My ex-mother in-law used to do that to her (very unreligious) daughter and it made her go ballistic.  No variation of “Don’t send me this crap” seemed to work.

It seems her mom refuses to give up hope that her daughter will somehow find Jesus and be saved.  It’s not quite the same as spamming the family, but it’s close.  They don’t see it as annoying you.  They see it as doing you a favor by giving you the opportunity to say “I was wrong, Jesus IS my savior, thank you for not giving up on me”

  They just can’t get it into their heads that they’re being very rude, or they think the results are worth the rudeness.  It’s kind of a double-standard, because when you preach at them, they get mad and demand to know why you want to take their religion away from them or harrass them or teach evil things.  My ex-MIL hyperventilated everytime I brought up Wicca, sometimes even if I just said the word.

Yeah.. it makes me retch sometimes, but Christians can be stubborn SOBs.  When they’re doing something good, they are fantastic.  When it’s evangalizing, they’re worse than telemarketers.  Most of the time, I smile and go on with life when I run up against their advertisements.  I wish more of them could do the same.

I had those stupid email forwards people send out.  Especially the religious one.  But I like the closing question, is this what Jesus would do?  It’s a great question to ask Believers.

Assuming they existed I would like to be able to give god+jc the credit of not being egotistical enough to create people simply for the satisfaction of being worshiped. If I were god/jc I would feel somewhat insulted that people would think this of me. At least that would be my response to pro-worshipers

not being egotistical enough to create people simply for the satisfaction of being worshiped

From what I’ve read this seems to be all that matters to God. You can do anything, but as long as you accept him as Lord, you get into heaven- contriwise, doesn’t matter how good you are, No God=No Heaven.  And if you’ve been to my blog (shameless plug) you will know about JC throwing a temper tantrum over a fig tree not having fruit.

lh- Which is the xian attitude, i think we all agree that needs to be reviewed by xians if they are to be decent people. Remember that there are other versions and posibilities out there; lines of inquiry that attempt to apply logic to theism, dont dismiss it all as blind.

As i see it there are several posibilities, i dont know enough to decide which is correct but as possibilities I need to be ok and prepared for whatever may apply, including oblivion. Extrapolating on possible theories allows prepare

lines of inquiry that attempt to apply logic to theism

I prefer to apply logic before theism.

elwed- that is indeed better as a fundamental foundation of a credible theory, both do have a use though- applying to is part of probing the reasoning behind an established posibility so as to help narrow things down

Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges Me before men, I will also acknowledge him before My Father in heaven; but whoever disowns Me before men, I
will also disown him before MyFather in heaven.” MATTHEW 10:32-33

This tells you all you need to know about JC from the gospels- “Be my bitch or you don’t get into heaven” Did he actually mean this? We will never know.

LH-Correct- We will never know (in life certainly) as the bible has had oppertunities for manipulation. JC couldve been complete fiction and even if he did exist not even he would know for certain that he was as claimed, and even if he was he mightve misinterpreted/misunderstood, but even so JC is not a prerequisite for god, god(s) might exist w/o jc needing to

Big Jesus picture that didn’t come with the email for some reason, but which still shows up as a big empty space kinda like the reality of God

Teh W1n!!!!!

Again, I’m too quiet on these issues with my families.

I think they know I’m an atheist. My mother tries to blunder about “sharing” JC and bible stuff with the kids. She gives me apologetic looks for some reason when she does this. What? Like its an incontrollable tic?

*sigh* But I usually say nothing in the name of keeping peace within the family.

My mother-in-law sent me a crocheted cross for my birthday.  What’s funny (aside from the fact that she knows I’m an atheist) is that I live with THE master crochet artist, who makes those things all the time, along with other goodies.  Kind of like sending coals to Newcastle. 

(Here’s an example of MrsDoF’s work, a Star Of David she made for a friend of ours at her Bat Mitzvah.)

At first I thought the writer was talking about Bush!!! But then neither he nor God really value the lives of the people fighting a war about other people fighting about a difference in the religions they believe in. All this under the guise that we have to protect ourselves from these misinformed people.

Please don’t tell me he is the only one who can save this country from the people who want him removed from government.  That is ridiculous! If he could save this country and these people dying in the war then where the hell is he?  Why has he let this massacre continue for so long?  I know you are going to say to punish the wrong doers and non believers.  But not all those who are dying are non believers or wrong doers.  Do we go by the old saying—kill them all and let God sort them out? 

