Jehovah's Witnesses visited me today

[GOPFighter]

Yes, a gaggle of Jehovah's witnesses descended on my front door not more than an hour ago. Elderly women all. Very matronly. Doing service for their god. I was expecting someone from Verizon to repair the phone (which has blessedly been silent for almost 6 months), otherwise i would have ignored the bell. The good ladies smiled at me and held up their Watchtowers, told me they wanted to talk about my soul. I smiled and said, "Wrong house. I'm an atheist." Speechless they were, until one said, "uh, Sorry." They slipped their Watchtowers back in their bags and hustled away. That was too damn easy.

After they left, my Catholic wife said, "That was a joke, right?"
"No", I said. "It wasn't a joke. I'm an atheist" (My wife has heard me say this dozens of times, but her brain can't seem to process it). "I want a divorce." said she.

I think she's kidding.

[Az]

1. How the heck did you get married

She must be a rather lapsed Catholic. My Godless childrens parents are Catholic. That is to say she is Catholic and he was nonpracticing something or other Christian and had to convert to get married. So now they are both Catholic. Officially Catholics don't allow mixed marriages. Thats where UU churches get a lot of their members.

[GOPFighter]

2. It was a civil ceremony at the courthouse

I refused to have a church wedding. My wife is a sine wave Catholic: her interest in the church rises and falls. She on one the rises right now. She has an amazing ability to ignore things (like my not believing in god) she can't deal with. :eyes:

Her priest has been asking about me though... maybe I can convert him :rofl:

[rexcat]

17. As a long time atheist I married a Catholic...

in the church. The priest knew I was an atheist and married us anyway. The priest was somewhat of a rouge but a rather interesting person. I had some good discussions with him. Most of his homilies were way over the heads of the church members. I can remember one of his sermons and he brought up Tolstoy (can't remember the specifics).

On the other hand my in-laws have always had a problem with me despite the fact that my wife and I have been married 24 years. They would prefer to see us divorced and have made that very clear.

My wife has moved away from the church recently because of the pedophile priests. Since we have 9-year old twin boys this scandal has made her angry at the inaction and complicity of the church leaders, including the last pope.

[YankeyMCC]

3. My mother is like this

I've said I'm an atheist to her directly at least a few times and implied in very obvious ways in coverstation (at least obvious to me, my sister and others around at the various times) that I don't believe in gods.

But she still seems in denial about it. When I do say something direct about it I notice this "shut off" expression take over her face.

Like it's something so far outside her understanding of the world that it just can't be processed.

It probably didn't help that I was not very direct about it with her until just prior to my father's death last year.

[Az]

4. I suspect parents and loved ones

Simply think its a phase you are going through and if they make a deal of it you will just linger on it all the more.

Many people simply cannot comprehend the notion of not believing in god. Its a bit like not believing in uncle frank for them. For many god is an experential experience reinforced over time by their religious connections. The fact that it is an internal anamoly of the brain never crosses their mind.



I used to think my brain was my favorite organ, but then I realized what organ was telling me that. - Emo Philips

[GOPFighter]

5. Just for the record

I DO believe in Uncle Frank.

[YankeyMCC]

6. He's just the opiate of the nieces and nephews.

[Longhorn]

11. Yes, my mother still thinks I was brainwashed --

both as an atheist and a liberal -- by the University of Texas at Austin. About ten years ago, she wagged her finger at me and said as much. I said, "Mom, I've been out of college for almost 15 years. Can't you give me credit for making my own adult decisions by now?" She looked stunned, like it never occurred to her that I might actually be thinking for myself. Then she left the room and she's never mentioned the subject again! :D

[Warpy]

8. My mother was a lifelong Irish Catholic

who firmly believed in reincarnation and couldn't stand Rome or most of the priests she met. When she was dying, my father asked if she wanted the last rites and she said no, she didn't want to die that big a hypcrite.

Go ma!

She wanted to come back as a river otter because she said they always looked like they were having a lot of fun with their lives. One has been spotted in this state for the first time since 1953, so I hope she made it.

