Pesky fundamentalist parents. Any creative suggestions?

fiatlux · 03-28-2011, 07:04 PM

I often read posts here and have for a long time. I gather strength and laugh my ass off and feel a kinship with the regular posters even though my participation is passive. Now I'm in kind of a funny quandary that I'd welcome some creative help with.

But first, a little about me. I was a preachers son, raised evangelical but have been atheist/agnostic since my late teens. Today I'm 45 and atheist without a belief in the supernatural. Until a couple of months ago I thought my best course of action was to just ignore the rest of my family's beliefs. if they want to believe stupid shit, let them. Hey, why poke the bear?

Well, the day I dreaded finally arrived a couple of months ago. My mom flat out asked me if I believed in god so I just told her the truth. It was a long conversation that ended up with me shredding all of her stupid beliefs - even though it made no difference, of course, to her devotion to the irrational.

So, today, I get a book in the mail from home. It's called "evidence of christianity" or something by some douchbag named Josh McDowell- a name I remember from way back. I read a few pages and it's just the same old false argument, circular reasoning horseshit that turned me off of supernatural belief in the first place.

So what would you do? I don't feel like getting into a pissing contest with people, as they don't listen and aren't terribly smart. I mean, I could send them a book of my own, but they would never read it with an open mind.

Does anybody else have experience with this kind of thing?

zdave · 03-28-2011, 07:13 PM

Send your family a copy of the God Delusion.

Their open mindedness isn't your responsibility. If symptoms persist, I find the odd "fuck off" usually heralds the end of any further discussion (or at least a family friendly alternative version such as "buzz off").

West491 · 03-28-2011, 07:14 PM

Welcome to the forum!

Wow! You waited until you were 45 to come out? You're so patient

Of course, if you send them a book they more than likely won't read it. Even if (a big IF) they do read it, they will do so with Jesus' blood-stained goggles fitted on, nice and snug.

Wouldn't a good solution be to kindly ask them to stop sending you this sort of mail?

Edit: If it bothers you that much, I think you can block mailing addresses.

West491 · 03-28-2011, 07:16 PM

Quote:

zdave wrote

Send your family a copy of the God Delusion.

Do you seriously think an evangelical will crack open a book with such a title.

fiatlux · 03-28-2011, 07:26 PM

Thanks west and zdave. Yeah, it would be easy enuff to tell them to fuck off or ask them to stop sending shit. But I know they won't and i don't want to completely alienate myself from them Scientology style. Thanks for the ideas tho. I may resort to them and see what happens.

West491 · 03-28-2011, 07:44 PM

Actually, I never really answered your question. What would I do?

Well, it depends on the volume of shit their sending me and the frequency.

If it's every week, they get blocked, parents or not (I'm not very patient). If it's like once a month, I simply throw it away in the trash can on my way back to the house.

zdave · 03-28-2011, 08:13 PM

"Keep your dirty hate literature to yourself... please."

^that's what I'd do.

muse · 03-28-2011, 08:26 PM

Quote:

zdave wrote

"Keep your dirty hate literature to yourself... please."

^that's what I'd do.

I just avoid fundys, I think they are delusional and I avoid anyone who lives in a fantasy land.

Ignore a them as if you debate them they feel you have something to prove. I don't care if they live or die as long as I can stay away from them.
Crazy zealots are often dangerous and I don't need to explain my views on religion to them, it's not my desire to convert them to a sane state. Those who live in hell on Earth have a hope of life after death, and I say the sooner they are happy in heaven the better I will feel.

West491 · 03-28-2011, 08:55 PM

Quote:

muse wrote

I just avoid fundys, I think they are delusional and I avoid anyone who lives in a fantasy land.

Ignore a them as if you debate them they feel you have something to prove. I don't care if they live or die as long as I can stay away from them.
Crazy zealots are often dangerous and I don't need to explain my views on religion to them, it's not my desire to convert them to a sane state. Those who live in hell on Earth have a hope of life after death, and I say the sooner they are happy in heaven the better I will feel.

Well, that's some introduction! Welcome to our humble abode.

Kinich Ahau · 03-28-2011, 11:23 PM

I'd say just let a bit of time pass until everyone goes back to ignoring the elephant in the room. Most families are pretty good at this.

Smellyoldgit · 03-29-2011, 01:05 AM

In order, I'd go for the three tried & tested procedures:

Facepalm
Point & Laugh
Shut the Fuck Up!!

muse · 03-29-2011, 03:59 AM

Thank you all. I don't like being hostile to religion, but I am hostile to anyone who thinks the man in the sky is watching me taking a shower and knows the number of the hairs on my gonads. Sounds perverted that people think God is watching them in their private bedrooms and has rules on what 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 adults are doing in there.
I think it may soon be a viagra commercial. When god is watching, you want to be at the top of you game as he likes a good porn scene. Give God a good show of you holy moon.

Sternwallow · 03-29-2011, 04:01 AM

Quote:

fiatlux wrote

...

Since, I take it, you have no strong interest in converting your family to atheism, why not reply, in a note perhaps, that you appreciate they are trying to do good things for you and explain or reiterate that your arguments were not against them and their beliefs, but were just the reasons why you have taken your own path.

You might add, if you really feel this way, that you are not doing it as rebellion nor to sin more freely.

I have gotten my family (Brother-in-law is a Lutheran minister) to send me books like "God, the Failed Hypothesis" for Christmas and birthdays.

And a hearty welcome to the funny ~~farm~~ forum.

muse · 03-29-2011, 04:06 AM

Ask a Lutheran how they feel about Luther's hatred of the Jews and how Hitler used his work to justify his deeds, as Hitler too was a good Christian doing god's work.

Sorry about going Godwin's so soon, it just boils over at times.

ILOVEJESUS · 03-29-2011, 04:27 AM

Welcome. Just be true to yourself. Explain you do not believe, accept your family do , and that if they preach to you you will preach to them. Ultimately no one wins and your family do not have the right to bully you into accepting their claptrap just because they are your family. You have to be a politician though a lot of the time, but don't allow your valuable self discovery to be a target for piles of shite.