Monday, November 7, 2022

Is This Atheist a Frenchie? Apparently Not, But a Pantheist from Arizona


I didn't note he spelled it "atheist" in the plural ... he is perhaps French? (Or she). One Michael Knight stepped in and basically claimed responsibility for the question, he's from Arizona.

Q
I am perplexed that Christians cannot just leave atheist alone. They have infiltrated our schools, government, workplace, and our homes by knocking on our doors. Why do Christians feel they have to infiltrate every fabric of our society?
https://www.quora.com/I-am-perplexed-that-Christians-cannot-just-leave-atheist-alone-They-have-infiltrated-our-schools-government-workplace-and-our-homes-by-knocking-on-our-doors-Why-do-Christians-feel-they-have-to-infiltrate-every/answer/Hans-Georg-Lundahl-1


Note:
"cannot just leave atheist alone." - It is "atheistS" if it's many, and "AN atheist" if it's one, for instance himself. Or herself. From context "our" rather than "my" it is probable the plural is meant and the s left out in plural, since not pronounced there. In English, however, it is pronounced and leaving out the plural s is not a very common mistake.

Hans-Georg Lundahl
Catholic convert, reading many Catechisms
7.XI.2022
Three parts to it.

“I am perplexed that Christians cannot just leave atheist alone.”

I think I will save this for the last.

“They have infiltrated our schools, government, workplace, and our homes by knocking on our doors.”

Let’s break this apart a bit …

“They have infiltrated our schools,”

The schools belong to Atheists?

“[our] government,”

The government belongs to Atheists?

“[our] workplace,”

Your company is an Atheist company where Atheist confession is a requirement for getting hired? How many Christians are applying for the post as Secretary of the Humanist Society? Is your local American Atheists’ club infiltrated by Christian janitors getting hired? But in that case that might not be your workplace anyway? Or is your workplace a grocery shop, where you feel ill at ease because your boss gets the chicken at the annual feast from Chick-Fil-A?

“and our homes by knocking on our doors.”

Neither JW nor Legionaries of Mary are likely to infiltrate your home if you close the door - are you complaining that you have neighbours who didn’t close the door and became Christian (thanks to legionaries) or near Christian (bc of JW)? Do you feel a need to feel responsibility for every home in your neighbourhood? Isn’t that kind of collectivistic?

“Why do Christians feel they have to infiltrate every fabric of our society?”

One point is, society used to be Christian. If you aren’t Jewish or Hemant Mehta, probably most of your eight great-grandparents were Christians. Or if you are very élite, at least most of the 32 grandparents of these great-grandparents. We have some social ambitions to get back what we lost. We do not like what Atheists have been doing since they got the upper hand in many instances. For instance, Roe v. Wade, and similar things in France (“loi Veil”) or Sweden, for instance school compulsion for 9 to 12 years and most accessible schools in fact run by atheists or very shallow Christians who have more in common with you than with actual Christians, and you yourself seem to have got the impression that the public school systems belongs to you Atheists. Plus, our some social ambition, as I put it, is matched by our religious duty. Read Matthew chapter 28 verses 16 to 20 if you aren’t totally allergic to the Bible, or even if you are, and you’ll find what duty I am talking about.

But, here is where I get back to the start.

“I am perplexed that Christians cannot just leave atheist alone.”

I have as a Christian had my life ruined by Atheists in my own country Sweden, and so have in other ways more than one whom I left back there, and as a homeless man, begging with cardboards of my blog URLs, I am obviously a target for Atheists who feel bothered by Christian information being even available, but it’s more like some guys over here are not leaving my situation alone, and Atheists are part of it. If a man can get stamped as mentally ill for being Geocentric and Young Earth Creationist, or even for being Flat Earth, which happens to be wrong, Atheists have too much power to bother Christians. Well into their lives.

Same observation for Atheists who feel I am not leaving the alone as long as I make my blog adresses available by holding them up in the street. I am not forcing anyone to read my blog, and I am also not forcing anyone to be friends with me if he’s allergic to discussing for instance Biblical chronology vs carbon dating with a Fundie Christian. If they make it about me not leaving them alone, it is hypocrisy in the root and it is oppression of free speech in the result.

