Are there no "mild" Christians here on R&S?

Question

I find it odd...
Most of the christians I have known in person, with a few very noteworthy exceptions... aren't anything like as extreme as the population here.
They do believe in God and that Jesus is the son of god and all that..... but they don't go in for all that hell stuff.... and they certainly do NOT take all that Revelations nonsense about the second coming of christ and the anti-christ etc as literal (most I've asked seem fairly agnostic to the matter of armageddon full stop).
I'd even go so far as to say I find quite a number of them reasonable.... and didn't even know they were christians at all until they either told me or mentioned that they found my attacking christianity in front of them objectionable....


So do any such people even exist on R&S..... or is this board just full of extremists? Are the mild-mannered ones just going unseen because their voices aren't quite so loud?

[ Admittedly... most of the "mild" Christians I've known have been fairly well-educated.... and the reluctance to take Revelations at face value might simply be a result of that education.
I have reason to believe on the flip-side though that many of the christians here are american... thus not only more outspoken but more poorly educated as well. That might well account for it. ]

Catholic Crusader :~ I'm talking about christians here. I never said I was personally mild. Nor have I accounted for the extremist Muslims I've put up with... nor a few lunatics among the atheists.
Did I mention that I live in London, and have walked past the Scientology joint on Tottenham Court Road many times too? REALLY crazy stuff goes on there....

Answer 1

There might be some, but the fundies are quickly killing them off. Survival of the most annoying and all that.

Answer 2

Well... the arguement I would hear most often when growing up is that if you don't believe in everything in the Bible, you're not a Christian. If you disagree with anything in the Bible you have an issue with God, and aren't a true Christian. There's no such thing as a 'mild' Christian - either they believe it or they don't.

Of course as I said, that's the arguement I would always hear, it's not my own. It was the response I'd get whenever I'd question anything to do with Christianity. Parents, various pastors, seminary professors, and "elders" of the churches I went to all said the same thing.

Now I wouldn't go that far, but there is some validity in the arguement. I'm not Christian myself, but Revelations and the second coming is such a big part of the Christian beliefs that I don't see how anyone could not believe in it and consider themselves to follow Christianity. That's more along the lines of the teachings of Buddhism, where you just take what makes sense or appeals to you from a religion, and create your own.

My personal opinion is that face-to-face, people are much less likely to talk about religion or what they believe, because it sounds a bit silly to say outloud in the modern world. With other believers sure, but not with someone attacking the religion. If you're attacking Christianity infront of people they're probably just holding their tongue to save themselves from an arguement. You would appear as a hostile individual to them and their beliefs. Either that or they're just taking what they want from Christianity, at which point they wouldn't believe in the whole package themselves.

I guess I have to ask though - who cares what they believe? You obviously have an issue with Christianity, so why bother associating with people of the religion?

Answer 3

LI,
I am an American and I feel that I am a strong Fundamental Christian. I study the BIBLE as frequently as I possibly can so that I will be able to be in Heaven when that time comes. I do not attempt to PUSH anyone on this site and I thought that I was rather "Mild" in that manner but I do believe that CHRIST will return to Judge each of us as is told in the scriptures. I believe that Revelation was written by John about His Time and not a future for us. He wrote it to encourage the Churches and to be able to get that WORD out to those Churches through the Roman Hands that read it on the Isle of Patmos. I feel that I have a decent education with a Major in Mathematics & Education, and a Minor in Physics. Have a wonderful week.
Thank You,
Eds


.

Answer 4

That is one of the problems with a forum; the denizens are known by what they type. Even a "mild" Christian may hold strong views when asked about a certain topic. the bias will appear in the forum, because the person may not be moved to answer on a question about which he or she feels only somewhat connected. That person may feel strongly about one thing, and THAT thing will be what the answerer will take care and time about.

