J is for Judgemental
By Jody --
I owe a debt of gratitude to the many Christians in my life who have affirmed my stance of non-belief. Even though I have read the writings of Dan Barker, Dawkins and others, my most compelling reasons to leave the faith are the actions of Christians, themselves.
Allow me to illustrate.
Take my former neighbor, Danielle. Our kids have played together for years. Since leaving the church, I noticed some hesitation on her part when asking if her son could come over for an afternoon of tree climbing and video games with my son. Finally, today, I asked her what was up. Her reply surprised me. "Where are you with the Lord?" she asked. Ummmm...not the answer I was anticipating. I thought maybe there had been a problem with my son, or some childish prank had gone too far. But to question my faith? I told her that I now consider myself to be agnostic. This was somewhat of a surprise to her, seeing that I had been an adamant "believer" for many years. Upon my honest confession of non-faith, she informed me that her son could no longer play at our house. (Although, she assured me that my son is still welcome in her house.) After all, she doesn't know what goes on there....seeing that I don't "love the Lord" anymore. Our "values" are different, and she wants to "protect" her son.
This was more than I could take. I wrote her an email, stating what my values are. Kindness and respect were at the top of the list. I went on to outline the simple expectations I have around here....pick up your toys, say please and thank you, etc.
I even threw in the fact that we don't allow movies that "glofiry violence and bloodshed." (An interesting note, since her older sons watch war movies by the bucketful and own guns of every kind.)
Somehow, it was lacking. Such boring themes....hmmm...how to spice it up? I added this line in closing...
" And, btw, we do not allow drunkeness, drugs or wild orgies in our home."
Of course, we DO allow free speech.
I owe a debt of gratitude to the many Christians in my life who have affirmed my stance of non-belief. Even though I have read the writings of Dan Barker, Dawkins and others, my most compelling reasons to leave the faith are the actions of Christians, themselves.
Take my former neighbor, Danielle. Our kids have played together for years. Since leaving the church, I noticed some hesitation on her part when asking if her son could come over for an afternoon of tree climbing and video games with my son. Finally, today, I asked her what was up. Her reply surprised me. "Where are you with the Lord?" she asked. Ummmm...not the answer I was anticipating. I thought maybe there had been a problem with my son, or some childish prank had gone too far. But to question my faith? I told her that I now consider myself to be agnostic. This was somewhat of a surprise to her, seeing that I had been an adamant "believer" for many years. Upon my honest confession of non-faith, she informed me that her son could no longer play at our house. (Although, she assured me that my son is still welcome in her house.) After all, she doesn't know what goes on there....seeing that I don't "love the Lord" anymore. Our "values" are different, and she wants to "protect" her son.
This was more than I could take. I wrote her an email, stating what my values are. Kindness and respect were at the top of the list. I went on to outline the simple expectations I have around here....pick up your toys, say please and thank you, etc.
I even threw in the fact that we don't allow movies that "glofiry violence and bloodshed." (An interesting note, since her older sons watch war movies by the bucketful and own guns of every kind.)
Somehow, it was lacking. Such boring themes....hmmm...how to spice it up? I added this line in closing...
" And, btw, we do not allow drunkeness, drugs or wild orgies in our home."
Of course, we DO allow free speech.
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