[progressoid]

7. Hmmm,

I don't want to be a fly in the ointment here but, maybe she was kidding as much as you were kidding? Hopefully not.

As I type this, my wife is at church singing in the choir. Wheee! She says she has no qualms about my lack of belief - as long as I keep it to myself. There's the rub.

If this trend continues, she will become more and more "involved" in the church and it's activities. I, on the other hand am becoming less and less silent about the idiocies of churches and their members. How will this be resolved? I don't know. Of course this isn't just an issue between my wife and I. It also involves most of my immmediate family - believers all.

[Deep13]

9. My wife has her hobbies...

...and I have mine. Of course we are both Democrats. B-)

[GOPFighter]

15. "-as long as I keep it to myself."

I think that's the only way my wife will accept my lack of belief. But with the fundamentalists trying to turn America into a theocracy, I can no long remain silent about an issue I feel so strongly about.

[progressoid]

16. Right

I have been biting my tongue for a couple decades. But I feel this starting to boil up inside of me and every once in a while a little exasperation percolates over.

[Deep13]

10. Same exact thing happened to me.

They woke me up on Sunday morning and asked something about wanting to know about God or something. I cut them off and told them they were barking up the wrong tree as we are athiests. It was a couple of middle aged white guys in FBI type suits. They seemed confused when I told them.

Disk error: abort, retry, fail.:crazy:

[Kolesar]

12. "This guy with a John Kerry button visited me today"

"He wanted to talk about school funding, the budget deficit and politics. I told him I don't know about that stuff. It seemed real important to him."

I guess all canvassers have something in common, whether they canvass for J.K. or J.C.

[noamnety]

13. That's why I love my husband's pastor

When we went to the mandatory marriage counseling, he made a big point of explaining to my Lutheran husband-to-be that in these sorts of marriages, a big stumbling block is that the religious one tends to think "Oh, they see themselves as an atheist, but eventually they'll see the light." And they spend the next few decades trying to convert their spouse, and at some point get frustrated and angry. The pastor told my husband, you need to understand these are her beliefs, and they aren't changing any more than yours are.

I disagree with him on an awful lot of issues, but I will say the man's earned my respect.

[onager]

14. This reminds me of a famous couple...

Though we never hear about it in school, the great inventor Thomas Alva Edison was an atheist. He was so outspoken about it that his published interviews frequently scared his General Electric stock-holders. (He once observed that "no religion should ever be taught in American schools," and said religion was "bunk." And for good measure, added that he thought the whole idea of a soul was hokum, too.)

Edison's second wife, Mina, was a devout Methodist. As the preacher in your story noted, she believed she could convert her husband eventually.

Things came to a head one night when Mina invited no less than 6 Methodist clergymen to dinner.

When they started in on converting Edison, he announced: "I'm not listening to any more of this damn nonsense." Then he stalked out of the room.

After that, Mr. and Mrs. Edison apparently agreed to disagree about religion, and lived happily together until Edison died.

[RebelOne]

18. My atheist daughter is married to a very devout Catholic.

He wasn't when they first were married. But he had a very serious accident and he vowed that if he recovered he would devote his life to god. Jeez, he is even a deacon in the church now. But he and my daughter have an understanding. He doesn't lecture her about her lack of faith or try to convert her and she doesn't come down on him about his overly religious beliefs.

[Rhiannon12866]

19. I am always kind and listen and take their pamphlets.

Then just quietly close the door. I know I'm not going to convince them, no more than they're going to convert me. Though it baffles me that they're still up to this. Has ANYONE ever just said that they're going to join up?! I just can't imagine it!:shrug:

But I was convinced that I was doing the right thing, a few years ago, when one of them came to my door, with a very small girl, in tow. I listened and took his pamphlet, and quietly closed the door. And then my bell rang, again. This man just wanted to tell me how his little daughter was impressed with my kindness. Yikes! What had this little child heard and seen, doing this with her father?! I think it was poor judgment, on his part, and I still don't get what they think they can accomplish. But I was glad that I had upheld a child's faith that people could be kind.:-)

