I'm sorry, Greenberg, but I just can't share your hopeless attitude. I realize it's much easier for folks like you to do your job if you can convince everyone else to just give up, but I'm not buying it. As long as surrounding a child with Christian media so that anywhere she looks she sees the graven image of Jesus isn't preaching, evangelizing, or otherwise teaching Jesus, I will continue to question those standards. As long as teaching a child to sing theologically-inaccurate propaganda songs isn't preaching or evangelizing, I will continue to question such standards. As long as my neighbors include people who claim to be Christians, I will continue to examine the theology and its translation into practice. And as long as the only consistent factor about that translation is that it "coincidentally" reflects what any particular individual Christian already wants, I will hold Christianity to be a fraud.
I deal with Christians on a daily basis, I know all to well what it is like.
Not letting myself be dragged into debates with them works far better than trying to convince them that I am a person too and that I have the right to my own mind. They don't buy that. For them, I don't really exist, other than as a potential convert. Such people cannot be reasonably dealt with.
And if the only effect of this relatively simple study and labor is that a Christian here or there is compelled to be more honest about his or her faith, I don't see why I should be disappointed.
I have to say you are very idealistic.
I have never once seen that a Christian would actually take to heart what I said about his religion, no matter what I said.
"First look at the beam in your own eye" is the standard reply.
How convenient that the one thing you apparently learned is to step out of the way and let the liars run free.
Not at all. I make an effort not to bite their baits. And I think this is more efficient than to get into debates with them. If I leave them be without aggravating them, they calm down, they lose interest.
Get them out of school board arguments, get them off the ballot, and get their supremacist ideology out of the way of civil rights, and I would be happy to leave them be. In other words, they picked a fight, and it would have been easy enough to ignore and walk away from, except they insist.
Yes, they pick a fight, and they are the ones setting the terms - and we give in. We let them set the rules of the fight. That's the problem.
To straighten things out in the social arena, I think a much more fundamental change is needed than to figure out arguments against various Christian claims.
I recognize that you think my best duty to my daughter is to not protect her, but you simply aren't going to convince me of that point.
I just don't think you are actually protecting her or yourself that way. Or at least I think there are better ways to protect oneself and that which is precious.
Like learning to say No and not feeling guilty for it.
Learning not to get dragged into debates.
Working out one's insecurities and vulnerabilities so that others can't take advantage of us.
Having a goal in life and diligently pursuing it.
Learning to stand up for oneself.
These things can be learned and developed.
Appealing to other people's compassion, goodness and reasonability is, in my opinion, a dangerous and inefficient way to seek safety in this world.
And most of all, I think one should first have a strong inner core, a firm set of clearly worked out stances, good concentration, good debate tactics, a great variety of strategies - before getting into debate with the opposing party. Otherwise, one will just make a greater mess.