Michael Knight
7.XI.2022
Just a reminder on this huge rock floating in space there are over 2000 religions, people of all races, beliefs of all types, agnostics, witches, numerous nationalities, etc - so when I say “our” I mean the collected world as a whole. And out of the 8 billion people on the earth, there are many many that want nothing to so with christianity which may surprise you. Actually I think the world is way overly saturated with hearing the christian “good news” and on many cases the saturation closes people off to listening anymore. It is not christians duty to save the world and others as perpetuated in the churches and bible.

Hans-Georg Lundahl
7.XI.2022
"Just a reminder on this huge rock floating in space"

Standing still in space, but OK for huge rock.

"there are over 2000 religions,"

most of which are outside Sweden, Austria, France, Arizona and US (while US may involve people from all of them, most are based outside it and very minoritarian in US).

"people of all races,"

Again, true of the world, less true of US, and even less of Sweden, Austria or France.

"beliefs of all types,"

Yes, if you go to very minoritarian places in your country or to very far off places.

"agnostics,"

Most of which in the West would have perhaps already most of their 8 greatgrandparents, and pretty certainly most of the 32 grandparents (4*8 = 32) in some version of Christianity.

"witches,"

Many of which are also from Christian extraction.

"numerous nationalities, etc - so when I say “our” I mean the collected world as a whole."

But the world doesn’t own the schools or the workplaces in Arizona!

"And out of the 8 billion people on the earth,"

What about the 6 392 017 of Arizona, give or take a few since 2010 census and some unregistered illegal immigrants, many of whom are Roman Catholic and therefore Christian?

"there are many many that want nothing to so with christianity which may surprise you."

I have not lived in a small village of the Bible belt. Sweden is one of the world’s and certainly one of Europe’s least religious countries, that’s one major reason I left.

"Actually I think the world is way overly saturated with hearing the christian 'good news' "

Some anti-Christian minority in Arizona take on speaking up for 8 billion in the world, to add some leverage against 65 % Catholic, Protestant and Mormon, with just 21 % Unaffiliated?

"and on many cases the saturation closes people off to listening anymore."

Can happen.

"It is not christians duty to save the world and others as perpetuated in the churches and bible."

Perhaps not duty of politeness to you, but duty of effort to God. And to some extent, duty despite politeness to you. I was polite enough to wait for you to speak up, however.

Michael Knight
7.XI.2022
I actually believe we are all one, so people in Sweden are part of my “our” as much as in any other country. I don't narrow it down to just the state I live in as you have for me. I highly respect your freedom to believe and live as you want and all I ask for others that believe differently as you do the same.

In the United States we live in a Republic that protects the rights of all individuals including the minorities. If there is a dozen people in each of let's say 1800 religions their freedoms are just as important as the faiths with millions of followers. I know christians don't believe that because they feel they have the ultimate truth but please honor others freedoms. Actually the world would be so dull and boring if it were all christian (or any faith) - just like it would living in eternity singing and praising a entity that demands it, sounds like a narcissist.

Hans-Georg Lundahl
7.XI.2022
“I actually believe we are all one, so people in Sweden are part of my “our” as much as in any other country.”

It’s called Pantheism and tends to stifling freedoms. Condolences for having such an unhappy belief.

“In the United States we live in a Republic that protects the rights of all individuals including the minorities.”

Including the right to free speech and that includes the freedom to argue your religion.

“please honor others freedoms.”

I don’t know your workplace, but if you feel bothered by a Christian, why don’t propose this deal : he or she can talk to others about the faith if they are interested and not to you since you aren’t. If you are trying to stop her or him from speaking about it to everyone and anyone, you are in fact attacking freedoms.

“Actually the world would be so dull and boring if it were all christian (or any faith)”

Catholicism doesn’t have a track record for being boring.

“just like it would living in eternity singing and praising a entity that demands it, sounds like a narcissist.”

Praising is an act of happiness, and that “entity” offers the one happiness there ultimately is. Hoping to be happy without God is like hoping to survive without ingesting calories. Your biology is not created for zero calories and your mind is not created for zero God or zero affection for God.

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