why do atheists treat pagans with more respect than christians in R&S?

Question

not that i'm complaining, since i'm pagan, but don't you atheists think that we're as crazy as the christians, or maybe even moreso since they only believe in 1 god and we believe in many?

so, what's the difference?

tigger - you made me blush!

ATTENTION EVERYBODY! "susan" just bought us a round of drinks! thanks susan - so nice of you to do on my birthday!

**drinks a shot of tequila for her birthday**

thanks to everyone who gave me birthday wishes! i love you all! (and i even love the ones who didn't)

Answer 1

Pagans generally know how to behave themselves in public.

If you act respectably, you get respect. It shouldn't be that difficult for them to figure out, but they seem to prefer to believe that they're unfairly persecuted for reasons having nothing whatsoever to do with their behavior.

Answer 2

Well, first off, Happy Birthday! Yeah, I know I'm late getting to this, but, eh, crap happens.

While I'm not an Atheist, I'm Pagan, my experiences have been that Atheists generally have more tolerant attitudes toward non-Christians, and especially Pagans, are so because the theistically-religious people in question are less likely to proselytize. I think Judaism even has specific rules against proselytizing, preferring converts who have come to Judaism on their own accord rather than what other Jews have told said convert about their God and why Judaism is so great.

Many (though not all, by any means) Christians, especially those of the "Born Again" variety, can come off as rather... "pushy" in telling people about their New Best Friend, Jesus. Whether or not this is proselytizing, per se, is questionable, but most people in English-speaking society have heard it before -- whether it be in-person, on the evening news, or lampooned in the entertainment media. And it's almost never different -- which, to atheists, often comes off as "brain-washing". At least when Pagans are telling Atheists about their experiences with Divinity, it's usually because a) the Pagan/s in question were asked about it and b) what the Pagan/s in question have to say about their religion, God/s, and experiences with Divinity often varies more greatly than what Christians have to say -- so it comes off as more interesting to Atheists than the same boring spiel about Jesus that Christians often provide.

And, in general, Pagans and other non-Christians aren't trying to "convert" people. They're more often than not just telling people about their religion because the other person was curious -- and, in general, they don't care if the other person ends up seeking more info and eventually "converting". Christians, at least of the "Born Again" ilk, really do seem concerned if people don't convert. And they'll always "pray for you", with the implied hope that their prayers will help you "see the light" and you'll convert to Christianity.

Lastly, a lot of Atheists in my experiences seem to be of the opinion that Pagans, in general, really do "practise what they preach" while Christians come off as a bit hypocritical -- especially when Christian "leaders" are caught in scandals of embezzlement, adultry, and other things that Christians aren't supposed to be doing. While the acts of Jim Bakker aren't practised by the majority of Christians, it still doesn't look good.

Answer 3

Basically because real pagans have a more logical explanation for the whys and wherefores of the universe and accept that the earth and the universe is very old. In fact, most pagan beliefs don't place a strict time line on the whole event.
Pagans also follow a sort of evolutionary line which, as we know, is back by scientific knowledge that grows more every day. the multiple Gods as no problem. That is logical. In fact, as we know, that is the way that any good organization is managed. One head for each department. Weather, the sea, wind, sun, storms - Each one has a departmen chief who is responsible for what goes on. Certainly the theories behind the Pagan beliefs are no more far fetched and in many cases far more believable than this Judeo-christian mythology.
Also, Pagans tend to be less pompous and self righteous. The do not tend to rule by fear, threats, anger and promises that cannot be fulfilled (Paradise & Heaven) as so called christians do. It is a lot less commercialized than most of the christian organizations.

When you consider all the facets - there are really very big differences. Those differences make the pagan beliefs a much more credible concept than christian myths.

Answer 4

Since most Pagans don't believe in proselytizing and believe in tolerance and accepting, few Atheists have problems with them as a whole. While not all Christians proselytize, the most vocal ones do. This can be annoying to anyone and can make one prejudiced against all Christians. No one wants to hear someone continuously condemn his or her beliefs. If they think we're crazy, it's in a harmless crazy way.

Answer 5

I can't really say too much on this...except that I agree with the general consensus. As a Pagan, I feel I give everyone an equal amount of "general" respect; until given reason to do otherwise. extensive respect is earned though...
and I suppose that if Christians can't give Atheists respect- why should it be given to them with nothing in return?

That's just basic human courtesy.

Blessed be ♥.

Answer 6

Because we pagans aren't trying to shove our religions down other peoples' throats, condemning other people to hell, or copying and pasting unusually long passages of scripture that have nothing to do with the questions asked. Mostly, the Christians who do this are fundies anyway. The real Christians live and let live. Personally, I would have more respect for someone with several gods than someone with one who was trying to force me to convert.

Also, we pagans are considerably less ignorant than most of the Christians here. We don't try to make Christianity/ God / the Bible coincide with science, nor do we try to insinuate that evolutionists believe that we came from monkeys. Christians do. Most of them spend their time here making gross displays of ignorance or just being trolls and having the questions of Pagans, Atheists, Catholics, and Muslims deleted in a sorry attempt to make the R&S section strictly for non-Catholic Christians. We Pagans don't do that. Naturally, people are going to have more respect for someone who isn't a troll or report monkey.

Answer 7

Respect is earned, not granted. Either by the merits of your ideas and actions or by the degree of respect with which you treat others.
Almost all of the Pagans here on R&S have earned my respect in both of those ways and you consistently provide an excellent example of those qualities. Most of your Christian counterparts do not.
Happy birthday, Riegan!

Answer 8

I would imagine because I've never seen a fellow pagan try to convert an atheist, or insult them for not being pagan.

Answer 9

I still think pagans are also misguided but at least pagans show much more respect and tolerance towards those that do not share their religious beliefs. Christians tend to try to convert or if that fails condemn with the silly hell thing.

Answer 10

Because Christianity is pretty much based on Paganism ... All your holidays are on the same day and paganism has been around FOREVER where as Christianity was formed by a religious persecutor in the Roman times that wanted to control his people by using fear and torture so he took a religious book threw out the parts he didn't like and said ALL OF YOU WILL WOSHIP THIS OR YOU WILL DIE .... Personally I don't wanna worship that religion ....

Answer 11

It's more that I have respect for people who don't tell people they're going to hell, try and impose their dogma on others, write in all capitals, etc. And since Christians do those things more often than Pagans on this site, I consequently treat Pagans with more respect in general. But of course your belief is just as ridiculous as theirs.