand it, when Jesus died, we were all given the Spirit, meaning a little bit of God lives in all of us. That's basically the little voice that tells you right from wrong, your conscience. I never said to force others to learn it, in fact forced religion is not true worship. Someone once said "forced religion is a stench in God's nostrils". I agree.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Just because we want something to be true doesn't make it true. It could truly help someone to read the Bible and turn to God, in the same way Jesus has helped myself & countless others as well as save their soul, of course I'm going to think they should be taught it. I won't force it, because as I said before forced religion is not true worship and it actually pushes people away from God, but if someone wants to learn, or I feel the need to express my opinion on a bad situation, then I'll talk about it, but I won't yell at someone and tell them they're going to hell or something.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I think we shouldn't have to wear giant signs so people know not to make attempts to convert us.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

LOL. Agreed.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Sorry, I'm making a lot of comments on your post.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Haha. I just saw this. I love how people think that each person can have their own truth, and that whatever they believe can magically become true. It's such a universalistic, ridiculous view. If Christianity is true, then Islam cannot be true, and vice versa. Religions are self-excluding... Pretty basic theology.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I actually got really annoyed at that idea when I was reading Life of Pi (Which I still haven't finished after two or three years) because the main kid is a practicing hindu, muslim and Christian, and when his parents find out, his mom is like, "Hon, it's fine if you have a religion, but you can't have three" And for some reason when the kid asks why not she can't properly explain why not. I don't know, maybe it was her lack of knowledge of Islam and Christianity (They're Indian, so the mom's family is hindu) but you wouldn' think it'd be that hard to come up with an honest explanation.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I know several people who have read that book, but I never had to. But yeah, that seems like a pretty easy explanation. I'm not too knowledgeable about Islam, and I know next to nothing about Hinduism, but for Christianity all you have to do is look in the ten commandments and you'll see that there is only room for one God.

by Anonymous 12 years ago