Do you argue with religious people?

[Brakeman]

I'm nice and political if they are, but if they come to my house to preach, they are the ones that get the sermon.

[robvalue]

Some JWs came to my friend's door, and he told them they need to "rethink their life".

[abaris]

I don't move in circles where the topic comes up. Can't say, outside of this board, I ever had a discussion about religion. Truth be told, I don't even know if my brother, his wife or my nephew are religious. They certainly don't go to church. That much I know, but we never talked about it, since there never was any reason to do so.

[Exian]

I run away and scream "Don't look at me!"

Seriously, nobody discusses religion around my parts. Everybody knows that, if you want to stay friendly, you don't discuss politics, religion, or Elvis. But when we get to drinking wine, my sister always tries to out me in front of my family. My face would turn red if it wasn't already.

I guess that's a different thing though. With people who aren't family, I'm willing to discuss just about anything.

[TheoneandonlytrueGod]

I refuse to argue.

In the past I have tried to argue the mythology in the bible I have struck out. I have found that people who quote the Bible have no tolerance toward those who see inconsistencies therein.

One experience I had while a member of a Church whose pastor with two kids was the occasion when the older daughter asked her father why I wasn't a Christian since I acted more like a Christian than most of the members of the Church. That really got me thinking and was, as I see it now, a further indication that religion was not the answer. (I realize I am not making myself entirely clear here so please forgive me).

At the Senior Center where I sometimes work at the reception desk I had occasion to have a conversation with a newly converted Christian who asked me my religious preference, when I said atheist she began, gently, to try to convert me. I, just as gently, let her know I didn't believe in God or any religion. She finally gave up and went away.

I've seen her since and she walks by me without acknowledging my presences. Oh,well, she has her beliefs and I mine.

Robert

[Exian]

This is the other way around, but it's good for a laugh:
http://m.wikihow.com/Persuade-an-Atheist...-Christian

Don't try to debate the specifics of the Bible. A discussion between a believer and a non-believer doesn't need to be a debate about science, or creationism, or an intricate dissection of the creation of the world as discussed in Genesis. Only discuss faith in terms of your personal experience of it. What does it mean to you, to be a Christian? That's got nothing to do with dinosaur bones and the age of the earth. Avoid these subjects.

[robvalue]

Lol nice. Let's face it, it's not going to be about science. Not from both parties.

[ReptilianPeon]

Some JWs came to my friend's door, and he told them they need to "rethink their life".

Occasionally they come to my house two, and if I know they are going to knock, I ignore the door. Generally, I try and avoid discussions with religious people. If family or a friend brings up the topic of religion then I will try my best to refute what they are saying but I won't be forceful. I would want them to take a moment to consider what they are saying. I have heard people say all sorts of crazy things, so if I could make the world just that bit more educated then I will feel a bit better.

[Exian]

Oh man, I had a JW come to my door. His name was Mike and he was cool as hell (sorta). I would invite him in just to shoot the shit, and besides, my lady just left me so I was kinda lonely. At that point, I would have said I was a Christian, even though I didn't practice, and anybody who did practice scared the shit out of me, so I thought JWs were weird as hell.

So, one day, Mike comes up and asks how I'm doing. I tell him I'm just playing some guitar and watching my daughter dance around (at this point, she was just learning to stand and walk). Mike gets all excited and sits down and starts playing some Black Sabbath and The Wind Cries Mary by Jimi (very fucking cool). At this point, he had been there a while, and my daughter has very obviously filled her diaper, and I'm not about to leave the room and let some stranger sit in my house alone, so I figure he'd leave in a minute. Nope! He sets down the guitar and says, and I quote, "Well, that's enough sinnin' for today. Let's talk about the good news." He talks for another 10 minutes while my daughter is growing more and more agitated. I finally had to ask him to leave so I could take care of business.

Now, the overstaying his welcome I attribute to just some social faux pas, what really got me was calling guitar playing "sinnin", but also that he was willing to do it for a short time, AND had some sort of guage for "enough sinnin". I felt so bad for him, because while he was playing, you could see how much he was enjoying himself. There are very little connections like that between two musicians, and it's just sad to see someone throw it away like that. He and I would have probably been good friends in another life.

[Chad32]

That's one of the biggest shames of religion. It prevents people from having harmless fun, for fear that it will turn them bad, or let demons in. Like someone who I once saw argue against yoga because it relaxes you, and might allow demons to possess you. Can you imagine always having your guard up against things that can't be proven to exist? usually we'd call that paranoid schizophrenia. 

I had some JWs come to my door a few times one year. This was back when I had started going to church again, so I could honestly tell them I was going to church, and we talked a bit about christianity. My grandmother was always against them, but back when I was christian I liked how they really got out there and spread the word like people were supposed to do. I just don't think that being told not to drink blood means you shouldn't get blood transfusions. There may have been one or two other things I was told about them that grandma disagreed with, but I forget.