OK...now first of all

[SuperChuck]

I'm not against born again Christians, however, many of them have a bad habit of telling you that if you don't believe the way they believe, you are going to hell...the problem is that they try to ram what they belive down someone else's throat whether you want to hear them or not...if they'd just practice what they believe, quietly, and not try to force it on so many others, then they'd probably get a lot less bad press than they do now...

There is definitely something to be said about quietly practicing your religion. It's like that kid that tries REALLY hard to be cool, but just plain isn't.

The lack of respect for others amazes me... I mean, promoting your religion is one thing, but smearing another faith is quite another. Maybe if you actually KNOW something about the other faith, it's not quite as bad... At least you could make some informed criticisms of other faiths... But I doubt any religious radicals take the time out to learn about positions other than theirs.

I've studied most of the world's religions to one point or another and for the most part, they're all the same. Some are rediculously similar (Christianity and Buddhism are nearly parallel faiths) while others bring interesting and distinct concepts to the table (Such as Kali, Goddess of Destruction, from Hindu, who actually represents the first step of creation, as nothing can be created without something else being destroyed).

Most religious fanatics/annoyances are proof of saying "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing". They hear a sermon, read something they like, and go out into the world, professing everyone is evil because they don't live their lived by this ONE silly rule. When I read something like that, I cross-reference several translations of that passage, look for papers on the subject, and question its historical relevance. For example, historians believe that the entirety of the classic Christmas story is fictionalized to make Jesus comply with prophecies about the Messiah (born of the line of David, branch of Jesse, came "out of Egypt", etc.). Cross that with a book that has been dragged through a number of archaic translations and you really have to do your homework! :)

[thepyrofish]

First off I just want to thank everyone here that this hasn't turned into a flame-fest like it would on many forums. I am christian, but I definately don't try to shove it down peoples throats, I find that obnoxious. I actually had mormons come to my door on Easter Sunday once, and I have never before seen a door to door missionary at a loss for words against a 15 year old (my poor defenceless self at the time). I try to live my life in a christianly way and let my actions speak for me. When a christian composes him(her)self in a manner that befits his(her) faith you can generally tell, and I have been able to talk about God with many non-christians through a conversation THEY started. It's far easier to get someone to take you seriously, even if they don't agree, when you aren't annoying them. Some of the most rewarding conversations I have ever had were with atheists who firmly believed what they did, but were willing to debate with me like an adult without all the personal attacks and insults that so often accompany this type of conversation.

This post has gotten too long, and has nothing to do with cigars.
I'm finished.