Many people who show perfectly proper social etiquette are woefully ignorant of "netiquette," so that a mild-mannered person may appear to be a bigoted b*stard online. I think the perceived extremism on here is partially due to the interface of the medium to a mind that is geared toward personal encounters, who may not see the need for emoticons or disclaimers before a particularly impassioned response, simply because it doesn't occur to the person that others will not see it as he or she does, once the facts are laid out.

I have noticed this "extreme" phenomenon with many fora, and I often let it go unless I just can't help myself. I truly believe that online culture requires a shift in mindset beyond what many people have perceived as necessary; this is one of the symptoms. In short, I think your last sentence sums up my view of the situation.

Edit: Do I perceive a bit of anti-American bias when it comes to education? Don't worry; I won't take offense. The things I saw during my one and only attempt to teach freshman chemistry in Tennessee would tend to make me agree with that assessment, although I do think it is a bit of a generalization to label Americans as uneducated. I think part of what you are seeing is that the forum is open; there is not the rarefied atmosphere of academe here, although it can be found in places.

Answer 5

I am sitting here shaking my head on this one, and just wondering what other Children of God are thinking ??? I wonder what they do with the Scriptures that say we are to lift each other, keep each other in line, watch out for each other, admonish each other for wrongs, etc..... and by *each other* I do mean fellow believers ..... If I make the comment that a *true Christian* beleives the Word of God, that is NOT judgmental, that is the truth in the Word...... If I say a *true Christian* does NOT try to crame the Word of God down anothers throat, that is NOT judgmental, that is truth in the Word...... but, I seldom if ever use the term *true Christian*, because it means nothing, what does, is the Body of Christ, now that is where we are seperated..... Only the Holy Spirit can put anyone INTO the Body of Christ, and NOT all who say they are a member are !!!!! And that too is in the Scriptures !!!! And yes, division is a normal and scripturual thing, we will be divided into Sheep and Goat.... Not all who say Lord, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.... *shrug*...... and so it goes.......... go in peace....... God bless

Answer 6

I would just say they label themselves as christians and are not active church members/goers. On the other hand some people are not very comfortable talking about these things in person. We are afraid to be made fun of and embarassed, on the street. When on here you can say whatever you want and not have to worry about anything. Or they could just be less educated about these things, not all churches preach the whole and complete bible. In fact some don't even preach on sin, because they want a big congregation. If you were to ask me a question about my faith I would flat out tell you what it is. But it's harder to just walk up to a stranger and start talking about it. Some can and some can't, I am an american living in Italy in the army.

Answer 7

My opinion is that if they are mild and not "hardcore", they're probably not truly a Christian. I know someone who will tell you he's a Christian, but isn't sure if he exists, believes the earth is 4.6 billion years old, believes in evolution (and God), hasn't read the Bible in two years, doesn't go to church, and the list goes on. While reading the Bible and going to church won't make you a Christian, it is a sign that someone is saved and is obediant to God. It is quite evident that God is not first in this person's life.

Simon explained it well. Basically you believe everything in the Bible or you don't. So, people who have read much of the Bible are quite strengthened in their faith, and would likely not be mild about what they know. Now, I have seen plenty of people on Y!A who have claimed to be a Christian, but aren't sure of God sends people who haven't heard about Jesus to Hell, think homosexuality is okay, and/or flat out rejects some parts of the Bible.

In my experience, if you're not on fire for God, you're not a Christian.

Answer 8

Thankfully there are decent mild mannered Christians on this forum but it is also a magnet for the extreme and puritannical too, it goes to prove that we have a very long way yet to go before we truly show the face of Christ here.

Answer 9

Yes I'm one. And funnily enough a Londoner too. :)

I think Jesus was amazing to say and do the things He did at the time He lived.

And He'd prophesied that He'd have a thing or two to say about all the stuff that is said and done in His name.

Answer 10

Anyone who is going to take the time to discuss religion on the internet is likely to have pretty strong views.
I've seen a couple of moderate Christians on here but most are bible-quoting, fundamentalist types.
But to be fair I rarely encouter 'mild' Atheists on here. There are a lot of them who seem to have a problem with any form of religious belief and spend their time trying to annoy believers.