NationStates Jolt Archive

Why is it when someone says they're gay, everyone else in the room says they're straight?

Why is it when someone mentions they're a vegetarian, someone else has to mention how much they love steak?

Why is it when someone says anything, someone nearby has to pipe up and say the opposite?

It's because people love their opinions and beliefs; moreover, they love to pretend that other people care about them. People will not hesitate to shove anything they believe in your face at the slightest opportunity, because god forbid they don't reaffirm it every twenty seconds.. otherwise, they might start to actually think about it.

So, to answer your question.. Christians constantly trying to show people their 'way' is like that obnoxious person that bombards your work e-mail with jokes because she thinks they're funny.. They are somehow unable to understand that you will think differently from them, and that your opinions, beliefs, or sense of humor may somehow *be* different.

That is a good way of putting it.

I never did quite think of it like this. This is certainly one way of looking at the matter. However, I think it's unfair to say that all Christians do. There are those like LG who never mention their beliefs until you ask them about the nature their beliefs.

But I do see your point about the need for people to express their opinion when a contradictory one is stated. I think that's just human nature. We see or hear one person expressing theirs and we feel the need to add in a different point of view.

While I'm sure that all religions (and non-religious views; ie: agnostic and atheist and everything in between) are guilty of your above analogy, I find that Christians can be the more persistent ones. That's devotion and drive.

While I'm sure that all religions (and non-religious views; ie: agnostic and atheist and everything in between) are guilty of your above analogy, I find that Christians can be the more persistent ones. That's devotion and drive.
Meh... I don't think it's Christians in particular, I think there's just more of them where you are so...

Why is it that when an atheist says they don't believe or cannot accept those two figures, some Christians ask you to think about and consider it? Or they tell you that you're not going to hell if you believe in God? Or seem to think that religion makes you a better person?



You don't need to have religious belief to be a good person, or to lead a good life.

BUT you do need to accept Jesus Christ as your saviour to get into heaven. (don't complain to me, I didn't make the rules)

Quite simply, Christians believe we're going to heaven, and we'd like you to come too.

You don't need to have religious belief to be a good person, or to lead a good life.

Duly noted, my friend.

BUT you do need to accept Jesus Christ as your saviour to get into heaven. (don't complain to me, I didn't make the rules)

Oh, NOW we blame someone else for the arbitrary rules? ;)

Quite simply, Christians believe we're going to heaven, and we'd like you to come too.

So you want to over-populate heaven now too? :D

So you want to over-populate heaven now too? :D

The more the merrier. Hope to see you there.

The more the merrier. Hope to see you there.
The true Christian spirit is clearly on display? :)

You don't need to have religious belief to be a good person, or to lead a good life.

BUT you do need to accept Jesus Christ as your saviour to get into heaven. (don't complain to me, I didn't make the rules)

Quite simply, Christians believe we're going to heaven, and we'd like you to come too.

Actually, the rules are that you have to be a god, or one of the children of a god. Well - that's one of the stories anyway.

And that's the thing... why believe your story? It's not the first... it's contradictory to the material it's supposed to follow on from... and it's just not very believable.

And there are hundreds of other stories out there, at least as coherent and established. They can't all be right, right? So - why believe any of them?

I've read the first couple of pages to this thread and I felt like I should respond. Many people are baffled as to why protestant Christians believe that faith and acceptance in Jesus is enough to "save them" and get them into heaven and no works or some other "sacrifice" is required. I would also like to preface this that while I consider myself a Christian I am not at all religious, and by and large loathe religion. Also, I obviously believe that faith and religion are two separate things.

To answer this you need to look at the basic theology and history of Christianity.

Christianity developed as a sect and branch of Judaism. In ancient Israel the god of the Israelites required that the Jewish people come once a year to sacrifice for the forgiveness of their sins. Yom Kippur, or the day of atonement, where all "good" Jews would go to the temple or tabernacle and present living offerings (sheep, goats, doves, etc.) that would be killed and burnt as a way of showing their repentance to god. God required a blood offering before the forgiveness of sin but the animals where not enough to last the lifetime and sins committed after their repentance must be forgiven as well.

Flash forward a few hundred years. Christianity, particularly Protestantism, believes that Jesus was a sinless human being (perhaps son of god, same substance of god, I'm not going to get into a trinitarian debate in this thread). The reason this is important is because, according to protestant beliefs, only a sinless/stainless/perfect, willing, human sacrifice would be acceptable to take on the entire sins of the world for any who would accept that salvation. That is why the death of Jesus is so important and central to protestant Christian beliefs and also the main reason why Protestantism and Islam can never "agree to disagree" as in Islam traditions/beliefs Jesus did not actually die on the cross.

I hope this shed a little more light on the deeper theological meanings and symbolism of the death/sacrifice of Jesus. Also I'd like to reiterate what someone else said earlier. The people that where 'witnessing" to you are only doing so out of love, they truly believe that you must accept Jesus to be saved from hell, and they're only trying to do what they think is best for you, so if anything be flattered that they cared enough.