The Good, the Bad, and the Pious

It's really sad, that no matter what your religious, political, sexual orientation - the wackos are the ones that get the most attention. Often its negative attention, and casts everyone of that affiliation in a bad light.

Jerry Falwell was a complete douche bag. The evangelists who shove Christianity down everyone's throats are jerks and are doing the church a disservice. Its because of these people that so many reject the modern church.

I don't feel the need to convert anyone. Frankly, it makes me incredibly uncomfortable, because I know how awful some of the assault tactics are that churches use. The first summer I worked at a camp as a mission guide, my first group wanted to go to the local high school to evangelize to the students. This was in bible belt Tennessee, so of course the school let them do it, and being their rep. from the camp, I had to go too. They would corner kids in the lunchroom and talk to them, and then give them a bible. You could argue that the kids could just walk away, but in a town like that - a town like Lake City, where Jane and Glenn felt compelled to lie and say they went to church - the amount of peer pressure would make anyone crumble and take a Bible.

Someone approached me once and said "If you died, or the world ended, whichever came first, where would you go?". I was so thrown off guard I stuttered for a minute, and they jumped in with their sermon. Eventually I was able to interrupt and say that I went to church and the like, and they left me alone. Honestly though, I don't think I have enough gall to say that I'm going to heaven. From what I've been taught, by all rights I should be, but I think its a bit audacious. Why should I presume that's my final destination?

My sister and mother both worked in a hell house. I can't even begin to express how opposed I am to scaring people into going to church. Anyways, they are both on the charismatic side of the spectrum, whereas I am much less so. We got into a conversation about demon possession once, because my sister said one of her friends had been exorcised while they were away at a conference. Unfortunately, she decided to ask me my opinion in front of my mother, and when I replied I didn't believe in it, she went off in a tirade. I made the smartass remark that no Presbyterians seemed to be possessed, and my mother replied that maybe that's because they all were.

I really like my church. It's really laid back - we're not into the going out and building an army for God thing. And they're not all psycho-conservative either. Our congregation is actually pretty 50/50, and thus can't take stands on anything as a church because of the conflict it would cause. Just check out the t-shirts they let me print (I've been dying to show them anyways):












Wicked, huh? I don't think I could get away with it in any other church.

I've gotten a little off topic, but I did want to point out in all of this - that not all Christians are psycho to convert or complete hypocrites (as hopefully anyone who knows me can attest to), and that there are some cool laid back ones out there.