[beam me up scottie]

20. You're much kinder than I am.

While I would never berate someone in front of their child, I sure the hell don't want them scoring more jesus points (to be redeemed in the-place-that-does-not-exist) off of me.
I HATE proselytizing, it is insulting and arrogant to tell me that I am not good enough to go to their "special place" but that THEY can save me. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr :mad:

:rant:

[Rhiannon12866]

23. The thing is, with me, I just don't get why they do this.

As I said, do they EVER get anyone, at all, to sign up? Most people just hide when they see them in their neighborhoods. It's pointless, and they should just realize it and find better means for using their time. The one exception was my grandmother, a Christian, but certainly not one to be swayed to their dark side. LOL! I walked into her house, one time, when two of these guys were sitting on her couch. She said, "I told you I'd give you one half hour. But now my family is here and you have to go!" She was both compassionate and tough.:-)

I guess my point is that I also feel compassionate. I know I'm not going to sway these folks anymore than they're going to sway me. But I do believe in being kind, unless people, like Freepers or Fundies, are mean, and don't get me started on them! But I just look at these people as benighted. And it made me feel good that that little girl thought that I was a kind person.:shrug:

[beam me up scottie]

25. Oh, I am usually polite

when I give any salesman 2 seconds of my time to say "No".
If they decide to push the issue then they're asking for it.

I have always wondered about the conversion thing too. Does that actually ever really happen or do they just TELL them that it happens so that they don't get discouraged? (like when they tell the Amway salesbots that they can convert their friends and neighbors if they try hard enough)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

21. Bringing a small child to door-to-door proselytizing?

What a fucked-up idea. My guess is people who do that want to indoctrinate the child about how evil an nasty nonbelievers are.

Edit: I couldn't spell "proselytizing" if my life depended on it.

[beam me up scottie]

22. *Snort*

I never had to use that word until I joined DU.
I had to clean up my language, the word I USED to use was much more colorful.
:evilgrin:

[Rhiannon12866]

24. I guess this guy wanted to get his child used to this early.

But the truth was more likely that he couldn't find a babysitter. I cringe when I think of what this little girl heard and saw. And I use the word "proselytizing," all the time, now, since I cannot keep my mouth shut about politics, these days, but, when writing it, I still have to look up the spelling.:-)

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

26. Yeah, a simpler and therefore more likely explanation. (nt)

[onager]

27. I've seen small children proselytizing ALONE.

I don't know what kind of moron lets their pre-teen kids go knocking on apartment and condo doors in Los Angeles.

OK, I do know--JW's. Answered my door one day and there were 3 little "stairstep" girls, the oldest about 10 or 11 and the youngest about 5. The oldest one tried to give me The Watchtower. Didn't see a parent or other adult anywhere in the vicinity.

Just recently in the 'hood, a gaggle of teen girls were going around annoying people. They stopped me on the way back from the local convenience store.

"Would you like to come to our church this Sunday?"

"No thank you. I don't go to church."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't believe in God."

They scooted away pretty quick, looking up for the lightning bolt I'm sure they thought was on the way...

[orleans]

28. i called the police on them

we have a no soliciting sign on our house. however, if they have a "permit" they can solicit as much as they want to. so there was a gaggle of them--grandpa, dad & son swooped onto my front porch and banged away (since the bell doesn't work).

told them "no--not interested"

a moment later i saw the grandma, mother & other son go traipsing past the house.

and i (politely) thought: fuck them. if they can't have the courtesy to stay the hell away from my front door because they don't give a shit that i have a no soliciting sign, then i won't have the courtesy not to call the cops on them to make sure they've applied for a fucking permit.

do i sound hostile? or merely intolerant?

[adam121379]

29. Mormons

The website below lets you order a free book of mormon. Not only will they send you a book, you can opt to have a representative from your area deliver it and discuss it with you. I did this to my mom... great revenge! hehe

http://www.mormon.org/freeoffers/0,17785,2071-1-1-USA,00.html