(November 19, 2011 at 3:41 am)AthiestAtheist Wrote:(November 18, 2011 at 4:53 pm)Milky Tea Wrote: I can't help but feel that disproportionate criticism is being applied because it involves the religious.Criticism to and from who?
(November 18, 2011 at 4:53 pm)Milky Tea Wrote: This is hardly a situation unique to Churches and religious people.
It can happen any time a person finds them self in a situation where retaining good relations with a social group requires a certain degree of conformation to that groups expectations which may be achieved through the telling of inconsequential white lies. As for you Grandfathers motivation without asking him we can only speculate but I can think of a variety of reasons why he said what he did ranging from a desire to shield you from the disapproval of those asking the questions to a desire to avoid one of those 'loud conversations' about the existence of God you mentioned.
Perhaps there are some people out there who have a strict policy of telling no lies, no matter how small and insignificant or regardless of the consequences, but for most of us the telling of white lies or bending the truth is simply another tool of negotiating the trials and tribulations of life. I can't help but feel that disproportionate criticism is being applied because it involves the religious.
I never really meant to ask why my grandfather said that, but that's what I was thinking. What I really just wanted to ask whether it is better to lie to people in church about this sort of thing in general. Going by your answer... that would be a yes then?
The criticism part of my response was mainly directed at IATIA and Minimalist.
It would be yes because there are some situations where there is little benefit to inviting confrontation and this is one of them. As your story didn't include you correcting your Grandfather I can't help but think that you also recognised this.
Um...
