My Religious friends, could you PLEASE tone down your Religiousness for everyone else's sake?

Question

PLEASE! I respect your religiousness, but in daily life, try to use a language that is comfortable to EVERYONE.


Believers will never comprehend the dull ache that develops in the lower gut of an atheist after being told "Goooooooood bless you!!!!!!!!!"when a simple "Thank you," would have sufficed.


Thanks :)

I'm talking about life in public, not just in this forum. *sigh*

Answer 1

You know, I can't stand rap music. So I don't turn the radio on the rap stations. See where I'm going with this?

Answer 2

Please understand (I'm being kind and not rude with you) - can you stop being atheist on and off at will?

Ah! See? Comprende? You don't have to like the fact that a Christian can not just do the belief thing on and off, the living one's beliefs part time to suit someone elses schedule. And to be honest - Atheists do not wear identifying tags.., not that I suggest you do.

What good are beliefs if one can suspend them? It would not be a belief at all.

However - I do concede one thing; Many Christians don't get it and some never will..., that we cant just go up to everyone and expect them to convert on the spot, nor should we hound every non believer every second of the day.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I expect that there's not a person alive in the United States that has not heard the Gospel message in one fashion or another.

Thats not to say I should not bother reminding you and others once in a while - but If I personally make your life miserable by being under your nose every single day.., I'm not even going to win your respect.

I respect a person's right to not believe - I just hope they understand, we believe people are going to suffer in the afterlife, and if I am heartless enough to say.., "Dude - you asked for it, so I will sit this one out and laugh my butt off when you burn, baby burn".., then my religion is in vain and I become useless in the Kingdom of God.

Its no different than if I seen someone's house is on fire in the middle of the night and not lift a finger to warn the persons inside. You gotta admit, that would be cold blooded.

Answer 3

Haven't you heard of freedom of religion? Why would it be so offensive to be nice and say God bless you? Being blessed would be good, not bad. As for if you aren't just talking about expressions like that, people should be able to say things if they think it is the Truth from their religion, because truth is MUCH more important than peoples' feelings because it helps the person more in the end.

Answer 4

To Christians there's a sense of urgency knowing what time it is and that any moment could be our last. Have you ever looked into the real message of the Bible the flesh(physical/Satan) vs the Spirit(life eternal)? Not 'everyone else' minds unless you've personally spoken to every other non-religious person on earth and they agreed. Many are turning to the hope of the Gospel for answers.

Answer 5

That is amazingly petty of you to say. We have every bit as much of a right to speak our mind as you. If you are so insecure in your beliefs that a simple phrase meant as a blessing offends you then maybe you should examine again what you believe. If your discomfort comes from something other than insecurity, I apologize for the above statement, and would love to hear you give a logical reason for you telling everyone else how they can and cannot show appreciation. Have a nice day. And MAY GOD BLESS YOUR PETTY SOUL.

Answer 6

What upsets you about it? For instance I don't believe in the teachings of Islam by any means, but if a Muslim says "God bless you" to me, I will say it back or simply thank them. And if they say that "asalamu alakium" thing I will say it back. Even though I disagree with their religion, I will not take disrespect to their sincerity. If they love God, and want God to bless me, then they show sincere humanity and respect and I can only appreciate and honor them for that, even if I think their theology is wrong. In other words, I don't have to honor their God, I just honor their sentiments.

Answer 7

If someone gets "upset" or a "lower gut ache" by a person saying "God Bless You", that person really needs to lighten up. Of all the real heartaches in the world, that is not something to freak out about......theBerean

Answer 8

I understand what you mean and don't take what I'm about to say wrong cuz I'm just telling you what I think. In my beliefs, we are supposed to bless our neighbor or anyone else we see. You ask the "religious" people to be tolerant of you being an atheist, but where is your tolerance?

Answer 9

That's the thing about believers, we believe in something that is bigger than simple thoughts of a person who doesn't want to hear God Bless You. And God has done for them what he has done for me then they can't help it. We just want to shout it from the rooftops. GOD LOVES ME AND GAVE HIS ONLY SON TO DIE FOR MY SINS SO THAT I CAN LIVE FREE OF SIN AND LIFE FOR ETERNITY. Why should Christians sit down and shut up about their beliefs anyway. We are as free as anyone else, no we are more free. That is what I don't understand. God reveals himself to those who are seeking him. Why should the people who receive revelations from God sit down and shut up just because the people who aren't seeking don't like it. This is a free country. Matter of fact Christians need to rise up and stand for their beliefs like everyone else does. And change their language, oh, okay, so maybe we should wipe our feet on the way out of church too. Go about acting and living like non-christian people. Do you also believe that homosexuals should stay in the closet as to not offend Christians like me.

Answer 10

I am pagan and prefer to answer such things with 'and Goddess Bless you, too!".
This generally gets any unwanted attention to stop, however I don't think your situation is the same as mine.
I don't say 'goddess bless' other than in this type of situation. I agree that it makes me uncomfortable. Also, 'have a blessed day' strikes a chord, too.

Answer 11

Some believers get the dull ache too.