(February 26, 2014 at 4:42 pm)Insanity Wrote: I remember feeling guilty a couple of times. I wasn't deconverting anyone but when I was doing religious studies we had a bunch of trips. We'd always end up talking to an imam, priest, rabbi or whoever. Usually I'd just ask them questions in kind of a funny way but all in good spirit. We had one vicar who came across as a bit cocky and I asked some less friendly questions than usual, caught him off guard and he ended up getting flustered in front of his people (no idea who his posse were) and our class. I felt a bit like a bully and guilty about that one.
I remember having a similar situation where I stopped asking questions because I suddenly felt guilty while talking to some priest. I just suddenly realized the guy had spent his entire life in pursuit of becoming a priest and I just felt bad about saying anything that would make him feel bad.
We live in a society where it is fine to question and debate political views, but if it is a belief you have to just shut up and accept it. Naturally I do just that as it is seen as socially unacceptable, but I wish it were not the case.
A priest takes peoples money in return for a service he provides. You shouldn't feel guilty asking questions, just as if a salesman is selling you something you should question them to see if what they are saying is true.