It is time to stop trying to convert everyone religiously and politically and start helping our own people through employment, education, health care, and the daily needs to survive decently.

I have no idea how she made that, complex shape, multiple connections, different edge. It doesn’t look possible by any method yet it exists

Momma: That is ridiculous! If he could save this country and these people dying in the war then where the hell is he?

If there were gods/spirits then I can only assume their ability to influence here is limited, otherwise you’d have some appear in public and try to tell people stuff. Also problems in human nature indicate that even if there was something it isn’t 100% good, influential and intelligent, at least one of those isn’t being fulfilled.

LH: “Be my bitch or you don’t get into heaven”

LOL

J: What?

Double LOL

*shrug* If people send me crap and spam I block them even if they’re my mom. If someone wants to punish me with their chain letters then at least they should have to go to the trouble of printing them out and sticking a stamp on it, and if my relatives want to talk to my about their superstitions then they can dial me on the phone. Hell, I’ve blocked people out of work for crap like that and just shrugged until they eventually had to make up a new email address, which they have since used more responsibly, for contacting me electronically.

Why not just tell them…OK I am ready to be born again, I am ready to accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I want you to pray for me now. Then we can swing by Church for the Baptism. And after we are through with that, will you please SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY.

Les, you could try sending out your own chain emails!

[Insert your favorite Mark Twain/Jefferson/Dawkins quote here, in BIG BOLD LETTERS]

Rationality test:  You score either 100 or 0 points.

I reject all superstitions and imaginary friends, including gods and demons of all shapes and colors.  I am ready to give up years of meaningless ritualized activities such as talking to myself, bowing in front of empty air, reading the same book over and over again, killing and oppressing people in the name of my delusions, and inflicting my delusions on everyone within my reach.  I am ready to go out and do something charitable and to improve the world around me, to treat all of my fellow human beings as equal (because they ARE), and to save others from the same horrible, narcissistic, self-inflicted fate that I just rescued myself from.

If you are not ashamed, forward this to every True Believer you know.

[Insert another atheist quote in BIG BOLD LETTERS, dammit]

Why not just tell them…OK I am ready to be born again, I am ready to accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I want you to pray for me now. Then we can swing by Church for the Baptism. And after we are through with that, will you please SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY.

I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me there would be no showers hot enough to sterilize myself in afterwards.

I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me there would be no showers hot enough to sterilize myself in afterwards.

Yup. The very thought makes me feel dirty.

Paul, here’s a better suggestion. Get a free ordaination from the Universal Church Triumphant of the Apathetic Agnostic and send the religious hecklers copies of your ordination certificate. Tell them that you seek an active ministry and invite them over. Turnabout is fair play, eh.

I could ordane anyone who asks into the Chrch of Jenkinanity- Basic Belief- the evidence is usually correct.

Do YOU believe that there is an Evil Bastard?

Now, as virtually no-one who comes to this site has met Les, you have to take it that he actually exists, and this isn’t just some sort of elaborate fake.

You therefore have faith. Now Fuck Off (what, is it, I should say what?)
Oh Sorry- apparently the correct phrase is “Go Forth and Multiply” which I thought meant the same thing.

Yours in the love of Les
Lord High Arch Pope.

Yuck. I used to get nonsense like that at work.

My mother used to do the same thing to me and my brother…but over the years, she’s started to get the hint that neither of us are ever going to change our beliefs (or lack of, depending on your p.o.v.).

Her attempts to ‘save us’ started waining when, during family holiday get-togethers, we’d share things like the origin of the Celtic cross (the sun. pagans. etc), that there were NEVER snakes in Ireland, that “Xian” isn’t blasphemous, it’s shorthand

Thankfully my mom does not send me those as I have trained her that I do not accept any of those retarded forwards (and if you do, be prepared to hear a 20 minute lecture on why they are retarded and a waste of both of our times and if you really loved me that you would just call and not have me as part of a mass mail).  *chuckles*

Les - love your response. Very civil and understanding of those with a different view.

I actually want to borrow some of your language and respond to all those chain bulletins I get from family and friends on Myspace with the same message. I’ve drafted my own verson (last like: Would Jesus be bulletin’?) but some of your language is too good to not use directly if you don’t mind.

GeekMom - same thing. Would love to borrow your idea for a future bulletin if it’s okay.