Open discussion of the Christian Why We're Here thread

[Whateverist]

I don't think he realizes it though. Lolz. 

As for what I think of the debate and the posts within? 

CL: Joined here three months after I did. She's been a wonderful friend, even when we engage in back and forth posts where I strongly disagree with her opinions. Her thread prompting the birth of the Christian-only debate is a prime example of how she accepts my thoughts without taking it very personally. I love her dearly and as far as my RL friends go - I consider her to be in my small circle of people I trust.

She knows where I stood on having a section just for theists, as did everyone. Still - neither of us resorted to name calling each other. I believe there's a good reason for that. It is because CL never says a harsh word about anyone on here, regardless of who it is. Opinions about faith and beliefs run the gamut on here and CL has dealt with her share of being bullied (for lack of a better word). There are times she's wanted to leave. I convinced her to stay. Truth be told, we need her here. She's a great presence on this site. We've both learned from each other, I think. 

Given her viewpoints and tolerance with certain subjects, I'm hesitant to regard her as Catholic anymore. I can't even regard her as Episcopalian because her some of her views are far too progressive for either religion. And there's nothing wrong with that. I feel that she has a better understanding of the world and the way it is, because she is open to listening to others' thoughts on hotly contested topics. She also stands her ground when she feels she needs to.  This is why I feel she's a good influence on the forum. She listens and then she gives her thoughts. All without being brutal or calling names or being insulting.  

GC: He's a mixed bag for me, tbh. On the one hand, he's been incredibly supportive of me and my journey of being a non-smoker (ten months now smoke free). On many of the off topic threads he contributes to, he comes across as an average guy and for the most part, only brings religion into threads in the religion sections of the forum. He too, is another decent contributor but on the other hand, I feel that perhaps debating with him would work better if the preaching was left out of his posts. That's just my opinion, of course, but we're being honest and that's how I feel. 

I didn't join AF to be preached to. If I wanted that, I would have gone to a religious forum.

Alpha Male: As harsh as some of it was, I appreciate the honesty in his post. I miss him in Mafia. Religion aside - he's a really good Mafia player and I for that, I wish he was around more. Both him and CL have never, to my knowledge, brought religion into the Mafia games. I appreciate that because 99% of that game is mentally messing with everyone else and it can get really emotionally intense at times. 

He said this: 

It's a shame you think this way. When someone gets to know you through Mafia, you're not the same person that I see posting elsewhere on the forums. 


Personally, once we can cut through all of the mud-slinging and the insults - I think you make good contributions here, even if others are in disagreement with that. We can all learn something from each other, as someone else said. If I remember correctly, I think you're the one with five children. I have four myself. Perhaps we could trade parenting stories sometime. I'd like to find common ground with the theists here. Religion isn't necessary for that because there are so many other things we can learn about each other. I'm not going to convince you to stick around, as you are free to go, but I think this forum would be losing a good person from the Religious Team that's here. So, don't go. 



I disagree with the undertone of saying that she can't make friends here. Of course she could make them elsewhere on the WWW. But I would never have known her if she hadn't ventured in here. She's been a wonderful friend to many of us here. 

Drich: I can't go there. I'm not ready to be forgiving as there's been a lot of fire between us on a lot of things. I won't apologize for that either. So I'm just going to leave it at that because I just can't find it in myself to say nice things at the moment. 

A Theist: I have come to personally know A Theist through a series of PM's in the first part of this year, I believe. He's also been one of the theists here that I've come to defend. Not that he needs it. But along with Deb, I feel he's a valuable contributor here. It's those two that I have a warm spot in my heart for. Believe it or not, the member's photo thread can be looked at as an opportunity to see the human side of those members we would not otherwise give a second glance to. I for one, look forward to seeing all of the wonderful hats he creates and I love teasing him for not smiling in his pictures. If anyone has the privilege of getting to know him "behind the scenes", he's really a nice, sweet person. 

So because of what I consider to be a friendship with AT, like CL, I tend to shy away from many religious threads where they are active because honestly, religion and politics are two of the topics I tend to avoid discussing with close friends unless they happen to share my views. It's a tightrope I don't have an interest in walking on because I value my friendships more than our differing of opinion on those topics. 

That said, I'm glad he posted his thoughts in the Christian only debate thread. That raw honesty gave me a chance to learn more about him than what I had previously known.

Why, thankee, Joods! I appreciate that! Here's a great big ol' smile for you! 😁 In all seriousness, I value our friendship too. I've always considered you to be one of the more insightful members here...and I do appreciate some of the "positive" feedback  from a few of those who posted their observations. Also, I don't want you to feel like not wanting to challenge me in a discussion because of our friendship. Even from those who may annoy me just a tad from time to time, I don't take it personal. I would have been out of here a long time ago if I did. Here's another big ol' smile for you! 😁

What the hell kind of avatar is that you're sporting?  Where is your non-smiling mug with a hat on top?